I was recently working at a beautifully restored Victorian home that is coming back to life after surviving this past year's flooding. I know I harp on the fact that we all have a lot of stuff, but this job led me to ponder this subject again. People have so many belongings, covering every surface space that we really can't keep track of what we have, and often can't find what we need, so we may go buy more to replace the missing items. When we have a lot of stuff it takes more of our time to keep it all together. Refreshing our memories as to where things are takes time, and it seems that in this day and age, we all spend more time with our things than with each other.

After spending two full days planning space for a very large kitchen, I couldn't help but wonder how difficult it would be to maintain such an elaborate kitchen. I know, we're in the Napa Valley where intriguing food and "over-the-top, but-not-trying-to-be" entertaining is the norm. Therefore, my clients argue, "We must keep everything" and when you have a very large space, chances are you will keep everything.

My theory is that you should first remove everything from your cupboards, drawers or closets. Once you see what you really own, you can make a systematic purging. When you can deduce that you have seven white pitchers you can decide to keep two of them, and if you have an enormous amount of extra space, then keep one or two more for those wine auction dinners.

Be strict, and don't convince yourself you need to keep items for a rainy day. Chances are, if you have a cluttered space in one room of your home or a certain area in your office, it has spilled into others areas as well. This process is about keeping things from overflowing.

Do you value time with your stuff or time for yourself?

If you own less, then you obviously have less to contend with. You'll then have more time to spend on things that really matter to you and your family. Having a systematic purging day, or a scheduled time each month where you closely examine your stuff, can really help. I have clients that spend Friday mornings organizing a certain room in their house. It's hard to designate the time, but I guarantee that being able to quickly find what you're looking for will make your life a lot easier. Since an average three bedroom home has over 350,000 things in it, you can imagine how hard it is to keep it all together and to know where everything is. Keeping less to maintain, you'll have less overall chaos.

It may seem like a lot of work to get the ball rolling and to take the time to really commit to the organization process. But it's worthwhile. If you choose to own a limited amount of items, you will know how much you have, and where it can be easily found.

Lanna Nakone is the author of "Organizing for Your Brain Type" and "Every Child Has a Thinking Style." She can be reached by e-mail at www.organizedworld.com or by calling 524-9896.