Declutter #28 - This and That (Again)

 I don't have photos (or much to share) but I'm trying to keep some forward momentum going!

Over the past week, I dropped off some books to a local Little Free Library. (I had brought some free books home from work, so this was more of a trade than a true declutter.) We have so many books!

I gave my sister Ann one of my sleeveless T-shirts that I bought last summer. I don't like shirts to be too baggy; she's more comfortable with them. (I had purchased four new ones on clearance at Macy's . . . so again, not a declutter.)

I've worked on getting rid of some of my scraps of paper and following up on things on my home days. That helps my space feel less cluttered.

I bought a new ($3 clearance) spiral for jotting my lists. I have used the old one for almost four years, so that feels good. 

I put some other things into the "Goodwill" box under the stairs. I wait until the box(es) is/are full before I add that to my errand list.

All in all, not much to report. This has been a surprisingly busy summer. But it has also been a lot of fun! As we head toward fall, I hope to get more diligent about sorting through things and getting rid of excess.

Declutter #25 - Incoming and Outgoing

Ugh. I've been overbusy again . . . so this blog is three weeks' worth of not doing much. I'm trying to at least not bring more stuff INTO my house. Here are some quick "things" that fit:

 

• I dropped off a bag of sheets with one of my sisters-in-law since I have so many! (They had come to me from a different sister-in-law.)
  
• I did buy a pair of cheap flip-flops at Costco with the intention of throwing away the Nike ones that Titus had chewed up. Louie asked me not to throw them away because he has an idea to "fix' them . . . 
• My purse is getting a bit weathered. I'm resisting buying a new one because I don't NEED it and I'm trying to be thrifty as well as decreasing possessions.
• Some of the lovely short sleeve shirts that a friend had given me I've given to her sister-in-law. I just don't need that many clothes! I have a lot.
• I went through some of my jewelry and separated out some bracelets I'm okay with giving away. I meant to give them to the girls at the Akina camp I worked at this week, but it didn't happen.
• I have set aside two pillows to give to a friend for her son. We have so many! We have them up at the lake and at home in Jordan. We have them on our beds and on guest beds. I need to get to a laundromat to wash up the blankets for her . . . 
• Part of being too busy is not having time to go shopping!
   

Declutter #17 - Having fun!

I have two boxes that are filling with things that do not need to live here any more. One has toys that haven't been played with in a long, long time (and the grandchildren have lots of other toys to play with). The other is filled with reams of colored paper, beautiful candles, and some pieces of decor that don't add to my joy. The cute "welcome" sign at left would be fine, except the wind makes it clunk against the house, which sets our German Shepherd into a protective fit of barking. Basically, it just stresses him
out too much!

I had warned Joshua that our cool refrigerator box "fort" / house / submarine / rocketship was going to be recycled. He asked why (as four year olds are wont to do) and I said it took up too much space. I'm glad I got a few photos before tearing it apart. It was fun! He has a fantastic imagination.

I'm really working on using up what we already have at home instead of buying stuff. Groceries haven't been as expensive this month because I'm making do with what we already have for the most part! Instead of stocking up, my grocery list just keeps growing and I only buy a few things that we need at a time.

 

I did buy myself some underwear, though . . . and I bought some really cheap ones. Big mistake! It's worth paying for quality. I guess I'll continue to wear mine until they're only fit for the garbage and hold off on buying "good ones" for later in the year. (I joked that I should pack my rattiest underwear for our vacation so I could throw them away instead of packing them home for laundry. Tempting . . . )

Anyhow, I feel as though I'm still in a slow, steady state of getting rid of things. I'm prepping a fat envelope of my mother-in-law's hand written recipes to send to the sister-in-law who said she wanted them.

Declutter #14 - This and That (Again)

My favorite "declutter" of the past week was sewing gift bags! I sewed one for my daughter-in-law's March birthday present (pictured), one for my son's April birthday, and a few to start building up a stockpile. I love love love using these for presents instead of buying wrapping paper. I usually tell the recipient that the bag is part of the gift. If they are going to throw it away, please give it to me to launder and re-use. (It's mostly my sons and daughters-in-law, so they're used to me.)

 

Since I've gotten so much fabric for free, this is a win-win for me. Plus, I get to enjoy sewing time in my studio! (This picture is not so complimentary looking. It was better with the gifts in it.)

 

I finally brought the big bag of towels over to Morgan's and Angela's house. I put them under the stairs by the extra vacuum cleaner. I feel kind of bad because they have SO MUCH unpacking and organizing to do (in addition to caring for their two little boys) and extra towels are NOT a priority. At least they're out of the way. . . 

