Linen Closet comes alive and takes over entire house!

Do you often feel like the title of today's blog? I do. Sometimes, especially after Christmas, I dread opening any closet because I just don't want to look at the mess I've created. Each spring, I force myself to take a long look at the storage and linen closets and do a little tossing and donating.

When I got married over twenty years ago, my husband and I received many, many, many lovely gifts. I remember, I wrote each thank you note by hand; this was pre-computers mostly! We recieved about ten sets of sheets and twenty sets of towels. I graciously packed them all up, put them in my little toyota tercel and had my father-in-law drive them to Indiana where we were living after the wedding in Oklahoma. I unpacked them into our first apartment and filled every nook and cranny of storage that we had.

A year later, we purchased our first home and I happily repacked those same sheets and towels and moved them across town into our little three bedroom, one and one-half bath home with very little closet space. Five years later, I grudingly repacked them to move into a large four bedroom home with more closet space but as kids began to move in, it seemed smaller and smaller. Notice a trend here?

Five years after that, my husband took a job to relocate us back to our old stomping grounds of Oklahoma. Back to grandma's, grandpa's, aunts, uncles and cousins. Someone else packed up our stuff so happily I went only to unpack those same towels and sheets I had moved away eleven years ago into a larger house with even more storage space. The only problem was it seemed that we never had enough storage!

You see, I'm kind of like the princess and pea story. I spend way too much time in my bed to have itchy, scratchy sheets covering my body. So those pretty sheets that were given to me mostly got to stay in the closet while I used two or three sets. We also switched to a queen size bed about a year after we were married so the only bed those sheets fit were the guest bed that got used a few times a year. Those pretty but tiny bath towels got placed in the closet while we used the big but ugly ones everyday.

A couple of years ago, my new year's resolution was to let go of possessions owning me. I began to purge my house of things that no longer gave me joy. Things I had around simply so I had something to dust. I occured to me that just because I didn't enjoy those things anymore didn't mean someone else might not cherish that possession! Purging my home took on more meaning when I realized that I had simply been hordeing those things for all those years! I could give them to someone to enjoy and free myself of needless stuff at the same time.

I donated five black plastic trash bags full of bed sheets only used a few times, pretty decorative towels that had been folded and refolded, bedspreads that no longer fit my decor, curtains from the first, second or third place we had lived but didn't fit at our new house. It was liberating! I donated it all to a women's shelter. They were truly overjoyed at recieving so many nice, almost new things!

Now when I look in my linen closet, I see every size bed with a label on the shelf. One that shelf are four sets of sheets, sheets that are comfortably soft and silky, or soft and flannelly (if that's a word!). Two for spring/summer and two for fall/winter. I no longer fold sheets everytime we wash bed sheets, they just get removed, washed and placed back on the bed. Each bathroom has four bath towels, four hand towels and six washcloths. Again, I don't spend time folding towels, I just wash them and hang them back up.

Cleaning my linen closet this year is simply a matter of looking at the fall/winter sheets and seeing if they need to be replaced with a new set that are conveniently on sale now! I just recently replaced the four towels in the master bath. They now hang in the kids' bathroom and their old ones are in the utility room for spills and Kate's many messes. The utility towels got tossed, it would give no one joy to inherit those!

Go out and purge something today! Donate those things and give someone else joy!

Getting a grip on spring cleaning

I've been working like a mad woman inside my house to get it in shape for spring. Cleaning is good exercise and I play a little game with myself to keep me motivated. If I will super clean for about an hour each day, I can forgo my exercise. I mean get to sweating cleaning, not light dusting. I hate, hate, hate to actually exercise but heavy cleaning or gardening doesn't seem like exercise to me! I can work outside from dawn till dusk hauling, digging, mowing, pulling weeds and such, just so I don't have to do any actually exercising. I think it's because I get bored doing the same things over and over.

One thing I've been doing is oiling all the wood in my home. I have a lot of wood. My doors are wood, there is paneling, the cabinetry, the baseboards, etc. I started so vigorously that I could hardly lift my arms for two days! I decided to pace myself by mapping out what I would do each day. I envisioned myself working out my legs by putting oil on my socks, laying in the floor and rubbing the paneling with my feet! That should work out those leg muscles! I'm thinking it might also moisturize my feet as well.

