Hanger Hoarder

Y'all ever seen the show Hoarders? I got to watch it for the first time just a few weeks ago. Wow. Seriously. After the first 10 minutes I wanted to jump up and clean something out. After it was over, I actually DID jump up and clean something out!

And I've been cleaning ever since. I've never been a "sort-organize-categorize-and label" kinda gal, but I AM NOW!! Actually, we do have one of those nifty electronic Dy-mo label machines, but it is my husband who keeps that thing a-humming. But I'm seriously seeing the benefit of labeling where everything is at, especially with 4 kids who are responsible for putting a certain amount of things away.

So the other day I purged a large bookcase, removing about 1/3 of the books, sorting, organizing, and grouping what was left into reasonable categories. Then I got out the nifty label machine and started printing...."Reference, Scrapbooking, Ministry, Photography...etc." In the middle of the process, Chatterbox sees what I'm doing, rolls her eyes and proclaims, "Oh brother, you're becoming just like Daddy." Hey, I don't think that's such a bad thing when it comes to organization! He's one of the most organized, disciplined persons I know!

So anyway, as I purge and clean different areas of my house, I've come to realize I can be a hoarder in certain ways. Kitchen utensils is one of them. (Sorry, I didn't take a picture of that disaster before I "fixed" it.)

Hangers is another.

 

Because I realize you can't really determine scale very well in this photo, the bar those hangers are on is above my washer and dryer, and is probably a good 6-7 feet wide. And it is stuffed full. These are just the hangers that don't have anything on them. I still have a ton of hangers in my closet, in DH's closet, and the kids' closets!! Hanger hoarder, yes, I am.

But not for long.

And if you need a little organizational boost, watch an episode of Hoarders. Guaranteed to motivate you...or make you nauseous. Maybe both.

The January 1 Purge

How does a person accumulate so much junk? They say the average adult moves to a different residence every 7 years. I'm beginning to think a person SHOULD move every 7 years just to purge all of the junk they've accumulated. We've lived here for 18 years, so you can just imagine the amount of junk we have tucked into each and every corner and cranny. Case and point...

New Years Day DH decided it was THE DAY to clean out the entry. Our entry room isn't big, probably about 5' x 8' and contains a large closet with bi-fold doors, a freestanding cabinet and a sink. Here's what we hauled OUT of the entry (including the sink!):

Ok, ok, so the table on the front of the trailer came from the garage. But the rest? Yeah, came from that room. Did I mention it is like 5'x8'?? How does this happen? How is this possible?  Worst part was it took us nearly ALL DAY.

DH mentioned something about tackling the den today.....let's hope not! I'm going to need about a week to prepare for that kind of a project!