Sunday 29 December 2013

A post-Christmas clear-out

After the long exciting build up to Christmas, it takes a mere couple of hours before the living room is a sea of opened presents and with young children, there are often lots of new toys needing a home. I'm honestly not neurotic about tidiness or anything but I do like some sense of order and like to try to avoid as much clutter as possible.

This year, on Boxing Day, I set to and launched into a significant reorganisation of the children's toys. I packed away some toys they haven't been playing with recently / have grown out of, I emptied the deep toy box which had become an unknown abyss of small toys and instead packed it with games and bags of blocks. I sorted through the toy box in their bedroom and when nobody was looking threw away all the plastic rubbish they've kept from party bags or magazine freebies that are half-broken anyway.

At the end of it, I had plenty of space for the new toys, everything was better ordered and easier to find and I felt much better for it! I showed both children what I'd done and where I had moved things so they could find what they needed and we had two boxes of toys to put up in the loft.  In the past, I was always good about rotating the toys so we didn't have everything out all the time. Of late, I have got lazy about it though and it was something I was meaning to address.

Following on from the clear-out and reorganisation of the children's toys, came the clear-out for my husband and I. We sorted through our amassing paperwork and recycled, filed or otherwise dealt with all those papers we had been ignoring over recent weeks. Another good job done!

I'm not done yet but doing a bit at a time is my method. One small project a day is a big achievement! I've got children's clothes that they have grown out of to pack away to make more space in their wardrobes and my husband and I probably have some clothing we could take to the charity shop that we won't or don't wear any more.

It feels good to finish the year off with a sort-out ready to embark on the new year with a sense of tidiness and space, without feeling overcrowded by clutter or daunted by impending organisational tasks to tackle.

Do you also tend to have a post-Christmas clear-out? Is it a natural response to dealing with all the new 'stuff' you have, to want to sort through the old and see if there is anything you can get rid of, pack away or pass on? If you haven't done it yet, do you have some clearing out projects in mind that you are planning on doing in the new year?
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Related reading:
Get Kids' Clutter Under Control
Breathe some new life into old toys
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photo credit

2 comments:

  1. Yes, indeed, we have a post Christmas clear out here also. It feels right to unclutter before the new year chimes in. Small new beginning. The place that doesn't get touched until school and work start again is the kitchen. Too much food in the fridge and cakes and biscuits on the counter. :)

    I love the feel of an organized house. I'm not crazy tidy but I enjoy feeling that my domestic life is somewhat under control.

    Happy New Year!!

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    Replies
    1. Exactly, small new beginning! Same here with the kitchen, far too much to tackle there for a while longer :-).
      Happy New Year Maryse!

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