raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on Mar 29, 2011 17:05:12 GMT -5
Sounds like everyone is making good progress! The decluttering bug hit me this weekend too, so I'll join in as well! I filled 1 bag for good will, and a 2nd of trash just by going through 2 closets. I agree--clutter is totally breeding! Last night we emptied out our storage unit. It has all of ds baby items. We want a 2nd baby so I don't want to get rid of anything, but I don't know when we'll get the funds together to have another one (while meeting all of our other savings goals) so I'm a little torn. Will be spending the next couple months organizing our basement so that we have easy access to items stored and to make sure that we are really using everything. Any suggestions on how to monitor what items are used/not used with other people in the house? DH always says he has a use for something and years later it will still be sitting in the same spot collecting dust.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Mar 29, 2011 17:51:59 GMT -5
Up a piece of masking tape on it that with the date written on it. Wait a few months and than say- "see I put this tape on here 6 months ago and you haven't even noticed it enough to remove it!". Otherwise- I don't know what to suggest.
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Mar 30, 2011 10:02:09 GMT -5
DH dumped his dress socks on the bed this morning, there must be at least 100 of them and "he can't find a pair" so I think tonight while Ghost Hunters in on, I'm going to try to sucker him into sorting/discarding dress socks. He knows it needs to be done so hopefully he won't fight me on it...
And I've got a taker for the 2t/3t girl clothes. My dcp will take them for her youngest DD. I guess I should send her the Christmas dresses too.
I'm having a real hard time parting with them for some reason. One is red velvety w/ white fluffy trim and a matching cape and the other is dark green w/ white fluffly trim and some sparkly stuff. I just love those stupid dresses. I know DD will never wear them again and I know that it's unlikely that the fabric will survive until she has kids of her own. The fluff and sparkly stuff will fall off or something so I should get rid of them while they're still in great condition.
I admit to having 2 drawers of outgrown clothing that I can't bear to part with right now. My plan is that it stays at 2 drawers. When it gets full, I go though it again and clear out what I no longer need to keep. But I ONLY get 2 drawers (Ok, plus those 2 dresses...)
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Mar 30, 2011 13:16:20 GMT -5
Beth: I have one little red button up coat that my grandma bought for me when I was about 2. It made it's rounds through all of the family members with the understanding that it would come back to me. It was worn by like 7 of my female cousins and now hangs in my closet. Just a suggestion- if there is one you are attached to consider loaning it out under the condition that it comes back to you for your daughter to keep one day.
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GirlGreen
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Post by GirlGreen on Mar 30, 2011 14:39:48 GMT -5
Beth: do you have photos of DD in the dresses? Usually just looking at them will bring back the same memories as looking at the dresses. Just a thought.
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mizbear
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Post by mizbear on Mar 30, 2011 16:22:00 GMT -5
Beth- I agree with both suggestions- I gave away the dresses my grandmother hand made me for my senior dances- but have kept the wedding dress she hand made me. It was the last wedding dress she designed and made.
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Mar 31, 2011 8:48:00 GMT -5
Yeah, we have pictures of her in both dresses. I don't think the trim on the dresses will hold up over time. It's that white fluffy/feathery stuff that sheds... I'm going to keep working on myself to pass them off to dcp's daughter.
On the plus side, DH did sort though his dress socks last night and tossed a bunch of them. He's hanging onto some as backups/spares so I rolled them into sockballs and I think he'll be able to fit ALL his dress socks in the drawer now. Next up is his underwear. See DH lost about 65 lbs in the last 9 months. He's too thin now and had to buy a lot of new clothes. So he's got lots of underwear that's both old and stretched out and I think he's willing to the worst of them.
And I did gather up a few more bits of baby gear last night and added it to the pile. I need to find the swing part of swing/rocker thing. I'm pretty sure it's somewhere in the basement, I just have to find it.
And tonight will be DD's last night in her crib. It's coming down on Friday. She's around 37 lbs and physically lifting her into the crib is painful so last week we removed 1 side of the bars but I'm really uncomfortable having her sleep in it like that, plus it's now against the windows and the pull thing for the blinds is easily within her reach and she likes to play with the blinds.
