August 15, 2024 • 11 mins
What if embracing simplicity could radically change your summer? Join us as we explore the challenges of decluttering, embracing a "less is more" philosophy, and finding balance between personal organization goals and family life. Discover how two busy moms approach summer cleaning and learn tips for tackling those tricky keepsakes!
In this episode, we cover:
1. Summer organization and decluttering.
2. The concept of "less is more".
3. Balancing personal tasks with family responsibilities.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to.
Don't Call Me Midlife.
This summer we're shakingthings up a bit with our special
series called Survive or Thrive.
We know moms are extra busyduring the summer, so we're
bringing you shorter, bite-sizedepisodes, focused on one hot
topic at a time.
Join us as we share tips,stories and laughs, helping you
decide if you're just getting byor truly thriving this summer.
(00:26):
Hi Nicole, how are you?
I'm good.
I'm just here sipping some bonebroth.
Love that.
Get your protein in.
Yes, trying to do that insteadof, you know, coffee or tea.
So you are so good, you're sogood.
I need to get on the bone broth.
I think that's a good like habitto start in the fall, not right
now.
Yeah, it's, it's a little warm,but it's.
(00:47):
You know, the air conditioningdoesn't make it gross.
I love that.
So listen to this.
I started this habit in London,where I would go and get a flat
white.
You know their coffee there isso much better, even from the
Starbucks, even from, like, preta Manger, which is a chain,
right.
So I went to Starbucks thinkingI was like going to be feel
(01:08):
like I was back in London and Igot a flat white and it doesn't
taste the same.
But I have to say it's likemaking me happy.
So I have a flat white withalmond milk and I just love it,
so I am super happy.
This morning Did you go toStarbucks a lot there.
Did you check out local?
You know we were.
We had an apartment rightacross from the Tower of London
where it is like very touristy,and I loved it because I would
(01:30):
see the Tower of Londondifferent times of day, right,
I'd see it first thing in themorning and it was fun for me to
see.
My kids saw it like one time.
But there was a Starbucksacross the street and so it was
very easy and Walker fell inlove with their ham and cheese
croissants there, which arereally, really good.
Again, like I sort of likegoing to chains like that in
Europe because the food isdifferent, right.
(01:51):
And you know what I loved aboutthe Starbucks there, nicole, is
they didn't have like anadvertisement for like a million
drinks.
You know, here it's like getthe fruity, this caramel or
creme brulee.
It was fairly simple of whatthey had.
So I would get a flat white andWalker's ham and cheese
croissants every morning aftermy walk.
Yum, sounds so good.
(02:12):
Right now.
It does sound good.
I did not eat the ham andcheese croissants.
So one thing that has to do withour topic today that we're
going to talk about is I have alot of lessons that I learned
from London.
Right, it was great with mykids.
John definitely looked at allthe pictures.
I was like I missed out.
I'm like no, you're fine, youwere at camp.
But, being there for three weeks, I'm going to tell you
something and I know you'regoing to be shocked my
(02:34):
philosophy for the rest of theyear is I almost said it wrong.
Actually, less is more.
I'm shocked to hear that youare definitely a more is more
girl.
I am a more is more girl.
More sprinkles, more fun, moreeverything.
Yes, I'm still more fun.
I don't think any of that isgoing away.
Still more sprinkles In termsof actual stuff, and I realized
when I was in London I had likefive dresses that I wore.
(02:56):
I had two workout outfits.
I had sneakers.
I wore sneakers every day andso, coming back, I want to bring
that sort of philosophy with me.
So I've been doing some, like Iwas going to say, spring
cleaning, summer cleaning, right, I've been going through my
office, I've been going throughmy closet and thinking you know
how we don't need that muchstuff, right?
(03:17):
I think we just get in thishabit I know Well, I do buying
lots of things, especially whenyou see them on Instagram and
it's so easy to buy on Amazonand all that.
So I am wondering, with this,less is more again, I almost
said it wrong what, during thesummertime, ladies, do you use
this as an opportunity to cleanout, to organize, or is it like
you know what?
No, that's like a fall orwinter thing, like what is your
(03:40):
sort of MO for this?
I don't do it in the summertime.
I typically save it.
I'm trying to think, if I do itseasonally, I feel like I do my
food pretty regularly.
Yeah, so like pantry, but likecloset.
I think I'm a spring clean outkind of girl.
I don't know.
I'm trying to think of whatI've been organizing.
(04:01):
I kind of organize a lotthroughout the year.
I go through phases.
Yeah, I go through phases, likeI wanted to get rid of all the
plastic in my house, and so it'snot really seasonally, but I
think it's more like when I geta wild hair.
