Do you feel overwhelmed as a new mom (or a mom of several little people)?
Decluttering can help you save in 4 major areas in your life!
A few months before I became a mom for the first time, I remember I received a LOT of stuff. Baby clothes, toys, newborn items, diapers, and much more from helpful friends and family. I was very grateful!
I remember when my daughter was barely 1 month old, I was looking through my closet at my pre-pregnancy clothes (which hadn’t fit in several months) – they were squished in the back of the closet and I pulled out a fun skirt and it had MOLD on it. Eww! (We live in the Pacific Northwest and mold can be a problem.)
Ugh. I pulled out all my clothes, sorted and washed them, reorganized and gave many away. Right after this I came across the minimalism lifestyle and how decluttering is related. These new ideas intrigued me – especially since I felt (only a teeny bit) overwhelmed as a new mom and by the sheer amount of items in our little place. I looked around at all of our STUFF and saw that I needed to clean out and downsize the things we had crammed into our little 1 bedroom apartment.
As the days went on I realized some things:
- I don’t need everything that is possibly advertised for a new baby.
- I was starting to see what my baby needed and what she didn’t.
- I also realized that there were some things from my old life (pre-baby) that I wouldn’t ever need, ever again (my pre-pregnancy jeans – sniff, sniff!).
I came to see that decluttering was truly going to save me in these 4 major areas in my life (not to mention my life and sanity as a new mom!): time, brain space, physical space, and money.
First, decluttering saved me TIME.
Owning fewer items means you have fewer things to monitor daily. (Remember you have to clean, sort, put away, dust, and maintain everything in your home!) I have less items to maintain, so I have more time to do other things.
I’m not constantly cleaning and picking up items (well, I am but only because I’m a mom of 2 littles and they are constantly making messes – BUT we have fewer items for them to make messes with so cleanup is not as stressful.) I also follow daily routines that help my family out SO much. Check out my post on simple daily routines here.
Second, decluttering saved me BRAIN SPACE.
As moms, we have to remember SO much. It’s like the burden of life and all the intricacies are left on our shoulders. Fewer items mean that fewer things are taking up space in my brain. I don’t have to worry about the mess (because it’s not that big) and what to do with it. I don’t have to worry about organizing (cleaning, maintaining) tons of items.
Third, decluttering saved PHYSICAL SPACE.
Our tiny home looks spacious and has lots of floor space for our girls to play on. We have wood floors and an indoor tricycle that my 3-year-old loves to ride around and she has a lot of space to do this. I remember before I started to declutter I had piles of items here and there – on tables, on chairs, stuck in the corner. Things looked messy and unkempt most of the time – despite my efforts to keep things in “organized” piles (ha!) (a stack of books here and a pile of clothes there…). Now I have a place for all items (that we need and use) and clean up is a breeze.
Fourth, decluttering saved me MONEY.
One thing about decluttering is that I focus on items I need and use regularly and often. When I had piles of items, I would want to find something and think I had it and not know where it was. I ended up with some duplicate (or triplicate) items when I thought I needed to buy a new item because I couldn’t find the one I had.
My mindset also changed. I don’t feel a need to shop because I don’t want to add clutter to my home. Instead, I try to repurpose items or use what I have for different purposes. (One small example, we don’t own a teapot – we just use a regular saucepan to boil water for tea!).
Related: How to Save Money with Kids
I can’t tell you how much I have saved because of my serious desire to declutter, downsize, and minimalize my belongings. Now, we have space in our home and less mess. If someone drops by unannounced I don’t have to worry about piles of items on chairs and tables, I can have my friends sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee. I have 2 little girls under 4 so we don’t have a completely spotless house – we have toys and games here and there, but not mountains and piles. Clean up is easy and quick.
Decluttering can help you save in these 4 major areas: time, brain space, physical space, and money. You will be surprised at how much more peaceful and less stressed you are and how much extra time you have to do the things you would like to do! I’d love to hear what you have saved by decluttering things in your life or what is keeping you from decluttering some items! Drop a comment below!
