A Clutter & Stress Free 2011

I typically don't make a list of New Years resolutions. I do however, create goals and plans for what I need to do, to work towards achieving those milestones. True to the expression clean home, clean mind, I am always more efficient, productive, creative and truly calm when our home is at it's clearest, most organized space.

I think that living and working around clutter creates a negative emotional energy, which can lead to more stress and anxiety. Living in a clean organized environment, whether it be your living or working space, creates an empowering energy, fueling your creativity, passion and giving you the clear mind to truly think and bring things to fruition.

By nature, I am a perfectionist and need to live in an organized space. But alas, I am still human, and with time, certain areas of the house start to acquire randomness we don't need at all. Plus, with kids there are an absurd amount of toys, knickknacks, and thingymajigs they have.to.have or else their little worlds will completely.fall.apart ;) . So needless to say, clutter always happens.



I am going to spend the rest of this week organizing to kick off 2011 in a more organized stress free environment. Here are some steps and areas I usually try and tackle when de-cluttering:

• One Room at a Time. I try and start with a small area first, and completely reorganize it. Being successful and finding happiness with completing one small area, usually makes me even more motivated to move on to bigger! Vs. trying to go for the largest areas first can seem overwhelming and demotivating.
  
• Kids Rooms, Clothes & Toys. A few months ago, I did a lot of work cleaning out my son's wardrobe and giving away the things that no longer fit him. I found a lot of things which were still brand new with tags that he never wore. We are big on giving and charities, so it's nice to make it a family project and teach our kids the value of time as as well as giving. This time around it's my daughters clothes that I will focus the most on.
• The Library. I love books and having a vast library. With time they loose their place and become less organized... and new books are acquired. It's nice to spend a little time reorganizing and 'finding' old books again.
• THE Drawer. I have this massive 'I don't know where to put this so I'll just throw it in here' drawer. It's really awful, and I know that cleaning it out will only make room for me to start throwing more in later. For this, I really need to come up with a better solution!
  
• Linen Closet. We have a lot of old washcloths and some linens that I should really clean out. I recently heard that animal shelters are always open to receiving donated 'rags'.
  
• Old Clothes and Shoes. Every so often I go through our clothes and shoes. Things that we no longer wear at all ever, or pieces that I no longer find that flattering, get boxed and donated.
• The Kitchen. I love to cook and admittedly, I make purchases of appliances that I will probably never actually ever use. It's time for me to take inventory and see what I realistically will never use and what I could and should starting using!
• Re-Organize! Once I've cleared house, I think it's always fun to rearrange some spaces and see what areas can be different. Sometimes a tiny change can make a great and fun world of a difference ;)

I'd love to hear what some of your 2011 goals are! ;)