Get rid of it all 2019

[MrsRobinson]

I am late to this decluttering party but I have been decluttering slowly but surely this past week. 

1. I started small and cleaned out the cabinet under the bathroom sink. Now everything we truly use actually fits without spilling out when the doors are opened!

2. I cleaned out 1 of 2 drawers under the bathroom sink. Kids are so sloppy and gross with toothpaste! 😠 

3. I cleaned out the linen closet that is just outside the bathroom in the hallway.  Once again, the door now closes nicely and there is no avalanche waiting on the other side of it. One bag of old mismatched towels out to the SUV to be donated.

4. Dd and I went through all her clothes and put 3 trash bags full of outgrown clothing in the SUV. 2 bags to a friend. 1 bag to a charity. Now we have a list of what she needs in her current size and I took pictures of a few pretty tunic tops that need skirts or leggings because nothing she has goes with them.

5. I did the Kon Mari method on all of the boys' clothes. That was a huge hours long project. But, now all of their clothes available to them in their dressers and hanging in their closet fit them! And the clothes fit in the spaces designated for them. There are 2 boxes of boy clothes going to a relative, 2 trash bags of boy clothes and shoes going to a friend, and another 2 trash bags going to a charity. I was determined to fit it all in my SUV so that next time I leave the house, I have to drop it all off at the different locations to have space my vehicle again for children and/or groceries! 😂 Its packed full! Feels great!

6. Today I am working on paperwork. So far I have everything in one space and I have sorted most of it. I have one trash bag full of paper to shred. I have one plastic milk crate that's still half full. Once I'm done sorting that, I have to figure out how I want to organize and streamline paperwork. I am open to suggestions. I need something portable since I don't have an office. I also plan on going through any bills that come in the mail and setting up paperless statements. They are all on auto pay anyway, so why am I still hassling with paper statements??

It was fun reading through this thread the last couple days in between decluttering times to see what everyone else has been up to. 😊

[ScoutTN]

On 1/12/2019 at 10:30 AM, mommyoffive said:

 That is my biggest problem is that I feel guilty for getting rid of things that people give us, that still have value, or there is nothing wrong with them.  

Don't feel guilty! Those items will be a blessing to someone! They will be used and appreciated. We have gotten many excellent quality clothes, shoes, books, etc. at thrift shops. We are on a tight budget and it is so encouraging to get nice things for not much money. 

[ScoutTN]

I did Wild Thing's room yesterday. He really does play with all the toys, so I didn't cull too much. Mostly cleaning and reorganizing. I took about one kitchen trash bag in the trash, while several large toys and a stack of clothes go to thrift.

Next up:

framed photos

kitchen

[mommyoffive]

34 minutes ago, ScoutTN said:

Don't feel guilty! Those items will be a blessing to someone! They will be used and appreciated. We have gotten many excellent quality clothes, shoes, books, etc. at thrift shops. We are on a tight budget and it is so encouraging to get nice things for not much money. 

 

Yes, what a good reminder.  I need to think that way instead of the guilt.  I want to look up a women and children's shelter and see if they would want toys and clothes.  I don't know how easy that will be since I heard a lot of them don't want their addresses to be known. 

[Zoo Keeper]

Two bags of kids' clothes going another family....

and I deep cleaned the refrigerator this weekend.  Took everything out--food, shelves, drawers--scrubbed it all, and it looks so much nicer now.  How do fridges get so filthy?

[Carrie12345]

Today, I tossed 3 couch pillows.  I have hated them for, I don't know, about 3 years? They came with our (very first brand-new, and expensive by my standards) sectional couch. They were too big and heavy to be practical, and they constantly oozed feathers that would wind up everywhere. My only reason for keeping the all this time was that they came with the couch!  Now they're gone.

I also "detailed" my vacuum, which was already prettty dirty, but downright disgusting after all this cleaning!

[frogger]

Reading this thread made me realize places I could declutter.  Typically I love decluttering so I don't have big areas to do but there are some small ones sneaking by.

The medicine/vitamin box above my microwave. It's in a hard to get to spot because we are blessed to almost never need it. By the time we do almost everything is expired anyway.

The science cabinet. I suppose because it's in the garage I forget about it especially since I'm not doing much science this year. Kids are doing dual enrollment, car science with Dad, or simple do it themselves things as I focus on other subjects. I bet I could get rid of 70-80% of that stuff and never miss it. 