The oiling is almost done, I have one area left this week. That's good because my seedlings are coming up and pretty soon, the garden will be calling me. I am beginning to rake the flowerbeds clean and am dreaming of daffodils blooming!

Toys, toys, toys!

Toys, toys, toys! What to do with all those toys! I have to say, I'll be glad when my house is not over run with all these toys and games! It's not as bad as it used to be when my kids were little because their toys are getting fewer and fewer. Now it's more electronics and such but I still feel like I am over run all the time.

It doesn't help when grandparents and other adults are always bringing in more stuff to stuff in my house. Getting rid of things they don't play with or use is very difficult because the kids don't want to part with anything.

I use a technique I like to call 'out-of-sight, out-of-mind'. It works for adults too. I learned this when we moved, I didn't have time to unpack all the boxes right away so I just stored them in the guest bedroom. After about a month, I began to realize that there wasn't a thing in the boxes that I couldn't live without. My husband made me open the boxes anyway after I declared "they could all go straight to the goodwill!" I was right, after we opened them all up, most of the stuff went to the goodwill!

For the kids, I give them a plastic storage box. They put the stuff they don't play with but want to keep in the box. We put the box in the attic and next season, I take the box out and they usually put most of it into the donate pile! Once it's out-of-sight for a while, they lose interest in it. The 'I just can't give that away' stuff has been located, I store it in the attic so I can give it all to them when they move away! I'll need a much smaller house once I get rid of all that!

I go through the books and games with this technique as well. It keeps our home from bulging at the seams when we do this two times a year. It also gives us a good tax write-off and the kids know someone else is getting good use from things they aren't using anymore!

Cleaning out closets - part four!

Today, you'll need to gather up the kids and do the same for the dresser drawers as you did yesterday! If you have un-normal kids, you could do these two days together but I've met very few kids who will allow you to do this all day long. I would need therapy if I attempted it!

Again, go through every piece of clothing and donate or toss. Tossing is generally reserved for my son's clothes, very few pieces get put in the donate or hand-me-down pile because they are usually too stained or worn out! Usually only church clothes get passed on to someone else!

Go through shoes also. I have them try on every pair they own including snowboots and sandals. My daughter has a lot of shoes. It's a female thing in our family. We like shoes. We would go without eating to buy a new pair of shoes. She doesn't like to part with any pair ever. A dog chewed one of a pair of flip-flops last year at her grandparents house and she wanted to keep the remaining flip-flop because she might need it! For what I will never know. Maybe if she grows another leg, or if a dog chews a different flip-flop pair.

Off topic, are you old enough to remember when we used to call them thongs? Well, that is another perfectly decent word that this younger generation has ruined for us. When I say thongs, my kids completely come unglued! Well, I wear thongs on my feet! Not in my bum! I'm ready for that trend to die a quick, painful death!

I also make them try on their jackets and coats. If I think they will be too small next fall, I put that on my get-it-on-sale list.

If you've made it this far without losing your mind...give yourself a break tonight and order pizza!

Cleaning out closets - part three!

Today, I'm beginning to tackle the kids closets! Now, I have two children so this takes a while. I take a saturday or day off from school to start this project. The first thing I do is have the kid try on anything that I think will be too small next fall. This takes a special day, so plan a day when they are in a good mood, or promise them a trip to Sonic or an ice cream afterward! I'm all for bribery on this project!

Anything that is too small now or going to be in the fall needs to be donated or handed down. If it is to be handed down in your family, put it in a plastic container for storage. I label the size and season on the outside of the box and put it in my attic. That way, next fall, you can pull it down and see what you need before you shop!

That will probably take about half a day if your kids are like mine. Getting my daughter to try on clothes is no big deal, getting her to part with the outgrown stuff is no big deal when she realizes that she's going to go shopping for new stuff, getting her to get it done in a timely manner is a BIG deal because she gets sidetracked like her old mom and starts putting new outfits together!

Getting my son to do any of it requires threats, shouts and finally bribes. He doesn't like to try on clothes or shop so this is a sad day for him. He's totally happy to order things off the internet! It does help me though because I know what size he is moving out of and into. This helps me because I can shop the end-of-season sales for items he will need next fall.

After you accomplish this not small task, congratulate yourself, have a piece of chocolate and go lay down!

Cleaning out closets - part two!

