DrDeClutterBlog.com

Some people jump right in after the holidays and start the big take down and store it away. Others wait until into January and enjoy those lovely decorations and good memories. However you do it, have fun!

Set a date to undecorate. Make it a fun event!

Have a party!

Ask for and allow others to help.

Make it a pot-luck or make a fun snack spread with fun beverages and music.

Have fun, that’s what it’s all about.

Holiday storage for decorations will relieve lots of future stress: Store Smart

a) Keep all of your decorations in the least amount of containers/tubs as necessary. (Let go of those you will not use again.)*

b) Store containers in deep-storage, out of your way in the garage, basement, shed or attic.

c) Label every container on the outside with what is inside so that anyone can easily find what you want and help you decorate next year!

*Note: Whatever you might donate, put in boxes and lable DONATE, TAKE IN NOVEMBER. If you take your Holiday decorations to thrift stores now they’ll throw them out as they have no space to store them for 11 more months. Tuck them away and put a tickler reminder on your calendar for late October or early November to take them.

“Christmas is not a time nor a season,
but a state of mind.
To cherish peace and goodwill,
to be plenteous in mercy,
is to have the real spirit of Christmas.”
~ Calvin Coolidge

I wish you a very, Merry Christmas.
Kim, “Dr. DeClutter”

Over 9 billion dollars was spent on gift wrapping alone last year! YIKES! And, unfortunately, 99% of it bad for landfills and won’t be degrading anytime soon.

It’s easy to accumulate too many rolls of wrapping paper, too many bows, and now outdated bags and tags, holiday colored baskets, etc.  It also might be that you just don’t wrap and give gifts like you used to.

But when do we go through them?

Now!

As soon as you can, before you pack it all away to forget about it for another year, take an hour or two and go through all of your gift wrapping stuff, boxes of boxes, etc.

Then, what to do with it?

Give them to friends with bigger families and kids who will enjoy them!

I did that today. Some of the items are just stunning bags and boxes, but I’ll just never use that many any more. (I have always bought them during the big after Christmas sales so they were very inexpensive, yet lovely.)

Since I couldn’t leave today for Christmas as planned (snow, icy roads) I took the opportunity to go through all my closets and storage bins of C’mas wrapping, bows, boxes, accessories and culled them out. I’m giving about 20% to friends of mine who can use them next year. Feels great! Plus, BONUS #2 – I know what I have now too!

My friends have teenage daughters who will love all that extra lovely stuff, and it doesn’t cost them a penny!

It was really fun to do it. It was like going through treasure chests! I forgot two little Christmas music boxes, that are also gift card holders, that I love. I wound them up and enjoyed them!

Oh, and don’t forget to go through your Gift and/or ReGift Box too! You may find some last minute items in there to give yet this year.

Now, with everything reorganized, it’s easier to remember, find and use next year. That’s priceless!

PS  Don’t give what you’ve culled out to thrift as it’s too late this year. They have no where to store it and it will be trashed. Just give it away directly to friends, Girl Scouts (who wrap presents for free at Christmas) or others who will enjoy it.

Responsible recycling is important!

Here’s a great, easy way to recycle your old Christmas lights.

Take them to ACE Hardware … see more here. http://www.lightsforlifeinc.com/

.

1. Check your expectations at the door. Whatever happens after you get “there” or others arrive at your house… is going to happen. Enjoy the people, not the stuff.

2. Let go of past hurts and misunderstandings, and present frustrations. This too shall pass.

3. Reality—it’s not going to be perfect! Have fun anyway!

Bottom-line… ENJOY!

Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!!

Losses throughout the year of any kind, human, animal, health, wealth or of spirit can take an extra toll during the holiday weeks. Here are a few steps to take care of yourself during this time.

1. Make time to grieve.

Set aside time to really feel your feelings, cry your tears and let it all go where it needs to. Your body needs to mourn your loss or change all the way through.