 

I refilled my "microwave-sized" bottle of pancake syrup from a huge jug I'd gotten from Costco ages and ages ago . . . and there was still an inch or so of syrup. I plan to bring that to my sister Ann's house. I know that sounds tacky! But . . . she likes to put all kinds of sweeteners in her coffee. She also likes to "use up" random stuff. I'm pretty confident she'll be happy to take it off my hands. And that gives me a little more room in my cupboard. (Louie likes "real" maple syrup, which stays in the fridge. I'm fine with the cheap stuff, but don't eat pancakes or waffles very often.)

 

Last of all, I dealt with lots of little scraps of paper. Some were from a box of random "to deal with" junk and some were from my parents' box of papers. I am trying to not get re-cluttered, but when I am super busy it's hard to keep up with the day to day stuff. Junk mail, notes I've written for myself . . . sometimes I just need to put it in perspective! (Or stay home and plow through some of my good intentions . . . )

Declutter #13 - baby steps (again)

 Last week was busy, but here's what went away:

• cole slaw dressing . . . it was a year past its date, which wouldn't stop me from using it, but it didn't taste very good to begin with! I like the dressing I make myself. That bottle got emptied, rinsed, and recycled.
• an ice bucket container from our old fridge. I had taken it out when we started having water issues with the old fridge and stowed it in the china hutch. When I found it there, I got it into the garbage can.
• with a new refrigerator and a new dishwasher, I went through our appliance folders and got rid of the old manuals. In addition to the appliances that left our house, I had manuals for other old things that I was able to recycle.
• I dropped off a box of donation items. Some went to Jenifer for Saving Grace Village and the rest went to Goodwill. (Hands of Friendship in New Prague is my last resort for getting rid of items.)
• There are two Christian books that I've added to my MQ bag for the next quilt meeting to put on their Little Free Library shelf.
  

Declutter #12 - baby steps?

 It was another underwhelming week for getting rid of stuff. I tried, but had a busier than anticipated week. A quick summary of bits and pieces:

• pencils - I grabbed out some of my extras to put in my teaching bag. I like being able to supply them to students so they don't have to make a trip to their lockers. I subbed three half days last week, so I shared a lot of pencils.
• markers - Joshua and I were decorating the inside of a refrigerator box and I ended up going through my entire marker bin to test and toss the ones that were no longer juicy enough for art.
• I finally dropped off the box of toiletries to the Peace Center in New Prague! They graciously accepted it all, even the old hotel soaps . . . makes me want to go buy some of the good stuff that they really need!
• two boxes of clothes. This isn't technically a declutter, since a friend GAVE me the two boxes. But I finally tried on all the shirts and only kept the ones I truly wanted. (It's fun to have some cute new clothes for free!) The rest went to her sister-in-law today.
• I used up some of the really old rhubarb from the freezer to make a crumble. It tastes pretty good!
• I used up some of my fleece scraps to make two neck gaiters for my sister-in-law Viv. They'll probably end up being used next winter, but they're made! (One is double-thick reversible and one is single layer shaped. I have a drawstring for it, but need to get the little plastic toggle.) I'll bring these to her in a few weeks when we head up for Easter dinner!
  

 

I feel as though there were a few other things I was going to blog about, but I'm getting tired. Perhaps I'll be a bit more successful at getting rid of things this next week.

Declutter #7 - Miscellany

In some ways, I'm more focused on getting rid of stuff than actually decluttering my home . . . but it's almost becoming a mindset. Buy less. Use what I already have. Get rid of excess!

Here are some relatively recent "get rid of" items:

• an ancient bottle of hair gel (from a decade ago? Longer?) I threw it away.
• a bulletin from South Santiago Lutheran Church. Initially, I thought it was from Joshua's baptism. But the date is from a few weeks before he was born! Must have been from the baby shower . . . I taped it into his journal where I'm writing stories and wrote about his baptism and his brother's baptism (which was today).
• My sister-in-law did not want the remainder of the cleaning supplies from her house in Maple Grove. Today, I threw away a few sponges and put the rest along with some rags into the wash. I'll add them to my cleaning supplies and use them up! (Theoretically . . . I don't actually do much cleaning.)
• I've added a few things to a giveaway box for my friend Jenifer. She is on the board of Saving Grace Village. They do a huge sale each year as a fundraiser. I'm putting nicer things in it, mostly clothing and household stuff. When it's full, I'll bring it to her house.
  

I feel as though there have been a few other things, but it's all pretty small stuff. I hope to move on to something more significant this next week! Also, I'm way too lazy to take and post any pictures!

Oh! Actually, I took this photo (of Louie with little Nick) out of the frame and added one of Morgan with Joshua when he was littler. I don't know where I put it . . . perhaps it's with stocking stuffers. Or my "grandma" bin. Or with the stuff I'm hanging onto until they're in their new house. In any case, I'll keep the photo of Louie and Nick but give away the cute frame.