I'm like, okay, I'll do itRight, and then we get on a tear
, but my closet's prettyorganized from the spring.
(04:22):
I think I need to go throughsome drawers or do jewelry, but
typically I save it for when thekids aren't around because,
honestly, I feel bad.
It's that guilt of doingsomething and not having
something for them like anactivity or another thing about
me I don't know if you know thisI don't like being interrupted.
(04:45):
So if I'm like doing something,like I don't want to be
interrupted, I get reallyirritated.
So if I'm like in the middle ofsomething, like if I'm in the
zone and somebody's like mom,can you make me a blah, blah,
blah, you know?
Or can you take me here?
I'm just like I'm thrown off.
Forget it, I'm not doing it.
I think you know what I thinkbecause I have been doing a lot
(05:06):
of traveling, because I wasliving with less.
It goes down to your jewelry.
It goes down to I was evenlooking at my makeup.
You sort of think, well, Iwasn't feeling in Europe like,
oh, and I was living on asuitcase.
I need more, right.
I was thinking well, and it wasliving in a smaller space.
It was sort of like when Ilived in my condo.
Like when you have biggerspaces, we tend to fill them up.
(05:27):
Right, like you grow into thespace that you have.
Because I remember when we were, we had our starter home and
one kid and then we boughtanother one and we were I was
pregnant with Stavi the housewas like twice the size, if not
more.
I'm like, how are we going tofill it?
He's like, don't worry,everybody grows into the space
that they live in and I was justlike, wow, and we have
(05:50):
collected some things over theyears.
Oh for sure, for sure.
Well, I am using this summer asmore of an opportunity to go
through all my stuff.
Now I do feel that mom guilttoo if my kids aren't in a camp
or whatever, but I feel like ourkids are old enough that I can
go drop them off at the pool orthey can, you know, do stuff on
their own.
I'm trying to give John choresor things like that to help me
(06:14):
out a little bit, but I amdefinitely using this time as an
opportunity to clean stuff.
I may even actually get my kidsto do stuff too, because that
way, when it comes fall, wheneverything is crazy right, like
September is like December,may-cember that we're ready to
go right Every month is likeMay-cember or December, but
September is especially busy.
(06:35):
I mean, I know that you'realready back in school, but we
still have three weeks where westill have off.
Yeah, I mean, you've got somestay at home momming to do.
We still have some time.
And you know what I was thinkingand I was telling my husband
this Alex, I was saying thephilosophy of more is less.
He's like well, that's greatthat you're saying that.
I love that because I gothrough these stages and when I
(06:57):
clean things up and it looksreally neat, but it's actually
the buying of more stuff, right.
So I want to be it's not somuch what's already in my house,
I'm feeling like it's moreconscious of what you're
bringing in your house.
I've heard that with likeclosets and things like that.
But yeah, like I have cupboardsfull of like little tchotchke
things like decor and I'm justlike, why am I holding on to it?
(07:20):
Yes, like, am I going to swapit out later?
Right, holding on to it, yes,like, am I going to swap it out
later?
Right, well, I need it one day,but I do.
I'm trying to get on thebandwagon of less is more for
sure.
And also, I don't know, likebeing an 80s kid, like, don't
you kind of feel like you hateclutter?
I do For me.
It's like my environment isvery important for me, like my
(07:43):
car and my desk and I think I've.
Just because the end of theyear was so crazy and I left
right after that, it got alittle bit out of control with
graduation and birthdays andMother's Day and stuff.
So, yes, I think you know what,nicole, we should get an
organizer on the podcast thisfall, because, as I am cleaning
out stuff, the one thing that isreally like a thorn in my side
(08:04):
of stuff, the one thing that isreally like a thorn in my side
of I don't know what to organize, is like your tchotchkes, like
keepsakes.
Like I just found Walker'sgraduation cards, like what do I
do with that?
Like I still have kids' artwork, like it's not so much like my
clothes or my stuff or thekitchen stuff.
That stuff for me I can do if Ijust put my mind to it, but
it's like these, like extrathings that I want to save, like
(08:24):
the memories.
Now I don't know.
We had an organizer come intoour basement a couple years ago
and she, she put everybody'sstuff in a box.
I mean it was organized withinthe box, but it was, like you
know, iris's keepsake, and now Ijust go and like put little
things.
I feel like when they're littlethere's just like so much
keepsake.
But like, as they, as they getolder, it's just, like you know,
(08:46):
like a graduation card orsomething I don't know, like a
beautiful card that they pickedout for you, like special.
So maybe it's like a box foreach kid, is what you're saying.
I think, okay, so that that'llbe my mission in the fall.
