Seasons are changing as a crispness in the air rises and colors paint their portrait of fall among the trees. With its newness, comes favorite traditions being lived out and activities of investing in the holiday season taking schedule margin from families. Summers view of pool toys, flip flops galore and vacation traveling remnants are tucked into the corners of a home and then become intermingled with fall’s welcome of scarves, chunky sweaters, and high top boots as they are added to the mix.
My little tribe loves to celebrate; it is one of our favorite things to do together as we recognize birthdays, holidays, hard work rewards, and showing affirmation to others. With this focus comes heightened excitement when it is time to bring down the holiday bins and transform the home vibe with decorations that match its season. My kids excitedly voiced after seeing their first colored leaf, “It’s time to decorate for fall!” and I found myself quickly overwhelmed by what needed to take place in order to feel my mood match theirs.
For you see, this year life has brought the hard and month after month of mom healing her back from a car injury has left remnants of neglect within each corner of every room of the home. Jackets and gloves from last winter were still left behind the door, pool toys were strewn through every crevice of the other door, and another corner kept this “Little Debbie box full of random things” while Little Debbie’s face stared at me every day with a reminder of what I could not accomplish in a day. A brown box with Little Debbie’s face that we used when we MOVED almost 3 YEARS ago into our home has been left as a hold all things random in our living room space that after you look at it for so long then it just takes its own root.
Who else has their own Little Debbie staring them down in the corners of their home?
I took my kids excitement and mustered up enough energy for the taking to begin the tasks of clearing out the corners so that I felt welcome to the new season with a present readiness.
Included below are some simple and practical ways to focus on season change preparation. These are going to seem like the most simplistic tips, yet when one has left things untended to for weeks/ months/ years then the task is needing basic decluttering reminders to just get the job done.
Your “corner” may be a closet or a junked out room space, so where ever the need for declutter lies, this is for you:
Things that you need:
- Candles/ oil diffuser
- Music
- Trash bags, TRASH bags!
- Dollar store or cost efficient storage bins
- Tape
- Marker
Tips:
- First off, choose a time when kids are either at school or outside playing with Dad, neighbor, a loved one and do this task kid time uninterrupted. BECAUSE, a child will go through every trash bag with a nostalgia sentiment statement and say it is their most favorite thing in all the world and that you could never throw it away. So you need focus to clear out the clutter without all that unnecessary emotion keeping you in hoarder mode!
- Prepare your space by ushering in calm as you begin. For me, this always involves lighting my favorite candles or diffusing my oil scent of choice and bringing a vibe of relaxation into my work zone. I click on pandora or spotify and invite my favorite musician to be part of this process with me.
- Position yourself into your cluttered corner with four options:
- a storage bin
- trash bag for throw away
- bag for giveaway: be a blessing to others pile
- Bag for sell: give back to your family pile
- Begin the process and start sorting each item into its right bin/bag. Label anything you need with marker and tape bin up.
- Finalize the process by storing bins used for later seasons in whatever storage space you have in your home and then drop off giveaway bags at a house in need of them or second-hand store and then take your trash bags to the garbage.
- SMILE< PAT YOURSELF ON THE BACK > You’re now ready to DECORATE for the new season with great accomplishment of a home ready to enjoy it!
Share with me your face Little Debbie moments. I would love to celebrate a decluttered space with you!
