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homeschool happy :: everything has a place

this weekend we celebrated living in the owl house for three years.  we’ve lived in this place longer than anywhere else.  this is where Joseph was born, Mabel learned to read, and Nicolas began to draw.  this is our home.

it’s also the biggest place we’ve ever lived–a whopping 1100 sq ft if you include the sunporch.  when we moved here i joked that the best way to organize your house was to move to a bigger one!  we had been trying to put too much living into a house that was too small.

but decluttering is on-going, and i’m still learning!  if you want to be able to put things away, they need to have a place to live.  not the nearest flat surface, not a pile on the floor.  my hardest area was transitional things.  these were things didn’t need a permanent home, like library books or the bag that’s going to Goodwill or clothes that the 5 year old has outgrown that need to be saved for the baby.  i need to designate a place for everything, so that everything can be in its place.  otherwise the piles start to take over.

any organizational tips to share?  i’m all ears!

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4 Comments

  1. “if you want to be able to put things away, they need to have a place to live.” — that is one of the big lessons i learned over the years!

    we live in a big place with no storage. probably the two best things i’ve learned are 1, to boost the beds up (with bed boosters 🙂 so you can use the storage space underneath and 2, to regularly pass along items you haven’t used in a couple of years. if you haven’t used it in two years, you probably never will. and even if you need it, you’ll probably forget you have it and buy a new one!

    i guess i’ve learned one more thing: if you’re struggling with letting something go, put it in a box or a bag and set it in a designated spot for awhile. if you need it, you can go get it. (you never need it.) then you can let it go in six months or however long it takes for you to feel easier about the decision.

  2. Once a year as an Advent activity, Rachael donates (at least) one item a day. It helps to not only remove the clutter, but it also brings us face to face with how much we love our stuff, so we get to give that desire up and fill it by desiring Jesus to come to earth. It also has the added benefit of creating space.

  3. The only organizing tip I have for you is to use a metal trash can for off season and holding for the next child clothes. Cover it with a round of wood and tablecloth to do double duty as an end table or night stand. Your house is adorable, by the way!!

  4. loving these tips! letting things go…slowly, making spaces work double duty, creative use of what we have : )

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