Nesting?

No, not pregnant, no worries. But I do feel like I want to "nest". You know, make a fresh start now that we're finally settling in. Now I can look around me and SEE all the things that I'd like to do to take care of the house. I suppose at the end of pregnancy when people 'nest' it's because of the idea that life really is changing and this little person really is coming home. I think maybe Emma's health concerns being behind us for the first time has allowed me to feel like YES, this little person is really staying and I have room in my head to start making the house how I'd like it to be.

I've been going through this phase the past few days that I'm guessing is a phase anyway. I'm tired of having so much clutter and 'stuff' in the house. I've spent the past few days going through the paperwork that has been waiting for my attention. I sorted it all into more reasonable sets and found a PERMANENT home, not just the bin it all came out of. I still have a large pile of bills that have been paid and I have no idea what to do with (ok, yes, I should file them and haven't done that yet) and mixed in are school projects from each of the kids. That is all neatly in a bin and will get my attention later on... I know none of that is urgent.

I also went through the kids' toys and put away things that just aren't being played with right now. Some are things that I am going to give away or have a garage sale and get rid of, others are toys that we'll hold on to for a while because they'll be good "developmental toys" as the kids hit that stage-- but they just aren't being used right now.

Also, all the "baby" things have gone. I took down the baby swing, the jumperoo, the bouncy seat... We'll hold on to the jumperoo for a while because the little ones still may hit that phase. The bouncy seat we'll store away with the "good stuff" that we would buy that EXACT one again if we have any more little ones some day. The swing, however, is going out one way or another. It is in perfect condition but we just don't need it right now. One day down the road if there's another baby in the house we could easily pick up a swing at another garage sale and be just as happy. No reason to store up what we don't really need...

In the same way, I went through my kitchen yesterday and pulled out some gadgets that haven't been used and likely won't be. An old orange press was our one way of squeezing citrus for a few years, but 2 yrs ago I broke down and bought an electric one (we were making gallons/day from our tangelo trees and WOW did the old one make a mess!!). An older blender that didn't have a high enough speed to puree things for babyfood- that one can go too. Little things here and there that get put away and never looked at again. Those can go.

I started to look at the office and the absolute mess that Kristopher has made in there with his desk and coloring papers, crayons, markers, paints, etc. etc. etc. and decided that I just don't have the patience to tackle that one right now. Plus, I can't see the other kids when I'm in there.

The living and dining room have been cleared of "clutter" and my dining table is now visible again. I didn't start on our bedroom/bathroom yet but I did make room in my closet to store the strollers that we don't use every day so they aren't ruined in the garage. And I put out the word to a local church to see if they would be able to use my bass amplifier. What?? Why do I have THAT? Yes, I play Bass guitar :) See? There is something I haven't written about before! More on that another time maybe, but the bass amp hasn't been used the past few times I've played, so I'll keep my guitars but the amp can go. Better to be used somewhere than stored in my closet.

My next area I'd like to conquer probably sounds strange because it's not necessarily "my domain"... but I'd really like to make it a little more cleaned up and get rid of some of the things that are in there that just don't need to be stored. Of course... my husband will be thrilled that I want to go there, because this room used to be one of his favorite things to "organize" and always wanted me to come help him do it at the other house... Ahh... yes... the GARAGE...