Another Decluttering post on my journey towards having it all put together . . .

  

I confess that I am a bit of a collector.  I have various collections . . .  salt and pepper shakers, cream and sugar dishes, small decorative cream jugs, fairies, cookie cutters, craft supplies, etc.  I have a bit of a tendancy to fall in love with things and I think that sometimes I end up going way over the top, which is the case at the moment with cookery books.  I try to cull them . . . but its very hard for me.  As soon as I start looking at them, I start falling in love with them all over again, and then  . . .  I can't bring myself to get rid of them.   It is a problem for me  . . .

The fact is however, that the loveliest, best-planned home in the world can be completely undone by a pile of clutter, or cluttered rooms.  One only has to watch a few minutes of the program Hoarders to be horrified.  I sincerely hope that I never get like that.  That has to be an illness.  I have a hard time comprehending how  people can live with stacks of magazines or too much furniture, etc.

I get so much free stuff sent to me that in my kitchen I can sometimes have counter tops filled with a jungle of bottles and tins of things . . .  so much so at times that there is hardly any workspace left.

That drives me up the wall.




This is how I like it to look . . .  but in all truth it seldom does.   And I am not like some people, or true hoarders . . .  I notice it and it takes its toll on me.  The reality is we always pay for clutter  in time spent on extra cleaning and in searching for items that are not where they should be.  I hate opening a cupboard and not being able to find what I want without having to empty out the whole cupboard.  Don't you???

The more clutter there is . . .  the more over-whelming it becomes.  There is no joy to be found in that, and I know it.  This year I have been on a journey towards cutting the clutter and downsizing and here is what I have learned so far and been putting into practice.




One - Cut the clutter by not bringing it into the house to begin with!  This is the hardest thing to do.  Its so very tempting to buy things that you were not really setting out to purchase . . .  but they are on offer, and too good a deal to pass up . . .  or your friend is getting rid of it and you think its a shame to throw it away, etc.  Your house is not a depository for other people's unwanteds, as nice as they may be.  If you don't need it, or if it wasn't on your list of things you have always wanted, or something which you had planned on buying . .  . just pass it by.  Shut your eyes and your heart and your arms.  You don't need it.

Two -  Don't bring anything into the house unless you know exactly where it is going to go and you have a specific space, idea, or plan  for it. Just don't bring it in.

Three -  Just how much storage space do you have available to you???  Be realistic about it.  Stuffing things into cupboards, armoires, drawers, closets, sheds . . .  until they can't hold anymore defeats the very purpose of their existance.  There are so many times I find myself storing something away and then . . .  it's true . . .  out of sight, out of mind.  I never use it again, but then when I go to get rid, I think to myself . . .  "But I might need it some day" . . . . STOP that kind of thinking.  If you haven't looked at it or used it in the past three to six months, chances are you probably never will.  We have things in our shed that we haven't even looked at for the last six years.  It is time to be rid.  Seriously.



Four -Another good place to begin paring down is the bookshelf.   I have . . .  and I kid you not . . .  I have TWELVE bookcases.  Seriously.   Yes . . .  TWELVE.  An even dozen.  I daunting number. I do not need all of those books . . . most are cookery books.  And I love them.   I think perhaps what I need to do is to take one shelf at a time, one day at a time and if it isn't a book that I have cooked out of even in the past year . . .  then I really need to give it away.  But it is going to be so, so hard, because I just love all of them.  I really do.

The thought of getting rid of any of them makes me sad  . . .  and yet at the same time, I feel the weight of them on my soul.  I did give about 12 of them away a week or so ago to a gal who loves to bake.  It made me feel really good to give them to someone that I knew was going to love them as much as I do, and who would use them, which I wasn't doing.  Maybe that is the key.  Sharing the love with someone that you know will love them too.

It just might be . . .




Five - Christmas Stuff.  I have a ton of Christmas stuff.  Most of it we don't use.  Why do I keep it?   I really need to go into my Christmas boxes . . .  while its not Christmas . . .  and pare it all down to what I actually still use and just pitch the rest.

 

Six - Too much furniture.  Too large furniture. This is a real way to clutter your home up.  Keeping furniture that doesn't truly fit the space and style which surrounds it.   There has to be a better way.  Looking at the room you are decorating, think about what you have in it.  Keep only that which is functional, fits the space, is attractive and that you love.  Get rid of everything else.  If it doesn't fit you must  . . . wait that was the trial of the century, but really . . .  if it doesn't fit your space, time to let it go . . .

