Part 1 of 40 Days, 40 Bags: The Living Room

Last year, I participated in 40 Days, 40 Bags for the first time! I loved the experience and while I didn't get as much done as I was hoping too I am excited to be participating again this year. Though, realistically my first week is going to be a little relaxed. Since the baby will be here by then! 

Our living room is the biggest public space in our house (our bedroom is equally as large, but we don't have friends hanging out in there.) We have our TV stand and TV, our couch, two end tables, 3 chairs, and our coffee table which is actually my grandma's World War 2 army trunk. We also have a large shelving unit from Ikea that my mom and I designed to provide us with some very necessary storage. You have probably heard me say it before-- We have NO storage! I have been working on getting things put away where they belong, but it is a very slow process! 

I have also been trying to get our laundry done, so that I don't have to think about what we are going to wear after the baby comes. It is also where I usually do our sorting, folding, and it gets used as a drying rack as well. It creates a lot of chaos in this space. There isn't a lot that we can do about it... I hate using our clothesline (when it is nice outside) because I feel like I have to rewash everything because things get so dusty. That isn't very helpful in terms of cost or energy efficiency. 

Today, I made a rough plan of what I want our shelving unit to hold, it is prime real estate in our house and I want to make sure that we getting the best use out of the space as I organize and declutter other parts of our house. I feel like there is constantly other things that I need to get done, before I can move on to another project. It totally doesn't help my ADD brain. It is especially frustrating because I feel like I am never done with a project... but I guess that is how it is with home ownership. I will just keep working on it as diligently as I can. 

This year I don't have a "schedule". This is because I underestimate how much time things are going to take. This is discouraging because I don't get as much done as I think that I should. My plan this year is to make a list of tasks that I want to get done in that space besides decrapifying. I will also be doing cleaning after I get through the purging stage. I need to keep our house a little cleaner with the wee one, so I am going to be trying out some different methods to find a hybrid of ideas that work with my family, schedule, and space. Here is what I am hoping to get done besides organizing our shelving:

• Label boxes of crafting and office supplies. It needs to be easier than having to open every box to find what you are looking for.
• Repair lampshades. The top trim keeps coming off the lampshades. I don't understand why they do that. They are new... and one was even returned because it did that before. So, I am going to just glue the trim back on and be done with it. 
• Set up the pack n' play. We need a space to change the baby down here and so we need to get that set up. 
• Set up the sound system. It isn't the end of the world if we don't, but I figure we might as well be using what we have. 
• Hang wall art of some sort. We have one wall space that is completely empty, but unfortunately it is right above our heater. The Doc doesn't think that anything paper will be a good idea. I am sure we have some artwork that can go up there and will look great. 
• We need curtain tie-backs. The living room gets a lot of light, but the curtains don't necessarily stay open. I am thinking that I will make something out of ribbon. 

The goal is to make our space more usable for our little family! So, tonight's agenda is finishing up the laundry, putting clothing from the couch away, and dealing with this little pile of miscellaneous things in the middle of our living room floor. I also want to find a new space for our stroller. I think I will just put that in the back corner for now.