Give it away, give it away, give it away, give it away now...

...Give it away, give it away, give it away, give it away now

Give it away, give it away, give it away, give it away now

Can't tell if I'm a king pin or a pauper

-Red Hot Chili Peppers, "Give it Away"

I'm on a mission. I am determined to cut down on the clutter in my house. The stuff is out of control, and for a number of reasons, I need to cut down on stuff.

1. I don't know what I have.

2. I don't have room for what I have.

3. The constant clutter makes me lose the stuff I do know have. I spend 15 mins looking for my keys and or cell phone most every day.

4. The constant clutter in my environment stresses me out.

Perhaps you remember this post about the disaster that is my multi-pile system of sorting clothing. (This is where I discovered the word "floordrobe, which is still the funniest, and most descriptive, term in my lexicon.) Or perhaps you remember this one about my paper clutter problem. I know where my clutter issues lie, and I understand the problems that come from my lack of organization.

I just can't seem to do anything about it.

I've tried! I really have made valiant attempts to get organized. The problem is staying in that organized state. That's the thing - you can't just line everything up, slap labels on it, and call it a day. You have to actually put in work, ON A DAILY BASIS, to keep the clutter monster from taking over again. And you must stop bringing additional stuff into your home. This is not news to anyone. Yet this is not something that wants to stick in my brain.

Want to see my latest efforts? Linen closet - with all of our towels, sheets, extra blankets, and kid snuggle blankets in one place.

Look at all that extra space! (Don't get too excited. I need to save room for all the towels that are currently still lounging on the pool table.) But more importantly, I decided to follow the advice of my fave simple living blog, Unclutterer, and group like things together. Duh. I know. This isn't earth-shattering stuff. But now this closet has linens, all the linens, and nothing but linens. Out of season kid clothes are (gasp!) in the kids' rooms.

Now, for my favorite closet makeover:

Yep. That's my gift wrapping station. Look at all those pretty bags arranged by size in the clear box! I got rid of a bunch of gift bags that I decided I wouldn't be proud to give another gift in. And above those shelves, there are a bunch more shelves that are full of all the gifts I've bought with the intent of giving to someone, someday, for some gift-giving occasion. I'm not sharing a picture of that - you might just see your Christmas gift! But trust me - it's organized, labeled, and makes me happy.

I was on a roll. So, how did I make all this extra space? I got rid of a whole bunch of stuff.

The comforter and assorted blankets that I was holding *just in case*? They found a new home at The Green Chair Project, a great organization that helps provide furnishings for people transitioning out of homelessness. The extra gift bags haven't found a home yet, but I've found there's nothing that can't be unloaded for free via craigslist. The stuff that was broken went into the trash. (See! I can throw stuff away, too!) Our desktop computer parts found a new home via craigslist with a guy who is starting a home business. I'm working on it.

Now, check back in 6 months and see if I'm still willing to put up photos of the insides of my closets...