Making Room

When we started out married, we would talk about how many kids we wanted.  I believe 4 was the magic number.  As Mikayla was growing in my tummy, (although we didn't know if she was a she or a he), I would lay on the couch feeling her punch and kick and roll and the words that came to my mouth were, "We've got to do this again!"  Every moment since then my thoughts and feelings have been the same.

Except it hasn't happened again.  We now have heaps of clothing from birth to size 10 at our house, in one particular room.  I've watched the show "Hoarders" and can see how hoarding can happen to nice normal people.  I'm not saying that we are to that extent, but how a circumstance or something that doesn't happen can shape the mind to save.

We are getting ready to sell some of the baby furniture to someone who wants it.  To get it out of the room, we need to get rid of some of the stuff we have.  That's not the only reason though.  We can no longer use the clothing, but could use the room if it were empty of things we don't use.  If we decide to move in the future, we're not going to want to go through all of that either.

This morning, going through the clothes and getting them ready to go to Goodwill became a bit difficult.  Thinking about how we wanted to use the clothes again, the room again... 

Making room.  That's what it's all about.  We need to get rid of the old stuff to make room for the new stuff.  I think that getting that space empty is harder when you don't know what the new "stuff" is.  As followers of God, that new "stuff" could be anything and the empty space and waiting time is important.  One of my life theme verses is Ephesians 3:20.  "God, by His mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of, infinately beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts or hopes."  Now is the time to make room for that to happen.

June Mini-Goals

Half-way through June and I haven't posted my mini-goals yet.  Instead of making mini-goals, I'm going to make a list of things I've already accomplished.  I've been so busy and have lots of things I still need to do.  Making mini-goals seems pointless this month since I seem to be crossing things off my invisible to-do list everyday.

What I've accomplished in June so far...

1. Worked on decluttering my classroom for an extra day.
2. Helped at Mikayla's field day.
3. Met with someone to discuss hearing loss.
4. Planned and executed Mikayla's birthday party.
5. Took Girl Scouts to Haven of Rest and Children's Hospital to drop off donations.
6. Got a second opinion on my hearing loss.
7. Went to dentist appointments for myself and Mikayla.
8. Went for a medical check-up.
9. Volunteered for VBS snacks.
10. Scheduled and attended a ceramics class with the Girl Scouts.
11. Scheduled an overnighter at the zoo for the Girl Scouts.
12. Did some decluttering and preparation for a yard sale.
13. Started plans for our summer vacation.

Here's what I still need to do before the end of June...

1. Have a yard sale.
2. Take Mikayla to the orthodontist.
3. Have dental work done.
4. Finalize plans for the zoo trip.
5. Finalize vacation plans.

I have been so busy this month.  I wonder how I do everything I need to do during the school year when I'm working.  Somehow I get it done though.  Where's my summer vacation going already?!?!?

June Goals - Stick a fork in me... I'm done!

April Mini-Goals

Okay, I'm slacking.  It's over mid-way through April and I still haven't posted my goals.  So here goes - and yes, I'm going to cheat a little.

Goal 1 - Declutter a couple piles of junk.  (This is where the cheating comes in.  This goal is very general and I have already done some decluttering this month.  Oh well, I'm over it.)

Goal 2 - Make a doctor's appointment I don't want to make and buy some clothes I don't want to shop for - specifically one pair of khakis that reach below my ankles, two spring tops, and a pair of shoes suitable to wear to work.  I made two parts to this goal, because I already cheated on the other one and the first part of this goal only requires a phone call.

Now I'm ready to make one of my May goals.  It can be to ACTUALLY GO to the doctor's appointment I don't want to go to!

March Goals Complete with Pics to Prove!

Taxes are done!  This is the first year in a long time they've been done this early.

Also, all three areas of my kitchen are decluttered.  Much of the junk has been thrown away!

Lots of things were in the wrong place.  The mixer was transferred to its place next to the microwave.  Girl Scout cookies were delivered and several things from this spot were thrown away.

Okay, so there's still not any bread in the bread box and I'm not telling what is!

One of the shelves in our cupboard broke and that why all the bottles of stuff were on the counter.  The sugar and flour containers were moved back to where they belonged and LOTS of stuff in this pic were thrown away, including old cocoa mix, valentine cards, candy, granola, and some papers.  I also filled up a small box of stuff for the garage sale I hope we have someday.

What an improvement!  I hope I keep it this way!

Wow!  The Christmas decorations are downstairs, as well as the big old trunk of junk.  Old cereal and chips were thrown away and all the shelves were cleaned and organized.

Not too bad!  Perhaps I'll need a decluttering/organizing goal for April...

March Mini-Goals

Goal number one for March is to get my taxes done by the end of the month. I usually put this off until the first couple weeks in April. It makes my mom and dad nervous.

I really want goal number two to be "take the Explorer in for maintenance," however because we are going on a trip towards the end of March, we HAVE to do that anyway so it's not fair to make it a goal. That means I have to think...

