Do you realize that the holidays are coming? Does this mean the same thing for you as it does for me each year? I got started early. I will not wait until after an influx of gifts to declutter. I will not be the person spending the week between Christmas and New Year’s giving away all of my children’s old toys. I am starting now. It’s not just the toys. It needed to be done. Have you ever looked around your house and thought, “how did this all get here?”. I know how it got here. Little by little, not being conscious of every last purchase, things made their way in. Clothes that were too small still hung in closets or sat folded in drawers. Adorable new outfits that they just don’t seem to ever choose sat unworn. They all got donated. Their favorite toys were buried under piles of other toys until no one could find anything and no one played with anything. Now? Trains and puzzles for him, dolls and animals and bouncy balls for her. And books – lots of books. No one has to weed through the things they don’t want to get to what they do. It’s all simplified. I am just keeping it real here. Last week, my daughter opened a cupboard full of food and proclaimed we have nothing to eat. Granted, she is 5, and if there is no applesauce or string cheese, the kitchen is deemed empty. But it struck me that my children who have all that they need and a lot of what they want don’t understand how good their life is. I know, this is not the time for the talk about walking up a hill 3 miles both ways in the snow to school each day. It is about making sure that they don’t have so much that they forget to appreciate it. The moment The Great Toy Purge was over and they came home from school, both of them were immediately playing with the things that were out. They had what they wanted, we donated what they didn’t want, and everyone is happy. Almost a week has passed and not one mention of any of the things that got piled into the car. Just simplification here at home that has made everyone’s life a little easier, enjoyable, and hopefully will make a little room for appreciation.
I was talking to some friends throughout this process of decluttering. We were talking about all the stuff, how it seems to just show up, and how the holidays are coming. We all unanimously expressed our desire for a simpler Christmas this year – one that focuses on what the holiday is all about. One that gives our families the opportunity to appreciate and enjoy what they are given instead of tossing gift after gift aside to get through the pile. So, the mantra this year is “Something they want, something they need, something to wear, something to read”. Are you with me? I have never been more excited about the looming season of chaos and joy. My house is simplified, my mission clear. I can’t wait.
Great mantra! I don’t have children yet, but that is definitely a great formula I will make sure to note and remember.
.-= This Thrifted Life´s last blog ..It’s the little things =-.
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We’re adopting this too this year – minus the ‘something to wear’ (that will probably be the something they need) A friend of mine told me that they do 3 gifs to represent the 3 gifts of the wise men.
.-= heidi @WonderWomanWannabe´s last blog ..Finding Wonder Woman ~ She Accentuates the Positive =-.
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I’ve heard that before but forgot about it. I need that one this year.
.-= Denise´s last blog ..in all things =-.
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This is EXACTLY what I needed to read today. I’ve been tossing around the idea of A Great Toy Purge, and this is my final kick in the pants. LOVE the Christmas gift mantra too – it is so easy to lose focus in the face of the catalog deluge, the mall crush, the tv ads, and just get swept up in the frenzy.
.-= Kirsten´s last blog ..Ordinary People Parenting the Extraordinary =-.
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We really have to do this every year – not only is it Christmas with two kids but their birthday’s are both at the end of November. Ugh!! It’s almost a nightmare every year.
.-= duchess´s last blog ..Look What I Found =-.
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I’m loving this mantra. My son was born last December 20, and people have warned me that it’ll be hard to keep his birthday celebration separate. I’m viewing this as an opportunity to keep our family’s Christmas celebration more low-key and Christ-focused instead of ultra commercial.
When our son gets older, we’re considering keeping gifts to three or so, and including books, games and maybe a larger gift for the family to enjoy together.
.-= Kacie´s last blog ..Buying (and splitting) a museum membership to save money =-.
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We do the “three gifts” with our kids and purge their rooms prior to Christmas. A neighbor shared that philosophy with me when my daughter was 2, and 13 years later it still works. She and my 11 year old still make lists and they love shopping for other people, but they are mindful of the excesses of where we live.
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I really like that mantra as well.
Your post couldn’t be timed any better. Like Kacie, my youngest has a close to Christmas birthday. After peeking in both of my kids’ rooms this morning (and my own), it’s definitely time to clean things out. Thanks for the inspiration!
.-= Monica´s last blog ..Weekend Decluttering =-.
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For some reason my son has such a hard time when he sees me clearing out his toys or too small clothes. Even if it is something he would never wear, he feels sad when I try to give it away. Needless to say, we’ve been working on what it means to others when we share things with people less fortunate than we are. I think it is a great lesson for kids to learn (and for us too!).
Great inspiration today! (As always!)
xo
.-= melissa @ the inspired room´s last blog ..Fall Nesting Tips: #19 =-.
