Happy Wednesday!
First and foremost, this is BIRTHDAY WEEK in our house and Nixon Talbot turns 7 today!!
This kid sums up the quote “The Days are Long but the Years are Short” to me.
Even from such a young age, Nixon was my crazy adventurous kid. He was all about trying something daring and not even thinking about the consequences.
It was just an unknown thing at the pool when Nixon was little for my girlfriends to keep one eye on your own kids and the other eye on Nixon because he was CRAZY.
He’s really growing up though. He’s such a helper around my house. He will be the first to offer to help with anything physical I’m doing.
Nixon is all-boy and into all the sports. He’d prefer to be outside throwing a ball over anything indoors.
Nixon is full of one-liners. He always keeps me laughing. He can hear a movie, remember one funny line, and use it at the appropriate time in daily life.
He captured our hearts seven years ago today and we’ve been smitten ever since.
It seems like just yesterday I was up all night walking to baby Nixon’s room to put his pacifier back in his mouth and now POOF-just like that he’s seven.
Nixon has the sweetest side too. When Tab walks in from work, he’s the first to ask, “How was your day, Dad?”…even before I have time to ask.
We love him so much and are celebrating him all day today!
Happy 7th Birthday, Nixon Talbot! XOXO
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Shay and I are also WORKIN’ IT today. Once a month, we share how we “WORK IT”…whether it be marriage, balancing work/home life, or how we prepare for back-to-school. We invite you to join us every month, to blog about the topic, and link-up!
Today, we’re talking SPRING CLEANING!
I must tell you…in 2013 we moved into a new-to-us-home, lived there for two years, and moved into this house (will be two years in just a couple months). I think two years is the time frame when the Slaughters collect, ALL THE THINGS. Our closets become full of random things…papers, old clothes, broken toys, and more. We don’t have a move to motivate us to clean out every nook and cranny this time but this is motivation enough…
Pretty much EVERY CLOSET, EVERY DRAWER, and EVERY CABINET needed/needs to be cleaned out. I was on the verge of getting started when Shay began telling me about this book, Unstuffed, she was reading. (Remember how I told you last week I’m a book hoarder? Well, I happened to have this book in my book cabinet and I got to reading.)
If you’re on the verge of needing to get every closet organized and decluttered, then read this book. It’ll be the perfect jump start for getting you motivated to tackle this kind of project.
This is pretty much how every closet looked when you opened them. (Some still do-just about 3/4 of the way finished).
I’m still working my way through every nook and cranny but this year I’m going through spaces with the mind set…
1. Am I using this?
2. Have I used it in the last year?
-If the answer is no, then it needs to go.
1. Am I using this?
2. Have I used it in the last year?
-If the answer is no, then it needs to go.
I am by no means an expert on organizing and decluttering. But this has for sure been helping me. I tend to get caught up in a “I should keep this attitude” about ALL kinds of things. I’m trying to think about-if my parents had kept this of mine would I want it right now. For instance, a toy my kids don’t play with anymore but it used to be a favorite. One day, are they really going to want to see that My Little Pony or plastic dinosaur? No, the answer is no…so why am I holding on to all this stuff?! It’s helped me to really get rid of a lot of the clutter this year.
I also have found I do my best work when the kiddos are not here. Ebby Lee can hang in the decluttering department. She gets the end goal. Nixon, on the other hand, is a hoarder. He would keep every worksheet, every project, every toy he’s every received, etc. I can get a lot more accomplished if he’s out and guess what? He hasn’t noticed a single thing I’ve gotten rid of when he’s gone. I do make sure everything I’m getting rid of is bagged up so the kiddos can’t spy a thing when they get home.
I’m also trying to put things in the most logical place. Maybe it’s just us…but when we moved into our home we were so worried about getting unpacked that we didn’t really know where we should put some things. If we have any open space-cabinets and such, I’m trying my best to fill those with appropriate things. For instance, we have built-ins in our living room that were completely empty. But our guest bedroom closet was stuffed to the brim with games, arts, crafts, etc. I went through and moved all the games and art things we needed to keep into the living room. Now it’ll be so much more convenient to choose a game for game night!
Right at the moment, we have some dear friends who are hosting a big garage sale to help with adoption costs so I’ve been dropping off at her house. I bet if you search your area, you can find something similar happening near you or you can always donate items to churches, drop-off areas, or another family. I’ve also thrown a ton of broken toys, random papers, etc. away. And let me tell you-it feels SO good!
This is not my closet, but trust me…mine looks pretty similar. I wish I was kidding.
I think my biggest tip would be to just get in there and get to work. Every time I clean a space like this I make an even bigger mess than we started with, but after wards-it looks great. Be prepared to make a mess!
I’m getting rid of so much stuff. It’s easier for everything to have a place when there’s just less stuff.
Trust me, I know nothing I said was mind blowing information, but this is how I’m tackling SPRING CLEANING around our house this year. What about you?
If you’d like to see some other Workin’ It topics-
Join us next month when we share summer vacations!
Happy Wednesday!
Happy Wednesday!
