Welcome to my Tackle It Tuesday: Extreme Edition. Last week, when I did my first Tackle It Tuesday, I spent probably a little over an hour on it (cleaning out my refrigerator -- washing all the bins and shelves, etc.). This Extreme Edition was not done so quickly, and it was not just done on Tuesday. This little project started with me picking some things up at the store on Friday, and then working on it a little/a lot at a time on Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and then finished it on Tuesday!
As anyone with large expanses of flat spaces knows -- they just collect STUFF. We have a counter that separates our kitchen from the dining room (which is also part of the open concept so it runs into the living room). This is not the first time that I have tackled clearing off the counter, I promise you that. Each time, I think it's for good. I will pray that this time, because I did some things that I haven't done before, that the counter will become a more manageable place.
Brace yourself -- the before pictures are not pretty!
Before:
After:
So...why is it that it took so long to clean up the counter? It's because I didn't just go for the cosmetics of it. I looked at the roots of the issue (hence the notebook in the last picture, which I will explain)
Actually -- apart from a bit of clearing, that notebook was my first project. You see...I have a problem with a lot of paper in this house. It sits everywhere, and it gets lost. So, my idea to get it organized came from this wonderful "Works for Me Wednesday" posting. I kept thinking about it, and FINALLY got around to doing it. I couldn't believe how many papers went into my notebook. I cleared off big areas of papers just by knowing that they either needed to be in the notebook, in the filing cabinet, or in the trash. In just the few days that I have had the notebook put together, I have used it many, many times. WooHoo! I think this will finally help to solve my paper issues. I'm SO psyched!
Okay, so...why else did this take so long? See that plastic rolling cart in some of the pictures? That all got sorted through too! And, because old receipts were piling up in it, that meant I finally balanced my checkbook again (and then got rid of receipts I didn't need AND then figured out a fabulous way to organize my recipes so that they don't just sit in any available drawer until I finally throw them away). Oh...AND I organized that plastic letter holder thingee too (and the small basket behind it too!). Nothing was allowed to just gather up junk -- everything in my path was organized, even if it meant taking time away from what seemed to be the issue to balance my checkbook. Extreme Tackle It Tuesday at its best!
Wish me luck to keep up with this because -- darn it -- it feels nice to look in my kitchen now (especially since, as you may notice, this is my headquarters!).
And, admittedly, I'm already thinking, "Where is my next Extreme Tackle It Tuesday spot going to be?"
11 comments:
Wow, that is an awesome tackle and you did a really great job!!
Funny, when you said "Brace yourself", I expected much worse! It looks great, and I bet you feel oh so organized now! I don't have a problem getting organized, but I do have a hard time staying that way!
Awesome job!
I have some extreme tackling to do to, but I played it safe this week with the silverware drawer!!! I have the same issue with flat surfaces, something about them just says "put something here."
It's BEAUTIFUL! Are you coming to my house next? :)
you go girl! looks fantastic, guess we had the same room idea in mind this week:)
thanks for stopping by, do come again!
Ok, first of all, congrats on getting that counter cleared! I feel the same way sometimes about the island in my kitchen. Second, thanks for the link to that notebook!!! How cool is that?
Yeah, Becca -- isn't that notebook posting inspiring?
Unlike hers, I am not keeping sensitive information like social security numbers or computer passwords in it, but I have the following sections right now (with a couple of possibilities to increase it):
-Pending
-Contacts
-School
-Church (this includes the kids' CCD stuff)
-Schedules and Activities (things like the class schedule at the gym, a pamphlet for an Autism conference that I wondered about attending, etc.)
-Businesses/Menus (take out menus, etc.)
-Ideas
-Notes (blank paper)
-General Information (things like the list of what we can recycle through our recycling program, etc.)
Great Job! The counter is gleaming...and everything looks neat n tidy. I love the notebook idea...thanks for the link! And thanks for stopping by my new blog too!
Great job! Now can you come over and help me?
The counter has looked so nice since you have done this. I really appreciate you doing this and working so hard to keep it this way. I feel bad now whenever I put anything on the counter (LOL)
Love, Tate :)
Very nice. I think I am going to have to commit to a household notebook too!
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