New Years!! A New Beginning!!

I love New Years as it is a great chance to "start over".. a new canvas to draw up a New Plan.

I know most people "Spring Clean" but I personally always find January a "Big Clean" month. I don't even need to plan it- it just natually occurs-- must be somekind of internal clock for me. I think it has something to do with putting away the tree and Christmas decorations- it makes the houes feel "empty" but not a bad empty, more like a "clear" empty. With all the Christmas toys and new clothes that need to "find homes" it always starts my organizing instinct. Where to put it all???

Before Christmas I always clear out the clutter. I go into each child's dresser and pull out clothes that don't fit or they don't like. I go though all the toys to see what is broken, missing pieces, too young, or just not played with anymore and that all gets sold on ebay or put in the garbage. I went though all the "snow clothes" (snowpants, boots, snowgloves, hats etc..) and have all the kids try stuff on to see what might be needed for this year. Whatever no longer fits is passed onto relatives or sold on ebay.

Now, after Christmas, I feel like I need to do it all over again. There is never enough room- or so it seems. We need to carefully look at each thing in the house and decide "Do I really need this?". How do I decide if I should keep something? I ask myself, Do I use it everyday- or everyweek -or every month? Depending on what it is used for. I have "seasonal items"- if I didn't use it last year- and I didn't use it/put it out this year- then I probably won't- so OUT IT GOES!

I should note here: I tend to be a very "unattached" person-- I have very few items that I have any emotional attachments to--therefore I find it very easy to get rid of stuff. (The price of an item makes a larger impression on me than emotions.)

I love that my dinning room is completely cleared out (in order to seat 13 people for dinner on Xmas) and I would like it to stay that way! Saying something is one thing but in order for Ideas to be come reality you need a plan!! So my plan for this is to organize my "school stuff" in the laundry room. It was all moved to the laundry room this summer- but things tend to creap back upstairs. I think this is because it is such a mess in the laundry room. It was PUT there at the end of the school year- but literally just PUT - not in any particular order. So I am hoping before I head back to school Jan 5th to get it into seperate file boxes marked: Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer. That should help. As I bring stuff home now- I can put it in the correct box for next year. (instead of making a pile in the dining room)

As this week goes by and I look forward to the clean slate of the New Year, I will be posting a week-by-week House Cleaning list, in case anyone else has the January Cleaning Bug. I will also be posting some New Year's Goals (personal, family, and financial).