Clutter Free Academy

Today Kathi is joined by Crystal Paine, also known as the Money Saving Mom, as they discuss how to juggle a lot, enjoy your life, and accomplish what matters! Crystal is a busy entrepreneur and mother of six who has been on a journey including secondary infertility, foster care, adoption, and caring for a child with special needs. 

How does she decide what to take on and what to say no to at any given time? Crystal shares her six by two priority system - six priorities, focusing on two each day. These are her top priorities:

1. Spiritual health
2. Marriage
3. Kids
4. Home
5. Business
6. Friendships

Rotating the focus of these priorities during the week gives her a little breathing room, while still making sure she accomplishes what matters. Next week Crystal Paine will continue her conversation with Kathi, as they chat about planning systems and how to turn these priorities into action steps.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to be notified when the next episode is released. When you do you will also receive a free Clutter Free Kit with handouts and video interview with Kathi!

Crystal Paine

Money Saving Mom

The Time Saving Mom

Undone by Michele Cushatt

Renee Swope

Weekend at Bernie’s

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Subscribe on iTunes or subscribe to our newsletter now. Kathi's Favorites:

The Clutter-Free Home

Learn more about Clutter Free for Life.

Clutter Free Academy Facebook Group

Sponsor Highlight: Get affordable, private therapy with BetterHelp anytime, anywhere.

Special offer for our Clutter Free community – get 10% off your first month at betterhelp.com/clutterfree (code clutterfree will automatically be applied)

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Do you feel guilty that you’re not doing more? Keeping your house up to snuff? Taking care of yourself and others? If guilt seems to follow you around wherever you go, then this episode is for you!

Kathi is talking with author and Bible teacher Barb Roose about her struggles with perfectionism and performance, and how that affects both her closet and her faith in God. 

Here are Barb’s 3 rules for a better closet:

1. Don’t wear it if it makes you sad.
2. If it doesn’t fit your current body or style, get rid of it.
3. Don’t let fear or shame make you keep clothing that doesn’t fit your current size.

Barb says that our closets are full of memories, and our relationship with God is the same way. How can we move on from experiences in our past that bring up feelings of guilt today? Barb has been on a spiritual journey: moving from a place where guilt robbed her of feeling like she could connect with God, to a place of freedom and understanding of how big God’s love is.

Her life has been changed by focusing more on the promises of God, and less on her performance for Him. Her favorite prayer in a time of need? “Save me O God.” That 4 word prayer is a whole prayer. Barb reminds us of God’s promise from Isaiah 43: “When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown.” 

So take a deep breath, remember God’s promises to you, and then do the next right thing.

Barb is giving a copy of her book to one lucky Clutter Free Academy listener! To enter, let us know in the comments what is one thing, figuratively or literally, that you want to declutter from your closet.

Links Mentioned:

Guest Host: Barb Roose

Finding Jesus in the Psalms

Enough Already: Winning Your Ugly Struggle with Beauty

Beautiful Already Bible Study

(in)courage Let's stay connected

To share your thoughts:

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Subscribe on iTunes or subscribe to our newsletter now. Kathi's Favorites: 

The Clutter-Free Home

Learn more about Clutter Free for Life.

Clutter Free Academy Facebook Group

Click here for Kathi's Clutter Free kit (4 steps to a Clutter Free home). 

Sorting and shifting through a life time of memories and mementos can be emotionally and physically overwhelming for our parents and older relatives. But space is a finite resource. So how can we best start this process of helping our parents or older relatives declutter? In Part 2 of this two part series our host Kathi Lipp and her co-conspirator in decluttering Tonya Kubo discuss Korean food and simple, stress relieving strategies to help your parent or older relative declutter such as:

• • Defining the three options for decluttering help
  • Documenting the process to record their memories?
  • What to do when they want you to take some mementos home with you. Be prepared, they WILL want you to take some mementos home with you!

Kathi and Tonya provide a variety of tips and techniques in this episode. Listen in and discover hope and help for the parent, older relative, and you on this clutter free journey.

Links Mentioned:

The Clutter-Free Home

Learn more about Clutter Free for Life. Let's stay connected

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Click here for Kathi's Clutter Free kit (4 steps to a Clutter Free home).  Guest Host: Tonya Kubo

Has this happened to you yet? A parent or older relative asks for help decluttering their space. Do they really want help? Are they telling you what they think you want to hear? Having a parent or older relative who needs to declutter is an acute pain point. Kathi Lipp and her guest know this pain far to well. Listen in as Kathi and Clutter Free Academy Facebook Group guru Tonya Kubo discuss those questions as well as:

• Why do they ask their children instead of a friend to help declutter?
• What are they actually asking for when they say declutter?
• Is it okay to let people live the way they want, baring a safety issue?

Kathi and Tonya admit to opening a can of worms in Part 1 of this two part series but they do not leave us empty handed. They provide some practical tips to starting the decluttering process with older relatives and parents to tide us over until Part 2.

Let's stay connected: To share your thoughts:  • Leave a note in the comment section below.  • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest. Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help and I read each one. Subscribe on iTunes or subscribe to our newsletter now. Click here for Kathi's Clutter Free kit (4 steps to a Clutter Free home).  Guest Host: Tonya Kubo Links Mentioned: The Clutter-Free Home Learn more about Clutter Free for Life.

When decluttering a space, what do you do when you come across something good, but you don’t love it, don’t use it, and wouldn’t buy it again? Some would never get rid of something that is potentially useful. It can be a struggle to know what to do with your stuff!

