The Next Level - Follow Up

If you happened to miss my last blog post you can find it here - I put out the idea of "guilty clutter" and mentioned a great blog I found that helped me identify the next level of work that I needed to do in simplifying my life. It was about time that I got real with naming the types of clutter I keep around.

Guilty clutter is definitely one of the types of clutter. Over the past few week and a half I've had some time to contemplate what guilty clutter I've allowed to control me from their perch on my shelves, in my closet, sitting quietly but heavily in drawers.

This was a difficult journey for me. The loop that played in my head as I grabbed one of these guilty clutter items was "what if the person asks me what I did with this? I can't possibly part with this; there are too many good memories associated with _______" I will admit I picked things up- doilies from my grandma, candle holders from our wedding that I just definitely could not part with at this point in my journey-if ever. But I had set a goal and like all good over achievers I was determined to meet my goal.

In the end I did find 5 things:

• Fancy candle holder (Christmas gift that I've only ever used once) 
• Doily (this one was not from my grandma or great-grandma so I had an easier time parting with it)
• Home Decor Item 
• Bell from our wedding (we have 2 of these hanging around so I decided that I didn't need both and it's not likely that I'm going to loose/break the first one and lament getting rid of the second or at least I am hoping that I won't)
• Necklace (this one was hard to get rid of but it needed to go)

Whew! I know it's just a list of 5 things but I did honestly struggle with these. It's hard getting rid of things that you have some level of guilt getting rid of. And so while this only adds 5 items to my purge total I know the work that went in to getting those 5 additional counts on my list. 

I did also continue with some of the "easy" purging this past week ( I ended up going through all our Christmas supplies- so that helped) and so we are looking fairly good for our yearly total so far! 

Total: 274 

-       Miscellaneous/House -71

-       clothing/accessories- 67

-       Office Supplies/Books- 72

-       Kitchen items- 41

-       Hair/Beauty- 21

-       Tools- 2 

The Next Level

After attacking clutter in my home for the past 14ish months I have really let go of a lot of the big things. You know, those items that stick out like sore thumbs and you know that you're never going to use them or that they no longer serve a purpose in your life. An example of one of those was a beach umbrella I had. I live on the prairie and so we have a distinct lack of beaches and when we do go to a beach it usually involves a plane trip so it was highly unlikely that I was ever going to use the beach umbrella.

So now that those big, obvious items are out of my life and I've committed to seeing 500 objects leave my home this year and I am struggling with "what next".  Don't get me wrong I am still purging on a regular basis but feel that there are other obvious pieces of clutter that I should be seeing that I am not. So I went search the web and visited a few of my now favorite organizing, de-cluttering, and minimalist blogs.

I just happened upon this blog of Laura's and knew I had found my answer. This lady is getting really REAL with clutter and organization in her house. Her blog post titled Letting Go of Guilty Clutter got my attention. I know I have passed up getting rid of some things in my home because someone has given them to me and they may have special meaning. And while I may not agree with getting rid of something super sentimental without asking the individual if they would like it back, the concept of even identifying those things that are guilty clutter is one that I can really get on board with. So this week I am challenging myself to find 5 guilty clutter items that I can part with. This is going to be scary for me but I really wanted to push myself to a new level so here it goes. I'll post next week to let you know how it goes!

And check out my new purge totals so far this year.
Total Items: 202- almost 1/2 way there to my 500 goal 

-       Miscellaneous -22

-       clothing/accessories- 64

-       Office Supplies/Books- 62

-       Kitchen items- 36

-       Hair/Beauty- 16

-       Tools- 2 

2013 is going to be LESS

Every year I pick a word that is going to define the way I live. I’ve been doing this for at least the last 4 years. I cannot remember if it goes back farther than that. As my Grandma would say- I have a good memory but it’s short! J

Last year I chose the word simplify. To say that the word transformed my life would be an understatement. It completely became my thought process and my approach to everything I did. Some of the highlights from last year was cleaning out my closet, starting a meal planning rotation, and purging my home of unwanted things. I was able to happily walk out 318 things from my home last year.

It was a challenge to pick my word for 2013. I wanted it to be something that would continue on the transformational journey of “simplicity” but it had to be something distinct enough that it didn’t live in the shadow of 2012. I thought long and hard about it and this year my word choice is “LESS”.

