I have been trying to do the Flylady system this week to the last dotted I and crossed T. I also have been to the gym a couple times. Then I was trying to do all the decluttering at once, streamlining every system I have, attempting meal planning, getting a journal all set up with all the things, changing my wardrobe, makeup and hair….. and then I got overwhelmed. 

I was really trying to do too much at once and then I was feeling that I needed to have the house in a perfect, minimalist state. Immediately.  I felt that because I had some things , ok a lot of things, saved as memorabilia/sentimental things/collections. I felt that I needed to get rid of it all. Then I became very, very sad with a thought that I needed to get rid of all the things even if I didn’t use it. There are some things that I have become very attached to. A Darth Vader coin bank that I dust occasionally, some extra fabric that I love but haven’t used, some fossils I found at the beach, or some old Beanie Babies that the kids collected back in the day. Today, I realized I don’t need to part with those things. Not now, maybe in the future or, gasp, maybe never. I just need to store them or display them in a good way. It is ok to have these things in closets or storage. They aren’t hurting anything.

After I was very distressed about the thought of seeking a way to finance  a dumpster to get rid of 80% of my things, I calmed down, took a deep breath and asked myself why was this upsetting me so much. I have more than one spatuala. I then realized I use them all. If I were to get rid of everything, I would need to go buy the proper tool for the job all over again. It was ok that I have a few things that are not functional. Its ok to have things in storage. I have time to let things go. This is a marathon, not a sprint. It is an ever evolving process that really has no end point. It is about having some routines that work for me, a clean house I can be comfortable in and have some time to enjoy the finer things of life. 

I was totally encouraged by YouTube videos from Diane in Denmark because it addressed this topic. When you start these new routines and ideas, you get all motivated and I get overly obsessed by it. I start to pull in all the ideas from KonMarie, Clutterbug, Flylady and Getting Things done…. And then get a perfectionistic idea of what my house should look like based on other peoples curated feeds and videos. My expectations were not based in reality. And actually they weren’t really what I wanted for my own goals just what I was thinking that I should have as my goals. You know the feeling? The vision of a house with nothing on any horizontal surface and everything is in its own built in cabinet. That quickly flows over to feeling defeated and overwhelmed because I haven’t arrived to the finished destination  yesterday. 

It is all about doing a little bit at a time, in 15 minutes a day. It’s about having healthy habits and a clean house. I was actually thinking about getting an old toothbrush to start scrubbing each inch of the house with bleach, putting every item not touched in 6 months into a dumpster…..  and realized that wasn’t what it was all about. In fact, that was a little bit on the crazy side of things.

The routines are suggestions for me to personalize for my life, much like the patterns I find and then make my own. No need to be distressed that I am not doing it right or like anyone else. Just enjoy and do things on a consistent basis. Slow and steady wins the race says the tortoise in the old fable of the tortoise and the hare. 

Here’s to the weekend of fun, work and decluttering will be enjoyed in 15 min increments. 

Vicki