 

Edited to add, I offered to clean it all out and consolidate stuff so DH could use the shelves. He doesn't even want them and stated he just needs to get rid of stuff. 😱

Edited January 14, 2019 by frogger

[Carrie12345]

9 hours ago, frogger said:

 

The science cabinet. I suppose because it's in the garage I forget about it especially since I'm not doing much science this year. Kids are doing dual enrollment, car science with Dad, or simple do it themselves things as I focus on other subjects. I bet I could get rid of 70-80% of that stuff and never miss it. 

 

I have been procrastinating on science stuff.  Well, homeschool stuff in general has me in avoidance/denial mode, but science in particular. See, I hate teaching science, but it's also really important to me. So I invested heavily in it through a combination of sales and well timed bonus checks, lol. I have quite a lot of elementary and middle school lab stuff, plus an assortment of curriculum and random books. But I put my elementary and middle school students in co-op science classes so I don't have to do it!

It needs to happen, but I'm going to continue to push it to the botttom of the list.

[historically accurate]

I spent most of yesterday in the kitchen, so I straightened/decluttered a few things in there. 

I cleaned the bottom of the pantry where big containers go to die. Threw out the a couple of containers of dried out lemonade mix and took out an empty Tupperware container, swept it, and put back the oatmeal, ramen and sweet potatoes. I decided I should probably get rid of the stack of Taste of Home magazines as well. I just haven't pulled them - there are most likely some bits of paper stuck in the stack and I didn't have time to go through them. 

I have one of those deep corner cupboards that is hard to reach in - you have to sit on the floor and crawl in to reach anything.I'm hoping to be able to downsize enough to leave it empty. It's huge, dark, and I lose things in there. I glanced in yesterday and just closed it back up. Maybe that is today's job? 

[Carrie12345]

A little reflecting:

I think part of my problem with getting rid of "stuff" and better managing the rest, at least in the past few years, has been because my house needs so much REAL work. This small space has taken a beating over 13+ years with so many people and pets, in addition to the more average stuff. The carpets are battered, laminate has gaps, tiles are cracked, and I'm not sure if there's a single wall that hasn't been patched and spackled or at least needs to be, whether from natural cracks, a leaking roof, or kids being obnoxious. Purging and cleaning wasn't going to be solving the problems that were outside of our budget and time.

Now that I've been working on it anyway, yeah, some things are standing out more. But instead of making things feel more pointless, it's got me and even dh trying to think a little more creatively and looking at what we can do on the cheap. So painting is going to get under way as soon as the weather allows. (I don't want to live in paint fumes through the winter.) We're looking at doing flooring ourselves, even though that's not my first choice, but dh did a good job in the girls' room a long time ago. I'm going to learn how to fix crooked cabinet doors once and for all. And I'm considering going with laminate countertops because my dream counters aren't going to happen anytime soon and my crumbling counters (which began crumbling shortly after moving in) are probably what bother me the most.

So, my to do list is growing and growing, but in an exciting way instead of a paralyzingly way.  Plus, paint and flooring means moving lots of books, so that's some extra motivation to get really critical about what to keep.  Other stuff, too, but seriously - the books!!!

My one regret is that I didn't get more radical when putting away Christmas stuff. I keep thinking about what I could have eliminated before it got boxed up and put in an inconvenient location. I've been able to go back to other stuff and find things to toss on a second look, but Christmas won't come out again for another 10+ months.

[StaceyinLA]

Saturday I was able to get some things done before going stay at dd’s to help her get ready for dgd’s bday party yesterday (and I actually bought dgd -3- two very practical gifts; a pottery barn backpack because she was obsessed with her older sister’s, and it’s something she can use when she starts spending the night here or at her other grandparents’ house, and a triple dolly bunk bed to take the place of a cradle so they have room for their Bitty Babies and AG doll.

That particular dd is working toward minimalist herself and prefers to just add on to things they have versus getting new, less useful toys.

Anyway, I tackled my upstairs closet that had a lot of craft stuff, stampin up stamp sets I’ll never use, wrapping paper, ribbon, and all my pics that aren’t in albums, as well as bigger ones that need framing and framed ones that need changing. I have pulled out everything I knew needed to go, and I now have to really delve into what I’ve kept and see if I can eliminate some of it. It’s definitely an all-day project, so I couldn’t finish Saturday, but might try to get to the rest after my eye doctor appt.

