One month organization challenge - Page 4

[nyssaneala]

I feel like I am also creating more of a mess these days. I tackled #2 on my 30-day list yesterday, but I'm not sure I like how it looks. I took all of the winter coats out of the closet and put them in 'storage' in our guest bedroom. That did clear up a lot more space for summer things. I also put hooks on the back of the door for purses, backpacks, etc. I'm not sure what I think. It's off the floor, but it doesn't exactly look...organized.

 

A few of the things are summer stuff: Friday Kahlo bag is our pool bag, and our green picnic blanket, that will be packed away at the end of summer. I'm thinking I might need to add more hooks to the wall on the inside of the closet. Any ideas?

And herein lies my problem with organizing....I'm a perfectionist. So I'm never happy. And eventually I give up, and let it all go to s*** again. It's a never-ending cycle!

But, on a happier note, I am super happy with the recently re-organized bookshelf for DD.

No idea why that imported sideways. The file boxes are from Target, and they helped categorize a few of her books: Early Readers, Science & Nature, Seasonal, and general Picture Books. Of course, no reading nook is complete without a cat!

This is bookshelf #2. I thinned it out (moving many to bookshelf 1), so that it was less cluttered. The bin on the left holds random picture books that don't really fit anywhere else. The bin on the right holds all of our Beatrix Potter books, leapfrog books, and a few misc. chapter books. These are mostly books we read aloud.

[willfulmama]

I love the children's bookcase, nyssaneala! 

We spent our weekend (and our supposed vacation) all under-the-weather so I haven't gotten much more done. Hopefully, though, I'll be back in the swing of things soon.

[dbsam]

nyssaneala

We have the same problem with bags.  We have so many bags. 

We store them a few ways...the kids each have small coat racks in their rooms for their bags that are not used often.  I have hooks in my closet for bags I do not use often.

For the bags we use a lot...school bags, lunch bags, shopping bags, tennis bags, etc.  We have a four hook thing (similar to yours) in our laundry room but there were too many bags and too large of bags so it tended to stick out or look messy.  We put a row of 8 hooks down the laundry room wall and it hangs all the kids often used bags and some of their jackets.  (in the summer it hangs their beach robes and a towel.)  My husband (who normally builds everything himself) found the white trim piece with the hooks already made at a big box type hardware store.  It works great for us.

I'm also a perfectionist and tend to give up when it is not perfect.

Your book shelves look so neat.  I had my childrens books looking good...but they decided to 'reorganize' (I do not care for their setup but I am trying to not be a control freak.)

[dbsam]

It was not on my list for July, but the kids and I have been going through the playroom a little each day.  They've pulled out items to donate and some to store for their children.  We did a cleanup and it looks pretty good right now.   I hesitate to ever say the playroom is 'done' because one day of my children and the neighbor children and the place is a disaster.  (We were not even finished and one of the boys down the street stopped by - we'll see how it looks at the end of the day.)  We have a row of cubbies along one wall for toys, books and bins.  I like it a certain way but the kids wanted to organize it their own way.  I think it looks sort of messy but since I want them to take care of their own spaces I need to allow them to set it up like they want.

off to another room!

[EarthyMamaofDaisy]

I almost forgot about this challenge!  I've been working hard on my kitchen the past couple of days.  I moved things around where it made better sense for when I cook meals.  I also changed the heights of some of the shelves in one of the cabinets.  I found a lot of old paperwork that I could toss too.  I've got a little bit more work to do.  I really should clean out the cabinet above the fridge.  I think I'll work on that this afternoon.

[dbsam]

It wasn't on my list but I did a quick reorganization of the laundry room.  It's not much of a room...more like a little tunnel.  There is so much in this little space!  I buy cleaning/laundry products in bulk and store them in here, my canning stuff is stored in here, and I hang clothes (when not outside), and it is where we keep many of our day-to-day items like school bags.  One of the cabinets still needs straightening, but I've lost my momentum.  This room is not difficult to organize because I am forced to keep it fairly neat since I use it daily.

The photos look smaller when I import them...not sure why they turn out so large.

[Ragana]

Got to do some organizing today! This evening I am working on filing a large pile of bills, and I got some order to my Mint account. Still confused about how best to categorize things - may post a thread in Finances about that.
 

