My mother started using this method a few days ago, and blogged about it here. I decided what the heck, and I tried it yesterday. I LOVE IT. It is so rewarding. I stuck to the ten minutes (more or less), and got the entire house (more or less) presentable in less than 45 minutes. Today I did more. This is truly a great method for someone like me with an instant gratification problem and a short attention span. Also, working with a timer brings out my competitive streak. I think I will get a timer I can carry around with me; the only one I have is on my oven.
Anyway, thanks, Mommy!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
The great clothing explosion
...also known as "my kids have too damn much clothing". Which kind of makes me sick, actually. And sad, when I stop to think about it. I realized that when all the laundry is clean at the same time (which, truthfully, is hardly ever), we literally cannot fit all their clothing in the drawers. So my goal was to purge whatever doesn't fit. I had kind of a grand idea that they could keep x number of tops, x number of pairs of shorts, but scrapped that idea. The revised goal (which worked since all my laundry was *gasp* clean at the same time) was "You can keep it if it fits in your drawer".
So today I have THREE kitchen-sized trash bags full of clothing to bring to Hotline (our local thrift store).
Next in line: the dreaded toy shelves *insert scary Jaws-like music here*. It's always drama, because something gets unearthed that literally hasn't been seen in six months, and I go to put it in the Hotline bag, and somehow some kid sees it and says, "noooooooo! that's my faaaaaavorite toy! I looooooove that toy and I play with it alllllll the tiiiiiiime!" Another annoying tendency my kids have is to always want to save cardboard boxes or random packing things because "I'm making a house for my guys" or what-have-you. Now, I'm all about creative play. And I love that they can make playthings out of recyclables. But come on, now! We're drowning in old shoe boxes! And no, I'm not saving every scrap of paper you ever took a pen to! (Side note: the pre-school that my kids went to, while great in almost every way, had the horrible habit of sending home at least 3-6 pieces of random "artwork" or "seatwork" EVERY. DAY. You can only keep so much, you know? Like, none.)
Anyway, if I think of it, I'll take before and after pictures. I definitely need to do some work before Baby comes in March. Otherwise we might lose him/her in the clutter.
So today I have THREE kitchen-sized trash bags full of clothing to bring to Hotline (our local thrift store).
Next in line: the dreaded toy shelves *insert scary Jaws-like music here*. It's always drama, because something gets unearthed that literally hasn't been seen in six months, and I go to put it in the Hotline bag, and somehow some kid sees it and says, "noooooooo! that's my faaaaaavorite toy! I looooooove that toy and I play with it alllllll the tiiiiiiime!" Another annoying tendency my kids have is to always want to save cardboard boxes or random packing things because "I'm making a house for my guys" or what-have-you. Now, I'm all about creative play. And I love that they can make playthings out of recyclables. But come on, now! We're drowning in old shoe boxes! And no, I'm not saving every scrap of paper you ever took a pen to! (Side note: the pre-school that my kids went to, while great in almost every way, had the horrible habit of sending home at least 3-6 pieces of random "artwork" or "seatwork" EVERY. DAY. You can only keep so much, you know? Like, none.)
Anyway, if I think of it, I'll take before and after pictures. I definitely need to do some work before Baby comes in March. Otherwise we might lose him/her in the clutter.
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