Operation De-Clutter... DAY 6

Whew! I really rolled up my sleeves today, so to speak, and de-cluttered not one, but two bits of my house.

Regardez-vous this hideous pantry cupboard, stuffed to bursting with bags, overflow flour and sugar, kleenex boxes, napkins, paper towels and cereal:

Out of this sow's ear I have created this minimalistic silk purse:

It's amazing how much I could eliminate just by refilling the flour and sugar containers. Who knew there was so much room in there? Also note the little wire thingee I put up to hold my Save-On bags. I do need some sort of shelf in here, but... Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither was this pantry cupboard. Be patient, little cupboard! Gwen isn't finished with you yet!

Okay, and here is the atrocity that I call my computer desk:

This isn't nearly as bad as it actually was when I began the de-clutter today. I took this picture in April when I began Operation De-Clutter, and it has been getting steadily worse. But I rented a Backhoe today and cleaned it off. Baskez-Vous in the cleanliness of my computer desk now, O Reader:

And finally, here's what we did today:

I experienced one of those This Is What Life Is All About moments during the taking of this photograph. Here is my daughter, completely REAL in her red pants, unbrushed hair and pink jacket. She's just about to swing herself up onto the bike and ride away, utterly carefree, with the cold rainy air on her face. I watched her and thought, "What am I waiting for, anyway?" Life isn't going to get better than it is right now. Things will never get back to normal. I won't have more time in September. If I lose 15 lbs and can wear my thin(ner) jeans again, I'm not going to be any more fulfilled than I am now. When my husband finally puts in the baseboards, it's not going to complete me. This is my life, now, right here.

I can't really explain how I felt, after all. But I do know that it was a wild, freeing moment. I must live now, and not wait for some distant future day when all the stars are lined up perfectly.