I'm just going to put it all inone box right now, but okay, so
I feel like coming off ofvacation, coming off from
(09:08):
traveling like suitcases, likeliving with less, I feel like,
in terms of organization, likeI'm on a mission before the fall
.
I'm not going to keep this forthe fall.
And guess what?
If my kids are like playinggames or whatever, I don't feel
guilty, I just can't, and I'mgoing to incorporate them into
help cleaning their room,because I've got three different
kids.
I don't feel guilty, I justcan't, and I'm going to
incorporate them into helpcleaning their room, because
I've got three different kids.
(09:29):
I've got one that's a hoarder,one that's an organized hoarder
and one that doesn't want tokeep anything.
So I've got three differentkiddos so I'm going to have them
help.
I'm going to have them help,but I say, in terms of
organizing, less is more.
Now you've got to hold me tothis, nicole.
I'm thriving.
I'm putting it on the backburner.
I don't know if you want to callthat surviving, but I don't
(09:52):
know.
I really got to tackle my room.
I don't know what it is, butthat's the one room in the house
that just gets.
It looks like, I don't know,like a Marshall's on a Sunday
night or TJ Maxx on a Sundaynight.
I don't know what type oforganization system that I need
for my bedroom.
But I just shut the door andI'm like, oh, okay, as long as
the bed is made, I can't pushthings off to the side, but man.
(10:14):
So I'm going to tell Alex thatso he feels more normalized, but
he's super organized.
It's almost like I just needthe bed in our bedroom and I
need a whole nother bedroom justfor my stuff.
So Alex doesn't see it and thenjust shut the door, exactly Yay
, that'll be my next house, allright.
I think we're both thriving indifferent ways.
We're choosing how to thrivewith the organization.
(10:38):
But if any ladies have any tipsfor us, definitely let us know,
especially about these littletchotchkes and keepsakes.
Um, but yeah, no, I'm likeenergized now.
I'm like motivated to do thisnow.
Okay, get off this, get offthis and go organize.
All right, I'll talk to youlater.
And that's a wrap for today'sepisode of don't call me midlife
(10:59):
.
We hope you had as much fun aswe did.
If you're just waiting in thecarpool line, don't forget to
follow the show, and if you'refeeling extra spicy today, leave
us a rating and review Beforewe part ways.
Join our newsletter to stay inthe loop with all things midlife
, magic, bonus content and more.
Head on over to the show notesfor how to sign up.
We can't wait to keep theconversation going and, of
(11:20):
course, don't forget to fill upyour own cup first.
Cheers.
Welcome to.
Don't Call Me Midlife.
This summer we're shakingthings up a bit with our special
series called Survive or Thrive.
We know moms are extra busyduring the summer, so we're
bringing you shorter, bite-sizedepisodes, focused on one hot
topic at a time.
Join us as we share tips,stories and laughs, helping you
decide if you're just getting byor truly thriving this summer.
(00:26):
Hi Nicole, how are you?
I'm good.
I'm just here sipping some bonebroth.
Love that.
Get your protein in.
Yes, trying to do that insteadof, you know, coffee or tea.
So you are so good, you're sogood.
I need to get on the bone broth.
I think that's a good like habitto start in the fall, not right
now.
Yeah, it's, it's a little warm,but it's.
(00:47):
You know, the air conditioningdoesn't make it gross.
I love that.
So listen to this.
I started this habit in London,where I would go and get a flat
white.
You know their coffee there isso much better, even from the
Starbucks, even from, like, preta Manger, which is a chain,
right.
So I went to Starbucks thinkingI was like going to be feel
(01:08):
like I was back in London and Igot a flat white and it doesn't
taste the same.
But I have to say it's likemaking me happy.
So I have a flat white withalmond milk and I just love it,
so I am super happy.
This morning Did you go toStarbucks a lot there.
Did you check out local?
You know we were.
We had an apartment rightacross from the Tower of London
where it is like very touristy,and I loved it because I would
(01:30):
see the Tower of Londondifferent times of day, right,
I'd see it first thing in themorning and it was fun for me to
see.
My kids saw it like one time.
But there was a Starbucksacross the street and so it was
very easy and Walker fell inlove with their ham and cheese
croissants there, which arereally, really good.
Again, like I sort of likegoing to chains like that in
Europe because the food isdifferent, right.
(01:51):
And you know what I loved aboutthe Starbucks there, nicole, is
they didn't have like anadvertisement for like a million
drinks.
You know, here it's like getthe fruity, this caramel or
creme brulee.
It was fairly simple of whatthey had.
So I would get a flat white andWalker's ham and cheese
croissants every morning aftermy walk.
