What would happen if the holidays were free of physical and emotional clutter. How would it feel to have a joy-filled December? What would it be like to focus on what this season is all about, the birth of Jesus?
Tomorrow marks the beginning of December. I always have mixed feelings about December. I love Christmas. I hate cold weather (in Nebraska it’s inevitable). It’s my birthday. Without proper planning there are financial regrets after the holidays. There will be many family gatherings, holiday events, sporting events, …the list go on and on!
This December is going to be a “December to Remember” (as the Lexus commercial just reminded me). Here are a just a few things happening this December:
- Our house will finally be finished.
- We will be moving (a whole 2 miles)!
- With the moving comes packing, organizing, decluttering, cleaning, tidying, and trying to figure out new systems.
- I’m turning 35…yeah I’m still not sure how I feel about that but it’s happening regardless!
- It’s Christmas.
- The kids will be on Christmas break from school.
November is a great month of reflection because it is the month of thankfulness. Today marks the end of my 30 Days of Thankfulness. As I’m looking over my list of what I’m thankful it’s filled with people, experiences and events. I find it extremely pleasing that these things are valued higher than stuff!
However, as I look around my living room, (complete with new toys from Blake and Nora’s birthday) it is obvious that we have too much stuff!
This December is truly a new beginning for my family. One goal I’ve had for our new home is to be a gathering place for friends and family, where relationships grow and blossom.
I can’t wait to decorate for the Christmas season and celebrate the birth of Jesus!
But it can’t happen if we are drowning in clutter.
Some of the stuff we have in our home is a blessing and loved (my laptop, the kids’ favorite toys, and the heater blowing warm air on my cold feet to name just a few!) However, a lot of the stuff is simply excess that is not only cluttering up our home, it’s also cluttering my time with having to clean it, find a place for it, or take care of it.
It’s time to take a stance against the clutter and begin the process of decluttering. This year instead of just decluttering I’m also going to be applying the KonMari
Physical clutter is one problem but emotional is another. December can also be a very hard month! It’s devastating spending the first holiday (or second or third) without a loved one. It’s also hard when there are family tensions. I’m going to be addressing that kind of clutter as well. Whether it’s relationships or clutter on the calendar, it’s my goal to have a wonderful month with a tidied life!
December is probably the busiest month of the year for families (or at least for our family!) I really debated about if this was the right time to start this challenge! However, I am tired of trying to decorate around the mess. I don’t want to move items to our new home that we don’t love. I’m tired of my kids having so many toys that they can’t enjoy all of them. And I’m tired of spending so much time trying to pick up things that no one cares about.
I’m ready for a change, are you?
Are you tired of Christmas being over and having an entire house full of new stuff and nowhere to enjoy it? What would happen if you had the house ready for the holidays before Christmas? Join me in this new series, tomorrow, December 1st!
The purpose of this challenge is not to make you feel guilty if you can’t complete the day’s challenge. The purpose is to free you of your clutter, allow you to enjoy your home, and live a better life!
An added bonus is that many of the items we will be discarding are still in wonderful used condition! Think about all the people you can bless by donating these items (or even earning a little extra Christmas cash to help you through the season).
This challenge is meant to encourage you. I want us all to enjoy the holidays with our families with less stress and guilt!
What area of your life needs some decluttering? Which area of your home makes you cringe? Paper? Christmas decorations?
Have you enjoyed what you read here today? Do you have friends or other women you know that could benefit from this resource? If so, please do me a favor! I have included the links below to share with other intentional women! They’ll be glad you did!
Jenny, I think I’m going to go throw something away RIGHT NOW. 😉 You are so right: clutter makes me crazy. But more than that, I’m struck by this: “How would it feel to have a joy-filled December? ” Because “joy” has been a repeated refrain already this season. We’ve got a new “challenge” going on these days with our teen daughter which has the power to steal my joy. I am trying to be intentional about choosing joy and gratitude and not to wait for this “thing” to be settled before I do. Thank you for sharing your heart! Now, what to get rid of?…
Good luck with the move! Hopefully it won’t be too cold and snowy when you move. (I am with you…I don’t like the cold!)
I always seem to have piles of paper lying around. That is the clutter that I need to get around to!