i need courage

crunchymum · 01-15-2009, 01:10 PM

about two years ago when i started working with my friend who's a professional organizer, we had what we affectionately called "The Room of Doom"... it's spare room of sorts, and before we built the garage (with an attic above), it was honestly the only place to store stuff... we do not have an attic or basement, and very limited closets. anyway, i *know* we have too much stuff. for sure. and now we have said attic, so that helps a bit (you know, so we can actually put away our christmas decorations.

).

but because this room was never defined, i think it's so easy to become the catch all... and it's been in various states of clean/useful the past 2 years. when i initially worked on it, it was terrible! seriously embarrassing. and then it was sort of a music room, book room, storage closet... now i really want that room for our "creating" room, but over the holidays, and from all the "finishing up" stuff we've been doing (carpentry and stuff), it's almost as bad as it's ever been.

really. and diamond in the rough has seen the before pictures, so she can tell you how bad it was.

and i'm reading "the emotional house" and it's clear that i want to *live*, really live, in ALL areas of my house. and i feel stuck with my creativity because i don't want to destroy my dining room for sewing anymore.

but ladies, it's SO BAD!!!! i need so much courage to even start... and it's disheartening to me that i've done this major cleaning thing in this room already, and here i am having to do it again. i feel like i need everyone out of the house for 3 days to put a dent in it, and that's not happening... so i have to figure out how to do it with kids and a baby and other things going on and trying to keep up on other stuff.

i want to throw everything away but i know there are things i truly need/use, mixed in with the stuff that needs to go - so i have to sort. i'm bad at sorting. well, not bad, just slow.

just venting.... thanks for listening.

Drew · 01-15-2009, 01:16 PM

It's really hard for me to get started on projects like that as well so I can feel ya.

Amber · 01-15-2009, 01:56 PM

You can do it

Blue Savannah · 01-15-2009, 01:57 PM

01-15-2009, 02:32 PM

You can do it!!

I know that overwhelmed feeling. My best advise is just do it a little at a time - bite sized pieces. Don't think about all of it as one big job. Maybe decide that you want to work on it for X amount of time each day, and then set a timer. Do that much work, and then stop. It might take a little longer, but at least it wouldn't be so overwhelming.

Aisling · 01-15-2009, 02:39 PM

I've been SO blessed by reading about your home journey so far, and feel totally confident that you're going to tackle this one, too! (And I'm going to be taking notes all the way!

)

mummy2boys · 01-15-2009, 09:35 PM

You can do it Jen!!!

simplegirl · 01-15-2009, 09:39 PM

agreeing with ashley! i've seen those before and after pics of other rooms you've tackled! YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!!! do you have family or friends to maybe help with the kids? i find that if i have a good hour or two with *undivided* attention (the interruptions are my doom in these projects!) then once the dent is put into the room, the rest easily follows.

01-15-2009, 09:40 PM

Is this a room you've posted pics before when you cleaned it up? I know I've seen your kitchen and other spaces...but I seem to remember a room...a bedroom that you cleaned up and it looked great..maybe a white bedspread with green walls?

Am I crazy? Was that someone else? If not, is that the room you are talking about?

I say go for it either way. Why not ask your dh to take the kids for a couple hours so you can at least work on it undisturbed for a bit and then just set aside X time in the day to work on it. Even if it's just a half hour while the baby naps and the kids watch a movie. Do you want to make it your sewing room then? A craft room? That would be cool......

RiverRock · 01-16-2009, 09:02 AM

I've also been blessed and inspired by your home organizing.

