Well, so far, I have succeeded. It hasn't gotten worse! It hasn't gotten better, but I have excuses for that. :) We are still under construction. But the bathroom's finally done, and so I have started to put stuff back in there, and noticed that I hoard even in the bathroom.
I had lotions that I don't like the smell of, face washes that make me break out, hand sanitizers (in the bathroom, really?) that need to be in the purse and beach bag, etc. All that stuff. So right now, it's in a tote for sorting. I am only putting things in the bathroom as needed. So far, there is stuff in the shower for showering, but only one of each thing needed (I used to have 2 or 3 shampoos, etc, that adds up quickly). I have one gallon bucket of toys (used to be a whole basket, so the small bucket is an improvement. I have hairbrushes and hairties in a container on the vanity. I cleaned out the medicine cabinet. I have a laundry basket, and a stool. So far, that's it. It seems so empty.
But I will not fill it. I like it empty. Feels so serene. Oh, and I put a candle in there. :) Never had room for that before. I like the serene feeling of no clutter. My kids keep bringing things in there, and I bring them right back out. Extra chair, nope. They mostly shower now and I don't need a stool in there to sit on during baths. towel cabinet, nope. I have the towels under the vanity and cleaned out all the stuff under there that doesn't need to be there. Potty chair, nope. They are not young enough to need it, and we have another bathroom downstairs they can use if this one is already in use. Everyone can lock the door when they go now!
So, the bathroom is my first real non-clutter room. Little by very little I am going to do this to each room. I have noticed that if things are done little by little, they are easier to keep up with, and I don't get so overwhelmed. So when I notice something I don't need, I toss or donate it. Not wait until I have a whole box, or do a whole room at a time. I will not impose impossible goals on myself, and it will still get done!
I post this in order to motivate those of you who go through something similar. If you read my previous posts about hoarding, it's not all fanatical like that on the show. That is extreme (hence the name.) Most hoarders are just like me - they simply are overwhelmed with the prospect of getting rid of stuff. So we don't. Old useless towels at the bottom of the pile. Lotions and soaps that will never be used just sitting there. Toys from when your 9 year old was 3. China that you dislike but can't bear to part with. Etc.
The battle doesn't have to be all-out hands-down militia style. It can be gentle. It's your stuff. It can be gone through. You don't have to toss it. However, most of the stuff most people own is for convenience and show, not for necessity. If your stuff is taking over your house and your life, you could use a paring down.
When you do your laundry, you always put away the clothes on top, right? well take the bottom two items out of each drawer and consider donating them. Then it's easier to put your clothes away. I always put my clothes away in the center of the closet, and then once in a while, I look at the outsides. I have gotten pretty good, there's not much in there I don't wear on a semi-regular basis.
Go to the bottom of the kids toyboxes. Are there toys in there they haven't seen in months? Salvation Army would love to have them. Look in your "junk drawer". Are there papers in there you have no idea why you saved them? Or manuals for things that no longer work, but you hang on to them? Toss a little at a time.
Let me know if you are taking this journey with me. Encouragement and accountability are motivation :)
God Bless!
One Christian Mom
2 comments:
I'll sign up to take the journey with you! My circumstances are a little different, but I feel like our goal is probably the same. I want to create order where there is none, simplify our lifestyle and our possessions and just be really mindful of what we bring into our home. We just moved into a new (much bigger) home that I love. It all happened kind of fast and I didn't have time to meticulously organize and purge as I packed. Now I have a house full of boxes and it seems totally overwhelming at times. One thing I'm doing is just to go through things in small time blocks. I'm trying to go through that pile quickly before I add another piece of paper to it. It may not be perfectly sorted, but it's better than it was. I realized that my nightstand was overflowing with catalogs and newsletters the other night. I just started going through a handful at a time. The funny thing was that 99% of it was stuff I wanted to recycle. Anyway, I'm in.
Thanks for joining in, Tina! That's how it started for me. We moved. The movers piled the boxes so I couldn't get to the top ones without hurting myself. My ex (but husband at the time) got one at a time for me, but like one every few weeks or month. Then it stopped. the stuff sat there for years, and it became a breeding ground for stuff. Then I started just "collecting" stuff. Wow.
So glad you are able to let go of stuff easily. When I go through catalogues now, it's much easier, but it used to be, "No, i have to keep that one. I might want to buy something." Or with magazines, "There was that article that I might want to read again."
I am thankful that now I can usually throw them away. Small time blocks is such a good way to do it. I have to remember that!
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