Starting A New Purge

  

    A few years ago I decided to do a big purge at the house. I tried to get organized. I wanted to keep a regular cleaning schedule. But then my son was born. He is three now and that makes it easier to take care of him and the house. So now I am once again undertaking the task of purging, organizing, and cleaning our home.

    Before I jump into this new task, I think we should talk about what I did in the last attempt. There were things I did well and things that didn’t go as well...Last time I started with the add on porch. It was so full of stuff that there was barely a winding path between my front door and the door into the main house. My husband would let no one visit our home. We were ashamed and tired. Seeing all the clutter made us tired. The idea of starting was overwhelming. Where should I start? I knew my husband had an even harder time than me letting go of things. If I accidentally got rid of something would he kill me and make me stop? What was I going to do about all the projects and half done crafts I had piled in there? So I started watching cleaning and organizing channels on YouTube. I started reading books on it. Eventually, I wrapped my brain around two ideas. One was that all that stuff may seem useful but if it is buried then I can’t use it. Second was that everything I own is more to take care of in some way. Things on shelves have to be dusted. Projects put more on my To Do list. The more clothes I keep the more I have to store in the off season or wash in season. Then I started explaining the things I was learning to my husband. It took awhile. At first I was only purging my things. But I would tell him about it and how good I felt. He would see the space I was making and he liked it.Slowly he got on board and purged some stuff. He didn’t like me making all the trips to donate things. He really hated going to the dump with a few things. But slowly we purged the whole house. Then I spent a while arranging rooms. My husband hates when I decide to move furniture or change where stuff goes in a room. His personality wants to be in charge of those decisions. Plus if something is out of sight it is out of mind for him. I thought he was just being a butt about not wanting me to organize stuff. A few arguments and YouTube videos later I realized he needs to see things to remember to use them.

    One of the YouTube channels that helped me understand how to organize the house was Clutterbug. I will be writing a separate blog about her way of explaining organizing styles to me. But here are some key things I learned about me and my husband. I like things slightly visual and pretty. He likes things VERY visual. I can handle containers with lids and he will not use a lid on anything.I like things perfectly organized into specific little ways. He likes things organized but needs them in big macro type systems where he can chuck things into bins. Once I understood this I just thought about what I was organizing. If it was an area we both used often, I organized it VERY visual with baskets he could see the contents of and where he could easily put things back. Things that could be seen because they are private like underwear I labeled with my Dymo labeler. But I found that his eyes glassed over it. This year I am going to try bigger labels with a stock photo of boxers. If it was a space only I used I would do more detailed systems. Since only I cook I put pot and things where and how I wanted. But I put silverware low and visual. I wish my cabinet with plates and cups was lower and had a glass door. But they are all really high or really low. I put all my projects into cube organizing with big labels so I can see what I have to do and get it to work on easily. Plus cube organizing uses vertical space and gives me more floor space.. I turned the porch into another gaming space, a YouTube studio, and an Etsy shop.

    So why am I back to a hoarder mess 3 years later? Simple. Kids have lots of stuff. My husband got into guns. I bought lots of stuff for my Etsy and YouTube. I never cleaned or purged in those 3 years. Since my son has been born I haven’t been cleaning or organizing anything. Laundry and dishes have been out of control. So now it is time to purge and get back in control of my home and my time. I will be taking you guys along on this journey. So buckle up.We got a long and truthfully probably hard ride ahead.But the end result will be SO worth it!