Gonna put the stampin up sets on eBay and throw in some of the random craft items with those just to see if I can get a little pocket change. I mean why not?

My kitchen counters and table got tackled too. My counters weren’t really bad, but I did have a couple decorative items that just really didn’t need to be there. My fruit basket on the kitchen table had become a catch-all for random crap, so I cleaned it out and removed it from the table. I relocated it to a spot on the counter because my chickens are starting to lay, and I’m gonna use it to store eggs.

The only thing I’m struggling with on the counter is my stainless compost bin. Any suggestions for a better place for it? I like to collect scraps for my chickens, so I love having it, but just don’t love it sitting out by my sink.

[BooksandBoys]

It’s fun to see your progress, everyone. Nice work! 

The kids and I decluttered the basement/toy area yesterday. Three bags of trash (WHY do my children keep everything??) and a bag to donate. Yay! 

[Faith-manor]

I am going through this very weird thing where I have this nagging feeling that we need to get rid of a ton of stuff, and yet no indication at all that we would be moving soon. I mean, the feeling is so strong that I've look around the house and thought, "I should haul about 70% of it out of here and have a bon fire in the back yard! So bizarre!

At any rate, for today a small box of mugs - we have our favorites such as NAR, NASA, and college mugs that we always drink from so who needs 25 other coffee mugs???? - and a box of books went out of here.

I have a small cabinet of decorative supplies that I never use. All of that is getting bagged up and donated.

[Ravin]

I filled a bag with trash from DD's bedroom floor yesterday, and Saturday I actually dropped 2 bags of outgrown/cast-off clothes to Goodwill. DS voluntarily winnowed out some shirts that were too small. I let her know that next time I tell her to fill a bag with trash, if she doesn't do it, I'll just throw out one of her garbage bags full of stuff in the shed (there are upwards of a dozen of them). The stuff I piled on her couch and against the wall that weren't trash, she was ordered to find homes for and put away.

GF volunteered our 4th bedroom (home of DH's server, supposed to be a functional craft room, currently playing the role of oversized clutter-repository from cleaning elsewhere) to some friends who are coming in from out of state for a funeral in a few weeks. So, the pressure is now on me to get that room (except the server, it's pretty much all my and a little bit the kids' stuff in there) cleaned up and put in order in time for guests! I have 2 weekends to get it done, and cookie season is nearly up on us. Argh!

[historically accurate]

Yesterday, I recycled the Taste of Home magazines. It's easier to search Pinterest for recipes than a magazine. I cleaned off the top of my nightstand. I listed one thing on FB Marketplace; 3 bites, but no pickup yet. It was mainly a get-it-out-of-the-house day. I dropped off books at the library and the little free library. I donated a box to Salvation Army. I mailed out a Kindle that I sold on ebay. I gave a pile of little kid stuff to a friend. 

Today, I've got some errands and schoolwork to do with the kids. Declutter-wise, I'd like to take stuff out of the corner cabinet in the kitchen and see what's in there. I'd like to list one more thing for sale today. I've got a few things in the pile to sell, just have to get up the gumption. 

[StaceyinLA]

I got some stuff listed on eBay yesterday. If it doesn’t sell, I’ll give local a try for an overall cheaper price and, if that doesn’t work, all the stampin up stuff gets donated. I’d love to pick up a little money from that particular stuff, but ultimately, getting rid of it is what matters.

Did some food prep for the week the rest of the day, and two of my dds were here for dinner with their kids, so didn’t really accomplish much else in the way of cleaning out.

Question - I’m curious as to what yall think for a kitchen table - cleaned off completely, or some little decoration in the center? Mine is right when you come in my back door, and is kinda long and narrow - very rustic. It looks empty without the basket collecting crap, but IDK if I need to just get used to it, or put something there. If so, what?

[SamanthaCarter]

3 minutes ago, StaceyinLA said:

 

Question - I’m curious as to what yall think for a kitchen table - cleaned off completely, or some little decoration in the center? Mine is right when you come in my back door, and is kinda long and narrow - very rustic. It looks empty without the basket collecting crap, but IDK if I need to just get used to it, or put something there. If so, what?

