As the school year comes to an end and summer gets into full swing, I’ve been excited for a few things – spending more time with the kids, doing a lot more outdoor activities, getting things organized before the next school year begins (because I’m sure it’ll be here in no time at all) and decluttering without breaking for school runs. In fact, I was kinda counting down the days until I could start what I’m going to dub my Summer of Declutter.
A few months ago, my sister sent me a series of podcast episodes on decluttering (you can listen to them here, here and here) that not only offered a lot of helpful tips but also validated my theory that clutter drains your energy. Per the podcast, your brain has to make a decision for every item it sees – involuntarily and without you even noticing – and each of those decisions uses glucose aka your brain’s fuel aka your precious mental energy. Thus, a lack of clutter keeps your mind a little clearer and allows your brain’s functions to be focused on things that aren’t a three week old pile of mail or a drawer full of beauty products you no longer use like planning your next awesome activity and, ya know, keeping you alive.
Below I’ve assembled a list of FOURTEEN areas/items I’d like to declutter/organize this summer. It feels slightly ambitious now that I’m sitting here typing this all out, but even if I only make it halfway through this list, I know I’ll be a little happier, calmer and hopefully more productive with things being less cluttered and more organized around here. Without further ado, here’s what I’d like to accomplish. Let the Summer of Declutter commence!
1 | Our Kids’ Clothes
As the school year has ended, I’m really looking forward to clearing out any clothes our kids no longer need in their drawers and in their closet. Anything they won’t be wearing during the summer and beyond will be getting the boot and I’ll give their clothes another good declutter before school starts again.
2 | Our Kids’ Toys
This is the task I’m dreading the most as the kids have SO many toys – many of which they love and play with regularly. It’s going to be difficult to decide what to keep and what to let go but it’s gotta be done because their toy bins are bursting at the seams…
3 | Our Kids’ Closet
There’s quite a bit in their closet that needs a new home like baby clothes and blankets and even more toys that don’t currently fit in the shelving unit in their room. Once I sort out what doesn’t belong, I want to bring in some storage bins, hooks and other things to get their closet organized.
4 | Our Kids’ Bookshelf
More than a declutter, we need to get some serious systems in place in this area of the kids’ room. My goal is to dedicate at least one shelf to their school supplies and paperwork so they can stay as organized and efficient as possible.
5 | My Clothes
It’s been a little while since I last thinned out my wardrobe so this summer will be the perfect opportunity to do it again. I have quite a few things that I’ve held onto in case I have the desire to wear them again in the future which means they’re kinda just taking up space in the present.
6 | My Closet
I just decluttered my closet (and the two remaining boxes of stuff from our apartment) last week but I want to give it one more round along with a lot of organization. While I’d love to put in a completely new closet system, a few bins and a new hamper should do the trick for now.
7 | My Desk
It’s surprising how many unnecessary papers, Post-Its and other office supplies one can fit into a small IKEA desk drawer. Mine is packed full of stuff and it really needs a good purge.
8 | Under My Bed
You know that TV show skit where the kids stuff a closet so full of stuff that it explodes out into the room at the least opportune time? That’s basically my current under bed situation and it needs to be rectified immediately!
9 | Our Command Center
This actually doesn’t exist… yet! I plan (keyword here!) on creating a command center – including a dry-erase calendar, mail sorting bins and a charging station – to keep our family running efficiently.
10 | Our Small Bathroom
There’s absolutely nothing to declutter in this bathroom because it’s pretty bare at the moment. It’s in need of wall-based storage solutions to house towels, toothbrushes and other bathroom-related items.
11 | The Bathroom Cabinets
This is a little space with a lot of stuff so these cabinets are begging to be properly organized. I have my eye on a few items from the Container Store that will help to put everything into its own special spot.
12 | The Kitchen Cabinets
This is another area in desperate need of some organization love. I really like these Command caddies (see here and here) for under the sink but I’m on the hunt for even more storage solutions for our other cabinets’ contents like spices, bakeware and leftover food containers.
13 | Our Pantry
Last year, we purchased various components of the IKEA Ivar system to create an open pantry in our kitchen. While it still needs some additional storage-y bits to be truly organized, decluttering and cleaning our pantry (which Ella and I actually did yesterday) was a super quick project (and an easy micro-win!) that only took a couple hours to complete.
14 | Our Laundry Room
This is actually a service porch/laundry area but in any case it and its small pantry/closet need some love in the form of a good declutter and redistribution of all the things that call that space home. I’d also like Ella to sew some new curtains for the window above the washer and dryer as a special summer project.
Is there anything you’d like to declutter this summer? What’s on your need-to-organize list? Let me know!
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