Progress in the Room of Craziness (aka the Computer Room!)

This week has been a busy one (which is surprising, since I had almost a week off from work around the Easter break! It just seems like I have million things on the go, and just not enough hours in the day to get them done! 

I made a conscious effort to be present with my family over Easter. We played, celebrated my niece's first birthday, Easter egg hunted and spent quality time together. It was glorious.

The Room of Craziness!

The big project of the week has become The Room Of Craziness.

I challenged the girls to fill up a laundry basket each with toys they no longer play with that they could pass on to other children.

They MORE than exceeded my expectations, and filled THREE baskets and then some with toys, games, books and a kiddie chair that they have outgrown. I am so proud of my little donaters!! Some items the girls were less excited to let go, but after a reminder that they have many other toys that they love and play with all the time, into the donate baskets the toys went.

I always try to involve the girls in the donation process. Some people prefer to do the purging of the toy box at naptime or when the kids are at school. I want my girls to recognize how blessed they are to have so many toys, and so many people in their lives that give them all of the wonderful gifts and toys they have.

Once the toy clutter had been cleared away (thanks for the tips Kelly B!), it was time to work on furniture placement (thanks for the floor plan ideas and brute strength Krista K!). The room is far from finished, but it feels great to make some progress!

How to Get Started

Start small: Grab a box or a bag and take a look around the room that you are in. Take a few minutes and try to gather as many things as you can find that aren't beautiful, useful or meaningful in your life.
Go bigger! : Once you have that first box filled with items that are cluttering up your house, try to envision the big picture of what you would like your room to look like. Try to take anything that doesn't fit into the vision for your room and remove it (box it up, find it another home in the house, or just give it away).

Once you have made some progress comes the most important thing:  Do a happy dance!  Pour yourself a glass of wine! Reward yourself in some small way - it's hard work getting and staying organized, if you don't treat yourself, you might not keep going!!
J