6 Month Purge - TJED Style

My family and close friends can tell you there are 5 things that will make me grumpy every time. The one I'm talking about today is clutter. I'm working my way around the house, getting side tracked left and right with my eye on the ball, letting nothing get in my way. Today I worked on the garage and my closet. I cannot believe how much space I found. It turns out I don't need to move Kimball's clothes to the guest room after all.
Oh, if only you'd have seen it before. Just imagine a stick of dynomite exploding in there.

By organizing and labeling my bins (which I had put off for 2 years!) I save loads of time. I also moved related items on the shelf next to them, which keeps me from zig zagging all over the closet and bedroom just to get dressed (brilliant I know). Notice the flip flops next to the swimming suit bin? The running shoes next to the workout bin? I also organized my hanging clothes by color, (which I thought was only for those with O.C.D.) but realized it saves tons of time when deciding what to wear and helps me know what I have. You'll either realize you can get rid of half the stuff or that you really don't need another black pencil skirt.

I didn't bother organizing by color for Kimball because he'd have it undone before I could even take the picture.
I also recommend using hanging shoe racks, they save so much space, unless you have $450 Jimmy Choo's which I don't nor ever will!!
Why am I telling you all this? Doing a purge of our unused & excess items every six months is taught in one of my favorite parenting/homeschooling books Leadership Education by Oliver & Rachel DeMille, also author of A Thomas Jefferson Education. I borrowed the book when I read it or I'd quote it more accurately, but they say purging and organizing helps us simplify, prioritize, and use our time wisely. A cluttered home is no place for learning. By sorting through our clothes, books, toys and misc. belongings every six months, we also model charity and sacrifice. If the kids haven't played with a toy for a while, either box it up (getting it out in a few months, to which they'll feel like it's new all over again), or give it to the Goodwill. This is also important with our books. They say something to the effect that one can have 1,000 popular reads on a shelf, or a shelf with 10 classics and the second is of much greater worth. We should keep only books that are of the highest quality that teach morals and build character and can be read a number of times, always learning something new. Classics aren't just novels, a book on finance, gardening or parenting can be a classic so long as it meets the standards mentioned.

A 6 month purge is like a diet for your brain, you instantly feel thinner!