decluttering - Sereneluna

Disclaimer: I did not write this on my own. This blog post is composed of excerpts from an old Seventeen magazine. Over the summer, I spent a few weeks at my parents’ house where I ended up dedicating a significant amount of time to reading and recycling my old magazines. Before recycling the magazines, I saved a few pages that I wanted to share with all of you.

The blog post is titled “So What!” is actually from Seventeen Journal. I felt moved by it because I realized that my own physical and mental clutter (ahem, pages I ripped out from old magazines) is actually hindering my decluttering efforts. How ironic! I am unable to provide a proper citation for this article as I do not have the information regarding which Seventeen magazine it came from, the article number, or the year.

Let’s get started, shall we?

So What!

You have big dreams, and you want to achieve them now. But what you might not realize is that sometimes what’s holding you back isn’t coming form the outside (your friends, your family, school)—but from you! When you let go of all the negative stuff—regrets, times you felt embarrassed, anything that’s killing your confidence—it’s like taking all the obstacles out of your way. So use this space to get it all out, and give yourself permission to say, “So what!” and move on!

I’ve been beating myself up about….. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ …..but so what!
I feel ashamed that….. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ …..but so what!
I can’t stop cringing about….. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ …..but so what!
I’ve been holding in the fact that….. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ …..but so what!
I felt like I effed this up….. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ …..but so what!

“I know it’s easier said than done, but acceptance starts with looking at yourself in the mirror and just saying, Okay, I don’t have muscles on top of muscles. Fine! All right. I don’t have long, flowing blonde hair. Cool. Once you learn to be cool with who you are, you won’t care what anyone else thinks.”
— Ne-Yo

Source: https://www.europosters.eu/marketplace/

(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ FINAL THOUGHTS ♥

This journaling exercise is applicable not only to teenagers but also to adults. Even as an adult, I still face similar challenges to those I experienced as a teenager, but I handle them differently now that I am older and wiser. I am curious to know if you journal. Personally, I don’t, but I can understand why it would be helpful for gaining insight. Feel free to join the conversation below ↓ and I will do my best to reply to the comments within the next 48 hours.

Thanks for stopping by! ♥

Ever since we moved into our new house, we have been in the process of making this place feel like home. The previous owners did a great job renovating the place, which won my heart since the minute I stepped through the front door. Each room was pleasantly inviting and tastefully decorated.

Since the day we moved in, I have been trying to re-create that same feeling. It is incredible how a seemingly large, empty room looks so spacious when nothing is occupying that space vs. having a house full of ~~crap~~ stuff. So this begs the question: how do we keep our new house organized and my stress levels in check?

Home Sweet Home

Cleaning has always been a challenge for me and I feel like I have ADHD when it comes to cleaning and organizing, because I have such a hard time focusing on any given task. I never understood people who actually enjoy taking part in cleaning rituals or people who have picture-perfect homes, like the previous house owners. Since moving last month, I have unintentionally manifested secret junk drawers. They appear out of nowhere and the universe seems to think that I need them in my life.

Personally, I do not think that my family will ever learn how to keep a house tidy like Marie Kondo, or learn to love cleaning/organizing despite our best efforts. My fantasy self would suggest otherwise. My fantasy self adheres to a list of rules that will change your life, such as the one I am going to share with you below ↓ Take my list with a grain of salt, since I have yet to figure out how this list has made any lasting impact in my personal life. I’ll go on these cleaning sprees until I burn myself out, only to relapse and become mentally lazy.

Disclaimer: I created this list from a bunch of different sources and kept it on my phone, untouched for years. And like any organizational expert such my fantasy self would tell you, one also needs to focus on removing digital clutter. Therefore, I am releasing it into the universe so that I can finally delete it from my phone, once and for all. Welcome to my little corner of the internet! 👼

Does This List Really Work? 🤷‍♀️

(✿◠‿◠)っ Why don’t you try it for yourself and let me know if it works!

1. Make your bed every day.
2. Put toys in a designated spot; use a storage system if that is an option.
3. Garbage belongs in the garbage.
4. Remove the dishwasher after wash cycle is complete. Load the dishwasher as you go and clean the counter top when you are finished cooking. Aim for #sink-zero every night.
5. Keep the bathroom countertop clutter free if possible. Wipe down with antibacterial wipes. Wipe the toilet and scrub the toilet.
6. Do one load of laundry every day. (2-3 times per week for us)
7. Keep kitchen countertop clutter free. Spray antibacterial in the sink.
8. Vacuuming the floor and heavy duty areas (kitchen and dining areas) once every day. Keep the floor clutter free and remove clutter as you go.
9. Shoe organization. Get some cheap storage baskets with a nice lining and/or a shoe rack!
10. Take care of the mail as soon as it enters the house.

(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ FINAL THOUGHTS ♥

Since moving into our new house, I am still in the process of de-cluttering a lot of rooms. I have seen other bloggers post before and after photos which is a nice idea, but my after photos look just like my before photos. A preschooler does an excellent job of re-crapifying every nook and cranny. As I dig deeper into my strong desire to keep my home clutter-free, I am learning more about myself in the process. It took me years to finally realize that clutter heightens my already high anxiety levels. When I eventually figure out how to de-crapify my habitat once and for all, I will be the first one to write a ground-breaking blog post about it.