We have a pretty little blown glass oil lamp that I keep on a trivet with the salt and pepper grinders in the middle of our table. When I’m doing well at keeping the area nice. 

[StaceyinLA]

7 minutes ago, SamanthaCarter said:

We have a pretty little blown glass oil lamp that I keep on a trivet with the salt and pepper grinders in the middle of our table. When I’m doing well at keeping the area nice. 

 

A cute salt/pepper set would be a neat idea, and it hit me right after I posted; maybe a cute napkin holder for some cloth napkins.

Still open to other suggestions as well.

Edited January 15, 2019 by StaceyinLA

[HS Mom in NC]

2 hours ago, StaceyinLA said:

Question - I’m curious as to what yall think for a kitchen table - cleaned off completely, or some little decoration in the center? Mine is right when you come in my back door, and is kinda long and narrow - very rustic. It looks empty without the basket collecting crap, but IDK if I need to just get used to it, or put something there. If so, what?

I can get a small bunch of fresh cut flowers at my grocery store for $4.  They last about 10 days.  I usually get 2 bunches and put them on my dining table. If I didn't like an empty kitchen table I would put out a single bunch.  I love a bit of outdoors inside and a pop of color.

[Lecka]

Right now I have a candle on mine.  I had a table runner from Thanksgiving through New Year's.  I like having a table runner sometimes, and then not sometimes.  I have two figurines and a bowl that put on the table runner, that can go on my china cabinet and on a lamp table.  I put holiday decorations on the china cabinet and lamp table sometimes.  

I like either way. 

[Soror]

re: kitchen table- I have a large antique crock that holds our fruit in the middle, cloth napkins go on the windowsill. In the middle of the dining table is a wicker basket of sorts that holds cloth napkins, I put the salt and pepper there when we eat and if I have flowers they go in a vase in the middle.

[Carrie12345]

5 hours ago, StaceyinLA said:

Question - I’m curious as to what yall think for a kitchen table - cleaned off completely, or some little decoration in the center? Mine is right when you come in my back door, and is kinda long and narrow - very rustic. It looks empty without the basket collecting crap, but IDK if I need to just get used to it, or put something there. If so, what?

We have a wooden bowl of nuts, lol. Symbolic, simple, and practical!

[Ravin]

We don't actually have a kitchen table. The "dining area" in our townhouse has DH's and GF's computers on desks along one wall, and the kids (and me when I decide to eat in there and everyone is there at once so no one else's spot is free) sit at folding chairs in front of TV trays behind DH's and GF's chairs to eat.

The kitchen tables we used to have live on the patio and have gotten very weather-beaten, but still get covered and used for big get-togethers. One is about ready for the dumpster, though (one leg is splitting vertically and it's gotten quite wobbly). If we had bulk pick up here, we'd have gotten rid of it by now.

[SamanthaCarter]

I need to go thrifting! lol!

I thought you all might be interested to hear that I mariekondo-ed the kids clothes with each kid today. I have a whole laundry basket of things they’ve rejected, and they each teamed with me and got the drawers neatly arranged. The two girls dressers (actually 3-drawer nightstands, roomy enough) are full, but ds freed up an entire bottom drawer of his dresser. He’s excited about that. 

[StaceyinLA]

9 hours ago, SamanthaCarter said:

I need to go thrifting! lol!

I thought you all might be interested to hear that I mariekondo-ed the kids clothes with each kid today. I have a whole laundry basket of things they’ve rejected, and they each teamed with me and got the drawers neatly arranged. The two girls dressers (actually 3-drawer nightstands, roomy enough) are full, but ds freed up an entire bottom drawer of his dresser. He’s excited about that. 

 

My oldest daughter’s girls each have a little 3 drawer chest from Ikea that’s more like a nightstand. The drawers were loaded and things were so messy. She did the Marie Kondo folding thing with their stuff, and it was an amazing transformation. I can’t believe how much she can fit in those tiny drawers.

I wound up doing it for my things in my 3 drawer chest (from Ikea, but bigger). I don’t really have a ton of clothes, but I like how I can see everything.

I’m forever trying to get my second dd to do it for her 3 kids’ drawers because they’re ridiculous.

