My End-Of-The-Year Declutter Challenge

Did you know that scientists have found a connection between clutter and stress, anxiety, and even depression? Messy homes often leave us feeling chaotic, anxious, and overwhelmed, and clutter can be a significant source of stress in our lives.

I believe it. I know that when our house is messy, I feel like I am a mess, and when our home is put together, I feel more put together.

So this month — the final month in my “Year of Mini-Goals” series — I am focusing on decluttering our home. And I’m going to do it through an end-of-the-year declutter challenge. Read through the strategy I’m going to take, and comment below if you’d like to join me! Let’s finish 2017 well and set ourselves up for our best year yet!

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Why An End-of-the-Year Declutter Challenge?

Out with the old, in with the new
The end of the year seems like a logical time to declutter. We’ll all be getting new things for Christmas, so I want to get rid of some of the old “stuff” that doesn’t get used. I’m nowhere near a minimalist, but I love the idea of “one in, one out” when it comes to our possessions. And I would love to start the new year with a freshly decluttered clean slate.
The toys are out of control
Oh the toys!! Toys have become the bane of my existence. I am tired of the constant corralling and daily battles at pick-up time. And while I love brain-boosting toys like blocks and LEGOs, all those pieces sometimes drive me bonkers. So I am going to do a major purge of the toys. I’ve been reluctant to do it because many of them have been thoughtful gifts, but our family peace trumps sentimentality or guilt.
I’m sick of the clutter

I’m sure this will make my family and friends pre-2010 laugh, because I was kind of known for being a bit of a slob growing up. But somewhere along the line I began to really hate clutter. I can’t stand it – it makes me feel anxious and overwhelmed. And yet, I seem to have a really hard time keeping it at bay. But I’m tired of fighting the battle, so I’m going to start being ruthless in my clutter elimination. Wipe the slate clean in 2018! (How’s that for a catchy slogan??)
Get my donations in before the end of the year

The biggest reason for an end-of-the-year purge, though, is taxes. By the end of my decluttering, I’m going to have a LOT to donate, and I need to get that done by the end of the year so we can put it on our 2017 taxes.

My Method

I read a book last January that revolutionized the way I thought about keeping a tidy home. The book was called The House That Cleans Itself, and it brought me one “A-ha!” moment after another. I’ve read a LOT about cleaning schedules, decluttering, and housekeeping, but this was the first thing I’ve ever read that really made sense to me.

Whereas so many other things I had read were written by neat freaks trying to teach other people what comes naturally to them (but not to me!), Mindy is a messy person with a tidy home teaching other messy people how to keep a tidy home. I didn’t have to change myself or my family to fit my home, or the home I thought I “should” have. Instead, Mindy taught me how to change aspects of my home to fit my personality and nature and those of my family members. It was life-changing.

One of the tips I picked up from The House That Cleans Itself is having donation boxes or bags handy all the time. Rather than wait until a major purge, as soon as you notice something that you don’t use or need, you drop it in the donation box. Once you fill up your box or bag, you take it to your donation drop-off of choice. It’s an ongoing process rather than a time-consuming event.

After reading that, I decided to give it a try. I have a donation box in my closet and one in each of the boys’ rooms for clothes. And it’s been working great! So that lightens my load a little bit.

I should have been using that system in other areas of the house, though, but I didn’t. So I still have a lot more decluttering to do.

My plan of action is to break my declutter challenge into four main areas and tackle one area per week. Those areas will be toys, clothes, kitchen/pantry, and living room.

Areas of Focus

Toys

As I mentioned earlier, the toys are my biggest area of struggle when it comes to clutter in the house. So that’s what I’m going to tackle first (eat the frog, right?). I’m going to try to be somewhat ruthless here. If it barely gets played with or if we have other toys that are similar, then I’m going to pass it on to someone else. (And I plan to do this when the boys are not home or are not awake, so they won’t suddenly decide that they love it. 😉 )

I’m also considering doing a toy swap system, where all but a few toys get put in storage. Then, every few months, I’ll swap out the toys for “new” ones. I know a few people who use this system, and it seems to work really well. The novelty of toys they haven’t seen for awhile brings back some of the life and excitement in them, and it’s much easier to keep a smaller selection of toys picked up.

Clothes

I’ve done a pretty good job of regularly dropping things in my donation boxes, but I know I could do more. If I haven’t worn it in a couple years, if it doesn’t fit right or look good, or if it doesn’t go with very many things, then I need to get rid of it.

The hard part is that I’m still in my child-bearing stage of life, so I have three different phases (and therefore sizes and fits) that I need to accommodate: early maternity/post-partum, maternity, and “back-to-normal.” But even still, I know there are things that can go.

(Psst … to save money on clothes as I fluctuate sizes and build my maternity wardrobe, I buy second-hand from ThredUp. I save hundreds of $$ on brand names I love in like-new condition!)

Kitchen/Pantry

This is where I might have the most trouble. I’m kind of a collector of kitchen tools and gadgets, and I have a hard time getting rid of something that might be handy at some point. But I have a limited amount of space, so as I add more items to my kitchen collection, that means something else has to go. I’m starting to opt for things that are very multi-use or versatile (like my Instant Pot!!), so I will be getting rid of a lot of things that have one, very specialized, use.

Living Room (Desk, movies, books)

The living room is our family gathering place — our sanctuary. So I want it to feel cozy and calming. Which is hard to achieve when there’s clutter everywhere. So the final week in my challenge is going to be decluttering the living room. This will include the desk (my everest!), our movies, my books (nothing too crazy — just the ones that I didn’t love. My books are like family members to me. And you don’t ask someone to purge their family members!!), and a few other random areas.

As I get older, my tolerance for clutter gets lower and lower. It’s harder to keep organized and tidy, and I just don’t have time for that constant battle! So this month, in preparation for a new year, my mini-goal is to declutter four main areas of our home: toys, clothes, kitchen, and living room. Wish me luck along the way, and if you want to join me, leave a comment below and tell me what areas you want to focus on most!