And, I feel your pain since I am in the midst of tackling a similar problem. We have a storage closet that I guess is about 8' x 8', that I am in the process of re-purposing as a scrapbooking room so I can finally get my photos organized. I have shoeboxes full of photos that are still in their sleeves, and each child has a box of memorabilia to be put into some sort of scrapbook. It's been slow going, but when I feel the urge and have an hour or so without kids I just tackle a few boxes. I have a hard time making a plan for such things because there are layers to my problem. First the room has to be majorly decluttered and some items moved to other areas for storage, then I have to assess the needs of the room and pull furniture from other rooms or buy new stuff. If that sounds easy, too often the new storage areas need to be decluttered and rearranged to accomodate the new stuff. All of this could get overwhelming, but what is working for me as I organize my entire house is to do a bit, re-evaluate, then do a bit more. Since I've been on this board my home has come a long way with being slow and steady. It's okay to be slow at sorting.

crunchymum · 01-16-2009, 11:14 AM

thank you, ladies... i just need to keep telling myself i can do it!

jessica, yes! it's the layers that get to me. it's not straightforward at all, and i do believe that our clutter/messes are telling us something, trying to send a message of what's not working. but the message it's giving me is not clear because there's lots of things that need to happen. *sigh* a big thing i think is how to have a regular system for donations (toys/clothes) and also outgrown clothes to be stored, before making their way to the attic. but that's not even the bulk of the mess, it's just that everything works like a rubics cube and everything has to shift at the same time - does that make sense? so it's overwhelming.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HummusDip

Is this a room you've posted pics before when you cleaned it up? I know I've seen your kitchen and other spaces...but I seem to remember a room...a bedroom that you cleaned up and it looked great..maybe a white bedspread with green walls?

Am I crazy? Was that someone else? If not, is that the room you are talking about?

you're not crazy (at least i don't think so

), the room you're thinking of is our guest bedroom. that will be another issue as soon as we move dd into a room of her own. right now it has the baby's clothes and our extra linens. i need a linen solution, btw. anyway, you haven't seen the Room of Doom... trust me, you would remember.

i think you all are right - i need to take it bit by bit... it sure would help to have dh take the kids for awhile so i can make a dent...i'm going to ask him.

crunchymum · 01-25-2009, 09:50 PM

well, i'm digging in, girls...

we found an awesome, awesome deal on legs for a work table tonight at ikea, and i am digging my way out. it will probably take a few days, but i think i have the motivation to do it right now!

RiverRock · 01-25-2009, 10:57 PM

I'm hoping your motivation will rub off on me! Yesterday I bought photo albums to hold a total of 1200 photos, plus a couple of frames for displaying 4x6s (22 photos in total). My family deserves to be able to appreciate the photos we have just stored in shoe boxes. I'm not trying to hijack your thread, Jen, but to offer you comraderie. Your not alone in the quest to conquer "the room of doom". Do you want to form a team...we could call ourselves something like "The Doombusters."

BHope · 01-25-2009, 11:02 PM

I'm excited your starting. I feel the same dread about my craft closet. Unfortunately, I refuse to start it until I buy the storage I need, and well... that's not happening any time soon.

ArmsOfLove · 01-25-2009, 11:06 PM

have you decided how to define the room yet?

can you define it in part by storing different "rooms" in storage assigned to different areas of the room? Our bedroom has to be several things but by defining this "area" as the office and "this area" as the clothes storage, etc., it has helped a LOT