[Ravin]

Yesterday, I cleared all the clutter off the top of one of the filing cabinets in my office at work. Things have been slow here...

My goals for this weekend:

1. Get the Craft Room at least halfway picked up. Right now, it's a disaster. Boxes of stuff thrown up there when cleaning other parts of the house, months of clutter from DD not cleaning up after herself properly when doing craft projects... and so on.

2. Spend at least an hour working on DS's room. It is so far beyond him even knowing where to start on his own, I want to get it into order and then start working with him on keeping it that way. I'm hoping if I can declutter and organize things he will like the space more and actually remember he has toys.

[historically accurate]

I attacked the scary corner cupboard. There wasn't as much stuff back there as I had feared. I did have many mixing bowls stuffed in there. I gave about 4 bowls to my brother - he only had Pyrex that he's been using, so he thought he would try these. It now holds my large crockpot, the 2 quart pitcher, DH's iced tea machine and a stack of mixing bowls. Everything can be grabbed from the door. A couple of things made it to the donation pile.

I finally got someone to come pick up the bed tent (one of those hang-y fairy things for over the bed); I had to go through 3 people on FB marketplace, but it's finally gone.

I straightened all of the board games so they don't look crammed in there anymore although I didn't de-clutter any. We're playing through them this year (there are 49 games in there), and I will ditch those that are no longer loved. I could probably sell one or two of the chess sets and clocks - all three of my kids did tournaments for a couple years, so they all had their own travel bag. No one has done a tournament for 2 years. 

I bought Christmas paper at Dollar Tree after the holiday, and it is still sitting in my bedroom. Today, I have to figure out where to store the paper - it's too long for my under the bed box. Maybe I should look under the bed too? Who knows what's been kicked under there over the years!

[historically accurate]

Crawled under the bed yesterday. Got rid of some gift boxes, organized the gift wrap, and tamed giant dust bunnies. Listed 2 mermaid blankets on FB since the kids prefer to snuggle together with one giant blanket over them. I put a set of sheets into the donate pile - DH said he didn't like the feel of them.

I really should go through the dollhouse stuff; it's the last big area of my stuff. I'm trying not to touch anyone else's stuff unless they ask. 

[maize]

I've been bringing in bins from my shed to go through. I cleaned up the house last year by shoving stuff out there because I had no time or energy for anything else. 

I'd rather go through it out there than drag it back in but it's too cold!

I took several bags to the thrift shop last week, we'll see if I can pull off more this week.

[Murphy101]

Yay! One of the college kids just took two truck loads of stuff away with him. YAY!

[Murphy101]

Oh!  For wrapping paper! Attach it like a huge paper towel holder underneath a table. Then you can use the top of the table for wrapping.  Out of sight. Out of mind. And yet right where you need it when you need it. 

[ScoutTN]

Culled Christmas CDs.

Dropped a bag, plus one large toy at thrift.

[maize]

I'm almost through sorting out a bin of mostly toys that were covered in chalk. We have a gymnastics mini bar and I had purchased powdered chalk in a bag for the kids to use with it and somehow the chalk bag ended up exploded all over this bin. 

It was mostly duplos and magformers which fortunately rince off easily. What a mess though. 

I need to go finish.

Not giving away anything from that bin but I did throw out a few things that weren't worth cleaning or were junk anyway.

[Murphy101]

52 minutes ago, heartlikealion said:

I know sometimes "less is more" but right now I think I need more of a few things to simplify my life, ironically. 

 

 

Having the right tools for the job is a valid part of minimizing. It’s not just about getting rid of stuff. It’s about making sure you have the right stuff in the right places too. 

[hjffkj]

I'm joining in.  We're packing up the house right now because we settle on our new home at the end of Feb.  This weekend, we're doing some major packing and decluttering. My goal for this weekend is to pack up the playroom, and our 2 remaining bedrooms, except for the clothes we'll need. My other goal is to fill the van up entirely of stuff for goodwill.