[sunnysandiegan]

A friend and I are starting a new girl scout troop at the beginning of August. I worked on that all day yesterday.

Today, I chaperoned 100 students on a walking field trip from school to the local pool, including feeding them all pizza and watermelon, etc.

Tomorrow, I am chaperoning 100 students on a bus field trip to the rollerskating rink and back to school for a yearbook signing party.

It is all exciting! It is all TIRING. I have not stepped foot into the office since Sunday. My crop day is this Saturday. EEK! I am so not ready and am not sure when I am going to GET ready.... Thursday is a short day at school (and "fun field day" at school) and Friday is my DD's "promotion" and we are taking her out to dinner and celebrating, etc....

[Ragana]

Well, just spent 2 1/2 days at a friend's summer place & cleaned there, but obviously not here!   It was a nice opportunity to rest, though, and I did find myself thinking about having a clean, minimalist space to live in - good for motivation.

How is everyone else doing? How do you find the time to declutter - 15 min. at a time or do you set aside longer periods for this? I tend to want longer periods for organizing, but then I don't get them, and the projects get put off again. I really think I have to force myself to do the hall shelves one shelf at a time, for instance.
 

[dbsam]

Originally Posted by Ragana 

How is everyone else doing? How do you find the time to declutter - 15 min. at a time or do you set aside longer periods for this? I tend to want longer periods for organizing, but then I don't get them, and the projects get put off again. I really think I have to force myself to do the hall shelves one shelf at a time, for instance.
 

I find that when I try 15 minute intervals I end up making a bigger mess.   (with the exception of donation items...I can pull those out (like when I am getting dressed and see items I can get rid of in the closet) put them in a box and them drop off the box once it is filled.  This weekend I filled three boxes that can be dropped off when the center opens Tuesday.)

But, like you, I do not always get the larger time blocks I want.

We have spent time organizing the garage several times over the past two weeks.  But we must not be getting it right since it seems to be a mess again a few days later.  I think it is a case of too much stuff in too small a space and messy children who pull out items and do not put them back even though they have a place.  Over the years we have gotten rid of so much in the garage...I am not sure how much more we can give away.  I got rid of the kids trampoline that was in the garage and it cleared up a lot of space...they agreed to let it go but now they miss it.

[sunnysandiegan]

I had a very hectic week last week, so no organizing or cleaning got done.

I went to my all day crop yesterday with the stuff I had packed since May's crop. Except some things had gotten put away already. Luckily, I have great scrapbook friends who share! The good news is I finally finished the album I've been working on for two years!!!! Yippppeeeee!!!!!!!!

Now, I woke up in the middle of the night with a cold and I haven't slept since. Not expecting much to get done until after the pool party I am hosting mid-week.

I don't recall if I mentioned it already, but I did finally finish clearing off my vanity and the floor in our master bedroom. And, the studio and kitchen and living room all got finished. And, I got pretty far into the huge office project. So, I am pretty happy with my progress this month. Thank you dsam for the challenge and to everyone for the inspiration, encouragement, and motivation (just by posting about your own progress and challenges)!

I plan to continue with the office project, too....

[dbsam]

Originally Posted by sunnysandiegan 

I don't recall if I mentioned it already, but I did finally finish clearing off my vanity and the floor in our master bedroom. And, the studio and kitchen and living room all got finished. And, I got pretty far into the huge office project. So, I am pretty happy with my progress this month. Thank you dsam for the challenge and to everyone for the inspiration, encouragement, and motivation (just by posting about your own progress and challenges)!

I may have started the thread...but your accomplishments have been so motivating!

I am going to get something done today...I think the master closet.  I told the kids we are not going to the beach tonight unless they practice their cursive and read a little...I guess I need to get my work done too.

[sunnysandiegan]

Originally Posted by Ragana 

How is everyone else doing? How do you find the time to declutter - 15 min. at a time or do you set aside longer periods for this? I tend to want longer periods for organizing, but then I don't get them, and the projects get put off again. I really think I have to force myself to do the hall shelves one shelf at a time, for instance.
 

I answered the how is everyone else doing question above, but forgot about the how do you find time to declutter question.

