8.07.2012

40 Bags in 40 Days {Lent 2012}: I Finished!

Well, my 40 Bags in 40 Days turned into 40 bags in 4 months, but that's okay because...
I FINALLY FINISHED!!!
My original plan was to do this the 40 days of Lent.... that didn't happen.It's okay it took me more than 40 days because I finished and got rid of WAY more than 40 bags of stuff....that's what counts, right?

Just like the rest of the list, here are some Before & After pictures of the rest of the areas that I cleaned out.

Girls Play Area (AKA: The play pit)
Our house was built in the 70's and for some reason, houses built in the 70's had conversation pits. It is one of the only things I despise about our house. We have plans to level it out, but for now it actually functions pretty well as a play area for the girls. It is where we put all there toys, etc. It has gotten out of hand with too many toys, etc, so it was time for an overhaul.
Before:After:
Downstairs Bathroom
Before:Why in the world did I store so many candles in here?!?!?
I bagged most of them up & gave the new ones away.
After:
Purses/Bags
Before:

I mostly needed to go through all these purses/bags & make sure they were empty and give away the ones I barely use.
After:
This is my stash of stuff I found in these purses! SCORE!
Lazy Susan Cupboard in Kitchen
Before:


After:
Under the kitchen sink:
Before:
After:
Laundry Room Cupboards:
Cabinet #1 Before:Cabinet #1 After:
Cabinet #2 Before:
Cabinet #2 After:
Cabinet #3 Before:
Cabinet #3 After:
Refrigerator
Before:
After:Freezer
Before:

After:I really cleaned out the fridge/freezer...I took out all the drawers & washed them out and wiped down all the shelves.
Garage Refrigerator
Before:
After:

Garage Freezer
Before:

After:
So, there you have it.....my completed 40 Bags in 40 Days List!
To see my other 40 bags in 40 days updates, click HERE.

Recap:
I gave AWAY 24 bags of stuff to Goodwill.
I threw AWAY 28 bags of stuff.

That is 52 bags of stuff we didn't use, need or wasted.

So much waste. It makes me sick.
UGH.
I am SOOOO glad I finished everything on the list (even if it took longer than 40 days)
I learned a lot while tackling this list.
I realized how much CRAP we have.
I realized how MUCH we have.
It has made me think about what I buy & what I bring into our house.
I ask myself, "Do we need this?" or
"Is there room for this?"
It has drastically changed my thinking, and for that I am thankful.

I will do it again, but my goal is to keep each space/area/closet clean & organized and not stuffed to the brim with junk. Having these areas in our home clean & organized has brought so much peace to me and has made me feel less chaotic.

I highly recommend doing a major clean out like this.
It was a great, yet painful experience.
Thanks for helping keep me accountable & getting through my list!

16 comments:

  1. I NEED to do this so bad! I think I'll make my list tomorrow! Awesome work! :)

    Love your blog!

    KC

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  2. I sooooooo need to do this! We kind of started in May (we also had a garage sale) but it wasn't enough!

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  3. WOW! That was a huge undertaking, and it is finally done! It has to feel so good to get all of that clutter out of the house before the baby comes.

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  4. Inspiring. My entire basemet looks like your cabinets lol.

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  5. Way to go! I am feeling the need to go through our house like this too. I know what you mean about having so much stuff. I almost feel sick when I think about it.

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  6. way to go! it's so amazing how much stuff can just accumulate in such a short amount of time!

    and I'm like you, it definitely puts purchasing things in perspective!

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  7. Yay!! Everything looks amazing. I am so in awe, honestly. That was a huge job!

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  8. yay you finished and before baby comes! i bet that just feels so great! my basement needs to be tackled and i bet there is 40 bags down there!

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  9. So inspiring! Way to go Mel!!
    I'm curious, did you have to do a touch up of your old cupboards since spring?

    I do live in a purging mode all of the time though as I have a small house (1300 square feet!) and there isn't a lot of space for unwanted/extra stuff. So it keeps life simple and I have learned to be content without lots o' things.

    Yay for clean & organized :)

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  10. I really need to do this! I started with my daughter's closet since I am due with #2 in December. I put stuff in bags in case I would need it. In the meantime, I found out I am having a boy and have to give it away. Then I have to do my closest. The scariest part is going to be the garage.

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  11. GOOD JOB!!! Way to finish at the buzzer. :)

    P.S. I love the pit, it's cozy!

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  12. Awesome!! It seriously looks fantastic. Your first original post inspired me to make a checklist of rooms I wanted to get organized this year and I am slowly, but surely checking them off one by one. :) Love all of the before and after pictures.

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  13. hi

    sorry to contact you this way but cannot find an email. Wanted to let you know that your mason jar drinks picture has been credited to Six in the Suburbs on HGTV blog.

    http://blog.hgtv.com/design/2012/07/28/daily-delight-mason-jar-cocktails/

    From what I understand it also went viral on Pinterest, all credit going to Six in the suburbs. When they were called on the pic they changed it, but HGTV still has yours up with their name as credit.

    This site does nothing but take from others, I don't think they ever make anything on their own.
    Dennis

    ReplyDelete
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