Project Declutter Part 1

It is in my blood to freely throw away things that I no longer need. Yes, I am one of those that contribute to the growing waste that is fast filling the land fills but I really hate clutter. I live by the motto 旧的不去,新的不来 and reckoned if something has not been used for years, it wouldn't be for the next few years to come. Have I regretted? Of course, I just threw away that (fill in the blanks)... s**t.... fortunately, those moments aren't frequent and I get more satisfaction from the decluttering.

We did a major clean up when we shifted into Centris. It wasn't much of a choice; we had to fit into a smaller space. Over the years, there had been impromptu moments that I declutter the storeroom/ wardrobe/ study place... Well, it takes time and a lot of energy. It really depends on how messy the area is and if it is bad enough to give me that adrenaline push. Haha.

The kids' study area gets my special attention once a year. The books, papers and files got stack up like a game of Jenga along the year and at the end of the school year, I get a special high from sorting the textbooks and throwing away the workbook and worksheets. Super shiok.

This year, it was the same exercise but a lot more different. The shelf at the study area is definitely too small thus the Jenga game every year. I had intended to shift a bigger and underutilised shelf from the kids' room to the study area. This would mean that the kids' room had to be packed up. The study area is also too small to accommodate the bigger shelf, which in turn means that the side telephone table had to be clear up to make space. We just terminated the super underutilised phone line and there is no longer need for the side table. Bingo, it all fit nicely like a jigsaw puzzle.

So, the project began with the kids' help. I bet they get the same high from throwing a year's worth of school work. Hoho. They happily sorted out the stuff that need to be kept and the ones to go into the recycle bin.

The living room turned into a war zone and we packed a good 4 big stacks to throw into the recycle bin plus another 2 big bags of rubbish. Daddy Lim then helped to shift the bigger shelf from the room to the study area. Dust bunnies were hopping everywhere. Cough, cough. We briefly cleared up the side table and the kids' room, pending round 2 as the kids moved  off for maths class.

Round 2 was in progress after the kids' class. We added a few more container/ boxes to departmentalise the book shelf and the study area is now completed. Woohoo!

Round 2 was very much focused on sorting the junk that we had collected from the telephone side table. It had quietly became a temporary parking place for all sorts of crazy stuff and majority of those will go into the kids' room. We also had to clear up the kids' room so that there would be space to sleep in the night.

Most of the kids' toys were long gone and converted to more big kids' staff like boardgames. Some of the toys were given away but mostly went into the rubbish bins over the years. Their toys and stuff were kept in the Ikea containers and on the bigger shelf (that had been shifted out) and left untouched for a long time. Nobody really still play toys now.

It was the usual drill that the kids are familiar with - we unturned the Ikea containers, pouring through the content to see what should be kept and what not. It was like a nostalgic path and the kids exclaimed every now and then over a toy/ item that they had not seen for a while. We found new unopened items to pass down.

We also threw out 4 big bags of stuff. Fortunately, we found new home for Zaky's huge collection of hotwheels cars and tracks - to a friend's little boy. These were some of the last toys. We still kept Zaky's Nerf gun collection and a huge Ikea container of Lego.

Zaky was excited and asked if we are going to sell them for money. Lol. I am already so glad that somebody was willing to take them for free.

Tadah!

After hours' of labor the kids' stuff were nicely packed and stacked at where the shelf used to be. The telephone side table also found a temporary home until such a time that we could find a better space or decide that it should go.

The sense of satisfaction was immersed. This is only a part of my intended big project. I have so much more that I wanted to clear and set right. It would of course take a lot of time and we just have to take it one part of the house at a time. Hehehe. So exciting!

Mummy Lim