one little bag makes a big difference

We started using all those Walmart and Dollar General bags for more than just garbage bags in the bathroom. Once a season I grab a handful of bags and we fill them. I go room by room and fill the bags. Junk. Recycling. Give away. Donate. It doesn't feel like you're getting rid of much if you're only filling small bags.

Fill the bags until you're out of bags, out of patience, or out of stuff. It's usually about 5-8 bags at a time. Nice and easy. After all those Home Edit shows and Marie Kondo, it's easier to find joy and simplicity in organization. It feels good to purge and remove clutter. It also helps to have a mini me who wants to help. 

We now have 6 bags to give to a friend's daughter. There are 3 bags to pass back to a friend. There is 1 bag of sheets and towels to donate to the animal shelter. There is 1 bag for the homeless shelter. 1 bag for recycling. 

Impending cold weather means that we will be sitting at home more. Sitting home means you know notice things. Noticing things means feeling overwhelmed by amounts of pure stuff. And in my case, we create a fun little bonding activity by helping each other get rid of stuff. 

Making little changes mean big things. And it all starts with boredom and some little bags. It's an optical illusion. If you thought you had to fill a garbage bag, then you'd panic or get annoyed. Filling little bags makes big impact :)

What to do with a half hour???

 We had a half hour to kill before bed. Being a girl mom is the BEST! Thirty minutes is plenty of time for fun! I offered painting canvases, bracelet making, baking clay beads, games, or I said we could just fill a basket with stuff we don't want. And out of all those choices, what did she choose??? Fill a basket. 

I was kidding, by the way. How does a kid NOT want to play with all of her own stuff and do artsy fartsy fun with mom? So we got a laundry basket and started upstairs to work our way down to the basement. We now have a box of stuff to get rid of. We even have a pile of fun started for summer break!

I am definitely proud of this kid. She knows what she likes and she is honest about the stuff she doesn't like. Since art stuff never goes bad or goes out of style, we can constantly find new ways to have fun and be creative without just staring at a TV all summer or doing the same thing everyday. Next time we get bored or have free time, I may just offer up doing dishes or brushing the dog instead of filling a basket and see what she says :)