Hello Yall! Happy New Month. I hope you are doing well in your corner of the world. We’re already ziplining through 2022; can you believe we are in the fourth month already? My heart and prayers go out to the Starr readers in Ukraine and Russia. I pray the madness ends and the citizens are allowed to thrive freely and in peace. I’m writing this post with my TV on in the background and wondering why on a hot Texas Sunday they are showing Krampus on TV but who knows these things.

It’s time to spring clean and I have to admit that I’m a little behind this year, but I have a plan on how to get started which I’m going to share with you so stay with me. The beauty of doing this every year or multiple times a year is to make sure that whatever items we have or own at home are things that we need, are put to use or will be put to use at some point. The goal is to have stuff but not let stuff have us…but often times, this is easier said than done. So, grab a drink, smoothie or a snack and get comfy. This post is for me and everyone else who believes they can at least do better.

Kitchen & Pantry

If you’re like some of us, chipped dishes, broken mugs, cracked glasses and a mis match of utensils mixed with to-go plastic containers line our cabinets and counters. It’s time to get organized on a budget or better still, invest in decent cookware and utensils. Trust me, this is not about anything over the top expensive but knowing you are worth it and deserve to eat or cook with decent cookware for yourself and your family. Isn’t it ironic how we spend top dollar on expensive dinners at fancy restaurants, yet we don’t even have matching cutlery, good silver ware or presentable dishes at home?

When it comes to the pantry, some pantries can hide a whole human being in there due to the clutter, disorganization and lack of routine cleaning. I know, I know…..we may still have that promised apocalypse at some point, but you should at least be able to know what you do have and what you need to stock up on. And for the love of plastic bags, buying clear containers that you can store food items in instead of grocery store plastic bags helps a lot. You can get affordable storage containers if you have some time and the patience to look and find brands that work for you.

Living Area (s)

We can opt for a real bookshelf, a second bookshelf or an area to stockpile our books instead of the coffee table that hasn’t seen itself bare in the last couple of years or your dining table. Eating in front of the TV because your ‘dining table’ has been converted to a holding place for abandoned items is definitely a no no. I like the term ‘A place for everything and everything for a designated space’…or something along those lines.

Taking off the covers from sofas and washing them or getting professional cleaners to clean your furniture is great…because we sit, lay down, sleep, eat all year round on it. There’s ALL kinds of shed skin, dust mites and only God knows what are on there. Cleaning and sunning rugs or just any hard to reach or barely cleaned areas is a great idea.

The Closet

I opt for open shelving in a closet, no drawers. Out of sight is out of mind and if I can’t see it, then I’m probably not going to wear it. You don’t necessarily have to have a built-out closet to be organized especially when looking at it from a temporary versus permanent standpoint. But having clothes separated by seasons, work, casual, special occasions, sleep wear, undergarments etc. will get you started. Having a shoe rack, shelving or shoe storage is great. No one likes stabbing their toes on some spiky heels when they’re in a hurry. But overall, you’ll know what you have and what you need more of when you are more organized. Now, this post may make some people chuckle because they already do this but there are people whose homes I have been in and there’s clothes in laundry baskets and about a foot high all over; I couldn’t even see the floor. If you were raised better than most, be kind. People are a work in progress especially when they make an effort to do and be better.

Folks I’m out of time but I hope you had a good read and this helps someone out there. Until I come your way again, do like, comment and share. And always remember that we’re all in this together!

Periwinkle Starr