01-15-2009, 01:10 PM	#1
crunchymum Rose Garden speak softly and carry a big coffee Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Chicago Posts: 34,610	i need courage about two years ago when i started working with my friend who's a professional organizer, we had what we affectionately called "The Room of Doom"... it's spare room of sorts, and before we built the garage (with an attic above), it was honestly the only place to store stuff... we do not have an attic or basement, and very limited closets. anyway, i know we have too much stuff. for sure. and now we have said attic, so that helps a bit (you know, so we can actually put away our christmas decorations. ). but because this room was never defined, i think it's so easy to become the catch all... and it's been in various states of clean/useful the past 2 years. when i initially worked on it, it was terrible! seriously embarrassing. and then it was sort of a music room, book room, storage closet... now i really want that room for our "creating" room, but over the holidays, and from all the "finishing up" stuff we've been doing (carpentry and stuff), it's almost as bad as it's ever been. really. and diamond in the rough has seen the before pictures, so she can tell you how bad it was. and i'm reading "the emotional house" and it's clear that i want to live, really live, in ALL areas of my house. and i feel stuck with my creativity because i don't want to destroy my dining room for sewing anymore. but ladies, it's SO BAD!!!! i need so much courage to even start... and it's disheartening to me that i've done this major cleaning thing in this room already, and here i am having to do it again. i feel like i need everyone out of the house for 3 days to put a dent in it, and that's not happening... so i have to figure out how to do it with kids and a baby and other things going on and trying to keep up on other stuff. i want to throw everything away but i know there are things i truly need/use, mixed in with the stuff that needs to go - so i have to sort. i'm bad at sorting. well, not bad, just slow. just venting.... thanks for listening. __________________ ~ jen wife to my first kiss mama to 13yo spreezy, 11yo jones, 5yo biggie, and our little greased lightning, 3yo ~ all born at home birth doula my waterbirth montage my etsy! "i did not want my children to love me because i had been an adequate mother, because i would never be one, this i already knew. i wanted my children to love me for the same reason i want my children themselves to be loved: because we are all irreducible, irreplaceable." -gina bria

01-15-2009, 01:16 PM	#2
Drew Deactivated Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 6,701	Re: i need courage It's really hard for me to get started on projects like that as well so I can feel ya.

01-15-2009, 01:56 PM	#3
Amber Rose Garden Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: The rainy side of Washington. Posts: 18,232	Re: i need courage You can do it __________________ Amber ISFJ Wife to my wonderful DH And keeper of the boys Big M (6/03) Forever ours Dec 2012 C (6/04), Little M (10/05) Forever ours Dec 2012 K (5/06) Missing our foster daughter Miss A

01-15-2009, 01:57 PM	#4
Blue Savannah Deactivated Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 8,363	Re: i need courage

01-15-2009, 02:32 PM	#5
gamomof2 Guest Posts: n/a	Re: i need courage You can do it!! I know that overwhelmed feeling. My best advise is just do it a little at a time - bite sized pieces. Don't think about all of it as one big job. Maybe decide that you want to work on it for X amount of time each day, and then set a timer. Do that much work, and then stop. It might take a little longer, but at least it wouldn't be so overwhelming.

01-15-2009, 02:39 PM	#6
Aisling Deactivated Even artichokes have hearts! Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 33,230	Re: i need courage I've been SO blessed by reading about your home journey so far, and feel totally confident that you're going to tackle this one, too! (And I'm going to be taking notes all the way! )

01-15-2009, 09:35 PM	#7
mummy2boys Moderator in We'd Love to Meet You, Let's Talk, High Need/Spirited Children, Joyous Homekeeping, and The Cookbook Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 16,027	Re: i need courage You can do it Jen!!! __________________ Alysia Married to the love of my life Mama to 2 wonderful boys Waiting to meet 3 in heaven 2/2005, 5/2007 & 8/2011 Striving, with God's help, to be a gentle mother each day

01-15-2009, 09:39 PM	#8
simplegirl Rose Garden She's a good girl, loves her Mama, loves Jesus, and Kentucky too Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 7,873	Re: i need courage agreeing with ashley! i've seen those before and after pics of other rooms you've tackled! YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!!! do you have family or friends to maybe help with the kids? i find that if i have a good hour or two with undivided attention (the interruptions are my doom in these projects!) then once the dent is put into the room, the rest easily follows. __________________ Wife to Designer/Creative Director ESFJ - piano teacher Noah 2005 Coleman 2007 Josie 2018

01-15-2009, 09:40 PM	#9
HummusDip Guest Posts: n/a	Re: i need courage Is this a room you've posted pics before when you cleaned it up? I know I've seen your kitchen and other spaces...but I seem to remember a room...a bedroom that you cleaned up and it looked great..maybe a white bedspread with green walls? Am I crazy? Was that someone else? If not, is that the room you are talking about? I say go for it either way. Why not ask your dh to take the kids for a couple hours so you can at least work on it undisturbed for a bit and then just set aside X time in the day to work on it. Even if it's just a half hour while the baby naps and the kids watch a movie. Do you want to make it your sewing room then? A craft room? That would be cool......

