If you want to join the link up too, it's not too late to join us! Here are the topics we are covering this year :)
You can see my January post about new year's goals here
February post about keeping my marriage strong here
March post about balancing work & home life here
So, if you know me, or ask my husband - my house is far from organized and clean. Although I am an organized person, my home-life doesn't always reflect that, sadly. Part of me blames it on my one and three-year-old, but another part of me knows that it is because I always find other things to do with my time.
I am so excited for this month's link-up. Not only did it influence me to actually work on cleaning up some things in my house, I'm excited to read the expert tips that other bloggers share. I certainly am no expert and can use all of the help I can get. We have a community garage sale scheduled for early May, and I am excited to try to get rid of some stuff that has been accumulating. EVERYTHING that doesn't sell will be donated :)
When I took the BEFORE pictures for this blog, I just asked myself WHY??? Why have I been living like this, and how did the areas even get like this? They are some-what embarrassing to share with everyone, but I want this post to be real, and I'm proud of the AFTER pictures.
My first project was our kitchen organizer. I love this area of my house, its my little central command area. I update the calendar every month, which I shared in last month's post, and Mike and I use it to stay on the same page with our schedules. The envelope sorter had become a catch-all for everything I didn't want on my counter. After the cleaning, it is actually a functional area again!
(Before)
(Before)
(After)
(After)
My next project was my kitchen counter top. I look at this picture, and say - WHY?!? So many RANDOM things thrown here, that just made the house look soooo messy. Random antibiotics (sick kids), snacks, a light saber......sigh...I will not let this area get like this again!
(Before)
(After)
My last project I worked on was this little catch-all area near our dining room table. I have no idea WHY I let this stuff pile up. Some of it started with the office renovation last year. I really have no explanation for the rest. I think Mike threw that high chair on there recently when we needed to use the chairs for the table for guests. Now, all of this stuff is gone, and my house instantly feels bigger! WHY didn't I do this earlier??
(Before)
(After)
My cleaning is not done, I have a lot more rooms to go through and projects to tackle, but I am proud of what we've accomplished. I have a few more weeks to get ready for the garage sale, and a lot more will be going :)
So - here are my tips, take them for what they're worth. I am no expert, but these are what I have found works for me.
1. Do one section/project each day
Breaking the cleaning and organizing into a few smaller projects makes them more reasonable and easier to manage than trying to tackle everything at once. At the most, each of these areas took a half hour to go through, so spreading that out, made it feel easier for me, and I was able to celebrate the small wins along the way.
2. Involve your significant other
Depending on which area of your house you're trying to clean, you will need your partner to help you keep it that way (because truthfully, they helped it get that way in the first place, right?!). It's probably because of my training in Lean Six-Sigma principles, but involving those who live with you, will help for sustainment of your cleaning/organizing.
3. Keep it up!
After you've done the hard work, keep it up! Take pride in your space and don't keep all of the crap you don't need :)
Lets be real, like I said earlier - my little monsters keep my house messy and full of love, so it's never entirely clean...one can hope :) What tips do you have for spring cleaning?
XO
Shari
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