One of the fun parts of blogging about my life for so long (13 years this June!) is the ability to go back into the archives. I recently stumbled on an old post from 2015 detailing my attempt to complete the Four Weeks to a More Organized Home challenge from Money Saving Mom. (Spoiler alert: I didn’t get very far, ha!) Once I saw how nicely it lined up with my Spring Cleaning Bingo board, I knew I wanted to try again. So here goes!
DAY 1 ASSIGNMENT // Write down 5-10 goals for the week. Get rid of 7 items. 15 minute quick pick-up of the main living areas. Clean out purse.
+ I’m always really motivated on day one! After a week off my feet, I was so pumped to get started and knocked out the goal list after breakfast.
+ My purse was surprisingly tidy – just a few Ricola wrappers and a broken crayon to get rid of.
+ It’s been awhile since I’ve decluttered and I’m anxious to stretch that muscle again. Hoping to find a mixture of things to sell, donate and just recycle/throw away! Today’s seven items: two pairs of outgrown shoes, a fleece, a finished workbook, two books and a DVD.
DAY 2 ASSIGNMENT // Complete 2 things from the goal list. Get rid of 7 items. 15 minute quick clean of the kitchen. Clean out the refrigerator.
+Is there anything better than a clear countertop? The kitchen is definitely the heart of our home and we have numerous individuals cooking and baking throughout the day. This obviously translates to pots and spoons and cookie sheets scattered all over the place! But for this one afternoon – a teeny moment in the day! – I tidied everything up, cleared and wiped down the counters and even wiped down/organized the interior of the fridge.
+ Today’s seven(+) items: an eyeglass cleaning cloth, two used workbooks, some free gift tag stickers and a bunch of random printouts.
DAY 3 ASSIGNMENT // Complete 1 thing from the goal list. Get rid of 7 items. 15 minute quick clean of my bedroom. Clean out the freezer.
+ My bedroom is currently holding a few “in progress” projects (namely, my resale pile and my paperwork-to-shred pile) so I tried to tidy everything else. Not perfect but better – and motivation to keep working on those projects!
+ So far, my daily seven items have been quite random and today was no exception: a pair of too-small slippers, a used up candle, a travel mug, a broken piece from a scooter, a perler bead creation, a ThredUp donation bag and a bunch of math scrap papers.
DAY 4 ASSIGNMENT // Complete 2 things from the goal list. Get rid of 7 items. 15 minute quick clean of the bathrooms. Clean underneath beds and furniture.
+ I keep my Christmas and other gift packaging under my bed, so I organized those and removed the dust bunnies.
+ Today’s seven: a reusable bag, two pillowcases, another used candle, a handful of playing cards, a full notebook from 2019 and a very old Fitbit.
DAY 5 ASSIGNMENT // Remove the couch cushions and clean, spot cleaning the fabric, if necessary. Choose a 15 minute relaxing activity.
+ I went rogue today and deviated from the task list. I instead checked off a few things on my bingo board: flipping my mattress and laundering all of the bedding. I’ll get back to the couch cushions next week.
+ Extra credit! I found seven more things to get rid of: three pieces of outgrown clothing, a protein powder scoop, a little vase, a baggie of random plastic pieces that go to nothing, and an empty perler bead organizer.
Want to join in on the fun? Print out the assignments HERE!
Good job! Sending you motivation for next week’s challenge 🙂
Thank you! It has been gloomy and rainy all week so my motivation has been fading…I just want to take a nap, ha!
I enjoyed reading about your daily accomplishments. Having spent all of last year getting rid of almost everything I own and then deep cleaning every room, I don’t have anything to declutter or clean or anything right now.
As I type this, a guy is here refinishing my living room floor and then on Friday the painters are coming to do some patching. Once all that is done I do want to have another go at reorganizing my linen closet. It doesn’t need decluttering, but I definitely have things in the wrong places.
I hope we get to follow along with you for all four weeks! You’re doing great so far!
Thanks, Jinjer! And what an accomplishment to have completed such a declutter/deep clean! I’m hoping to get closer to that goal this summer.