On the first day of March, I shared my March Madness challenge, a “Use It Up, Move It Out” printable checklist. The goal was to launch spring cleaning by eliminating unnecessary items from the home, thus leaving less to actually clean and organize.
I’m not sure how it is suddenly mid-May, but I’m still working on my checklist. Here’s what I’ve been up to:
- Removed 10 barrels full of trash from garage (and we recycle everything we can possibly recycle)
- Delivered multiple loads of items to recycling center
- Overhauled basement, throwing away numerous bags of trash, donating more boxes, and selling several items
- Filled at least 10 tubs of garage sale items (an ongoing project)
- Used up numerous bottles of travel shampoo, lotions, samples, full-sized products (my favorite task so far)
- Unsubscribed to all catalogs and recycled the piles stacked on my desk
The biggest lesson I’ve learned during this process is that I’m too hard on myself. I’ve felt the weight of guilt for my amount of possessions, but the truth is, it was mostly acquired naturally.
It all began to accumulate several years ago, when my husband and I were working full-time but also traveling to our reproductive endocrinologist in another state. It was an 8-hour round trip – not counting the time of the appointment and finding sustenance afterward – that we made at least a few days per week for months.
Three babies, a house build, and lots of gifts and hand-me-downs followed, creating our stuff problem. As John Lennon said, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans,” and so it did.
A few weeks ago, my mom decided to help me with anything I needed in my home every Friday, which has been a game changer for me. I work from home, and while that sounds glamorous to anyone who hasn’t worked amongst a mess with three kids, it isn’t so much. Thanks to her, I can now see the top of my desk, the floor of my laundry room, and I can sort of find things in my fridge. That fridge is probably just a lost cause, but it still saw improvement.
I traveled with friends earlier this month to see Justin Timberlake in Tulsa (insert raised hands emoji) and sorted through papers and catalogs and to-do lists on the trips to and from. I added several items to my master to-do list on the journey thanks to recommendations or ideas sparked by my friends, but they were the types of things that would make my life easier.
On a trip to St. Louis that same week, writing thank you notes and letters I had intended to send long ago was a nice way to pass time and I felt like I had accomplished something meaningful.
So I have been plugging away at the biggest of my 90-day goals, but I haven’t met my purging/organization goals yet. I’m nonetheless proud of my progress and persistence and know it will continue to pay off. I consider that if I hadn’t started, I wouldn’t be where I am now (so profound, I know). While my next goals (I set no more than three at a time) should have technically begun April 1, I’m excited to set all those delightful summer plans into motion. My daughter told me today she wants to sew a patchwork tablecloth with me this summer, something I never would have added on my own.
Do you have big plans for the summer, or are you more spontaneous?
Wow! It sounds like you’ve made massive progress! That’s seriously awesome! With our renovation and move coming up, we know summer is on the horizon. When we cross this hurdle we won’t know what to do with ourselves.
That will be so amazing! When we finished our build, I was 8 months pregnant. I’m looking forward to feeling finally settled (we’ve only been here five years – ha!) and to only have things we love here and everything in its place. I’ll keep forging on until I get there! Can’t wait to see your finished renovation!