2. Get support from others.

It’s not always easy to ask for help. Being “strong” isn’t smart. Being “human” is. Whether you talk to family or friends or see a counselor or minister, you will find layers of grief just waiting to spring forth when you talk to someone else and tell your story once more.

3. Develop skills that help you remember you are a worthwhile person.

You can let grief control you and fall into a deep depression or illness, chipping away at your self worth; you can ignore and deny it and stay busy, keeping your “mind off of it”; or, you can gain knowledge of how to embrace your pain and grow positively from it.

4. Create a physical environment that supports rather than stresses you.

During the mourning process stress levels increase. You need to create a space where you feel safe, comfortable, quiet when you need it and nurtured, even if only by yourself.

5. Take care of yourself.

There are physical as well as emotional aspects of grief. Exercise increases your strength and stamina and reduces your stress. Healthy eating gives your body the good nourishment it needs. Find quiet time. Schedule a massage to stay connected with your body.

Bottom line, grief is hard. Make sure to take the time to face it and deal with it, otherwise it will affect you for years to come.

Don’t let your newspapers pile up outside your front door when you’re gone. Make sure to set up a VACATION HOLD asap.

And, save time! Instead of making a phone call, or forgetting to make it and put your newspaper deliver on VACATION HOLD or other request, go online and do it quickly. It also lets you check if you want them when you return, or you can donate them to local schools, etc.  

Our local Longmont Times-Call can be accessed at https://www.timescallcustomercare.com/

Check you paper and see if they offer this quick click system too!

Happy vacation/holidays!

• Is holiday shopping just too much for you?
• Is overconsumption and consumerism just too much?
• Do you feel overwhelmed and wonder how to stop it all?

America is the mecca for “Retail Therapy” and Christmas brings out the big guns!

Listen into my interview on ”It’s the Economy” Talk Show

from Thursday night, December 15th on

KGNU Radio, Boulder, CO.  

Mp3 –  http://www.kgnu.org/economy/12/15/2011

During this time of year that has become all about giving and receiving presents it’s important to stop and realize the real gift of “present” itself.

Your “present”, your “now”  is priceless!

The price tag to unwrap your “present”  (your “here and now”) is to show up – “here and now.”

Showing up is impossible when our minds are cluttered and disorganized with past and future to dos, to gets, shoulds, regrets and so much more that distracts us from our joy of now.

EXERCISE

Right now, take 10 seconds and just breathe – clear your mind of everything and just “be” here now. 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.

Okay, how’d you do? 10 seconds. That’s it. Just 10 seconds.

Was your mind centered and quiet? Or, in just 10 seconds, did you find your thoughts leaping around like a monkey on steroids grasping everything from yesterdays mistakes, failures and regrets (should haves) from 20 years ago, to how much weight you need to lose, to your child’s school work, to your next vacation, to the coffee maker, to the holiday to do list, to….

Western culture and our mighty egos are obsessed with thinking and doing and knowing and fixing and controlling and activity and, and…. not being still and showing up…. for ourselves.

KEY: “Stop scaring yourself!”

All these rapid, rabid, incessant spinning thoughts tend to be fear-based. They (you) are scaring you.

SHOW UP FOR YOURSELF

Do you want to show up for yourself more often? To really be here for yourself in the moment (not in yesterday or tomorrow) to make life more present and real? 

CHALLENGE:

Today, begin a new healthy and positive habit, pattern and routine where you just “be” for a few minutes at a time. No thoughts. No action. No “doing.” Begin to retrain your brain to stop and be okay with it, calming it and your whole being and body.

“We’re not human doings, we’re human beings!”

The more you practice just being, you will find a new you in there (there, being in your mind) and you’ll find new ways to interact with your world – doing a lot less “reacting” at the world. 

We are so much more than we can ever know, but we have to stop long enough to listen, be still and show up for ourselves to find out. 

“We’re not human beings having a spiritual experience,
we’re spiritual beings having a human experience.”