A Place for Everything

and everything in its place, right? Well a girl can dream. And dreaming I am…to the point of actually starting to do something about it. As people who know me well will attest, I am not the most organized person (thus proving that it is a myth that you have to be organized to homeschool.) And our house reflects that. I strive to live simply, yet have clutter all over the place and find it hard to get rid of things. But lately I have been feeling more motivated in this area. And I am going with it.

I came across this article, Pilers, Filiers or Messies: Home Organization Ideas…I am definitely a piler. So this is giving me a better focus…you don’t have to get rid of the piles, just find a better way to contain them. Which explains why one of the best tips I got at some point was to look at where your stuff winds up naturally and then organize around that. So instead of trying to get myself to hang my pajamas in the closet or put them in a drawer, I have a basket for them in my bathroom (they usually wound up on the floor when I got in the shower, much nicer in the basket). Same thing works for the kids…they usually throw their shoes in this little area behind the couch when they come home. I now have a basket there to catch them. I actually also have a very nice little cubby there too which they don’t use, but it does come in handy for soccer uniforms etc.

I also recently came across two blogs that have really given me the bug to de-clutter, iHeart Organizing and Nesting Place. Both are real moms who just happen to love organizing and decorating. I find that I really am drawn to people who love what they do and do what they love. I used to read a few professional organizing blogs that I had found but they were just too, well, professional and never really seemed to have many practical suggestions. I love the genuine enthusiasm of these two ladies, not to mention their creative and practical ideas. And the fact that they have families. Each one organizes/decorates on a budget and it has been inspiring me to possibly even want to take one some more crafty projects. I used to do more of that (painting furniture etc) but seemed to have lost the desire over the years. Now I feel it starting to poke its little head back out again.

So far, I have started gathering all my empty baskets and other things that I can use to organize in one place so I know what I already have (they are currently scattered all over the house). I have found a home for an old painted window frame that has been sitting around for years. I finally took this photo from our photography session (almost 2 years ago!) in to be framed and am thinking about what I want to do with our mantle. I bought two bins to help corral the items in the cleaning supply closet. I have gotten a start on cleaning out Jason’s room (no easy feat, but looks better already) and I have at least two boxes of stuff ready to donate. I also now have a box to collect old CDs that need recycling (like the one to the old PC game I found that said it needed a computer with a 486 processor…) I have started gathering my old frames together and really want to go through my photos and frame some of my favorite ones (a project I have had on the back burner for awhile now).

My biggest problem with starting to organize is that the house usually starts looking worse before it looks better. But we have our annual watergun/potluck party this week, so I will need to get things more or less put away. Or just keep everyone in the backyard.

I am taking before and after pictures, so hopefully I can share some of that with everyone. Or maybe I should just post the before pictures to shame myself into staying motivated…

I am also amused by the fact that I am starting to get really motivated about organizing now…when we have 2 weeks or so to go until we head to Ocean City for the summer. Hopefully it will carry over to our place there too.

Comments

[Jennifer]

Congratulations on beginning the journey of de-cluttering and organizing. My experience has been that this practice has so many things to offer. I thought I was just trying to organize my house when I took this on, but I soon realized it is an outer reflection of deep inner work. As I organize my inner thoughts and experiences in new ways; as I rewire myself, I change my house to reflect that.

Another way this helps me is that once I start with a vision of an organized and harmonious house, I start really seeing all the ways it isn't perfect. Being able to be at peace with the way things are is a gift too. I wish you well!

[Ashley]

Stephanie,
I, too, am a piler! I have stacks of mail, random magazine clippings, clothes, etc...all over the house. Well, actually, just upstairs. I keep the bottom floor tidy to support the illusion of a tidy home. I totally agree that things start to look worse before they look better. I was trying to clean up my bedroom the other day and my daughter came in and said,"Mommy, what are you doing?! Why are you making such a mess?" I told her that I was trying to organize things and that I was actually cleaning. She turned around shaking her head, walked out of the room saying,"Messy, messy, messy." The story of my life.

[PearlCabin]

I have always struggled with clutter. I have moved to a very small house and am now working hard to keep it under control. I am sharing my experiences with my blog: http://pearlcabin.blogspot.com/

[Sabrina]

Probably the hardest time for changing anything in your house is while taking care of a kid, cause you spend all your time taking care of him.