Imagine the Impossibilities: Organizing the Pantry and Linen Closet

Last week, I joined a challenged called "Imagine the Impossibilities" to help me organize some closets and get rid of clutter.

I used to be one of those annoyingly organized people.  I would immediately file or throw away things.  As I've gotten older, I started to hold on to more and more stuff.  Either for sentimental reasons or just because I don't take the time to go through my things to purge things I no longer need.  I might have hidden hoarder tendencies, so I took it upon myself to stage a mini-self-intervention to stop the hoarding.

Here's my pantry before:

 I started by taking everything out and wiping down the shelves.

 I had special Easter egg dye that was almost three years old.  It was used to make Pysanki, Eastern Eurepean-style dyed eggs like these:

I also had jars and jars of peaches I had canned five years ago.  This was the first time I had canned anything and we were too scared that we might get botulism eating the peaches.  That was a lot of hard work to end up throwing them away, but it was time.

Here's what my pantry looks like now.

I threw away so much stuff, I actually have empty shelves.

Now, it's much easier to see the food that I have so that I can actually use it and it doesn't go to waste.  Next, I would like to make some cute labels, but this is good enough for now. 

Remember the dreaded linen closet?

Seven large garbage bags of stuff donated or thrown away and here it is now:



Hooray for more empty shelves!

My husband was shocked when we saw me taking pictures of our master bedroom closet to show to the public.  It is always in a state of disaster, but it has gotten especially bad.  I've found that showing you how bad things really are helps to keep me accountable and motivated to get things cleaned.  WARNING: this next picture is not for the faint of heart!

I was able to get the other areas organized, so I know I can tackle this one too!  I'm feeling positive that my self-imposed hoarder intervention will be a success!



What's Going On?

I am still sans computer as I wait for a new power cord to arrive from China.  Fortunately, my darling children are kindly letting me use their computer for five minutes here and there (whenever I can pry their sticky fingers from the keyboard!).  Unfortunately, their computer is not letting me comment on blogs.  I can view your blogs in Google Reader, but when I try to click on an actual blog, the screen goes blank and the website never loads.  Grrrr...I love technology, but it can be so frustrating when things don't work like they should.

This semi-lack of technology has given me some extra time to tackle some of my decluttering tasks around the house.  I've decided to take part in this blog challenge.  The goal is to take on a project that seems impossible.  Getting decluttered and organized seems impossible to me right now!  I'm hoping that by January 31st, I will have some nice and tidy spaces to show you.

I spent a good amount of  time today in this lovely closet:

Between this closet and my daughters' rooms, I was able to gather seven huge garbage bags of stuff to take to the thrift store, as well as several bags that went straight into the trash.  I feel better all ready!  This task is starting to look a little less impossible.  The most difficult part of organizing and decluttering for me is getting started, and now I'm over that hump.  Stay tuned for some "after" pictures later this month.

I have a few other things going on this week.  Be sure to check back Wednesday.  I'm taking part in another challenge and I'll tell you all about it then.  I'm very excited about this challenge and I'll give you a little hint: it's much  more fun and exciting than organizing!

In other news, Chloe is turning seven and we're having her first big slumber party on Friday night (say a little prayer for me!).

Source: andbabiesmakefour.com via Suzanne on Pinterest

I think that balloon number is so cute!

The girls will be making their own pizzas, decorating pillowcases, freeze dancing in the dark with glowsticks, manicures/pedicures, probably more dancing and watching movies.

We are having a pink/zebra theme.  I think these cookies would be perfect!

Source: dailynibbles.com via Suzanne on Pinterest

Fingers crossed that my new power cord arrives soon!

Floors Before and After

While I have been enjoying myself at my parent's house, my house has been getting a little makeover.  I haven't even seen it yet, but sweet Big K has sent some pictures for me to share with you.  When I left last week, the floors looked like this:

The flooring guys were just ripping up my nasty old carpet as I was leaving for the airport.  By the end of that day, the floors looked like this:

I love it!  Please excuse Mr. T posing in all of the pictures.  The big goofball is so in love with my husband that he can't stand to be out of his line of sight at anytime.  He is also trying to look so handsome that he will get a treat.  I think he deserves one, don't you? 

I can't wait to get home, see my doggies, buy a new rug, and arrange all of my furniture on that CLEAN floor.  Speaking of clean, I am thinking about buying a steam mop for all of the wood and tile floors I now have. 

Do you have a steam mop?  Would you recommend a certain brand?