Regrouping, Seed Swapping & Decluttering

Dear Jen,

With January now coming to an end, I'm in total organization mode. I don't want to enter this upcoming garden season frenzied with not a clue as to where I should start. Seeds are like gold to me right now, so I'm doing my best to keep them all categorized.

Do you have a system for this? While mine isn't perfect, it's getting better. I'm also trying to keep seed catalogs in one place (emphasis on trying), so I can find what I need easily.

I just created what I'd like to call a "garden inspiration station". With my recent interest in seed swaps being at it's all time high, I needed all my swap supplies in one place. I feel like when everything isn't where it should be, I waste so much valuable time just looking for the little things.

Just the other day, I needed paper clips and rubber bands. I had no clue where to even look though I'm sure they're around here somewhere. That was the turning point for me!

While my intentions are good, I get sidetracked easily. Do you ever feel like this?

In this day and age, with social media constantly changing, micro-blogging being used as a way to stay connected and the pressures of just everyday life threatening to take hold, it's hard not to feel overwhelmed. 

Even while writing this letter to you - I'm drinking coffee, paying a bill, ordering essentials from Amazon, backing up pictures and thumbing through yet another seed catalog. I'm also trying to plan out what photo I should post on Instagram later.

My brain is in absolute overdrive, and I'm positive I'm doing the opposite of meditating. How do you slow down and just take a breath when responsibilities start to pile up? 

I'm so happy our mutual friend, Stephanie, of the blog See Jane Dig made a group on Facebook about organizing clutter. The popular book The Minimalist Home by Joshua Becker has been gaining notoriety along with Tidying Up with Marie Kondo on Netflix.

“Over the course of an average lifetime, because of all the clutter we live in, we will spend 3,680 hours, or 153 days, searching for misplaced items.” - Joshua Becker 

It seems to me that we all sometimes need to regroup, declutter and clear out our spaces to make room for the new. So along with having a tidier home, I'm hoping to have a less chaotic schedule by being better at time management. 

Have you learned any valuable lessons while reading The Minimalist Home? I want to try staying focused this year while worrying less and accomplishing more.

My brain has a knee-jerk type of reaction wanting me to ask myself if this is possible. I'm not going to let that feeling get in the way and just go with. It is definitely possible. 

What are your top three goals for keeping stress at bay this year? I feel like all of this definitely goes hand-in-hand with gardening tasks a well. Here are my top three: 

• Work on time management while sticking to a schedule.
• Keep important things organized while getting rid of old clutter.
• Push myself out of my comfort zone while not being afraid to fail. 

While the temperatures continue to drop outside and the snow squalls pass us by, I'm going to continue to push myself. Having you as a fellow garden buddy keeps me striving to better myself.

I love reading through all your posts and seeing what kind of new projects you are taking on. I've learned so much from you even with the separation of state lines.

Looking forward to taking on some new adventures with you this year. Let's continue to explore the US, declutter our homes and broaden our horizons. We got this!