Monday, February 20, 2012

Forty Bags in Forty Days: my Lenten Goal for 2012


I have decided that this year for Lent, instead of giving something up (like chocolate, or TV, or Facebook), I am going to give something AWAY.  And by saying "I", I am really saying "WE"...my whole family is going to be along for this ride whether they like it or not.

Last year, you may remember that one of my goals for the year was to 'purge' -- and we did a pretty good job of that as we packed up all of our belongings and moved to a new house.  The only problem is, the new house is bigger....MUCH BIGGER than the old house, and stuff has begun accumulating.  Also, some of the stuff from the old house just doesn't work here in the new house...and I think I really need to give up trying to find a place for it.  Someone else will have a better use for it than it sitting in a box in my basement.

So, when I saw the challenge by Sarah over at Clover Lane, I decided I need to jump on board for my own sanity.  Sarah is doing it with garbage bags...I'm not quite ready to make that large of a commitment (although it might turn out that way in the end), so for now, my 40 bag challenge will include plastic grocery bags as some of my bags.

One of Sarah's tips is:  "to touch everything in the room or area that I am working on. If I have boxes, clothes, books, toys...no matter what, I go through each item and make a decision to keep, give away, throw away."  And I totally agree. 

I realize this is going to sound dorky to say, but the one area of our house that I am super excited to get my hands on is our basement.  We've never fully unpacked some of the boxes down there and stuff has been piling up from birthdays and holidays.  My 'stud' of a husband recently volunteered his services to build some new shelves in the basement to hold my plethora of rubbermaid bins.  What a guy!  His handyman skills are inspiring me to put my organizationals skills to the test!  Let's see what the two of us can come up with...we make a great duo!


Want to join me?  Just let me know in the comments.  I'll try to check in every Wednesday (since Lent starts this Wednesday with Ash Wednesday) to let you know how we are doing! 

6 comments:

Katie said...

I like it. I will commit to one bag per week. Yeah, that may sound lightweight, but it's just Chris and myself, no kids. :)

Itty_Bitty_Wittes said...

I'm in! :) We have lived in our house for 7 years and still have boxes from HS down there!!!!

Nasrene said...

What a great idea!!

2Bugaboos said...

Count me in! Not sure I will be able to fill 40 bags, but I will do my best. (And for the record, we also have unpacked boxes in the basement.) I can't wait to see the shelves when you're done... we need to do something similar here.

Becca B said...

Do bags of garbage count? We have endless amounts of books and notebooks from college and Bill's grad school that take up a ton of room in the basement. I am gonna try to purge along with you all but don't know if I can "commit" Great idea!

Beth said...

I'm already there with you Stef!! I started bagging two weeks ago because I couldn't wait. Now if I could just get Max to come down here and build ME some shelves!!