Decluttering and Purging

I have been busy decluttering. I have bagged up many toys, thrown out several old magazines, sorted out books, cleaned old foods out of my refrigerator, decluttered furniture tops in my bedroom and picked up a lot of daily trash along the way each day that the kids kick up regularly.

It would feel great if so much else didn't go on in the house to keep it messy while I am doing this meaningful work. But, decluttering is not the same thing as cleaning, or even organizing. It is just a thinning out of stuff. There is still the daily household work to keep up. So, it's o.k. I know this effort will pay off soon; I just need to get ahead of myself (not sure that is really ever going to happen, but it SOUNDS like a nice goal!)

I think it is time to decide about the toy clutter once and for all. I will declutter the toys and I will set up the toy bins and such anew. But, here's the thing --

Toy pick up is not something I am willing to do alone anymore.

I don't really do it that often anyway, but I also don't make the kids do it often enough ... and they need me to. I need me to.

The toy clutter doesn't bother me so much as long as there are times that it IS picked up (even if only for a little while). I need those open floor times now and then.

SO, I am making a decision here. I will no longer do battle with the toys in my house. I will either round the kids up more regularly to pick them up with me (which I really don't mind once we get started as it does go very quickly) OR I will pick the toys up myself here and there (as I do now) and think not ONE single negative thought about it. The latter choice is essentially a decision to be a martyr (which will only wear down my energy while depriving my kids of valuable life lessons in teamwork, work ethic and personal responsility). So, my intention is to choose the first alternative.

All three kids will be involved in these toy pick ups, even though ds doesn't contribute to this particular type of mess. But, his help is needed and so he will help. Come to think of it, I have really fallen off enforcing any type of regular chore routine for ds; it's time to work on that again as well. He needs a new chore list for the back of his bedroom door.