Me-Clutter=1 Happy Girl

I am hard at work continuing with my mission to go thru every single nook & cranny in this house and ask myself three simple questions:

1. Keep?
2. Toss?
3. Donate?

Yesterday I tackled the boy's bathroom (I think the bath tub toys multiply while we sleep at night).  It actually wasn't too bad, and only took about 30 minutes.  Who would have thought that in just 30 minutes I could get rid of all the junk and have a lovely, organized room?  Just goes to show you that sometimes when a task seems too daunting ya just gotta break it down into bite sized pieces!  Would you believe that we had SIX thermometers (only two of which actually work!), and more nail trimmers than you could shake a stick at.  I found three of those itsy bitsy ones that you use when they are babies.  Yeah....I won't be needing those anymore.

Tim took the day off work, and announced that he was going to put new carpeting in AJ's room.  Ummmm....OK?  THAT'S a prime example of when the motivation moves you, GO WITH IT!  With all the boys at school, he had a whole chunk of time to get stuff done without any "help" (except for the dogs & cats who like to supervise!).  Here's just one more situation where I am so thankful that I have a resourceful husband.  I cannot tell you how much money he has saved us by doing things himself.  Put in hardwood floors?  Sure, why not.  Fix the dishwasher/washing machine/car/etc/etc/etc.  You name it, he can pretty much do it.  If he doesn't know how, he hops on the internet or makes some calls.  Then - BOOM - he gets to work.  He got the carpeting (enough to do both AJ and Zach's rooms) for $100.  Bought the pad and a handy little tool (torture device) called a "carpet kicker" for another $68.  Labor is FREE.  OK, I'll pay him later.  :D

While Tim got busy putting fresh carpet in, I went thru AJ's dresser and closet.  AGAIN....appalled by how many clothes my children have.  I filled TWO tubs of his castoffs, and he's still got more than he will ever realistically wear.  He's another one that has about 3-4 outfits that are his "favs" and that's ALL he wears.  Over and over again.  So, seriously, why bother having all that other stuff in there.  It's just taking up space.  When AJ got home from school he & I went thru EVERYTHING ELSE.  I am not exaggerating when I say that you could not see ANY piece of the top of his dresser prior to yesterday.  AJ is a collector (and possibly a future star of "Hoarders").  You would not believe the amount of Happy Meal toys, junk from various birthday goodie bags, TWO (big) bags of OLD CANDY (we're talking some of it probably from Christmas two years ago).  Did I mention he has a hard time throwing stuff out?  He's gotta hold onto it ALL.  Not any more.  It's GONE.  Yes, it was.......shall we say...."CHALLENGING."  But now that he's got all his (500 gajillion) Pokemon cards in a binder, each one encased in a little plastic sleeve - I think he sees the beauty of having your stuff organized.  He literally had Pokemon cards tucked in every little nook and cranny, and had no idea what he had.  You would have thought it was Christmas morning, as he went thru them and remembered all the cool stuff he has.  It's easy to see it once it's unearthed from all the CRAP.  To be brutally honest, I would have liked to toss a lot more stuff, but believe me, we definitely made progress.  It's baby steps.  He's a work in progress.  Last night he and Zach spent several hours in his room, looking at books they forgot they had.  Putting Pokemon posters up on the wall, taking down old stuff that had been up for years.  More than anything, just looking around, and enjoying the view.  It's like a whole new room.  And EVERYONE can appreciate that, no matter your age!

My mission continues today.  Today we tackle Zach's room.  Carpet....de-cluttering of toys.  At least his closet and dresser are already done.  I just wish I could really sit back and enjoy the progress I'm making.  Right now, all I see is more STUFF that I have to get rid of.  This is me taking a deep breath and getting moving!

This bookshelf is new!
 AJ decided to organize it with Pokemon on top,
video games on bottom (whatever works, right?)

Why of all things, keep that little twig?
That twig is special!  AJ's Mamaw died last year.
She loved birds, and AJ got this little twig at her house
after she died.  He thought it looked like a little bird foot.
That's what he keeps to remember his Mamaw.
Did I mention that he's SENTIMENTAL?

LOTS of stuff, but it's organized!
Books, trophies, and his beloved rock collection.

Is that the top of his dresser I see????