I looked back at the room that I’ve been tidying today. Well done, I thought to myself, but still a long way to go. The room needed a good vacuum which I knew would instantly change the way I felt about the space and motivate me to continue with the good work.
After 3 minutes vacuuming (just the parts that were visible) I sat down to take a look. It felt instantly cleaner and fresher even though the same clutter was there.
Motivated, I moved on…
Catch up with me later
That’s it. I’m doing something about it (I’ve said that before) and I’m going to be really ruthless and throw things away (I’ve said that before too!).
What shall I do with all the clutter and stuff lying around? I’ve been a homeowner for almost 27 years now and it’s probably only the first few years of that time that I had a tidy and clutter free house. So, what’s happened over the years and why do I always seem to be clutter clearing and tidying? My daughter thinks that it’s because I like doing it.
My excuses are that I’ve lived in different houses, lived with different people, bought too much stuff, not had time to get rid of things etc. There’s stuff of mine, stuff of theirs, stuff I can’t bear to part with, stuff I don’t know how to get rid of, stuff that has no designated place, stuff that brings back memories and so on. However, I’ve been in this particular house for almost 9 years now, so why do I always appear to be clutter clearing and tidying the same rooms? And why does no one else in the family seem to worry about it as much as me?
I’m going to change from today. Follow me on my journey…
Until later…
We sometimes don’t realise that taking just one day off can reduce that feeling of overwhelm and chaos. It could be that you are disorganised with the washing, have unorganised paperwork, can’t find time to put things in their place, or you just want to find places to put those things.
Today I took a long-awaited day off and although I could have quite easily stayed in bed for longer, I motivated myself to get the kids ready for school and then off to the gym. It was hard work as I hadn’t been for a while (had just been doing lazy swimming instead only once a week). I didn’t push myself too hard in the gym today but managed to stay there for 45 minutes doing something!
I tackled some tough things on my to do list during the rest of the day until school pick up time.
It’s just after 6pm and I’ve just taken the dinner out of the oven – which is a lot earlier than normal. The kitchen is tidy, the music is on in the background, I’m shaking my hips to Robbie William’s Rock DJ, and I’m feeling rather pleased with myself.
Try taking some time out for yourself now and again, even if it’s just for one day.
Until next time…
Sandra
I have a lot of determination at the moment to clear my surroundings of clutter and mess. So much so, that I spent an hour sorting through baskets of washing and putting things away in the nice tidy baskets that I bought for my daughters’ wardrobes.
I was feeling quite organised and relaxed pairing up socks when, out of corner of my eye, I could see the clothes horse falling towards me. Don’t ask me how, but I managed to catch it and push it back up to its upright position.
The same thing happened the day before when I wasn’t in the room. I think that I might need somewhere new to put the clotheshorse rather than balancing it in the bath as it’s becoming quite dangerous!
Had a productive evening though as nearly all clothes have been put away.
Until tomorrow…
Sandra
I applied the 10 minute tidy rule when tidying my spare room yesterday evening. I set the timer and began. When the alarm went off I felt so motivated to carry on that I ended up resetting the timer 3 more times.
In amongst the mess, I stumbled upon 2 red ‘click and store’ boxes that had been collapsed down and shoved behind some other clutter. 
The very appropriately named phrase displayed on the top read ‘Keep calm and tidy up’ which motivated me to do more clutter clearing, especially when I realised that I could fill them with things left lying around. Dangerous!
Until tomorrow.
Sandra
I took a different approach yesterday and just spent 10 minutes picking things up and putting them in their places. It’s surprising how much you can get done in a short space of time. I went to bed thinking that if I do this daily, I will start to clear the cluttered surroundings.
It’s also worth noting that it’s no use moving the stuff somewhere else. This might give you immediate satisfaction, but you know deep down that you are going to come across these items in a future decluttering sessions. Get into the habit of doing something with them.
Off for today’s 10 minute tidy up…
Until tomorrow
Sandra
My decluttering challenge has made me much more aware of my surroundings. Today I noticed an area under the ironing board that has had ‘stuff’ sitting there for I don’t know how long!
It took me no more than ten minutes to put items away that have a home; throw the rubbish away; and fill a bag with the bits I wanted to keep (making a mental note to go through this bag at some point).
What I concluded from today is that it doesn’t take long to clear a messy area once you’ve put your mind to it. Decisions will always need to be made about items you don’t know what to do with. Just box these up if you are short of time and sort them when you are feeling more energised.
I finished today with a quick swim at David Lloyd followed by some time in the steam room and Jaccuzi. This totally eased the tension in my back and neck and decluttered my mind.
Until tomorrow
Sandra