Yum, sounds so good.
(02:12):
Right now.
It does sound good.
I did not eat the ham andcheese croissants.
So one thing that has to do withour topic today that we're
going to talk about is I have alot of lessons that I learned
from London.
Right, it was great with mykids.
John definitely looked at allthe pictures.
I was like I missed out.
I'm like no, you're fine, youwere at camp.
But, being there for three weeks, I'm going to tell you
something and I know you'regoing to be shocked my
(02:34):
philosophy for the rest of theyear is I almost said it wrong.
Actually, less is more.
I'm shocked to hear that youare definitely a more is more
girl.
I am a more is more girl.
More sprinkles, more fun, moreeverything.
Yes, I'm still more fun.
I don't think any of that isgoing away.
Still more sprinkles In termsof actual stuff, and I realized
when I was in London I had likefive dresses that I wore.
(02:56):
I had two workout outfits.
I had sneakers.
I wore sneakers every day andso, coming back, I want to bring
that sort of philosophy with me.
So I've been doing some, like Iwas going to say, spring
cleaning, summer cleaning, right, I've been going through my
office, I've been going throughmy closet and thinking you know
how we don't need that muchstuff, right?
(03:17):
I think we just get in thishabit I know Well, I do buying
lots of things, especially whenyou see them on Instagram and
it's so easy to buy on Amazonand all that.
So I am wondering, with this,less is more again, I almost
said it wrong what, during thesummertime, ladies, do you use
this as an opportunity to cleanout, to organize, or is it like
you know what?
No, that's like a fall orwinter thing, like what is your
(03:40):
sort of MO for this?
I don't do it in the summertime.
I typically save it.
I'm trying to think, if I do itseasonally, I feel like I do my
food pretty regularly.
Yeah, so like pantry, but likecloset.
I think I'm a spring clean outkind of girl.
I don't know.
I'm trying to think of whatI've been organizing.
(04:01):
I kind of organize a lotthroughout the year.
I go through phases.
Yeah, I go through phases, likeI wanted to get rid of all the
plastic in my house, and so it'snot really seasonally, but I
think it's more like when I geta wild hair.
I'm like, okay, I'll do itRight, and then we get on a tear
, but my closet's prettyorganized from the spring.
(04:22):
I think I need to go throughsome drawers or do jewelry, but
typically I save it for when thekids aren't around because,
honestly, I feel bad.
It's that guilt of doingsomething and not having
something for them like anactivity or another thing about
me I don't know if you know thisI don't like being interrupted.
(04:45):
So if I'm like doing something,like I don't want to be
interrupted, I get reallyirritated.
So if I'm like in the middle ofsomething, like if I'm in the
zone and somebody's like mom,can you make me a blah, blah,
blah, you know?
Or can you take me here?
I'm just like I'm thrown off.
Forget it, I'm not doing it.
I think you know what I thinkbecause I have been doing a lot
(05:06):
of traveling, because I wasliving with less.
It goes down to your jewelry.
It goes down to I was evenlooking at my makeup.
You sort of think, well, Iwasn't feeling in Europe like,
oh, and I was living on asuitcase.
I need more, right.
I was thinking well, and it wasliving in a smaller space.
It was sort of like when Ilived in my condo.
Like when you have biggerspaces, we tend to fill them up.
(05:27):
Right, like you grow into thespace that you have.
Because I remember when we were, we had our starter home and
one kid and then we boughtanother one and we were I was
pregnant with Stavi the housewas like twice the size, if not
more.
I'm like, how are we going tofill it?
He's like, don't worry,everybody grows into the space
that they live in and I was justlike, wow, and we have
(05:50):
collected some things over theyears.
Oh for sure, for sure.
Well, I am using this summer asmore of an opportunity to go
through all my stuff.
Now I do feel that mom guilttoo if my kids aren't in a camp
or whatever, but I feel like ourkids are old enough that I can
go drop them off at the pool orthey can, you know, do stuff on
their own.
I'm trying to give John choresor things like that to help me
(06:14):
out a little bit, but I amdefinitely using this time as an
opportunity to clean stuff.
I may even actually get my kidsto do stuff too, because that
way, when it comes fall, wheneverything is crazy right, like
September is like December,may-cember that we're ready to
go right Every month is likeMay-cember or December, but
September is especially busy.
(06:35):
I mean, I know that you'realready back in school, but we
still have three weeks where westill have off.
Yeah, I mean, you've got somestay at home momming to do.
We still have some time.
And you know what I was thinkingand I was telling my husband
this Alex, I was saying thephilosophy of more is less.
He's like well, that's greatthat you're saying that.
