For quick cleanups, two little items have been indispensable. I use them daily. They’re quick, require no power (and therefore are quiet!) and are super easy to use.

They are my little sweeper and a broom/dustpan combo.

The set I have is similar to this one by Oxo, but I couldn’t find it online. Hence, this pic of the Oxo Good Grips Upright Sweep Set ($24.99). We call ours a disneyland kit, because it looks a lot like the ones you see workers carrying around disney to sweep up small bits of trash. Yes, I do use this on my carpet when needed, to sweep up bigger bits of food that the sweeper won’t get. It saves my back – I can’t keep bending over and bunch of times. It just kills me. So this little guy helps a lot.

The second item is my sweeper. You see them used a lot in restaurants for quick cleanups. And it really is awesome. It picks up all of those little pieces of cereal that he just loves to toss around. And that I hate to step on and crush into the carpet. Especially the slightly damp ones. Ick! So this Bissell Perfect Sweep Dual Brush Sweeper ($59.99) is similar to the one I got at Target. Mine definitely has the dual brushes, but I don’t remember paying as much as I saw it for at Amazon. It’s possible you’ll be able to find it cheaper. I saw another model, the Bissell Swift Sweep ($16.99) that is much more affordable.

These two little guys have saved my sanity more than once. There’s something about running over the carpet quickly and immediately seeing a difference. It makes you feel like you accomplished at least one little task that day. And some days, that is about all I feel like I get done off of my list.

What about you?

Images: Amazon. com; these are items I use in my household and not a paid placement. Links are from my Amazon affiliate acct.

Sentimentality has not been my friend. I like to keep mementos reminding me of good times, happy things, and people I love. But when you’re so busy storing these items that you don’t actively display and enjoy them, you’re not getting any benefit, are you? I know I’m not.

So we’re learning to be a bit more ruthless. Donating books we’ll never read again (and being more discerning when we buy new ones), throwing out receipts and bits of paper that we no longer need.

There are two big lessons we need to learn and stick to:

1) Once you’ve started decluttering, don’t allow new clutter to take its place. Once you get that desktop or kitchen counter or dining room table nice and clear, keep it that way. Look for ways to embrace the clutter-free lifestyle and try to keep up – don’t let it gradually clutter back up. Be vigilant!

2) Fighting clutter is a continual process. Just one cleaning session will not be enough. Once you get an area clear, you must work to keep it that way. It will be much easier to maintain if you try hard not to let it get cluttered again. It’s not as hard as it sounds, as long as you don’t allow yourself to be lazy.

We’re working on our living room right now. Because our place is so small, we have my desk in the living room. It’ll be moving to the dining room as soon as we can get things cleared out in there. We have to do a section at a time.

I’m hoping that posting about these things will help us keep going, and keep us more accountable on doing what we planned. Does writing about it help keep you accountable? Or do you feel embarrassed by your projects and would rather just talk about them when they’re finished?

[image: stock.xchng]

Or maybe until you decide to tackle spring cleaning.

Helping her clean really motivated me to clear out my own place. We have way too much stuff in a tiny, one-bedroom condo. And it’s high time we got rid of over ten years of clutter. That’s exactly what we’re doing.

We started with our dining room, where we had a small chest freezer. Due to a faulty wall plug, we haven’t had any food in it for a while. So we moved it onto the balcony and out of the way. We do plan on using it again, but I think it’ll be able to stay out there as long as we run a plug out there. Then we removed an old desk that wasn’t used and I emptied an entire bookshelf to clear up some space.

For the books, we’re deciding which books we will keep for our new place, and which ones we can do without. We have a Goodwill bookstore across the street, which also accepts donations. It’s a perfect place to drop off our books or any other donations we need to make.

It’s a slow process. I’m not rushing to get it all done in a weekend. But I find that I’m more willing to give things up. As I pulled out a t-shirt this afternoon, I took five minutes to remove shirts I don’t wear or that don’t fit. It’s one drawer, but it’s one less thing to do.

I find that I love being able to pile things up for donations. Seeing the clutter slowly disappear. It’s awesome. We are also keeping more valuable things to list on craigslist.org. In the last month we’ve sold a few things. It’s not a lot of money, but every little bit goes into our moving fund.

The spring cleaning bug has hit me and I’m not fighting it one bit. I’m using the momentum to clear things out. The more ordered my surroundings are, the easier it is for me to see what I really need to do. I love that feeling.

Have you started spring cleaning? Do you clear out each year? Quarterly?

image: taken in Belize

Think about it. You walk into an office (or office space) with a neat, clean desk. How do you feel – ready to tackle your day? Consider the alternative. You walk in and your desk is a maelstrom of chaos. Do you feel defeated before you even get started?

I know I do. I just cleared off part of my desk recently (and managed to unpack part of my bags from the trip just before) and I already notice a difference in my outlook. While I still have more to do, I feel a little less overwhelmed than I did before. It’s not a lot, but it’s a good start.

Remember how we’ve talked about doing things in chunks? It really does help.

So go ahead and try this. Clear your desk, neaten it up every day before you go to bed, or relax in front of the TV, or finish up those pesky household chores (whether you have a home office or just a corner of a room). Then take a moment the next morning. Do you notice a difference? Do you feel ready to tackle the day when you have a tidy work area?

Let me know how it works after a week or two. Is it worth the effort for you? If not, what would make it more worth the effort?

Image: morgueFile