I have chosen a sub theme for every month. This year is about living with less noise, less clutter, less undone projects, less procrastination, being less committed, etc. I think I am going to enjoy the ride.

I am still going to work on getting rid of things that I no longer need or that no longer define who I am. My challenge to myself for the year is to rid my home of 500 things. And this year I am being strict. Everything that I count as an item cannot be replaced with another item. That means if I buy a shirt, another shirt has to be purged (I have a one in, one out rule) but that purge cannot be counted in my total. It has to be something that is purged that is not replaced with something else.

It will be tough but with last year under my belt I already walk around the house with my inner voice asking “Do you need everything in this ___________(insert drawer, closet, room, here).

So in the spirit of sharing I will continue to post my successes and my failures here on the blog. I hope that you’ll join in with me if you feel inspired to do so and that you’ll cheer me on as I walk this road.

2013 Purge Total: (Yes, I started January 1^st and here’s what I have so far)

154 items

-       Miscellaneous -10

-       clothing/accessories- 49

-       Office Supplies/Books- 61

-       Kitchen items- 25

-       Hair/Beauty- 8

-       Tools- 1 

Pumped and Ready 2013

So even though I haven't been posting much I finished strong in 2012 living out simplicity and what it meant to me. I have managed to purge several spaces in my home and man does it ever feel great! If you missed my first post of 2012 and why I was living "simplicity" this year. You can find it Here

I have been ruthless in what I keep and how long I keep it for. I wasn't perfect though. I found I still sometimes went back to good old faithful retail therapy every now and then and made purchases that just weren't that useful and had to go back to the store......It's going to take some more work to get me truly rethinking how I live and operate day to day. This year at the very least made me more aware of the stuff I was buying and each time I picked something up either in the store or in my own home I would stop to ask myself if it really was something that I needed. It was a freeing year and I definitely feel less attached to the stuff I own at this point.

My last purge total that I posted in June was 162 items that left via donation, sale, recycle, or garbage from my home. I have continued to keep track from that point and have purged an additional 155 items bringing my grand total for 2012 to: 318! That's nearly 1 item per day which make me pretty happy! I am going to see if I can exceed that for 2013.

I am even ending the year and gearing up for a new year by purging 13 items from my closet this morning. Happy 2013!! What better way to end the year than by saying good-bye to stuff and giving one last node to my word of the year for 2012- simplicity! The best part is that it didn't even take me that long I was in and out within 15 mins. A far cry from the hours I've spent at the beginning of the year debating on whether or not to get rid of stuff. If it hasn't been worn and I don't love it, then it goes!

And stay tuned- I'll be sharing my word of the year for 2013 shortly!

Simplicity of Love

So last week my husband and I watched "the vow" based on this couples true love story. Initally I thought how awful it must be for her to never remember that "first love fever"- you know what I'm talking about- the aching of your heart when you are away, the butterflies in your stomach when you kiss, the smile you get when you think of the other person- the good stuff!

It really got me thinking about love. Hey, I've been married for 10 years so it's safe to say it's been awhile for me since I had the butterflies in my stomach. I was starting to lament the loss of young love until I started counting the things that long term, committed love has over young love.

My "old love" has:

• predictable coffee dates every Sunday morning
• A kiss and an "I love you" every night before bed
• A kiss and a "have a nice day" every morning before work
• Shared jokes that still make us laugh - remember "husband of the year" hun? :) 
• The knowledge that I am the one he comes home to every night without fail
• The safety of being authentically sick, said, angry, hurt, joyful in front of him and knowing that I won't be judged 
• A life mate, soul mate, and helper for the rest of my days on earth

Love isn't about the butterflies although it may start that way. The simplicity of love is that it's a choice. One you make each and every day until the day you die to be faithful, to help, to inspire, to support, to cherish, to hold on to, to encourage to that one person. So in reality the the couple "the vow" is based on, specifically the wife, has never know anything but true love. She knows better than anyone else the struggles, the triumphs, and tests of true love. 

The journey isn't easy, as I know full well, but it's worth it. It's about a journey that you take together full of valleys and peaks. And it's the simplicity of love in it's truest form that I wouldn't change for the world. 

For the Ladies....

I hope you are enjoying the posts so far and have been challenged, just as I have to look at life with a more simplistic lens, and practically have started to purge some of your excess as well.