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on Mar 31, 2011 16:39:53 GMT -5
Sheila--I like that idea! I can tape the boxes shut with the excuse that the lids fly off so easily (they really do!), but I'll know if anything has been opened. Thanks!
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Post by kjsh on Apr 1, 2011 8:14:57 GMT -5
Beth - if you can't give away both dresses, how about just one for now? That way you still have one to hold onto for a bit and later you can work on giving away the second one. You're lucky that your DH will his underwear, it's a struggle to get my DH to do the same (even when the worn-out holes are as big as the holes the underwear came with).
Sheila - I like your avatar and your masking tape suggestion.
I've decided that starting this weekend, I have to find one thing in my closet/drawers to get rid of each day. I'm committing to do this for at least one week (and maybe two if I feel comfortable). I'm hoping this strategy will work because it won't require a large block of time (since I'll be back at work), and it won't trigger my packrat anxiety since it's only one item a day.
One thing that I know is in my closet that I just can't bring myself to get rid of - my old Chucks from high school (in the 80s/90s). They were black and white gingham canvas and I thought they were so cool. I wore them out with holes in the soles and holes in the canvas, and they're nasty because I wore them without socks all through the summer, but they represent a part of who I was at the time and I just can't let them go.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Apr 1, 2011 8:21:15 GMT -5
Personally my new "April fools" avatar that I was randomly assigned looks phallic (I apologize if it offends anyone) Glad the tape option might work for some of you. Every one and a while I can come up with a good idea Had DS go through his nerf guns this last week. Narrowed out 6 he no longer wanted and 2 destined for the trash (broken). He doesn't have hanging clothes in his closet so I bought some hooks and now the nerf guns are all hung up by the hooks. Best storage idea for those darn things ever! I pawned the 6 he no longer wanted on my niece and nephew and had them come pick them up the other night. Tomorrow someone is stopping by to purchase an antique loveseat that we have always hated (but inherited) so that will FINALLY be out of the house. Happy dance to be able to get rid of that after 12 years of dragging it around and storing it.
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 1, 2011 9:15:05 GMT -5
yay for Sheila! And good luck to kjsh on 1 a day.
I took the 2 boxes of clothes to dcp today, so they're out of the house. I was going to take one of the dresses but DD was so pokey this morning that I forgot. DD is learning how to dress herself right now so the morning routine got a bit more interesting...
I found the base for the swing last night too and added it to the pile of baby gear. Supposedly that is going to be picked up on Saturday sometime.
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mizbear
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Post by mizbear on Apr 1, 2011 13:16:31 GMT -5
sheila- Yes it did look that way . kjsh- Have you considered replacing your chucks with one of the new pairs? There are some awesome styles out there now (and incidentally are better priced according to my mother who sold shoes in the 80s).
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Post by kjsh on Apr 1, 2011 17:39:49 GMT -5
mizbear - that's the worst thing about those chucks, I haven't worn them in about 10 years, I just cart them around with me from bedroom closet to bedroom closet. Keeping them is highly irrational. Funny that your mom says they're better priced now - I wouldn't mind a new pair since my current pair of casual sneakers is falling apart - I'll check out the styles they have currently.
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 4, 2011 9:23:53 GMT -5
Ok, 2 more boxes of baby clothes are out of the house, plus both baby tubs, the swing thing and a bunch of other baby gear. ;D
I need to pull out the bouncing chair car thing (it's ginormous) and deal with the pumping gear as I have a taker for it. Some of the pumping gear belongs to my cousin and I'm going to find out what she wants me to do with it. I suspect I'm going to it at her parents house and they can store it for her!
DD is out of her crib and we have that stored in the basement, including her mattress. Now we have to find the manual for DS's crib so I can take that down and put DD's up in his room. Hers is deeper/taller and we need the height for him. He's 17 months old and with the mattress dropped as low as it will go, the bars (in an up position) are an inch or so about his waist. This is an accident waiting to happen. The family that's getting the other baby gear will take HIS crib and possibly's DD old mattress - it sounds like they'll be setting up a crib at grandma's house for napping or something and don't want to spend a lot on a mattress that may get used once a month. That's their call. If they want the mattress, they can have it. If they don't, it's going in the trash.
