The Great Purge of 2015

I can imagine what it would be like to live in a clean house... one in which the laundry is done for the day, the dishes are all put away, and the floor is visible and vaccuumed. It is a lovely place in which I like to visit in my imagination on days that are particularly stressful... then I come back to my house, and this is not the case. Ever.

Why? Why can't I seem to wrap my abilities around the idea of a clean house? Yes, I have toddlers who tend to leave a wake of destruction everywhere they go... but others seem to have a better time than I do. And maybe they do, maybe they don't. Its not worth my time comparing myself on that level... Rather, it has occured to me that we simply have too. much. stuff.

Thats right, I'm calling it out. Too. Much. Stuff. Too many clothes means too much laundry and a lot of folding time... to many toys means a toy room that cannot ever be played in, and too much time fighting the "pick it up or else" game. Too many dishes means that there will always be a pile of dishes awaiting their fate in the dishwasher. (with our dishwasher, its debatable whether or not it will work on each load...)

And so I have undertaken what I am calling "The Great Purge of 2015" this is the first step in my journey toward thriving rather than surviving. I am ridding myself of all the needless clutter and I am learning to say no to those same items that want to reenter my life. There will be an option to come sift through this stuff of mine to see if it has a place in your life, more details on the yard sale when decisions have been made...

It is a vast undertaking. One room, one category at a time. I've already reduced the children's clothing storage by 50-60% ... No need to keep it all. It is hard. "That was the shirt Brayden wore when ____" or "its so little and so darn cute!" I keep having to remind myself that others can benefit from using these things more than I can by keeping them boxed up wasting space... I keep telling myself "Be big and be brave!" For some reason, it helps.

I have also found that it helps to tackle the big projects when I'm tired. No kidding. When I'm in a bad mood, it seems to feel better putting things in the yard sale pile. And I'm more likely to put more into the pile because of it... win-win! (at least for me).

Hopefully this "phase" of the journey toward thriving is a short one, but I love organizing, so probably not. I am already seeing results and benefits from my efforts! Here's to success for tGPo2015!

2014 Resolution #2

If you are wondering where my #1 went... its over here... :)

#2 is Organize the house. Yes, we bought a house almost an entire year ago... but I was experiencing the sickness that comes the first half of my pregnancies, so I let my dear husband unpack the kitchen (he was doing the cooking for himself anyway...). As the year progressed, so did my pregnancy. One excuse after another got me to early September when we welcomed Madi into our lives... The past few months have been survival of the newborn stage.

So now, almost a year later, I am ready to officially move into my house! There are boxes that need to be tackled, and the puzzle of how to fit our previous possessions into a new place is perplexing. Step by step, room by room, puzzle by puzzle I intend to tackle the organizing dilemma one little bit at a time to make my house into a home! (Cross my fingers I can/will actually post my progress!)

Nativities

We have all heard rumors about the collection of nativities my mother has... no, I am not going to post about them... it would take way too long... But in the natural occurrence of things I have acquired a few different nativities myself! I greatly enjoyed the posts about the different nativities everyone has and decided I would put on a show myself! :)

For all the "Precious Moments" that we have through life... :) My mom gave this adorable little set to me for a bridal shower gift. Everyone got a letter of the alphabet to find a present that fit and somehow my mother got the letter "n". :) I absolutely love Precious Moments and was so excited to finally put them out!
(sorry the picture is a little blurry)Some might not count this one (ask my mother, I count ornaments) but its a full scene... well, minus the shepherds... If there was anything that I am guilty of collecting its ornaments... actually, our tree is made up of my random assortment of ornaments... :) This one got special treatment and has sat all month above our DVD player on our TV.

One of my all time favorites... the rubber duckie scene that is placed annually in a place of highest honor... on the porcelain throne. :) You wouldn't believe the comments I get about it all month long... :)

My favorite this year is a little... non-traditional... my mother gave me a little plastic finger puppet nativity last year. Oh the memories we have of Jesus smiting people as my roommate would throw them at people... This year I decided they should get a little more respect... especially baby Jesus... and thus...

ok... so the wise men didn't fare so well in this scenario... but hey, he's a curious little robot... :)

Now I know these have nothing to do with nativities but they do have to do with my Christmas decorations! So here's my last little picture for now...

Yes, our stockings were hung by the window with care... in hopes that we might get one a little bigger... ;)

Love you all! Merry Christmas!