Spring Cleaning

As the weather gets warmer, I have the urge to freshen up my house and make space for spring!  There are few things that cause me more anxiety than clutter.  I can't stand junk on top of tables, I loathe a cluttered entryway, and miscellaneous crap around the house just makes me want to scream sometimes.  I am always seeking strategies for getting rid of crap, preventing the accumulation of more stuff, and more effectively organizing the things we have.  I believe that I am happier when I have less clutter and more space.  A couple weeks ago I completed the daunting task of reorganizing my baking pantry, and now I feel empowered to accomplish anything!

Here are a few of my goals for Spring Cleaning this year:

1) Get rid of stuff
It is such a good feeling to clean out closets and drawers and take a car load of stuff to the thrift store.  My priorities are to purge clothes that don't bring me joy, books I don't plan to read again, decorations that just don't have a place in my house right now, and things that have been buried in the closet since moving into my house three years ago.  I also want to go through makeup, toiletries, baby toys, and Ady's clothes that are too small, making space for new things as she grows.

2) Make closets functional 
I am generally pretty organized in my own closet, and I have reorganized the front entryway closet at least five times in three years, but guest bedrooms closets I avoid like the plague.  I constant shove more stuff in there, hoping I'll just forget about it, and praying that it doesn't all tumble out next time I open the door.  Well, it's time to roll up my sleeves and dive in.  I want guests to actually be able to use the closet space (or at least not feel threatened by boxes stacked to the ceiling).

3) Prepare the yard for spring gardening

It's still a little too early to plant things in the ground in Santa Fe (since we always get a late spring snowstorm), but I need to start doing some prep work - clean up the dog poop, rake up sticks and leaves, add some fresh soil, and throw away pots of dead plants.  (Let's face it, my thumb is the opposite of green, and the hope of revival at this point is slim.)

4) Add color to my kitchen

I'm not going to buy a ton of stuff (because that defeats the purpose of everything mentioned above), but some fresh flowers and a few new dishtowels and placemats can go along way to making me excited about my space again.

5) Don't apologize for my perpetually messy house

I have a toddler.  And a dog who sheds and digs.  And I work full time.  My house will never actually be clean, despite outward appearances.  There is probably macaroni under the oven that will stay there until we move.  The clumps of pet hair under the bed actually create the illusion that there is still a cat sleeping under there.  I have zero desire to clean inside my fridge or oven (which is like shoveling the driveway during a snowstorm).  And that bookshelf in the guest bedroom will have dust permanently.  Get over it.  I have more fulfilling things to do in life than maintain a perfect house, and our family cares more about memories than perfection.  Sorry not sorry.

Happy Spring!!