6 Weeks of Organization: 4th Update

Had I known that we were going to be hit with a rough teething cycle followed by a terrible cold/flu bug and bronchitis, I think I would have called this my 16 Weeks of Organziation Series! But life is all about adapting and I did manage to get a little bit more done. For those of you that are new, you can read about the series and see past updates HERE. Also, you can see Lori's latest update HERE.

Well, I had high hopes of having three closets to show you but I just couldn't get the third one in this week. I kind of drifted off course and battled some other areas in our family room instead. I wasn't physically feeling up to dealing with a bigger project earlier in the week.

But here's what I did finish. I started with my daughter's closet. I realized that my life would be a little bit easier if both of my kids' clothes and things were in one room. They are still so young and I can get away with doing that right now so I thought I'd take advantage of it. This freed up my son's closet. The floor area now became an extended toy area for him. I used his closet unit shelf to store our games and some gifts and his hanging area for off-season items and special occasion clothes--things we don't use right now. This freed up room in both mine and my husband's closets.

I like that all of their diapers, wipes, etc are in one place now. And putting laundry away is so much easier. I tried to leave extra space as the holidays and both their birthdays are in the next few months and they usually receive some clothes for gifts. I think the key to staying organized is to plan ahead and to always leave extra room so you don't fall back into the trap of being overly cluttered again. (With an end goal of, everything has its own place and everything in its place.) Here's how my daughter's closet now looks:


Wow! Check out all that open space! It feels so good to see it!

Next, I tackled my closet. I had to deal with a shelving area that was stacked high with a lot of "keepsakes" and a hanging area that was so jammed packed that I couldn't squeeze another hanger in there. Literally! I realized that it was silly to keep keepsakes in an area that should be used for daily and frequently used things. I had a lot of our wedding things there so I packed them up and sent them up to the attic. And the clothes---well, it was just ridiculous how many things I had. I went through and honestly asked myself when the last time (if ever!) that I had worn them. And did they fit? I did keep a few pair of jeans that I am still trying to work back into but all of the other things were donated. And this is how my closet looks now:


I have plenty of room for more winter clothes, if I decide I need them. I only unpacked a few things as our house stays fairly warm and I don't go out much now. I have ample shelving left and tons of floor space now.

So, while I fell short of my original goal, I guess I should give myself credit for continuing forward and for getting some things accomplished.

My plans for my next week are to tackle my bathroom closet (with all those Wags/CVS freebies!) and to declutter both of our computer desks.

And for the final week---tackling making a weekly schedule and getting in some paper planning, such as a budget, how to keep up on rebates, fit in schooling time with my son and that hard to do weekly menu planning.

I sure hope your weeks have been going well and that you have been conquering some clutter and freeing yourself from the stress of mess!