It is normally just after Christmas when I feel the need to take stock of my possessions and get everything in order.
I want everything stacked properly. A place for everything and everything in its place.
Everything seems to need dusting. (Not that I get to everything. If I can’t see it, it isn’t there.)
I want to clean up and clean out. Sift through the drawers where most anything can be found stuffed in. And give it a semblance of order.
This happens most every January for me. Not that I’ll get it done. But I sure get my ducks in a row and give it the old college try.
Do you find yourself doing this? Or is it just my compulsive nature?
I am the same Brenda. This year I have decided to leave everything up until after New Year’s day. I have so enjoyed it all this year that I want to keep it up until after Dean goes back to work. Maybe the tree will come down this weekend as it is real and I don’t want to look at a dead tree. Happy New Years!!
Brenda, I left a comment the last one on your Dec. 26, Post. You may want to, Please check it out! Thank-You -Judy-
Brenda this is the time of year I really try to ‘edit’ my belongings and organize things also! I am hoping to start getting rid of excess items and getting my home more manageable! Such a large task but I’ll keep trying!
hugs, Linda
I’m totally the same way. Currently, I’m taking down everything Christmas, stripping back my décor and deep cleaning everything. This is my favorite time of year because I love to organize!
Angela
YOU ARE AN AWESOME TEACHER….I AM GOING TO GIVR IT THE OLE COLLEGE TRY….LOVE THE WAY YOU ORGANIZE YOU GOODIES.
I feel exactly the same way. My tree will come down today and the rest will soon follow. I always laugh at how quickly the stores put away Christmas and take out the big plastic bins to fill their shelves. They know are need to organize after chaos, too. Have a wonderful New Year!
Hmmm, yesterday I suddenly plunged in and defrosted and organized my chest freezer, organized my pantry, and pitched/reorganized files to get a setup ready for 2013 paperwork. I surprised myself, as I had been putting these not-so-fun chores off for a very long time. I guess it was one of those momentum things.
Hi Brenda,
I edited so much stuff this year that I’m hoping my usual January edit can be done quickly. I have 2 closets to work on and the seasonal stuff to put away . I need to do this quickly as I have the carpet cleaners scheduled for jan. 14th and a local cleaning service to follow on the 16th. I plan to start and end 2013 neat clean and tidy at all times and since I had 2012 this way 90% of the time I see no reason why it cant happen. Life is so much calmer and happier this way, for me.
Good luck with your organizing and according to the photos , things at your house already look clean and neat to me.
Brenda,
We actually need the space empty because we will be moving in my son and his wife and two beautiful children for a little while and we need to make a little apartment for them down here, right next to my sewing room and studio. I’ll let you know how it goes! Have a wonderful, wonderful day!
I am feeling exactly like you and the others. I want so badly to get rid of all this stuff and have a clean, emptier house. It usually does hit me at the end of the year/beginning of the new year. I just popped in on the internet for one more cup of coffee and checking on some blogs before I get started, I swear. I am going to work two hours a day on this basement and hopefully in a week or two it will be over. Pray for me!!!!
Hugs,
Julie
I’m a total cleaner after Christmas, too. Everything seems way dustier after I take the tree down. Plus, after getting that open space back, it lends to the readiness of cleaning. We usually leave the tree up through the New Year, but I’m not feelin’ it this time.
Hope you have a Happy New Year btw
-Angie
Hi Brenda! I have been cleaning and reorganizing my house since yesterday..we are having snow right now so it will be another day for me stuck in the house so now is the time I guess…lol..its already feeling more open and more cleaner…so much clutter before…our tree will come down this weekend…have my swedish meatballs cooking in the crockpot and doing some crocheting now…I love being home in my warm and cozy home…love your pictures today!! love ya! Carol
Well, I am the exeption to the rule. I hate to clean out and organize (as you very well know), so I’ll probably not do much in the line of organization!! Surprised???? I didn’t think so. ha.
Good for you!!
Judy
I do the same thing , Brenda. I am just thinking about braving the basement and crafting area. Do I start today or tomorrow? Just trying to get up the gumption to do it. I started in December this year- sifting and sorting. Weird- xo Diana
The day after Christmas I always think I can’t bear to put away the Christmas decorations or the tree, and then two days after I start thinking I can’t stand to see it much longer and out come the boxes, but only one room at a time. A few years ago I made storage room in each section of the house for the decorations that go in that area, so it’s not so complicated now. What is complicated is that I always put things in about the same place each year with slight variations, but now there’s the thought that it should be different next year so that the same things won’t appear on the blog each Christmas. I don’t think I’m up to that though, so we’ll see. You have inspired me and I will keep at it.
I decided recently to clear out and downsize. I just have too much junk in this apartment (and garage). My closet is a nightmare–not because of the clothes but everything else stacked in there!
We joke at our house that my closet takes in everything. We have few closets and very little storage in the house! One of my hardest things to do is to get rid of old cookbooks or Christmas gift making books that I don’t use anymore, I look at them and say, yup, they’re going into give away, but never let them go. So I’m hoping I can part w/some this year!
Definitely not just you. Hits me when Christmas is over too. All my decorations are now down (but not packed away…just sitting in big piles in the basement!) and I need to dust. Yuck.
Nope, I am the same way. Can’t stand clutter, or unorganization. I can multi task with the best of them and wont let myself rest till everything is done.
I am totally that way, too! I can’t wait to things put in order and changed up a bit! I love these cold winter days inside…poofing the pillows! Sweet hugs!
Yes, I do find myself wanting to get more organized this time of year. I guess it stems from the fact that Christmas time is so hectic and cluttered feeling. Once I get the decorations put away, I feel inclined to clean and purge.