Dh and the oldest 3 are out for the evening, so I plan on tackling the playroom with the younger two tonight

[hjffkj]

I made a huge dent in the playroom tonight. I'd say it is 90% packed.  I filled up a bag of trash and two bags for Goodwill.  I wanted to get more done but both kids had fevers pop up and needed lots of cuddles.  Thankfully the fevers are gone again. More packing will commence tomorrow

[historically accurate]

I found a pile of DH's pants hidden in our closet yesterday. They all looked like new. I think he just put them on the upper shelf when I brought them home from Goodwill instead of trying them on maybe? I think he was channeling his inner teenager when he stuffed them up there LOL! One pair of jeans were too big, but the two pair of dress pants both fit. So, yay, free new pants and 1 pair of jeans went to the donate pile. Also found one of DH's old study guides which he threw out.

Took pictures of some dollhouse stuff to sell - hoping to list them today. Opened up the box of American Girl stuff the kids want to get rid of to start sorting/photographing to sell (DH's pants were underneath it). Someone contacted me this morning regarding one of the mermaid blankets on FB Marketplace; hopefully, she'll show up today.

[Hoggirl]

I went through my dresser and closet yesterday.  I only produced one bag of clothing to give away, but I had gone through the closet in early December.  I re-folded all the items in my dresser drawers.  I’ve been watching Marie Kondo, and even though I had read her books in the past, I had let the folding slide.  The only thing I didn’t fold that way were sweaters - they just seem to bulky to me.  I tend to hang as many of my clothes as I can, which I think helps with soft, silky-type fabrics. 

I also went through books, but only found four to get rid of. 

I think I will do the kitchen today.  I know I am going to need a new organization tools for the drawer with the majority of the kitchen utensils.  We dont’ have much storage in our kitchen, and a lot of is inaccessible without a step stool for me. 

We did such a HUGE purge when we moved and down-sized that there isn’t that much to weed through.  But, the weather is yucky today, so it seems like a good idea to do some cleaning out today.

[Carrie12345]

Okay, a little embarrassing here...

I finally started to tackle the last of the kitchen this morning.  I have a tiny kitchen. It is HARD to organize! I’ve rejected most standard advice because it’s such a ridiculous layout. But I was cleaning out one particular cabinet and realized I could raise the shelf in there!  Doing so made it possible to try out the whole vertical sheet pan (etc.) concept! And I think I really like it!  In turn, that freed up space under the oven and eliminated the need to store things IN the oven @@.  I also freed up some space to store lesser used items in the deep dead space I have. I’ve only gotten rid of 3 things so far, but everything seems much more under control now.

The really embarrassing part: I dove into the scary cabinet.  The lower 12” one that’s shoved in the corner and awkward to access. It only ever houses a tiny cooler (that I might ditch), the baby Fry Daddy, oils, vinegars, breadcrumbs, and onions... including very old onions!!!  One of the kids must have shoved them toward the back.  They were so gross and, once I lifted them, SMELLY!!!  Lots of scrubbing while trying to be a contortionist was involved.  I’m counting that as getting rid of major clutter! 🤢

[Hoggirl]

7 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

Okay, a little embarrassing here...

I finally started to tackle the last of the kitchen this morning.  I have a tiny kitchen. It is HARD to organize! I’ve rejected most standard advice because it’s such a ridiculous layout. But I was cleaning out one particular cabinet and realized I could raise the shelf in there!  Doing so made it possible to try out the whole vertical sheet pan (etc.) concept! And I think I really like it!  In turn, that freed up space under the oven and eliminated the need to store things IN the oven @@.  I also freed up some space to store lesser used items in the deep dead space I have. I’ve only gotten rid of 3 things so far, but everything seems much more under control now.

 

This was about how mine went today.  Our kitchen is also small.  I got rid of very little, but did get it better organized.  It took much longer than I expected.  I have several spaces that just aren’t that accessible, and I don’t have that much stuff that we don’t use on a regular basis, so it’s not like there are tons of things to put in there that aren’t often used.  

But, it got done, and it is definitely more logical in arrangement now. 

[Tina]

On 12/30/2018 at 2:52 PM, hornblower said:

I'm trying to but I'm in such a weird head space. It's so hard for me to get rid of stuff suddenly. 

Box up what you haven't used in a while and stack the boxes in the garage.  If you don't miss having the items taking up space and/or haven't used them in 6 or 12 months, odds are you can just haul them away!