The truth is every home has spots that are magnets for clutter.  Think of the junk drawer.  If its ready for the junk drawer, perhaps it is time to rethink even having it in the first place.  The quickest and best way to tackle cluttter is to identify the trouble spots and then take them on first.  You shouldn't just take the clutter from one room and move it to another.  That is not de-cluttering.    Make sure everything has a home, a spot where it belongs.   And then make sure that it lands in that spot when you are finished using it, etc.  Make it a habit.  I have applied that principle to my e-mail box and have kept it at below 100 e-mails for the past three  months.   That was a real biggie to me.  I am proud of that accomplishment.  If I can do it in my e-mail box, I can now apply that principle to my whole house.

Probably the most important thing you can do is to make a master plan/list for doing a major clean up if your home has become too cluttered.   But be realistic about it.   It didn't become cluttered overnight and it won't declutter overnight either.  Break the job down into several realistic, specific goals and then tackle them one at a time.



And here is my largest and probably best tip.  Set aside time each day for clearing up the clutter that has accumulated just during that day.  If you stay on top of it regularly, it doesn't become overwhelming.  It need only take a few minutes.  Just like I clean the bathroom each morning as soon as I finish getting dressed/makeup/etc . . .  make a spot in each day at the end of the day . . .  before you settle into your evening . . .  to clear up from the day you've spent.    This is the perfect way to relax and enjoy the evening, in your nice and tidy home.

The End.



And  . . . Todd's the only one not making a face.   haha  This is a selfie of the whole district enjoying our BBQ together yesterday afternoon in our home.  Starting from the middle front and going around to the left.  Sister Carter (Michigan) and Sister Steel (South Africa) (serving in Wrexham), Sister Fernandez (England) (serving in Chester), Me, Todd, Elder Schofield (SLC) (serving in Chester), Elder Nielsen (Sweden) (serving in Chester), Elder Launer (Switzerland) (serving in Chester), Elder Lolesi (New Zealand)  (serving in Chester) and finally Sister Doncheva (California) (Serving in Chester).  Good times!

A thought to carry with you through today  . . .


~•~♥♥♥~•.~•~♥♥♥~• ~
They are closest to us
who best understand what life
means to us, who feel for us
as we feel for ourselves,
who are bound to us
in triumph and disaster,
who break the spell of our 
lonliness.
~Henry Alonzo Myers
~•~♥♥♥~•.~•~♥♥♥~• ~

Spiritual Enlightenment





In The English Kitchen today  . . .  May Cakes.  Why?  Because I wanted to actually bake them in May for a change, lol.  Spicy little cupcakes filled with raisins and nuts.


Have a wonderful Sabbath.  May it be blessed and may you always know that . . .

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And I do too!

Home sweet home . . .

A man's home is his castle or so we are told.   I was so impressed several years ago when I was in American and saw the size and beauty of the homes I was in.  I had never seen such large or beautiful homes for "ordinary" folk in my life.  For sure I have been in many majestic homes, but they were for the ultra rich and show pieces, and not what I would call "homes."  They have no heart.  And that is what makes a house a "home."  Plenty of heart, and I have to say that all of the homes I visited in American had plenty of heart!

All of the homes of my childhood and indeed married life were very humble, small dwellings.   Military housing.  Cookie cutter houses.  Size determined by the size of your family.  Most were very small, even the ones designed to house larger families.    I did have a lovely big house at one point . . .  my ex and I built it ourselves and it was beautiful and built to my own design, but we were not in it for very long when we were yanked back out of it again.  My soul has always longed to have a lovely old fashioned "Farm House" with plenty of room to stretch out in and plenty of heart.  Not likely to happen on this side of the veil, unless we come into a huge sum of money, but never mind, there are still ways you can have the home you love even if it is small.

A home that embraces and welcomes is within all of our reach . . . and needn't be expensive to attain.

 

When I think of all of the homes I have enjoyed being in . . .  harmony seems to be the key.  All of the rooms blend together harmoniously without jarring.  You don't step from  a farm country kitchen to a living room from Versailles . . .  with a Danish modern dining room.  Rooms which harmonize with each other can create a more spacious and welcoming feeling . . .  a home which is at peace.

Each room needs to be filled with things that have a purpose, with no one thing overwhelming everything else . . .  things such as an oversized television, or a gigantic centrepiece on a dining table that is far too large for the space that it is on  . . . or one which is too small.  Harmony . . .

 
(source)  

Cleanliness is next to Godliness, or so I have always been told, and it is a theme I embrace.  I cannot stand lots of clutter, even if it is organized clutter and I have been on a quest this year to get rid of clutter. Clutter is far too overwhelming.   I just feel a great weight off once it is gone, even if getting rid is a bit of a painful exercise.   Too much stuff just weighs you down . . . use it, love it, or just get rid.

