Here it is.
My big decluttering/organizing/cleaning project of the week:
I cleaned off the dining room table.
Perhaps you are thinking, “Ummmm, haven’t you done that before? Like . . . a hundred times? And written a hundred posts about it?”
Yes. Yes, I have.
Yet it continually returns to slob-blogger-post-worthy status.
While I’d love to dig into a nook or cranny and do some down and dirty decluttering this week, I can’t justify that because of the overall state of the house.
It’s a wreck.
I have a friend coming over tomorrow and home groups on Sunday night so I know I’ll be motivated to pick up and de-disasterize the kitchen and living room.
But if I don’t turn the dining room table into its own “project” it will end up being scooped into one big box of clutter and moved to the Master Bedroom.
And we all know how that story would end.
So, I decluttered/cleaned the table.
It wasn’t the least bit difficult, and didn’t take much time at all.
Mostly, there was Easter stuff. Baskets and eggs and candy and such. Plastic eggs were emptied and put back in storage for next year, and candy was moved to one big treat basket.
I rejoiced to find a piece of my beloved banana Laffy Taffy:
And thought unkind thoughts about the parents of my son’s classmates who felt it necessary to tape eggs shut.
I pitched the long-dead roses from my daughter’s birthday party that we had on April 2nd.
I put trash in the trashcan and took other absent-mindedly-placed items back to their proper homes.
And now it looks like this:
Yes, that’s a bike.
I like it much better. I think I should keep it this way forever. (Har-dee-har-har-har.)
FINE!
Here’s the real after picture:
That’s a sheet I borrowed from my best friend when we went Christmas shopping and I needed to cover up a gift in the back of my Suburban. If I don’t put it there, I’ll never remember to give it to her tomorrow.
Actually, I’ll still probably forget, but maybe she’ll read this post tonight.
I’ll be linking this up over at Orgjunkie.com for her 52 Weeks of Organizing.
I'm totally with you about the decluttered dining room table. Can't stop it from cluttering. I am going to clean mine today. Thanks for the inspiration.
Sam @ I love organising
Hey Nony, catching up her from a few days absence… How I solve the problem of not forgetting things I have to take somewhere…. I put my van keys with it. If my cell is plugged in on the counter, I loop the charger wire through my key ring. If I have to take a cold dish to pass, then my keys are in the fridge on top of the container. Then when it's time to go & I get out to the van & open my purse to grab my keys, I get all panic-y & race back into the house and search all over until I REMEMBER where they are. Great job on taking care of the basics & getting that under control before the 'down & dirty decluttering'!
I did read it…and will probably forget to take it home tomorrow anyway. Oh well, that's life. I was kinda wondering were that sheet was the other day!!! 🙂
Hey Nony, This is my second day following your blog and have enjoyed reading your endeavors, had to stop to get busy myself. I was so inspired yesterday I cleaned out 3 of my kitchen cabinets and my pantry. I enjoyed putting up my groceries today.
Anyway, I love the fact you have homegroup on Sunday. So do we, this is following me being away at a women's retreat and teaching Sunday School. I will be busy Sunday afternoon, sprucing up the place after hubby has been chasing 4 kiddos.
No wonder we're kindered spirits. I LOVE Laffy Taffy! (and the whole cluttered house, and slob-vision, and all that stuff – yeah, that too.)
Anything that needs to be returned usually stays at my house until I force myself to remember. That usually doesn't happen. I need to create a space for need-to-return items. Its on my ever-growing list of "good ideas to implement one day."
I'll let you know if any of those ever get accomplished.
An Oder lady (90!) forgot a cooler bag at my house after a gathering. She called the next day to arrange to pick it up because “ it would become a burden for me “ to have to get it to her. Ever since I have realized that getting something where it needs to be IS a burden! I look at things now as such! Don’t expect others to carry yours. And get rid of your own to lessen the stresses of more daily pressure we don’t need! 😥
I know the feeling its normally my bed though that has the constant clutter. For some reason everone in the house puts their stuff there. Problably because that is where the home office is 🙂 Im thinking about a few systems thanks to the OrganizingJunkie.com and the ladies who have awesome ideas. Great job on decluttering
Once the little moochers are gone, it will be easier, I promise! I love the color of that wall in your dining room, it is gorgeous!
Your post always makes me smile. Thanks for letting me know I'm not alone in my struggle to keep up.
i am constantly decluttering our front room…it is actually nice to know that someone else has a space that seems to "catch" everything!
great job! 🙂
Oh, I have several surfaces like that in my home — the ones that keep coming back to haunt me. somehow my daily 10 minute tidies miss them and then they become mountains to tackle. Good for you for tackling yours…
Love it! I think we all have a hotspot in our homes we don't seem to be able to keep clutter free. That's human 🙂 Keep up your great work:) I may not always comment, but I am definately following 🙂
Hi Nony. I have the same issue with my DR table… it is such a crap magnet, no matter how many times I tackle it. I love your honest "after" pic and story.