A month a go we decided to do a massive Spring-clean and over the past four weeks we have emptied every single room and shifted everything in the yard.

We literally ‘downed tools’, unplugged the computers and got stuck into it (that’s why you haven’t seen a post from me in the last month).

The bright blue feature wall in our sitting room

The bright blue feature wall in our sitting room

We have cleaned and painted two bathrooms and the laundry, painted five rooms and the stairwell and completely cleaned up the yard by doing most of those ‘I’ll get around to it one day’ yard jobs.

Then, last week, we loaded the 4WD and a big trailer with desks, toys, bikes and lots of baby things we no longer needed, such as a cot and a really good pram and we donated the lot to the local women’s refuge. We even gave them a fish tank, a nice big Christmas tree and a large box of decorations.

What a great double whammy. Not only did we experience the joy of giving but we also de-cluttered our home. It is great when you can give to a charitable organisation and actually meet the people who will benefit from your donation.

We are now plugged back in and ready to work. My next project will be to de-clutter my shed and downsize my collection of books and periodicals.

With Christmas and 2010 just around the corner, why don’t you consider de-cluttering your life and donating some useful things you no longer need to a worthy charity?

I guarantee you’ll get double the pleasure from the gift of giving this Christmas.