Extreme Home Makeover: Bertholic Edition

On our way home from North Carolina, Matt and I decided that life it too short to get hung up on having too much stuff. So we resolved to come home and purge our house. Clean out, declutter, give away, throw away, make it easier to keep organized, and create a more conducive place to spending time with people. We started our Clean Sweep (I love that show!) on Friday afternoon.

1. Kids' Room.
For the last 6 months, Snapper and Pepper have been sharing a bedroom. We moved them into the guest room so Debbie could have Snapper's room, and so Pepper's room could be converted into a school room. The kids have loved sharing a room. However, it has posed some problems. Problem #1: Snapper has been having to nap in my room because she and Pepper don't nap well in the same room. The computer is in my room, and naptime is when I need the computer. Problem #2: Snapper's small-part toys draw Pepper like a magnet. So many times I've come upstairs to find dollhouse furniture thrown all over the room (boy play), or mini Cinderella doll shoes in Pepper's mouth. Problem #3: Pepper's idea of fun is to dump out all the toys, throw them around the room, and then leave. He's also not that great at cleaning up yet, so much of his mess has fallen on Snapper to clean up, which isn't fair to her.
Solution: Move Pepper (and his toys) back into his old room which is currently the school room, and move the school stuff downstairs. We do most of our schoolwork down there anyway.
I spent 3 hours on Friday going through the shared room. I sorted out toys, threw away A LOT (which they don't know is missing), and organized clothes. Matt moved some furniture around while I reorganized Snapper's stuff. There is no more clutter! The toys she has in her room now are all things she regularly plays with. Every toy, art supply, article of clothing, has its own place. This should cut down on the clean-up battles!
It took me 4 hours yesterday to getPepper's room in order. I had to move the school supplies, go through boxes of stored stuff in the closet, and then put all Pepper's toys, books, and clothes in their places. I threw away a lot here, too. Pepper's room is now totally preschooler-friendly. Each toy has a place. His box spring and mattress are not on a bed frame, so if he falls off the bed, he won't have as far to fall. He is still furious that Snapper is now sleeping in his old bed, though!
Since Snapper and Pepper don't need any more toys or books, their Christmas presents from us this year will be new bedroom paint and bedding. I know they'll get new toys from grandparents, so I'm not concerned about disappointment under the Christmas tree! Racecar room for Pepper for sure! He loves cars and racing. I'm not sure what to do for Snapper yet.

2. Hall closet.
When we moved here 3 years ago, I had the hall closet in perfect order. Somewhere along the way, though, that closet has become a dumping ground for things that don't have a place anywhere else in the house. I tackled that closet with a vengeance! I went through the boxes that were stored there, and ended throwing away most of what was in them. Once I had the closet emptied out, Matt moved our family keepsake boxes into the closet. I will go through those at some point too, but I need to buy plastic tubs first. We decided to put all our extra blankets in the closet, too. Now when I open the closet, it is perfectly neat. Nothing falls out! I know everything that is in it. It looks SO nice!

3. Laundry, laundry, laundry!
Yesterday was a 10-load day. I washed all the kids' clothing. I washed all Matt's and my dirty clothing. I washed all our bedding. I washed all our towels. May I add that every single piece of laundry is folded and put away?

4. Kitchen and pantry and our bedroom closet:
Matt gets all the credit for this part! He did dishes, and dishes, and dishes (leftover from my big cooking day the other day because I've been too sick to stand at the sink). He swept and mopped. He cleaned out and organized the pantry, even going so far as to intall a hanging rack on the door for extra storage space! He took several boxes of paperwork and computer stuff out of our closet, sorted through them, threw a bunch away, and reorganized! He even made dinner! What a good man!

Still to come:
Our room
Downstairs closet
Laundryroom
Garage (I organized and cleaned it about a month ago, but there are lots of boxes to go through and purge. Then we will have a garage sale!)

Today is Sunday. Matt is at church with Snapper. Pepper and I are home with the flu. I'm on day 3, and feeling some better today. Pepper is on day 4, and he's lots better. But I won't be working much on the house today. I'm definitely making this a day of rest! I earned it after yesterday. After I tidy up the living room, I'll be sitting down with my crocheting and a good chick flick. Then at 2:00 it's race time! Ah, once the Advil kicks in, this will be a great day!

Disclaimer: No, I couldn't stand up at the sink to do all the dishes. I get dizzy and wobbly standing up. But yes, I really did do everything I said I did in the last 2 days. How? All the work in the bedrooms and closet was done sitting down, and with lots of breaks! =)