If you are anything like me, you despise clutter and chaos. And there is nothing worse then heading into the holiday season already feeling like you are bombarded by your children’s toys, clothes, and every day belongings; only to know that more clutter and stuff is coming your way!
Over the past four years of being a mother, I have noticed a trend within me every year when October rolls around; I start to go into “nesting” mode. Yup, you read that right! But not “nesting” as in I am expecting another baby, but instead “nesting” as in: I want my house to feel decluttered, simplified, and in order, before I deck the halls.
As we are approaching the holiday season, I wanted to share with you some tips I have implemented within my own home, to help the OCD in me feel a little lighter, before the Christmas presents come rolling in. I hope that these tips can help make your holiday season a little more jolly, by not only decluttering your home, but your mama brain as well!
3 Tips to Help You Declutter Before the Holidays:
- Closet purge
- How many times you have you opened up yours, your spouses, or your children’s closet, and noticed clothing in there that none have you have worn in a very long time, or if ever! My golden rule is: if you haven’t worn it within the past year, donate it! There is no sense holding on to clothing just incase you “need it” one day, because the facts are, if you haven’t worn it at least once or twice within the past year, it doesn’t need to be taking up any more space within your closet. And why hold on to clothes that you don’t need when it could bless someone else?
- Sort through your children’s toys, games ect.
- If your children are anything like mine, they are bombarded with toys, puzzles, games ect. In fact, they have so many toys, that more than half of them never get played with because they have so many options! Usually twice a year, (especially before the holiday season), I grab some empty tubs from my attic, and start going through my children’s toy bins. Items that I notice they have not played with for a long time, I will throw into the bin, and place them in storage. I then reorganize the toys I have left for them to play with. Usually when I reorganize them, or even place them within new rooms in our house, my children are more apt to want to play with them!
- Side note: do you want to know the BEST part about putting some of your children’s toys in storage? When your children are going stir crazy mid February, you pull down that storage bin of toys that they have not seen in months, and it is like Christmas morning all over again for them! YOU ARE WELCOME!
- Deep clean and SIMPLIFY
- When mamas house is in order, mama is happy. And when mama is happy, everyone benefits! Am I right? When I wipe down, sweep, and clean almost every nook and cranny of my house, I feel accomplished and on top of things. And there is no better time to feel like your house is spick and span then when you are expecting family and friends to come over for the holidays.
- Simplify what you can! If you have larger items on your kitchen counter like a microwave, toaster, cooking ingredients ect, see if you can find a new “home” for them for the next couple of months. Give yourself some more space to work in the kitchen while you are preparing for big meals, or making and decorating cookies. Do you have bigger pieces of decor that you leave out all year long? Maybe put those items up in storage as you make way for your Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations. I know from experience that when my Christmas tree(s) go up, my house feels a lot smaller. So simplify and choose what you absolutely need out and displayed in your house during the holiday season.
I hope that these tips inspire you and help you as you start to welcome in the holiday season. I know for me personally, that when my house is decluttered, clean, and simplified I feel more capable of taking on all that the holidays have to offer, and I feel like I can enjoy them more than ever!
So go clean, declutter, and simplify, mama! But most importantly, get ready to enjoy the joy and beauty the holiday season brings us.