DH and I talked briefly this morning. Neither of us is sentimental about the baby gear and we don't want to keep it "for the grandchilden" that we may or may not have. So it's going as I find a user for it.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Apr 4, 2011 10:38:22 GMT -5
Ding Dong the sofa's gone Happy dance for Sheila. The love seat was picked up, they paid full price for it and showed up 10 minutes early to get it even. So now we have nearly everything we don't "want" out of the house! DH is still listing stuff on ebay. (his electronics and lots for the never ending supply of legos). Have a big stack of books to list on paperback swap too. But pretty much all of the furniture we don't want is gone! So happy to see that antique love seat go.
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mizbear
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Post by mizbear on Apr 4, 2011 12:08:21 GMT -5
I have been stopped in my tracks by everyone else's schedule and bing sick again- the home inspector has to go into my grandmother's and look at everything before they put the final approval on the reno loan, so they don't want me pulling anything else out- even though they need my stuff out before they start - go figure. Plus I can't breathe, feel like my throat has been cut and my head will explode- I love this weather!
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Post by kjsh on Apr 4, 2011 13:36:40 GMT -5
mizbear - I hope you feel better soon sheila - congrats on getting rid of the furniture. Out of curiosity, do you think it was harder to get rid of upholstered pieces with the recent (inthe past year or so) news attention to bed bugs? I know my sister, who is the queen of frugal, will no longer consider getting a used sofa from a stranger. Beth - as a new mom I thank you and your DH for not being too sentimental. DH and I had to have a gentle conversation with his parents about why we weren't interested in his childhood crib. I have used stuff for my son, but not a crib that's over 30 years old and is warped from not being stored properly.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Apr 4, 2011 13:54:47 GMT -5
kjsh- No we haven't had any trouble getting rid of upholstered pieces. Got rid of two in the past couple months- a big sectional that we gave away for free and the antique love seat. I live in southern Minnesota so we haven't really had a bed bug issue here so it hasn't been a problem.
In my family (I have 14 cousins on one side and there are 17 great grandkids) we aren't sentimental at all. As soon as one kid is done with something they put out the alert that it's available and someone will snatch it up right quick. Swings, strollers, cribs, playpens, clothes, toys etc. I always ended up having to buy the new stuff since my DH is the oldest great grandkid all around (and the only grandkid on DH's side).
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 5, 2011 8:26:10 GMT -5
I hope you can get into your stuff soon mizbear! Do you have allergies or is this a cold/flu bug? Good job Sheila! lol kjsh. Your welcome. My parents found me a taker for the infant girl clothes so I just need to toss that box and the sock bin into the minivan and it at their house. They can deliver it. ;D Sheila, we have the big, extended family too. We're just in a baby lull, for the most part right now. In 5-10 years, we'll probably be seeing the next round of babies coming as we've got a bunch of teenagers and a couple of tweens and then my toddlers.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Apr 5, 2011 8:46:02 GMT -5
Beth- That's how we are. We have 17 great grandkids. My son is 13 and then we have a 12 yo, 11 yo and 10 yo. Then all the other 13 are all under the age of 6! It was a crazy couple of years there with babies. I have one cousin currently pregnant so the family is still growing My parents are the oldest kids on both sides so it made sense that our kids are the oldest grandkids. Thanks for the good job. DH is finally 100% totally on board with this new lifestyle. Minimizing the clutter and financially. It was such a relief to hear him talking about how much he wants to be debt free the other day. Selling all this unnecessary junk is such a relief.
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 5, 2011 8:56:01 GMT -5
My oldest nephew will be 21 later this week. Then it's 19, 18, 17, 16, 14, 12, 10 and my 3 year old and 17 month old. On mom's side, I have 13 cousins ranging from 45 to 5. And THEY have another 15 kids (ranging from 22 or so to 4) with a 16th due in May.
My older sister and my sister in law thought it was absolutely fabulous when my DD was born and their girls (the 18, 17 and 16) wanted to spend time with her and then my son. The girls adore my kids but getting hands on experience on just how hard a newborn is has them all saying "babies are great but I don't want them for at least 10 years!"
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Post by bluecluessubtlety on Apr 5, 2011 14:48:00 GMT -5
Last year I bagged up a bunch of stuff for Goodwill. I asked my dad to drop it off for me.