Outside our doors there is always something which needs doing, demands on our time, traffic that tests our limits, drama . . . our homes should be a refuge from all of that, a shelter from the storms which rage outside our walls and a part of that begins in having a home which is clean and uncluttered.  First of all. . .  a house which is filled with clutter is difficult to keep clean,  and secondly . . .  it is impossible to feel peace if everywhere you turn there is a "chore" waiting to be done. Keeping a house clean and uncluttered is the groundwork for loftier achievements.

Happiness, thriving relationships, intellectual stimulation, hobbies which nurture creativity and a sense of renewed enthusiasm and energy for life.  A home should look "tended to" without it seeming  to be "overdone" . . . and it needn't be expensive.  Fluffed up pillows, a vase filled with flowers, freshly laundered throws, scented candles.  Grace notes of sight and scent which help to make even the smallest home feel gracious and welcoming.



People who live in gracious homes tend not to be wasteful.  They treat the things around them with duty and with care.  Taps are not left running, lights are not left on when not being used, things are not acquired on impulse and without a lot of thought going into them.   You don't jump on the sofas and beds.  What is used is needed.   What is bought is fully enjoyed.  What is leftover is shared.  You can have the same sofa for a lifetime if its well cared for and kept clean and maintained.   It's amazing how much difference a new throw can make, or new pillow covers . . .  with very little cost involved . . .

Everytime I look at my lounge, I see that it is filled with things that other people (no matter how kind) have given to us and Todd feels the need to accept . . . a HUGE china cabinet with mirrors and lights in it . . .  it is a beautiful piece of furniture, and yes it is used, but it overwhelms the room.  There are a bazillion pictures on the walls . . .  because he admired them and someone gave them to us.   I find it almost too much . . .  with three gonging clocks . . .  a grandmothers, a pendulum wall with Westminster chimes, and a huge mantle clock.  Each is lovely . . .  but do we really need three?   This is an area where our WW2 and Postwar mentalities come into direct conflict with each other.  We need to decide what to keep and what to dispose of.  (Don't get me startd on the black glass tv stand which is a magnet for dust.  I could dust it a hundred times a day and it never looks like I touched it.)

Just a few of the things I want to change.



Homes which preserve the "do-it-for-ourselves" traditions just seem to me to be happier places, more interesting places.  They make me want to know the people who live there . . .  to dig in with them and get my hands dirty . . . to make jam together, or to pick berries and bake pies   . . . to make salad from the fresh leaves and radishes which grow in pots next to the back door.

I love curtains that look homemade . . .  and crocheted throws, quilted pillow coverings, crochet placemats . . . a place for everything and everything in its place with a bit of whimsy on the side.

A home filled with comfy chairs that you want to nestle down into and read a good book, tables which beg a rousing game of cards to be played upon, windows that sparkle . . .  a home filled with personality and life . . .  and joy . . .  with rooms that flow and invite, with nothing that jars . . . with a pulse and a rhythm which moves with and celebrates the seasons in small and meaningful ways. Filled with warmth and generosity of spirit.

 

They say that people fall in love with houses, but that houses never love you back, and I suppose that is very true in many ways, but I think that if you can take the time to manage your little part of the world, with energy and thought . . .  and yes, heart . . .  you can end up with a home that makes you want to return to it, that seems to grab you in a nice soft hug at the end of the day, filled with comfort and joy and peace.  A home that welcomes all who enter into its doors.  And you won't need a pair of ruby slippers to get there.

That's my goal.  I'm working on it bit by tiny bit.  I'll let you know how I get on.

We're staying home today because we have no car, but that doesn't mean we won't be feeling that Sunday spirit.  We still haven't listened to all of the Conference talks so I think we  may listen to a few of them.  I've been listening them to in bed as I fall asleep over these past few evenings and its been really wonderful.  Last night it was this one.


"When difficult things occur in our lives, what is our immediate response? Is it confusion or doubt or spiritual withdrawal? Is it a blow to our faith? Do we blame God or others for our circumstances? Or is our first response to remember who we are . . . that we are children of a loving God? Is that coupled with an absolute trust that He allows some earthly suffering because He knows it will bless us, like a refiner’s fire, to become like Him and to gain our eternal inheritance?"
~Elder Donald L Hallstrom


It is an amazing way to fall asleep . . . I highly recommend it!




Cooking in The English Kitchen today . . .  Easy Lemon Refrigerator Dessert.

Wherever you go and whatever you get up to today, don't forget!

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And I do too!