Since my DD is 11 and my DH is an active father, I have more flexibility now than ever before. However, getting or making time to declutter is about way more than finding time without children clinging to your ankles. ;) As they get older, the activities and other things replace the feeding and holding and rocking, etc.

In any case, I do whatever it takes. Smaller projects, I just decide to do it (biggest challenge right there!) and do it. Big projects, I tend to use a timer. It forces me to break it down into smaller chunks. Ten minutes here and there really does add up! Plus, it is less of a BIG PROJECT when I simply tell myself (or my family or the internet world!) I am going to work on "x" for ten minutes. When I do have more time, sometimes the timer session will do the trick of redirecting my focus and I can use more time on the big project once I have gotten started. Let's face it, sometimes we make a project a much bigger deal in our heads and getting started is the hardest part. Once started, I can "get into it" a bit easier.

It doesn't always work. On Friday afternoon, I had a huge chunk of time when my dad took our DD for the afternoon and DH was working from home (in sight, but out of touch -- conference calls with headphones on). I set the timer for 10 minutes and cherry-picked a few items in the office to put away elsewhere in the house, carrying the timer with me (normal). I turned off the timer, laid down on the sofa, and was asleep within minutes. I was exhausted.

On the flip side, one of the nights I already reported earlier in the thread was a night when I thought I would just do my personal minimum of 10 minutes and be done. However, after the timer went off, I felt re-energized and set it again for an hour. When the timer went off that time, I reset it again for an hour. I got a LOT accomplished in those 2 hours and 10 minutes! DD and DH came in various times and whatnot, but I kept on going...

[sunnysandiegan]

Originally Posted by dbsam 

I may have started the thread...but your accomplishments have been so motivating!

I am going to get something done today...I think the master closet.  I told the kids we are not going to the beach tonight unless they practice their cursive and read a little...I guess I need to get my work done too.

Thanks! I am happy I have motivated someone... :)

We are headed to the beach tonight, too. :) DD is cleaning her floor, chair, and bed as I type. LOL I am laying in bed with a wicked headache, only managing to clean up my own mess of scattered tissues on the floor after she brought me a trash can.... I wonder what I can muster up enough energy to accomplish today...

[nyssaneala]

I am all over the place. I am making progress with coming up with storage solutions for the laundry, entryway, and closets, but I haven't gone out to by anything yet other than the hooks for the hall closet. I haven't tackled my pantry yet, either, although I am hoping to do a fridge clean by the end of the month. By only real success so far this month was DD's books and bookshelf. I am so bad at this!

We've lived in our new house for a year, and I'm just now starting to figure out how I want to store things!
 

[dbsam]

Originally Posted by nyssaneala 

We've lived in our new house for a year, and I'm just now starting to figure out how I want to store things!
 

I think you need to live in a space for a while before you really know how to use the space. 

We've lived in our house twenty years and have changed how we store/organize the spaces over the years.  I think it is something that changes as your needs change.

[Ragana]

Thanks for the replies. I think I'm figuring out some issues - I work freelance, so setting aside large chunks of time can be hard. I am often waiting for work, and when it comes I need to get started and power through to the deadline. Probably I will have to get used to trying 15- or 30-minute chunks and then hopefully taking some Saturdays and Sundays (sometimes work days, sometimes not - today is a work day, for instance) for the big stuff. I hate starting and then having to stop & losing momentum!

[Ragana]

Originally Posted by sunnysandiegan 
 I wonder what I can muster up enough energy to accomplish today...

Getting well is good enough!

[sunnysandiegan]

Originally Posted by Ragana 

Getting well is good enough!

Thanks! :)

I did manage to confer with DH on labels for my perineal oils and he designed and printed them for me. I cut and taped them to the bottles (built-in waterproofing) while he took our DD to volleyball practice. I am delivering a batch later today. We are headed to a bonfire with our long-time playgroup. One of the playgroup moms is a doula and asked me to make these oils for her clients and students (she's also a childbirth educator). I am bummed I feel icky and have a drippy nose. We don't get many opportunities these days to hang out, but I'm not sure how long I'll last on the bay at night since it is the first day of the cold. Blah.

[sunnysandiegan]

I developed a fever, so I sent DH & DD to the bonfire without me. :( They have my oils with them and the food we were to bring and everything, except me.