Today, I'm still in the cleaning out the closets mode. I'll tackle the kids closets later in the week. I don't like to do too much in one day, it stresses me out, so I just try to accomplish one small task and move on to something else. I think my attention span is so small that it's easier for me if I just do a little at a time. It doesn't seem so impossible!

Yesterday, I talked about purging your closet of old things you no longer use. Some people really have a problem with letting go of old clothes. They see them as memories or friends. I understand, I am in this category! I found a way for me to gently get rid of things without that withdrawal feeling. I hope it helps you if you're one of 'those people'!

I rotate my clothing between two closets. I am currently using winter clothes so my summer clothes have been placed in a spare bedrooms closet. This makes me responsible for moving the items two times a year, I take that time to go through and donate items. In a few weeks, I will begin moving the winter items back into the spare bedroom. As I do, I will look at my old things and get rid of things that have become too worn to wear outside of the house. I usually keep one or two fleeces or sweatshirts that I wear on Saturdays to lay around the house in. The rest of those things go in the donate pile. If I won't wear it out, I need to get rid of it!

I also donate any piece of clothing that wasn't worn in that season. This is a real eye-opener the first time you do it. You will realize that you really only wear a few pieces in your wardrobe. Forcing myself to donate anything I didn't wear this season actually makes me wear more of my clothing. This reduces the 'I don't have anything to wear' syndrome so you will actually shop less! I am wearing a shirt today that I haven't worn all season. I know if I don't wear it at least once, I have to donate it.

I work the same system on my shoes, purses and jackets/coats. Besides, purging my closet of unworn clothing, it gives me a good look at pieces that need replacing. I am currently on the lookout for a couple of specific sweaters because mine are probably only going to make it this season!

Tomorrow, I'll begin to tackle the kids closet!

Cleaning out closets!

I am starting to think about spring cleaning this week as I've seen a story on the news about the Goodwill being really short on donations because of snowstorms, haiti disasters and generally most of us being too lazy to clean out the closets and drag our stuff down there in the winter. Well, it's time for my family to start putting away the things we no longer wear or use and cleaning out for new things!

It dawned on me about three years ago, that I could probably go the rest of my life without purchasing any piece of clothing again. Except underwear and socks, they actually get worn out. I guess it's because they get worn more often in the rotation, I don't have umpteen pairs of underwear like I do everything else! I have really been watchful the last couple of years to only try to replace things as they wear out.

I went through my husbands closet about the same time I had this epiphany and realized he was in the same boat. We had enough t-shirts with adds and sports team logos to outfit the Duggers, they're the family that has nineteen kids and still adding more daily. I donated about half of them to the Goodwill and still had enough to fill two dresser drawers. Now I choose one or two to wear all summer and throw them away at the end of the season because even the Goodwill wouldn't want the rag!

I challenge you this season to get in those closets and get rid of things that don't fit, don't look good enough to wear out, and you don't wear. Donate those items to a charity that could use them. Keep a running total for your taxes and make room in your closets!

One thing I can control!

I have long ago given up trying to control the things around me. I stopped setting long term goals because I realized that my goals were not necessarily God's goals and sometimes I just got too ahead of myself! I have also stopped trying to be little miss perfect in my housework. I used to kill myself attempting to have a perfect house and I have decided that sometimes, good enough is good enough!

A good mentor friend once told me that 'if you want it perfect, do it yourself; if you want help, learn it doesn't have to be perfect'. Teaching children, and sometimes husbands, is a good example of this in action. So what if the bed is not made with hospital corners, is it tucked in? Then that's good enough. So what if the underwear is not exactly folded, yes I fold underwear, as long as it is somewhat folded, who cares?

After saying all this, I will say that there is one thing I do try to control in my life. I like a clean kitchen sink! I do not like dishes sitting around the sink, I do not like stains and gross gunk in my sink. When I worked full-time, I cleaned my sink before I went to bed and then again in the morning. That way, when I got home to start dinner the area around my sink would be clean and ready to go.

I also look outside at my sink often. It is so nice for me to go look out and see a sparkling sink. Even if the rest of my world is cluttered and dirty, the sink is clean! I know it's not much but I'll be there is something that you do to maintain order in you're mind! That's about the only place where there is order now days!

Give yourself a break today and stop nagging yourself!