spring cleaning

i consider myself a fairly organized person. i believe in alphabetizing whatever i can. i like uniformity. all of my clothes hang with their similar counterparts in the same direction in my closet. i know where everything on my computers (at work and at home) are. i even have spiffy ikea drawer organizers in several of my more cluttered drawers. but despite my best efforts, i still have too much stuff and i end up with embarassingly messy pockets of random things stuffed in drawers and corners. it doesn't help that my house is barely 600 square feet and has only one very narrow closet. (i have to walk sideways just to fit.) it also doesn't help that i have a sentimental gene that finds it difficult to throw things away - no matter how little i use them - just because they were part of my life at a certain time or given to me by someone i love. i must admit that i still have every stuffed animal i've ever owned in my parents' attic because i just can't bear to part with them. i watch those oprah shows about hoarding and am horrified, but in some ways we all hold on to things we don't need. i watched the blind side last night (finally) and was reminded just how little some people have. christ calls us to simple living and when i look at my closet and its contents i know i haven't quite mastered that yet.
i am inspired to slowly (but surely) organize my tiny house and its contents. i dream of matching file folders, dresser drawers that close easily and aren't stuffed full, shoes stored in matching plastic boxes, and shelves/closets/drawers full of only what i actually eat/wear/use. maybe someday my house will look like these photos...

(okay, my closet will probably never be this awesome. unless i marry big and move in to carrie's penthouse.)

my spring cleaning efforts this weekend haven't really extended beyond a few cluttered drawers. hopefully, however, as spring continues i can slowly but surely continue the effort and maintain enough room for liam and i to live comfortably.

need some inspiration? i'm loving benita larsson's blog. click on the organizing tab for some especially fabulous before and afters! additionally, check out her top ten organizing tips on apartment therapy.

images: 1.liveearth.org 2.apartment therapy 3-5.chez larsson