I’m very excited about this week of 31 Days to Becoming an Organized Mom! I will be away this week attending a blogging conference so I am being organized about it and have a bunch of post already scheduled {super happy about this!}.  This week we’ll be chatting about the kids helping out around the house and I have some cool printables for you so check back for them later this week.

Today I wanted to share what has been working for me when I feel like the whole house needs attention and it all seems overwhelming.  I mentioned before my thoughts on where to start, but this goes beyond where to start to how to effectively make progress, not just in one room but in the whole house. You need a plan to be successful especially when you already feel behind.

The plan of attack that seems to work best for me is to declutter first.  This is not the go-through-everything-and-throw-a-ton-of-stuff-out decluttering but rather a quick decluttering of what you immediately see that you can get rid of.  Take a box and trash bag with you through each room in the house and just start filling them with the first things that you see that you know you can get rid of or throw away.

Next comes the cleaning.  Once things are decluttered start with only the basic cleaning tasks in each room of your home.  Dust, sweep or vacuum, wipe mirrors and take out the trash. For the bathrooms add wiping the sink and cleaning the toilet.

Now, step back and take a deep breath. Progress.  Rooms should be clean and look decent.  Now you are ready for the deep decluttering and deeper cleaning that goes beyond what you see with a first glance.  That will come, but for now just enjoy your progress so far.

Do you think this method will work for you?  Do you have other steps in place to get or stay organized?

Check out great organizational finds on Zulily today!

You may have guessed by now that I am all about taking time to rest in your week.  Let’s become intentional about it by scheduling in time to rest and to have fun.  I can be really bad about just staying busy and not taking time to rest and relax.  Today, in addition to taking a sabbath {a day of rest} every week, I am adding fun and rest to my calendar for the month. I am deciding on a few fun things to do and scheduling them intentionally. I would encourage you to do the same.

Enjoy your day!!

Yesterday I did a lot of thinking about shopping: How I shop. Why I shop.  It was all prompted by me trying on a sweater that was similar to one that I had seen on someone else. It looked amazing on her. However, when I tried it on, I didn’t really like it on me.  I then had this inner struggle about whether or not to buy it because it looked good on her and perhaps it looked good on me too I just couldn’t tell?! But I didn’t love it.  Should I buy a sweater that may or may not look good on me because I loved it on someone else.  I mean it’s not like I was trying to squeeze into skinny jeans just because they looked good on someone else.

In the end, I decided not to buy the sweater. After all, I am really trying to live by the “only buy if you love” rule. The whole ordeal had me evaluating my shopping habits for the rest of the day though.  Do I buy stuff when I get in a certain mood?  Do I buy stuff because it looks good on someone else or in someone else’s home?  Do I buy things because I go on  a tangent {like I decide I love turquoise or that I need more picture frames all of a sudden}?

Only buying what I really need and love will take some mental strength and determination.  I need to determine my rules for myself before I go shopping and stick to them!

How about you? What are your shopping habits?  Do you have rules for yourself when you shop?

Quick, what’s one thing you have been putting off because it seemed overwhelming or it just isn’t a seemingly fun task?  Why not do it today?  I know it might seem agonizing to start but I want you to think for a minute about what completing this task would mean at once it’s done.  Would you be happy that it is done? Would you feel like a weight has been lifted? Would you feel accomplished and have momentum to keep seeing these kinds of results in other areas? Those are all great reasons to do it today!

Join me in tackling something today that you have been putting off and lets see how much we can, collectively, accomplish.  I have a full day already but I am intentionally making time for a few things I have been putting off. I look forward to hearing about all that we overcome today {and into the weekend if necessary}.

Which task will you tackle today?