Clearing the Clutter

My son finally has a room with a bed, no longer a double futon on the floor that takes up half the room. I am finally feeling like a grown-up parent. Here is his room now moving clockwise. All that’s left is perhaps some work on the walls — art or shelving — and curtains (to darken his room so he might actually sleep during the day — what a concept. Maybe no naps are part of growing up, too). I think I will hold back on the rainbow silk I thought I might drape as a canopy. I like how airy the room is, even if it is only 8’x9′ with no closet.

After months of slow transition from clutter upon clutter to relative calm, I finally feel like I can breathe upstairs. With more space in our bedroom once little E moved across the hall, we brought back in a dresser. Now all my clothes are in one place. Getting underwear in one room and socks in another was a little ridiculous. Moving the dresser then created a space in the guest room (read: where my husband irons his clothes) that might actually be used for some yoga! These home improvements mean I’m finally clearing some space in my head. I was about to start issuing citations for overcrowding up there.

Apparently Oprah has a campaign right now to clear clutter, and I’m told the FlyLady is THE resource for tips and encouragement. We actually hired an organizing consultant to get us on our way (and cut through the marital crap that was keeping us paralyzed). Judy from Gently Organized helped us make a priority list, and she gave us a binder with helpful tips all in one place and with notes about our plan of attack. She also came back and actually did some of the work with us!

Thanks also to my MIL for watching our kid while we executed some of this most recent “progress.”

And thanks to our Waldorf school teacher for her coaching on this process.