I love that because I gothrough these stages and when I
(06:57):
clean things up and it looksreally neat, but it's actually
the buying of more stuff, right.
So I want to be it's not somuch what's already in my house,
I'm feeling like it's moreconscious of what you're
bringing in your house.
I've heard that with likeclosets and things like that.
But yeah, like I have cupboardsfull of like little tchotchke
things like decor and I'm justlike, why am I holding on to it?
(07:20):
Yes, like, am I going to swapit out later?
Right, holding on to it, yes,like, am I going to swap it out
later?
Right, well, I need it one day,but I do.
I'm trying to get on thebandwagon of less is more for
sure.
And also, I don't know, likebeing an 80s kid, like, don't
you kind of feel like you hateclutter?
I do For me.
It's like my environment isvery important for me, like my
(07:43):
car and my desk and I think I've.
Just because the end of theyear was so crazy and I left
right after that, it got alittle bit out of control with
graduation and birthdays andMother's Day and stuff.
So, yes, I think you know what,nicole, we should get an
organizer on the podcast thisfall, because, as I am cleaning
out stuff, the one thing that isreally like a thorn in my side
(08:04):
of stuff, the one thing that isreally like a thorn in my side
of I don't know what to organize, is like your tchotchkes, like
keepsakes.
Like I just found Walker'sgraduation cards, like what do I
do with that?
Like I still have kids' artwork, like it's not so much like my
clothes or my stuff or thekitchen stuff.
That stuff for me I can do if Ijust put my mind to it, but
it's like these, like extrathings that I want to save, like
(08:24):
the memories.
Now I don't know.
We had an organizer come intoour basement a couple years ago
and she, she put everybody'sstuff in a box.
I mean it was organized withinthe box, but it was, like you
know, iris's keepsake, and now Ijust go and like put little
things.
I feel like when they're littlethere's just like so much
keepsake.
But like, as they, as they getolder, it's just, like you know,
(08:46):
like a graduation card orsomething I don't know, like a
beautiful card that they pickedout for you, like special.
So maybe it's like a box foreach kid, is what you're saying.
I think, okay, so that that'llbe my mission in the fall.
I'm just going to put it all inone box right now, but okay, so
I feel like coming off ofvacation, coming off from
(09:08):
traveling like suitcases, likeliving with less, I feel like,
in terms of organization, likeI'm on a mission before the fall
.
I'm not going to keep this forthe fall.
And guess what?
If my kids are like playinggames or whatever, I don't feel
guilty, I just can't, and I'mgoing to incorporate them into
help cleaning their room,because I've got three different
kids.
I don't feel guilty, I justcan't, and I'm going to
incorporate them into helpcleaning their room, because
I've got three different kids.
(09:29):
I've got one that's a hoarder,one that's an organized hoarder
and one that doesn't want tokeep anything.
So I've got three differentkiddos so I'm going to have them
help.
I'm going to have them help,but I say, in terms of
organizing, less is more.
Now you've got to hold me tothis, nicole.
I'm thriving.
I'm putting it on the backburner.
I don't know if you want to callthat surviving, but I don't
(09:52):
know.
I really got to tackle my room.
I don't know what it is, butthat's the one room in the house
that just gets.
It looks like, I don't know,like a Marshall's on a Sunday
night or TJ Maxx on a Sundaynight.
I don't know what type oforganization system that I need
for my bedroom.
But I just shut the door andI'm like, oh, okay, as long as
the bed is made, I can't pushthings off to the side, but man.
(10:14):
So I'm going to tell Alex thatso he feels more normalized, but
he's super organized.
It's almost like I just needthe bed in our bedroom and I
need a whole nother bedroom justfor my stuff.
So Alex doesn't see it and thenjust shut the door, exactly Yay
, that'll be my next house, allright.
I think we're both thriving indifferent ways.
We're choosing how to thrivewith the organization.
(10:38):
But if any ladies have any tipsfor us, definitely let us know,
especially about these littletchotchkes and keepsakes.
Um, but yeah, no, I'm likeenergized now.
I'm like motivated to do thisnow.
Okay, get off this, get offthis and go organize.
All right, I'll talk to youlater.
And that's a wrap for today'sepisode of don't call me midlife
(10:59):
.
We hope you had as much fun aswe did.
If you're just waiting in thecarpool line, don't forget to
follow the show, and if you'refeeling extra spicy today, leave
us a rating and review Beforewe part ways.
Join our newsletter to stay inthe loop with all things midlife
, magic, bonus content and more.
Head on over to the show notesfor how to sign up.
We can't wait to keep theconversation going and, of
(11:20):
course, don't forget to fill upyour own cup first.
Cheers.
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