01-16-2009, 09:02 AM	#10
RiverRock Moderator Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms. Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: In green pastures Posts: 9,769	Re: i need courage I've also been blessed and inspired by your home organizing. And, I feel your pain since I am in the midst of tackling a similar problem. We have a storage closet that I guess is about 8' x 8', that I am in the process of re-purposing as a scrapbooking room so I can finally get my photos organized. I have shoeboxes full of photos that are still in their sleeves, and each child has a box of memorabilia to be put into some sort of scrapbook. It's been slow going, but when I feel the urge and have an hour or so without kids I just tackle a few boxes. I have a hard time making a plan for such things because there are layers to my problem. First the room has to be majorly decluttered and some items moved to other areas for storage, then I have to assess the needs of the room and pull furniture from other rooms or buy new stuff. If that sounds easy, too often the new storage areas need to be decluttered and rearranged to accomodate the new stuff. All of this could get overwhelming, but what is working for me as I organize my entire house is to do a bit, re-evaluate, then do a bit more. Since I've been on this board my home has come a long way with being slow and steady. It's okay to be slow at sorting. __________________ RiverRock, mom to a 24 year old diamond, 22 year old granite, 19 year old pearl, and 16 year old tiger eye. Married for 25 years to a rugged boulder and resting together on the one true Rock.

01-25-2009, 09:50 PM	#12
crunchymum Rose Garden speak softly and carry a big coffee Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Chicago Posts: 34,610	Re: i need courage well, i'm digging in, girls... we found an awesome, awesome deal on legs for a work table tonight at ikea, and i am digging my way out. it will probably take a few days, but i think i have the motivation to do it right now! __________________ ~ jen wife to my first kiss mama to 13yo spreezy, 11yo jones, 5yo biggie, and our little greased lightning, 3yo ~ all born at home birth doula my waterbirth montage my etsy! "i did not want my children to love me because i had been an adequate mother, because i would never be one, this i already knew. i wanted my children to love me for the same reason i want my children themselves to be loved: because we are all irreducible, irreplaceable." -gina bria

01-25-2009, 10:57 PM	#13
RiverRock Moderator Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms. Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: In green pastures Posts: 9,769	Re: i need courage I'm hoping your motivation will rub off on me! Yesterday I bought photo albums to hold a total of 1200 photos, plus a couple of frames for displaying 4x6s (22 photos in total). My family deserves to be able to appreciate the photos we have just stored in shoe boxes. I'm not trying to hijack your thread, Jen, but to offer you comraderie. Your not alone in the quest to conquer "the room of doom". Do you want to form a team...we could call ourselves something like "The Doombusters." __________________ RiverRock, mom to a 24 year old diamond, 22 year old granite, 19 year old pearl, and 16 year old tiger eye. Married for 25 years to a rugged boulder and resting together on the one true Rock.

01-25-2009, 11:02 PM	#14
BHope Rose Garden Finding the Good Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Texas Posts: 12,816	Re: i need courage I'm excited your starting. I feel the same dread about my craft closet. Unfortunately, I refuse to start it until I buy the storage I need, and well... that's not happening any time soon. __________________ Manda Single Mama to my three beautiful kiddos: DD1 (8 years old) DD2 (6 years old) DD3 (4.5 years old) Eternally missing DFS3 (stored safely in our hearts) and DFS1 Praying for Little R as she transitions into a new family. May you always know God's love and His comfort.

01-25-2009, 11:06 PM	#15
ArmsOfLove Rose Garden Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 79,607	Re: i need courage have you decided how to define the room yet? can you define it in part by storing different "rooms" in storage assigned to different areas of the room? Our bedroom has to be several things but by defining this "area" as the office and "this area" as the clothes storage, etc., it has helped a LOT __________________ Crystal "When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time." Maya Angelou

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