Organizing and decluttering the homestead

[sumi]

LOL I was thinking the same when I looked at the pics. A man with way more clothes than I have? That's not something I see every day lol

 

[Beekissed]

She ain't lyin'!

Finally getting to that last shelving unit in the pantry/mud room. Been a full year trying to get that to that thing. Half way through, got to the bin that holds the drill and accouterments...but also has various boxes of hardware, empty drill cases galore, a grease gun(we have 3 of these things!), bag of nails, etc.

All this mess is spread out on the kitchen table, a bucket to hold the extras that don't belong and need to go up to the shed sitting on a chair...it's full to overflowing and I'm only half way through the shelf.

Bought two more bins (plastic wash tubs for $3) from DG yesterday~they are white, heavy duty and I can write on them with a Sharpie~for more specific organization for this unit...obviously, when I find this much extraneous stuff in each bin, I need another category of bin down here. Maybe a "misc. household" and "household cleaners" bin? Mom's a cleaner hoarder and buys and buys more cleaner...also bug sprays. That woman has 10 large cans of various wasp and flying insect spray on hand right now.

Still workin' on it....feels good to finally get to this. Going to Lowe's today to look at their home organization dept. to see if I can spy any wall mount racks that can hold boxes of trash bags, disposable gloves, zip loc bags, etc.

Got a few hardware organizers in a yard sale this past year and hope to clean one up and mount on the wall in there for various types of hardware we need down here and don't want to walk up to the shed to retrieve. That will free up this drill bin for actual drill and parts.

After this....food cupboards. You know the ones...when you open the doors and things fall out on you? That's the ones we have. Every winter we go through the annual clear out and ask the infamous question "WHY did I buy THIS????" about our foodstuffs. Mom's memory is getting a little dusty, so she often buys random things we've never used, nor will ever use, if she sees it on display....or she'll keep buying the same thing over and over, thinking we are out, but at home we have 6 of them.

 

[treerooted]

Way to go Bee! You're leading by example here!

I have not completed any of my organizational goals yet But I haven't given up! I know a kid-free afternoon is just waiting for a good paper sorting in my future somewhere...

 

[Beekissed]

Way to go Bee! You're leading by example here!

I have not completed any of my organizational goals yet But I haven't given up! I know a kid-free afternoon is just waiting for a good paper sorting in my future somewhere...

Kids...they can sure throw a clinker in organization efforts, can't they? Unless they are old enough to help...sometimes that can be real fun and they really get into it! Especially if you do a fun activity with them after they help you with your "fun activity".

My oldest was a natural born organizer and also a self starter. He would be cleaning my room, organizing my drawers, straightening my shoes, etc. at the tender age of 2-3 yrs...Mom would tell me he had spent all day doing it while I was at work. Even laid out my nightgown on the bed and turned back the covers. I'll never forget that sweetness! Too bad they don't stay that way, huh?

The other two had no talent for it...just the opposite...they have a great talent for clutter and more clutter, then more of the same. Especially the youngest...he has hoarding tendencies with a side of just plain ol' sloth. Now he's married to a neat freak and it's funny as all get out!

 

[treerooted]

Yes, my little does not seem to be a cleaner "by nature". He's got that typical toddler boy destructiveness. But we do integrate cleaning his own toys up and as long as we're involved he's usually happy to do it, but it's definitely not something he ever initiates on his own.
So he's not much help, he's more likely to make things more difficult for me, at least with the organizing projects I want to do. I'd really like a whole afternoon to tackle some of these things because constantly starting and stopping feels like going backwards sometimes.
I've have a plan in my head to throw on a movie and sort a pile of papers a couple nights a week, but I always seem to be beat by the end of the day and don't want to make the effort. I just need to give my butt a little kick to get going on that.

 

[Beekissed]

I used to do that with laundry, organizing papers, cleaning out various cubbies and such...just put on a movie and watch while I do it. Nowadays I listen to sermons while I do those things and it helps me in both ways...I learn and listen better when my hands are busy and I stay busier and more focused on a task if I am listening to something important or if someone just talks to me while I do it.

I know exactly what you mean by getting interrupted...it's hard to complete any task when there are constant interruptions. Especially if one is easily distracted like I am.

 

[Mini Horses]

Mom's memory is getting a little dusty, so she often buys random things we've never used, nor will ever use, if she sees it on display....or she'll keep buying the same thing over and over, thinking we are out, but at home we have 6 of them.

Yep -- before my mom moved in with me she had begun this. When I needed to take her shopping, it slowed down. At first the excess (or mental issue) wasn't so obvious -- as mom lived 50 miles away, so didn't see here every day. Plus, on phone calls it isn't seen. She was a person who had grown up with very limited assets, so she had always been one to buy extra to put aside for a slack time. Well supplied. But when Altzhimers started it got beyond this.
She loved her Avon lady!! wow...shocking amounts.

As for organizing -- I have a couple of the hanging "shoe" holders. The pockets are clear. I use them to separate a lot of my sewing notions because I can look at a couple dozen pockets quickly. It may work for some of your smaller items.

 

[tortoise]

I started my basement cleaning project. 4 bags garbage out, but haven't done much purging yet. School/office supplies need to go!! Excess!!

 

[Beekissed]

I started my basement cleaning project. 4 bags garbage out, but haven't done much purging yet. School/office supplies need to go!! Excess!!

Feels good, don't it? Just to .....let go.....of whole bags of stuff. It's one of the few freeing and lovely things I've experienced in life to download stuff and no longer have it filling up so much space in my life.

for Tortoise!!! Lost 4 garbage bags of weight in one day!!

Got a few dollar bins yesterday from DG that exactly fit the space between my white wash bins...these will be for overflow objects that defy a category or await return to the shed. They are black baskets fitting neatly between my white wash tubs....such a lovely symmetry in such images!

Could not find a single thing yesterday that will help me mount a dispenser unit on the wall for disposable gloves, trash bags and zip locs. Looked online and found little there too unless I want to pay megabucks just to organize a few things. NOT.

So tomorrow I'll check out Dollar Tree for appropriate sized baskets/bins that I can modify and mount on the wall for dispensing of such things. Because that's just how I roll.

I'm cheap....er...frugal.

 

[treerooted]

Are you looking for something like this? Looks like you might be able to get them under $10 on Amazon. But hopefully the dollar tree as a good option!

This might be a good dyi for garbage bags:

I think hooks like these are fairly inexpensive too (but I don't know)