Okay, here it is... it's a risky one. I'll take three pictures of cluttered parts of the kitchen and post them. By the end of the month, I will declutter/organize those areas of the kitchen and then retake pictures to post. I guess we'll all see how that goes!

1/12 of 2010 is over

Life goes fast. A whole month of 2010 is coming to a close in less than 36 hours.

Because this is my life and my goals, I get to do this the way I want. So, I've decided to give myself full credit for the continuing contact goal and half credit for the keeping the table clear goal. After all, I did pretty well with that for about half a month.

What happened the second half of the month with the table? Remember that life going fast thing? I can boil it down to about three things - report cards, getting new hamsters, and Girl Scout stuff. I know, all excuses, but that's how clutter happens.

February mini-goals are in the works. I think I might know what they are, but I'm taking part of the next 36 hours to make sure!

January Mini-Goal Update

Here's a brief update...

Goal #1 of keeping the table cleared off seems to be the bigger challenge of the two. Coming home from work mentally exhausted doesn't help. Of course I want to come in and just throw everything somewhere... and since the table is the first flat surface I come in contact with - there's where it goes. Having this as a goal, however, has made me more aware and the table is more clear on a daily basis than before.

Goal #2 is why I write. I'm quite excited to say that I found out what I need to do to get a continuing contract. I've met most of the qualifications already. In March, I will have to write a brief letter about my current contract and then I can wait for board approval of the continuing contract in April. As far as January is concerned, I've done everything I can do for this goal!

Now to start thinking about February's mini-goals...

January's Mini-Goals

So here goes for the first month...

Mini-goal number 1 is to keep my table cleaned off and decluttered for January. Right now it looks absolutely beautiful. There is not a single thing on it. It's been close to clear for about a week. We had a Christmas party on Sunday and I cleaned it off for that. Since then I've tried to keep it cleaned. If you've ever heard of FlyLady, my table is what she would call a "hot spot" - places that collect clutter - a dumping ground for whatever we lug into the house. (I read the FlyLady book and website a lot a few years ago, but not much anymore - I still find many of her concepts extremely helpful though.) Keeping it cleared off would be a beautiful thing!

Mini-goal number 2 is to get my paper work in to get a continuing contract for my job. This goal is about my tendency to procrastinate. This is not something I HAVE to have done in January. It could be done any time this year, the next, or even never. However doing it now will definately benefit me!

Well... there it is the first two goals!

Happy 2010 everyone!

New Way of Doing Resolutions

This year I think I am going to try something a bit different with my New Year's Resolution. I think goals are very important to accomplish things in life, but this year I'm not sure of a big resolution to make. Sure I could say, "eat better, declutter the house, and exercise" but would I do it? Probably not.

Here's how I am going to set up my New Year's Resolution this year. Each month, I will make 2 mini-resolutions or goals. That way, I will have 30 days to accomplish them. At the end of the month, I can decide if I even liked the goal. If I did, I can keep it for the next month. Maybe I've worked it into a routine and don't even need to make it a goal for the next month. Or maybe it just really didn't fit into my lifestyle and I can chuck it altogether.

That's 24 goals or accomplishments for the year of 2010! I like that idea, over having a resolution that may never be completed. (Of course, I did accomplish my 2008 resolution. That's was awesome!) But wait! I want to give myself a way to not have to be absolutely "perfect." I've decided that I want to complete this resolution with 83% accuracy. This means 2 things... 1. I only need to complete 20 out of 24 goals and 2. If I mess up, I don't have to quit the whole thing because I "messed up."

Many mini-goals have been rumbling through my head, from decluttering a specific room or area to completing a chosen devotional. Not knowing what my goals will be each month makes it even more exciting... who knows what I'll accomplish in 2010! Stay tuned for January's mini-goals. I think I know what they'll be!

Busy Weeks Bring Clutter

What a busy week!

Besides teaching all week, I stayed busy in the evenings as well. Brownies with Moo on Monday, visiting a college friend I hadn't seen in 15 years on Tuesday, going to the chili and cake cook-off at church on Wednesday, going with our friends to ballet class on Thursday, and craft night at my aunt's Friday. (I graded school papers, until my cousin convinced me to make a couple of cards. And they turned out pretty cute!)

Of course, coming home tonight comes with a horrible feeling. I am behind on everything. Besides being tired, I look at everything and think that I probably have some sort of hoarding disorder. I know I don't need all this junk. I use very little in my life. So why can't I give it up and why do I have anxiety about it?

I am looking forward to this next week. I think I will be able to be home a bit more and be able to take care of a few things around the house. Last weekend, we did clear some clutter out of our extra bedroom. We got rid of one large bag of trash and found a medium size box of stuff to sell or give away. We have a long way to go, but I do want to make a change.

Well, maybe I will set a timer for 15 minutes and start clearing off the table. I know that a lot can be accomplished in 15 minutes and I'll feel better with even a small amount of progress.