I Need a Plan

I need a plan of action.

At the end of September I am going to move all my office crap and all my new pretty baby things into Toby’s office. His office is bigger and it’s going to be our baby’s room (slash my office, which will be considerably downsized now that being a mom is my number one priority.) I’m very excited about it but I’m a little overwhelmed by the moving-of-crap process. I need to devise a plan that will be the least stressful for Toby as possible. He does not like change. I’m afraid if I just start going hog wild, like throwing stuff over my shoulder, he’ll recant on his offer and make me and the baby stay in the small office with the dirty birds.

I would be happy to do this moving-of-crap process “clean sweep style” and put every thing out on white sheets in our living room and patio. Then I could sort it all into “toss” “keep” and “sell” piles. I like the idea of purging out all the chaos and only bringing back in those things that have a specific place to go. But that just isn’t subtle enough. I can’t take over the whole living room and patio with my sorting madness. I need this all to go on behind the scenes.

Why? Because even though I know I have a plan, it will seem like doomsday to Toby. He needs a calm environment because inside his head, all hell is breaking lose on a regular basis. His job is very stressful and well, he’s Toby. He just doesn’t like change. We’ve lived in the same house for ten years and I’ve only rearranged the furniture once. (He had a cow.) When I lived on my own, I rearranged my furniture every time I got pms! I strongly believe in Ellen’s theory (that I can’t find a link for right now). She says something like: people with a cluttered mind need clean space and people with a clear head don’t mind messiness. Or maybe I just like to think of myself as clear headed! Ha! Whatever. For the sake of my marriage and a happy home for the gestating fetus, I need to do this move in the most laid back way possible. I want it to be like this on moving day:

Toby: So are we moving stuff today?

Me: Yep, all my crap is right here in these perfectly white and and identically sized moving boxes.

Toby: You’re packed already?!! Where did you put everything?

Me: Oh, I’ve been squirreling away all the things I didn’t need for months. It was easy.

Toby: Well then, can you help me with all my stuff?

Me: Sure! And when we’re done, you can take me out to dinner.

Toby: I love you. You’re awesome. This is why I married you… bla bla bla… smoochiness and kisses.

So you see why I have to have a plan? Yikes! I am no where near the perfectly-white-identically-sized-moving-boxes stage yet. In fact, I can’t even see the light at the end of the tunnel. Why do I have so much crap that has to be gone through anyway? What happened to my minimalist approach to clutter? Why do I like to collect paper? How am I going to box all my paper supplies (from my invitation making business) in such a way that it can be stored in my mom’s garage without causing her too much intrusion? Plus, I need to make some sort of binder so I can identify what supplies are in which box in case I need to pull something from her garage. What to keep? What to store? What am I going to need for the crafts I have lined up in the next few months… ribbon for birth announcements…

It’s driving my little brain crazy.