Take a deep breathe and just let it go. That’s what I keep reminding myself with every drawer I open.
I am my Mother’s daughter. This phrase definitely has new meaning to me as I continue to tackle our {Freedom From Clutter in 40 Days} challenge! I’m realizing just how much I am like my mother. It’s not easy for me to let go of things and I definitely inherited/learned that from my mother. We both are Learning to Let Go of Clutter one drawer at a time!
How is your decluttering going? Are you beginning to feel the “Freedom”? Have you found anything interesting during your decluttering? Remember the idea behind this challenge is that it’s a marathon not a sprint. A little time each day can go a long way.
I started my decluttering process in my kitchen since I spend the most time there. Having a food blog and all I figured it was the most sensible place to start. I’ve been using my One Drawer At A Time method and it really is amazing how much junk I have collected without a lot of time spent each day. I haven’t spent more than 30 minutes on any given day and most often it was about 10-15 minutes! Look at how much I’m letting go of!
The biggest challenge for me has been Learning to Let Go of Clutter. I never realized how much of a grip the clutter in my house had on me. I’m learning to look at things a bit differently, taking a deep breathe and just letting it go. I’m already beginning to feel the “Freedom” and it’s a great feeling to have!
These are some things that I keep in mind as I declutter, helping me to learn how to let go of the clutter.
Being able to find things again. How often have you been frustrated trying to find your keys or that important paper or your favorite shirt? As I’ve been going through cleaning each space out I can’t even tell you how many things I found in drawers that they had no buisiness being in! I made sure everything found their proper home. Helping me have ease in finding what I want when I want it, gaining me Freedom from Stress!
Ahhhchooo! With every sneeze I’m realizing how much clutter collects dust! There was lots of sneezing going on as I tackled a few areas. I made sure I completely emptied each space and vacuumed out the area before anything went back in. It didn’t take long and hopefully I’ll sneeze a little less for it. Another really good reason to let it go. Freedom from my allergies!
My junk is someone else’s treasure. Knowing that someone out there is in need of something I have collecting dust in my drawer should be the best reason to just let it go. I mean really… how many can openers do I really need? We had a yard sale a few years back and had a pile of junk marked “free” on it. I was amazed at how quickly it was scooped up. Some of the stuff in that bin was truly junk in my eyes but you never know what some crafty person can do to transform that junk into a treasure. Donating my overabundance has given me Freedom from guilt. Knowing that someone in need is now getting what I do not need.
Throwing money out the window! In the end the whole idea that I need to save this ___ because someone in the family might need it some day is a crock! Those days have come and gone and when we need___ we can’t find it because it’s buried in clutter so we go out and buy a new one! This was painfully discovered in my decluttering process when I found some old Disney Hopper Passes with one more day left on each ticket. We just went to Disney last month while visiting my sister for the holidays. I won’t even tell you how much we spent on Disney World tickets! With every drawer I declutter and put things in their proper place I know I’m gaining Freedom from wasting money!
Keeping all these things in mind while I declutter is really helping me let go. Here are a few of the before and after pictures of some of the spaces I decluttered!
It’s a good feeling to be able to easily find what I’m looking now and I don’t have to stuff everything back into the drawer so that I can close it!
Do you suffer from a clutter ridden home? If you can relate to this even a little bit then we hope you’ll join us as we tackle this {Freedom From Clutter in 40 Days} challenge! Don’t worry about being late. It’s ok for you to join in anytime.
We even set up a private Facebook page that you can join. It’s a place where we can all interact together, share tips and the latest posts that my other blogger friends and I post in our “Freedom From Clutter in 40 Days” challenge. Let’s face it decluttering isn’t the most exciting thing to do. If it was we’d all have immaculate homes. Think of it as a kind of Decluttering support group! The group is growing and I love all the great tips and ideas that everyone is sharing over there. Just click here for the link then click on join. One of the group administrators will accept your request and you can start joining in the decluttering “fun”!
Make sure you visit Christina over at Juggling Real Food And Real Life to see her latests Decluttering posts: Declutter Strategy: Start With What is Visible and Random Number Declutter Method.
I will be sharing this at: Wine’d Down Wednesday Wow Us Wednesday I’m Lovin It
After you get your decluttering done reward yourself with a little nourishment. Here are some of my latests posts. Just click on the picture for the recipe.
This is so helpful to keep me motivated Nicole! You are so right that it is a marathon and I really want to finish the race.
I really want to too! It’s beginning to feel so good to open my once cluttered drawers and have everything neat and so easily accessible!
I am in major decluttering mode right now. We’re moving this week. Even though I am up to my eyeballs in boxes, most of it…”most of it” is something we need or want to save. With every drawer, cabinet I open there are memories from 20 years in this house. I keep a big “donation” bag close. I feel better about tossing things into that bag for someone else than tossing into the trash. We had our big yard sale in November and we purged a ton at that time. If you don’t see me around for a few days you’ll know I setting sail on our new adventure. But I’ll be back, hopefully the end of next week! Thanks for the tips. They are valuable.
Twenty years is a long time! I’m sure you are feeling all kinds of emotions KC. Good luck on your new adventure as you and your hubby begin to carve out new memories in a new place. I will be thinking about you and can’t wait to hear how it all goes. I’m sure you’ll have some of your own tips and advice when your done!
So true! I used to be very cluttery, but as God has healed my heart and delivered me from various things, I have found it much easier to let go of clutter. I still have clutter, but not as much. It’s easier to clean my home because there’s so much less stuff than years past. Always room for improvement and these are great reminders.