My 30 Day Clutter Challenge Journey

With spring on our heels, I've suddenly desired to completely declutter and reorganize (and rearrange!) every single area of my home.

It all started when I stumbled across Melissa Ringstaff's blog: avirtuouswoman.org. I absolutely love her posts and subscribed right away. The post I loved most, though, was her "A Time to Clean: A 30 Day Challenge."  It was written quite a few months back, so obviously, I'm way behind, but couldn't think of a better time to go for it than now!

I want a way (if only for myself!) to document my journey. So . . . lucky blog, here it begins.


Day 1 Thoughts: Oh my word, declutter ALL THE THINGS. 

• Rotated kids' toys
• Went through all the kids' toys and books, sorted into keep, giveaway and recycle piles
• Deleted hundreds of pins from my Pinterest page -- I want freedom from clutter in every part of my life, even the online part.

Day 2 Thoughts: Wow, I should slow down. The office is a disaster from yesterday! One thing at a time.

• Switched my husband's office area with mine -- I had way more (unused!) space than I needed, and his computer and printer were out where the kids could reach them.

Day 3 Thoughts: Okay, the feng shui of this basement is horrible. Time to move furniture!

• Reconfigured my daughter's homeschool area and all the kids' basement toys.
• Made huge piles of recycling material

Day 4 Thoughts: Is me and hubby's bedroom really a sanctuary for our marriage? 

• Moved all pics of our sweet daughter and niece out of our room and into other rooms where we can enjoy them.
• Rearranged all bedroom furniture (thanks for the help, hubby!)
• Did a major overhaul on bedroom decor. Love how candles and dried floral arrangements are romantic year-round!

Day 5 Thoughts: What am I holding onto that I don't need to be? Why?

• Got out one box of files from my former teaching job. Went through the whole box. Some of it went into a donate box, some of it was broken or trash. Most of it ended up in the recycling. (Not even the most frugal, resourceful teachers want poorly-copied, outdated blackline masters.)

Day 6 Thoughts: I'm discovering that even if I do go back to teaching in a public school someday, I really don't need this stuff now, and five years from now, it won't be relevant in the classroom at all. Okay, I can do this! Four more boxes from my old classroom to conquer.

• Went through the other four boxes of teaching material. Kept about one quarter of it. Donated or recycled the other three quarters.  Such a great feeling!

Day 7 Thoughts: Freedom! 

• Just donated a huge portion of my findings from the week to our local "freecycle" center.
• Also recycled all the recyclable materials from our house and previously mentioned file boxes.
• Made plans to go through our linen closet this weekend.
• Went for a celebratory coffee and whipped cream (for Bundle) at the local coffeeshop!

This is where I currently am. I've only been doing this about a week, but it's already made a major difference in my stress levels, our home organization, and family life. I am feeling accomplished and excited about where the rest of this decluttering journey will take us!

<3