MOVING!!!! I hope I never have to go through this again!!! So, although we are "mostly" settled into our cozy little house in the woods, there are still so many boxes to finish sorting. I actually just found my camera charger a couple of days ago, and had been working off of the same charge for a couple of weeks. But now I'm back in business and I can take pictures all day long, if I want to ;o) But, first, I had to put away all of these books. And my inspiration? The great gals over at 5 Minutes for Mom and their Tackle It Tuesday meme!
They all ended up on the dining room table because I was looking for a specific book . . . . of course, in all those boxes of books, the ONE I needed was in the 10th or 12th box I had to go through. But I found what I was looking for - only all the books that I didn't need right that minute, ended up stacked on the table and on every other flat surface I could find (well, a flat surface that didn't already have a bunch of other stuff on it that I needed to sort!). 
In addition to the books, there were a few stray school papers and notebooks, a couple of cups and other knick-knacks, and lots of pictures. I love to have family pictures in our house, so there I was, facing this mess that was making me crazy! Today was the day, and fortunately we have lots of cupboard space that we don't need for dishes (because they all fit in the kitchen cupboards), so I had a place to put all of our books. 
Well, you can see that there was also a wardrobe steamer sitting in the middle of the dining room . . . . my sweet hubby worked on the wrinkles in my winter coat, compliments of having been shoved into a packing box all summer, and now it is just about time for the snow to fly. He got it looking brand-new (even though it was one of my favorite thrift shop finds, it looks GREAT!) - but there sat the steamer. 
And what do YOU do with all those wonderful kids' projects that you want to save for their scrapbooks? I've got another pile! I'll get to THAT pile sometime soon.
Once I got all of the books sorted, kind of, into categories, they went quietly onto the shelves and into the cupboards. The kids' books have a section all of their own, because the girls love to rummage around through the books every night before bedtime. 
Then we read together. Now they have a bunch of "new" books to read! I put the old McGuffey Readers together on a shelf where the girls can reach them, but not all mixed up with the other kids' books.
So, at least now we can use the dining room table if we want to. We have another small table in the kitchen, where we usually have our meals, but just in case we have company or something special . . .. . I can find the table!
I'm finally finished with this ONE project, but there are so many more . . . . I guess I'll be posting lots of my Tackle It Tuesday projects for the next several weeks! I think I will even post a few more pictures of my beautiful dining room tomorrow, I'm so proud of my accomplishment today ;o)
As for the next few weeks of Tackle It Tuesday projects, the kitchen needs to be painted, my sewing room needs to be organized, the girls' room need lots of attention - but this afternoon I have to take the girls to the dentist, so this is it for today. Having this connection with other women who are trying to keep their heads above the piles of STUFF is a great inspiration! Keep up the good work, girls, and I'll be back next Tuesday with another organizing project ;o) 
Here are the girls' books - well, some of them, since they have a basket full of books in their bedroom, too. Now they have lots and lots of books to choose from! Some of these books, however, have been around a long time, and are pretty much well-worn and loved, and pretty raggedy around the edges. Kind of like the Skin Horse in one of our favorite stories, "The Velveteen Rabbit." Off to the dentist!
Be sure to visit all the other tacklers out there who are taking control of the clutter in their lives! Visit 5 Minutes for Mom and be inspired!
Great tackle:-)
Posted by: susieshomemade | November 11, 2008 at 12:35 PM