Yesterday I gave my brother a ride and he was wearing a shirt that I gave away. The shirt was over 20 years old. It was way too big for me and I always held on to it "to use as a sleepshirt." Apparently my dad the packrat took all the bags I asked him to deliver to Goodwill to my brother (Packrat Jr.)'s house.
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 6, 2011 9:34:50 GMT -5
Be proud of me! I plucked both of the dresses out of DD's closet this morning and took them to dcp with us. So they're out of the house. ;D Interestingly (at least to me) is that when DD saw them this morning, she did an "oohhh" sound and admired them. lol. Maybe it's time to start finding play dress up clothes for her.
Bluesclues, my FIL did something similar. A few years ago DH took some old dress shirts and ties to his parents and his dad started wearing them shortly afterwards.
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Post by kjsh on Apr 6, 2011 9:43:54 GMT -5
Hooray Beth! (a star for each dress) Blues/Beth - I guess those family members are really into recycling.... . At least they're still out of your house, though. I'm having trouble keeping up with my one-a-day closet emptying scheme - I think I may have underestimated how much time I'd use in the evenings trying to get the pump/bottles/daycare bag ready. Heck, I don't usually eat dinner now until after 8, and that's with cooking on Sunday so all I have do for dinner is reheat. I am committed to playing catch-up on Friday when I'm off. I also have a suit that is in pretty good shape - I'd like to give it to Dress for Success rather than goodwill if it's not too hard to arrange.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Apr 6, 2011 9:46:20 GMT -5
kjsh: closets are pretty time consuming. Maybe change your strategy some and commit to one drawer or cupboard during the weekdays and tackle a closet on weekend days. Beth; Congrats on getting the dresses out of the house
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 6, 2011 10:07:34 GMT -5
I'm having trouble keeping up with my one-a-day closet emptying scheme - I think I may have underestimated how much time I'd use in the evenings trying to get the pump/bottles/daycare bag ready. Heck, I don't usually eat dinner now until after 8, and that's with cooking on Sunday so all I have do for dinner is reheat. I am committed to playing catch-up on Friday when I'm off. I also have a suit that is in pretty good shape - I'd like to give it to Dress for Success rather than goodwill if it's not too hard to arrange. How does your dcp deal with stuff? For example, I routinely leave boxes of diapers and wipes at dcp. And when I was bfing, I'd give them frozen breast milk on Monday to cover the week and then they'd thaw it as needed. She preferred her bottles to mine (and DS didn't care) so I didn't have to set up stuff. And I keep a change of clothes in the tote bag we currently use instead of a diaper bag. But my dcp does it out of her home. Thanks! Maybe I'll check the clearance racks and resale shops and see if I can find them in larger sizes for her. Kidding, sort of. Next step is to remember to drag the last box of baby clothes out to the car as my parents will get it to the sucker, er taker (the wife of the son of an old family friend.)
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 6, 2011 10:25:38 GMT -5
Oh, I also had extra bottles for pumping so that on the nights I was exhausted, I could just crash and deal with it the next day.
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ilovedolphins
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Post by ilovedolphins on Apr 6, 2011 11:07:40 GMT -5
I have slacked off in the month of March after going head strong in January and February. Need to pick it back up so I can get some junk out of the house again.
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 6, 2011 12:44:57 GMT -5
Oh, a couple of weeks ago I hung the magnetic dry erase board on the wall and dug out the markers for it. We use it for the grocery list and stuff we need reminders to do something about it. I love the grocery list part. When I realize we're running low or out of something I want, I just write it up there. DH is doing that too. He does the grocery shopping so this is good for him too.
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azmom
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Post by azmom on Apr 6, 2011 13:21:48 GMT -5
I just completely cleaned out my DD's room. Everything now has a place and hopefully I can shoulder that into personal responsibility for them both. It was hard before because there wasn't really a specific place for anything. Anyways, I have a question. I have a huge amount of would be hand me down clothes that will not be worn for another three years. Once my youngest DD has outgrown her clothes, if they survive, I do give them away. Should I hold on to the clothing for three years to hand them down to my next daughter or should I find them a home that they can be used now? The majority of both their clothes are hand me downs to begin with. So I am torn with the idea of someone not being able to use them now and saving me money in the future. Any ideas would be appreciated.
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