 

[Ema]

Joining the fun! Getting rid of old coats, snowpants, etc that I don’t want to keep around for 6 years until our 3 month will wear them, stained/ripped clothing that our 7yr old keeps shoving back into her drawer instead of washing them and putting them in the to-go box (I swear she is so attached to her ripped jeans she will weep when I throw them), getting rid of a bunch of toys and trying to only have legos, train tracks, and a SMALL smattering of Playmobil/Calico Critters. On the other hand, need to start getting some baby toys besides some crinkly Taggie square for our 3 month old (sigh. Can’t she just play with wooden spoons???) Need to ditch ugly couch, old craft stuff, and doll house that is falling apart that some one gave us, and to find a new home for our old dining room chairs. Hopefully this thread will keep me going!

[hjffkj]

Well yesterday we packed up about 80% of the kids room. Since today is still a weekend for us, I'll be pushing real hard to finish all the bedrooms today.  Probably, 30 minutes in the kids room and it will be done.  But then there is our room.  That shouldn't take too long though since I didn't pull much of our stuff out when we moved into my parents' house.

[historically accurate]

DH had another pair of pants sitting up on the top shelf in the closet!!! WTH, Dude? Well, anyway, another pair of dress pants for him. Got rid of a small piece of luggage that isn't needed anymore. Top of the closet is looking pretty good now.

Lady apologized for not coming for the blanket yesterday, begged me to come today. So we shall see if she shows up today. 

Threw away all of the old leftovers in the fridge today since it is garbage day (maybe? with the holiday maybe not?). 

[Carrie12345]

I started going through photo boxes (anything to put off the book purge!) and found a box that wasn’t photos, but old cards. The bulk were little cards to each of the 5 kids from people we don’t like. A bunch were signed, but no idea who they were meant for. Lots were easily dumped! And we were able to find at least one sweet card to each of the kids from their great grandmother who passed away last year. 

Also reduced my binders of photo negatives from 4 to 2! Most by purging, some by combining. 

[maize]

I've got one donate bag in the van, three more half filled (in different rooms cause I can't stick to one task LOL).

I have a preposterous number of single shoes in all sizes and can't for the life of me figure out where the matches are.

Really want ALL the stuff gone. SO TIRED OF TAKING CARE OF STUFF.

Edited January 21, 2019 by maize

[historically accurate]

Random bits and pieces yesterday:

I found yet more expired food in the pantry yesterday - I thought I went through it all, but obviously not. So, pantry is looking good now. Here's hoping I've gone through it all now! 

I was able to get rid of a few cookbooks, so with those and the Taste of Home magazines gone, I have a empty shelf on that small bookcase. I painted a little birdhouse one of my kids made a couple of years ago that just sat on the dining room/school counter (for those couple of years!) and it now sits on the empty shelf. It's ok as far as decoration goes. The kids little ozobot sits next to it since it can be plugged in from there - it also was just sitting on the counter for the last few weeks. 

Took pictures of some stuff and listed a few items for sale yesterday afternoon. No one came to get the blanket. I'm putting a limit of a week on anything listed for sale and then it's going to Goodwill.

Threw a puzzle that is now too easy for the kids in the donation bag.  

[maize]

I got rid of a lot of paper clutter yesterday, stuff like kids' drawings I just took pictures of.

[StaceyinLA]

On 1/20/2019 at 5:56 PM, Tina said:

Box up what you haven't used in a while and stack the boxes in the garage.  If you don't miss having the items taking up space and/or haven't used them in 6 or 12 months, odds are you can just haul them away!

 

 

I second this. When we were remodeling our house last spring, we completely gutted and rebuilt our kitchen. It’s still a fairly small kitchen compared to most these days, but now it’s all completely open to our dining area/den. Even with that, I don’t have a ton of storage.

Anyway, getting off track - what I did during this time was box everything except the absolute basics. Dh had left my stove/oven just sitting in the middle of that space so we could still use it, and he did me a makeshift sink/counter combo. Once the kitchen was done, I left a box full of random kitchen items, and some pots I rarely used outside in our old schoolroom. After a couple months when I still hadn’t brought any of it in, I donated it. It’s been almost a year, and I haven’t missed a single item.

[StaceyinLA]

15 minutes ago, maize said:

I got rid of a lot of paper clutter yesterday, stuff like kids' drawings I just took pictures of.

 

I was thinking of doing this very same thing, then uploading pics to Shutterfly and making them each a book of their old “artwork” from when they were kids.