What a goofy title! But I had to call it something, and Bobby liked it better than “Totally Organized,” which was the first simplifying book I ever read.  It was 1998.  I was pregnant with my first child. Our five room apartment looked pretty tidy, except for the SPARE ROOM, which was filled with all of those things we didn’t know what to do with. It was my dream to be totally organized before the baby arrived. It didn’t happen.

Fast forward twenty years. We now have six children and instead of five rooms, we have ten rooms! (Not counting the three bathrooms, the three car garage, the shed, and a basement the size of eight rooms.) Yikes!

Our house looks pretty tidy, (if you don’t go in the pantry or garage or basement or upstairs).  I feel like I’m working my butt off to keep up with the main living areas and any extra efforts I put into those “spare rooms” are short lived. I know it can be so much simpler.

I’ve seriously read at least 30-40 books on simplifying. I know the FlyLady. I’ve Konmaried. I always stop somewhere in komono and never reach that elusive clicking point. I’ve been an aspiring minimalist ever since I heard of the concept in 2009.

But back to Operation Joyful Space. I got the “Joyful Space” from Rachel Jones, founder of Nourishing Minimalism.com.  She calls herself the Joyful Space specialist. I just finished a free five day Minimalist Mindset course she offered. (You know I like these kinds of things.) As a result of that, I set a goal to declutter my entire home in six months. (I’ll write more specifically about this goal, criteria, and assessment in a later post.) I’ve made a handy-dandy checklist, titled “Operation Joyful Space”, designed for my unique home and schedule.  Operation Joyful Space I’ve also made decluttering checklists, which break the tasks down into smaller chunks. And while I was at it, I made a checklist for the normal monthly tasks that I try to do in addition to daily chores and weekly cleaning. Monthly Checklist

I realize I’m going to be busy. One of the tasks in the course was to decide exactly what you are willing to give up to complete your goal. I decided that I’ll give up DVD’s and Netflix on weekdays, time reading my iPhone in bed and fiction novels. This doesn’t include going out to the cinemas with Bobby during the week. I’m just giving up sitting around on the couch at home. And by the way, I don’t know the FlyLady in real life, just her ideas.