For today I thought I would address that drawer that men wonder about and women fear.....the BRA drawer. You know you all have one. And I bet you that there are bras in there that you haven't worn in YEARS! You know the ones you buy thinking "oh it's so cute" or "I am sure I can squeeze my ta-tas in here one day because it’s such a good deal”. We've all been there. 

So I decided that since I had so much success tackling my sock drawer previously that I would also tackle my bra drawer.

I have found a really decent bra that I love. I mean absolutely HANDS DOWN LOVE>LOVE>LOVE. It’s available in the states and so my last few purchases have been from that store so I thought- no biggie, I probably don’t have much of anything to deal with in the bra drawer…..boy was I wrong.

My biggest embarrassment of this drawer was the boustier that I bought to wear under my wedding dress….drumroll please…..10 YEARS AGO!!!! Have I worn it since then? Nope. Have I thought about it since then? Nope. Have I hauled it around for more than 6 household moves. Yup! = embarrassing! So that definitely had to go.

I also had a bra that I used to wear pretty much every day but that hasn’t been worn in at least 4 years. That had to go too. Am I the only one that holds onto old favorites? This is definitely a habit that has to go!

Then came 2 Calvin Klein bras. Both in excellent shape, and both only worn likely a combined total of 6 times. These, although they are really cute, had to go!

I was also holding on to a sport’s bra I’ve had for 14 years- that is torn and barely holding on. Time for a new one likely there too.

So in total I started with 12 bras. An assortment of really old and never worn more than once, pretty but not practical, my old favorite, and some that I still wear today. I was able to rid myself of 6 of those bras and keep the other 6 that are still of use to me. I am left with- 4 practical ones in neutral colors so that I'm never left in a panic if one is in the wash, a practical sports bra for running, and one not so practical but fun colored one that hey I use so it had to stay! 

Now when I look in my bra drawer I know exactly what’s in there and everything in there is what I love and use on a regular basis. No “extras” hanging around taking up space. And with the extra space I was able to share the drawer with my belts and a jewellery box- bonus! Amazing what a little decluttering can do for available space. Just when I thought I had none....

So let's go ladies- when's the last time you cleaned out your bra drawer? 

I am not that into sharing my unmentionables with the world so a weird colored quasi photo will have to suffice for this post. 

The Finish Line

So I am a little late on my post for this week. My apologies. I was actually out running "the big race" on Sunday. Yup, I made it through the finish line of my first 1/2 marathon. Que streamers, music, and dancing here.

It's been a weird couple of days letting it all sink in. I worked hard for this race, 9 months of training, special diets, etc. I think I thought that the world would maybe look different after I finished. In a few ways I was a little disappointed. Experiencing disappointment wasn't part of my training schedule.....so why was this happening? It got me thinking about the simplicity of the race.

I was all reved up to have this life changing moment the second I crossed the finish line on Sunday. I even planned the dance I would do once I had "reached my goal". What I didn't realize was that my life changing moment happened over the course of time. It wasn't the race that made me a half marathoner, it was all the hard work and preparation that I had put in over the course of the last 9 months that changed me. I was moulded and shaped by every Km I ran through wind, snow, ice, fatigue, joy, anger, and pain.

When I started the race on Sunday I was already a 1/2 marathoner, the race didn't suddenly define who I was, it was the product of who I had become. I've pushed through when the going was tough. I've bought and stunk up the running gear. I've headed out to run when the rest of the world was wrapped up in blankets with a cup of coffee to stay warm. I've beaten the voices in my head that told me I could never make 14Km let a lone 21Km. I've learned how to balance my protein and carbohydrate intake to maximize my performance. I've had bad weeks where I didn't run at all but got back on the band wagon the following week.

In looking back on my disappointment and reflecting- I thought I was going to be a different person once that finishers medal was draped around my neck but in reality I never realized the simple fact that  I was already a different person when I started the race. In fact- the whoop I let out as I started the race was bigger than the joy I had when I finished. At the start line I was already changed. I held within myself the discipline, determination, and preparation required to cross the finish line and it felt awesome!!!

This week I've learned: It's not always about the finish line but rather it's about the preparation to exuberantly know you can confidently stand at the starting line. Getting to the starting line is sometimes the hardest part. 

What are your goals? What's going to get you to your starting line? I hope that at the beginning of your "race" you can let out the same enthusiastic "whoop!" that I did- knowing you have prepared for your moment and have the ability to finish.