project simplify: week 2

BEFORE: the disaster that was my pantry

week two of {project simplify} was definitely something i needed.  it focused on the pantry and fridge.  amazingly enough my fridge was actually clean...did that when lance was gone about a week ago, but the pantry was in desperate need of some organization.  i've been buying all sorts of flours and flax meal, wheat germ, wheat bran in my effort to eat clean, but i still had all of the other stuff thrown in there so it was completely disorganized.  plus miss mollie loves to go in there and raid everything she can reach.

DURING: the kitchen looked like some sort of baking supply warehouse had exploded in it.

the clean-out took me the better part of two nights and left  my kitchen a wreck for two days.  but its all done now and i can enjoy its cleanliness this sunday.  now to just keep it up.

AFTER: ahh, it is under control again.

project simplify

i'm so excited to be participating in the {project simplify} challenge being held at the simple mom.  it couldn't have come at a better time for me.  i am in the process of putting our house back together after the water heater flood of january.  we still have a few items to be finished (paint and replacing baseboards/trim work) but for the most part we have been able to move the furniture back to its original locations.  i decided to use this time to clean out and declutter our house.  apparently the simple mom holds {project simplify} every spring, so this was perfect.

week 1 is all about kid stuff.  we have plenty of that...maybe too much of that.  plus the kids are getting older so everything needed to be purged and cleared out.  i focused on the playroom and the boys room.  mollie's closet is in desperate need as well, but i wasn't in the right mindset to go through all of her clothes just yet, i know i would try to hold on to too many of them.


yesterday i took the day off.  the kids still went to school and the babysitter, but instead of going to work i stayed at home.  it is absolutely amazing to me how much stuff i can cram into 6 hours without kids.  while the house isn't perfect, i have 3 large boxes of trash (mostly random magazines i was holding onto and about a thousand of those sonic playing cards) and 2 boxes of kids toys to donate.  in the midst of this crazy cleaning frenzy i even found the missing skeleton key to the airmoire that we keep toys stored in in the playroom.  this particular key has been missing since christmas.  this meant it was a good day.

i did a little bit of redecorating with the playroom also.  i started with my inspiration, the gorgeous, bright IKEA rug i had been eyeing since i was pregnant with mollie.  ikat is very popular and while i am not a huge fan of it on clothes, i loved the look of these pillows!  plus they make for comfy floor cushions.  i also got some poofs to brighten up the room and add more seating when we have friends over.  i scored these amazing curtains in grey (a pinterest find!)  i'm so happy with how the playroom turned out and the kids seem to be enjoying it too.  a clean playroom helps me stay sane.

i'm looking forward to more of {project simplify} over the rest of this month.