I hear ya, Brenda. Today I spent half the day putting things away and tomorrow I will dust and organize. Can’t wait. I also have a bag of things ready to go to the thrift store. I love Christmas but there is always way too much stuff around for me to feel comfortable. The cats have been helping
.
I am so frustrated by having my arm in a sling and prohibitions on too much movement. I am dying to do some organizing!
Yep! Maybe it comes because for one thing we really cleaned up for Christmas then we cluttered everything prettily for Christmas, then if we host the meal or a party we clean again, and so we are halfway there. When the decor and presents and what have you are put away ( for me this generally occurs on New Years day with just a few generic wintery decorations left out ) it just seems natural to want to continue on with further changes…be in more cleaning or straightening or organizing etc….Its a nesting instinct of some sort perhaps ?
Brenca, great pics!
You have me thinking I need to purge, put up and clean. It is the Christmas decorating and hosting that brings out the “decorative things and table decor and useful dinnerware & dishes”. Now, it is too much to look at. What I really need to do is seperate what I used this year during the holidays from things I didn’t use and stuff I didn’t even take out of storage, call the kids to see if they want anything. I am going to purge all I didn’t use and take to the First Look Thrift Store (who help pregnant women with their needs during and after the births).
It’s a relief already, just typing that decision!
Happy New Year, Brenda!
I am with you. We got back from our Christmas vacation at 7:00 a.m. yesterday and by 9:00 I was doing a thorough “winter cleaning”. The slipcovers are just about dry and will go back on this afternoon. I totally reorganized our closet and moved the cabinets from one end to the other. My husband came home from his haircut to find every item of clothing on top of the bed and all over the floor. I just finished and the results are great. I have a bag filling quickly to take to Goodwill. It feels so refreshing. When lunch is over, it will be back to cleaning.
Have a Happy (and organized) New Year
It is my nature to want to take it all down and clean the whole house, but not just yet. I would love to sell all my Christmas ornaments, garlands, trees, ribbons, sachets and all the Christmas decor I did this year. I made all the ornaments from coffee filters recycled from Starbucks. They consist of snowmen, snowwomen, paper stockings and paper sachets filled with Frazier Fir needles that are dried and stripped from last year’s tree clippings from Lowe’s.
I also made draft dodgers filled with the Frazier Fir and put them in front of the doors to keep the cold out. I don’t know why our doors are so drafty, but those draft dodgers do the job and smell nice too.
You know we’ll be vacuuming pine needles until July ladies so I’m in no hurry. I will however invite my friends over to see what they would like to purchase.
I am exactly thinking and feeling the same thing!! I think maybe it has to do with having a new year and a new start – It’s exciting to de-clutter, re-organize and feel like you have control of your life and only have in our homes that what we really enjoy – besides, if we aren’t using it, or enjoying it, why not let someone else! Thanks for sharing!
We continue with Christmas cheer for another week yet but I did sit down and organize my cross stitching patterns and floss. I watched a Christmas movie and cheerfully organized. After the new year I will begin by organizing all my Christmas tubs in the basement before I start upstairs and I am dreaming of making one of my rooms into a craft room….dreaming! Dianntha
No, I can’t put away my Christmas stuff yet, but mine was awfully late getting put up. I still have company coming, and I love to sit in the evening and look at my tree, use my vintage holiday tablecloths and dishes, so I’ll enjoy it a while longer, then switch over to a few Valentine’s Day decorations’s . But I do feel like I start to declutter when I start getting things ready for spring! Right now, it’s cozy, Christmas clutter and all !
Have a Happy New Year! Joy and Peace! Linda @ Grandmalay’s Daydreams
I usually get my Christmas tree and decorations down by December 26 and put everything back in its place, but this year I am going to take the tree down and redo the displays taking a little time.
Hahaha! I’ve spent the last 2 days doing just that: sorted/pitched my piles, reorganized the clutter, cleaned and finished projects already started. It feels good to start the new year in a clean and clutter-free home!
I absolutely find myself doing this after the hustle and bustle of the holidays is over. It’s like a switch that gets flipped that says “ORGANIZE” it’s a way to put an end to the chaos. I will be tackling this once New Years is done and my guests head back home. No sense attempting it now.
I love to clean and organize after Christmas, too. Also, rearrange the furniture. It makes me very happy.
Fondly,
Glenda
I have the same desire but little energy! And I like to look at the Christmas decor until the tree is lifeless! lol! Funny, all the January magazines are about cleaning up and organizing…hint hint? I seem to do my best in the fall when I feel the approach of the holidays. And then there is always “spring cleaning” that motivates me. I wish I had a sure fire method…everything just gets moved from one place to another! And yes, stacks are good.
XO,
Jane
XO,
Jane
I always want to redo, clean, declutter, and organize things after Christmas.
~Cindy
I love doing it too. Although I don’t love the dusting part!
Happy Holidays!
Pam
I am definitely in the organize and clean it up mode. I have to rush around and get it done before my surgery. I don’t want to look at a mess while recuperating
Hi Brenda, Yes, after I put my Christmas things away (on New Years Day) then it’s time for some serious cleaning. I hope you have a great New Year!
Brenda, I feel so calm after reading your posts. And yes, I do get tired of looking at Xmas decor after a period of time and want to ferret out some things and bring out others.
Linda
It is on my to do list too! I have been slowly tacking this even before Christmas and have much to do!
xx
Anne
I wish I had a bit of your compulsive nature. You’d be appalled at what you’d find around here. :/ Tammy
I can’t say that it’s a January thing exclusively, but more of a winter thing. People talk about doing their spring cleaning, but after a winter hibernating I want to be outdoors. Therefore, I do most of my “spring” cleaning during the winter months then all that’s left when the warmer weather comes is to wash and pack away the heavy blankets and boots and wash the outside of the windows.