In today’s episode, Kathi is joined by the ever-effervescent Tonya Kubo as they talk villain origin stories and the clutter quandaries of fancy photo backdrops and chicken diapers. Here are some helpful hints that will help you sort through what to sell, what to donate, and what to toss:

Determine what the item is currently worth. Ask how much time you want to invest in getting rid of it. Would someone else enjoy and get use out of that item? Bottom line: Value your time, value your money, and value the process. You can do this! Need some encouragement? Join us on Facebook in Kathi Lipp’s Clutter Free Academy.

Subscribe to the podcast here and get your free Clutter Free Kit with handouts and video interview with Kathi!

Let’s stay connected:

Leave a note in the comment section below. Share this show on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest. Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help and I read each one.

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Special Guest: Tonya Kubo

Links Mentioned:

Clutter Free Academy

Kathi Lipp’s Clutter Free Academy | Facebook

Gifts Differing: Understanding Personality Type by Isabel Briggs Myers

Buy Nothing Project

Have you ever found yourself in a crisis? Sometimes we know a crisis is coming and other times, it takes us by surprise. Decluttering might not take top priority during a crisis but decluttering can help us feel that we can handle the crisis so much better. In this episode Kathi and her partner in decluttering and chicken wrangling Roger Lipp discuss their latest adventures homesteading through the latest California “bomb storms” and how decluttering can significantly impact the way you feel during a crisis. Listen in and discover:

• How to plan in advance for a crisis
• Three tips to staying decluttered during a crisis
• The saying, “Madder than a wet hen” is a real thing!

Let's stay connected

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Click here for Kathi's Clutter Free kit (4 steps to a Clutter Free home). 

Guest Host: Roger Lipp

Links Mentioned:

The Clutter-Free Home

Learn more about Clutter Free for Life.

Windy weather app

Have you wondered why some clutter is harder to make decisions about and why some clutter never seems to disappear? All clutter is not created equal and comes from different sources. So, to make the tough decisions about our clutter we need to determine what type of clutter we're dealing with. Thankfully, we have Kathi and Tonya, leader of all things clutter-free, here helping us figure it out. So, if you want to be clutter-free in 2023 and want to make this your year, tune in to learn how to go straight to the root and determine exactly what clutter you're dealing with: 

• House Clutter
• Heart Clutter  
• Head Clutter 

Guest host: Tonya Kubo

To share your thoughts:

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Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help and I read each one. Kathi's book: The Clutter Free Home

Click here for my Clutter Free kit (4 steps to a Clutter Free home). 

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What do eating green bananas and decluttering have in common? More than one would think! Join Kathi Lipp and writer, educator, and fellow recovering green banana eater Amy Betters-Midtvedt as they laugh and discuss their way through topics such as:

• How to figure out what we like and not settle all the time.
• How to not get stuck in a poverty mindset.
• Why it’s okay to order an ice cream sundae just for yourself!

And as promised by Kathi in the episode, here’s a copy of Amy’s Green Banana Article for your enjoyment and edification.

There was a time I just ate bananas. Like any banana. I’d buy them put them in my lunch and eat them. Green, light green, yellow, brown I didn’t pay much attention. Then one day I was driving to my awesome college job at Gap kids, and I took a bite of my greenish banana. I realized it wasn’t good. As a matter of fact every time I ate a greenish banana I didn’t really like it. Suddenly I realized I didn’t like green bananas. And I didn’t have to eat any banana I didn’t like. I was a legit grown up I could pick the color of bananas I would eat. I rolled down my window and SPIT OUT the gross banana in my mouth and to this day I’ve never eaten a banana with a grace of green. Life is too short for green bananas. This life lesson has served me well in a million areas of my life. With friendships, jobs, picking out jeans and how I spend my time on a Saturday. The applications are endless. Tonight I share this lesson with you. You don’t have to eat green bananas either my friends. Only eat bananas you really enjoy. Pass it on.

Guest host: Amy Betters-Midtvedt 

To share your thoughts:

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Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help and I read each one.

Click here for my Clutter Free kit (4 steps to a Clutter Free home). 

Subscribe on iTunes or subscribe to our newsletter now.

Have you ever made a New Year's Resolution to start decluttering but then thought, “Where do I start?” You are not alone! Kathi and friend, author, and social media guru Tonya Kubo are with us today discussing tips and tools to decreasing stress and increasing peace though living a clutter free life, as well as a very unexpected and surprising career Tonya had in the past! Listen and discover:

• The three types of clutter
• Products to help you organize your time

How using totes can help you in your clutter free journey

What if you were able to create a life where you not only got rid of the clutter in each room of your house but were able to stay on top of it?

What if you learned to organize in a way that made sense to you so that once you decluttered, you could find the things that were important enough to keep?

What if you could live in a house that was at peace?

You’ve been thinking about how this will be the year to finally declutter your house and create the home you’ve always dreamed of. One that is filled with peace instead of stuff.

Is changing your home something you’d like to start working on? Because, right now, I have a plan that will show you how: Clutter Free For Life

To share your thoughts:

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Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help and I read each one.

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Guest host: Tonya Kubo

Links Mentioned:

Dyson Vaccum

Dual Trash Can 

Timer 

3 Tote System: Green, Purple, & Orange or 3 Different Colors 

Tote Options We Love:

Tote bag 

Collapsable Tote

Waterproof Tote

Utility Tote