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Melissa – I have the same issue with my oldest son. He use to be sad about throwing away wrappers to things! He has grown a lot in this area… but, toys and clothes are always difficult.
Here is what we did recently and it worked very well… even for my oldest.
We EMPTIED the kids room. Everything but the furniture remained (and everything else was in the living room). The idea was to only put back what would FIT… we would prioritize and when there was no place for anything else, the rest would go to someone who needed more stuff.) We had to purge anyhow because we needed to put our youngest in the room and there wasn’t a place for another twin bed in there. With everything else going on in our lives it took us a month to get through all the STUFF we pulled out – but, during that time, the kids LOVED their room. They LOVED having it be empty with more room to just do things. About a week after we emptied it, my oldest shocked me – “I don’t really care about all that stuff mom”… He saw how peaceful his room was without all the chaos of stuff all by himself
Now… to attack the rest of the house before the holidays…
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We are on the same page today Emily! See my {a simple Christmas} post!
.-= LobotoME ´s last blog ..{ a simple Christmas } =-.
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Yes, yes, and YES. Nothing makes me breathe easier or sleep better than a good ol’ fashioned declutter. We use this time before thanksgiving to weed out toys that are still in good condition but don’t get played with much, as well as clothes that may not fit, household accessories that are out of use, etc. to give away– it is a good opportunity to get the kids to focus on the real spirit of the holiday season. The hardest part of decluttering for me is always the “sentimental” stuff. I’m *such* a packrat when it comes to ticket stubs and old cards, college papers and every piece of art anyone has ever created….
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Love this post and we’ve been doing the “only a few presents” thing for about 5 years and no longer do we have a frenzy of wrapping paper followed up with “that’s it?” Instead we have children who absolutely treasure their gifts and already tell me, “Mom, I don’t know what to ask for. I don’t really want anything.” (They have secret dreams they think I don’t know about, but that is the fun of it all!)
.-= Erin´s last blog ..Menu Plan Monday =-.
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Jenni, I didn’t mention that, but you are so right. My kids have both mentioned how much more space they have to play with the toys they have now because there isn’t stuff everywhere. The minimalist rooms are a nice side effect to the toy purge.
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We’ve come upon another great way to keep down the clutter of Christmas (and birthday) gifts, by making them ‘experiences’ rather than just ‘things’. We’ve gotten and given Netflix subscriptions, museum and theme park passes, musical tickets, trips to get nails done.
We may spend a similar amount as we would have on a toy, but it creates no clutter and GREAT memories!
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oh emily! this is just fantastic. thank you.
i spent some time decluttering our living room (the room we truly live in) today while my kids were at school. as i was doing it i started thinking of the influx of gifts during the holiday and began to feel totally overwhelmed.
last year i was totally the one purging and sorting and digging out between christmas and new year’s. this year i’m going to do my purging ahead of time…and really be conscious about what we are buying and bringing into our home.
love…love…love the mantra. thank you!
.-= exhale. return to center.´s last blog ..ahhhh…much better! =-.
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I’ll be doing “something to play with, something to wear, and something to read”. I am doubling it though so that it will be one set from Santa and one from mom and dad. Basically I can’t decide on just one toy
. I figure the clothes at least will be a good stocking stuffer. I am looking forward to the guidance it will give me as I do my shopping moreso than the fact that it will make it so there is less “stuff” being added to our house
.-= Alison´s last blog ..Finding the Perfect Gift =-.
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Your blog is an inspiration. Good for you to be ahead of the game before Christmas comes and I love the mantra for gift giving for your kids. We’ll probably go for that, too, but I’ll add something homemade (more because I want to make them something than that they really have a need) and stockings will be full of practical/consumable things.
.-= Rachel´s last blog ..A Good Day of Grocery Shopping =-.
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I love that idea!! I just stocked up on garage sale items for stocking stuffers. I think we are traveling to Boston for Christmas this year, so it will be a light version at home for sure. I’m looking forward to that.
.-= Amy @ Living Locurto´s last blog ..Pumpkin Party & Free Printable Birthday Tags =-.
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[...] Simplify It: Declutter [...]
Love this, what a great post. One of my favorite things to do is clean out the closets, or drawers, or cupboards. Rainy day or not, simplifying is great.
.-= Jessica´s last blog ..Edgar, Homer & Velveeta =-.
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eBay, and garage sales as well. We had a great success decluttering our home and it’s not too bad that we earned some cash while we were at it.
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We have two kids, so we collect lots of clutter, and because they grow so quick, the clutter becomes dated very quickly. So we are in this constent battle to keep things moving out of the house via donations to goodwill and other local charities. Nice artle, fun read!
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Amen. I say again, AMEN.
.-= Lisa´s last blog ..The secret to smart kids =-.
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