Starting now

Clutter. You know the drill. I'm not the dirtiest person in the world, certainly, but I'm far from the cleanest. I hate throwing things away, I can't organize to save my life, and I hate cleaning. Add to that homeschooling my 12-year-old (who has Asperger syndrome and Type 1 diabetes), caring for my infant, attending nursing school part-time, running to appointments, and a husband who works 60-hour weeks and... yeah. I don't have a whole lot of time to devote to housework, especially on a grand scale -- which, sadly, the task of de-cluttering my house would be. (Although I somehow always seem to find the time for that pesky internet addiction...)

Enough excuses. The fact is: bugs love clutter. I hate bugs. Therefore, clutter is now enemy number one in my house. My plan: break down the task of de-cluttering into small, non-overwhelming jobs that I can do in one or two days. I'm not sure yet if I'll do one room at a time or go room to room (I can see pros and cons of each approach). My biggest challenge: getting rid of sentimental crap for which I have absolutely NO need (for instance, the buttons from the denim jacket I wore throughout junior high school). My goal: a clean, user-friendly house with A LOT LESS STUFF IN IT.

I want to keep this blog as a log of the progress I'm making towards my goal. I may even take before and after photos. This way I can keep track of what I'm doing and maybe, if anybody decides to read this, I'll have some accountability as well. Here I go...