2014 Get Organized & Declutter Thread

[Deleted]

PW's Day 5 challenge is gift wrapping: paper, bows, ribbons, etc. Already done with the Christmas stuff. 

[constanz22]

I was not as productive yesterday, but did get some stuff on my list done, and a few things not on my list.  I ran to the grocery store for a few things this morning, but now will be home all day so I'll see what I can get done.

PW's job today is organizing wrapping paper and supplies.  All of my Christmas stuff is already done/in containers, but I have to move some stuff in the stockpile room to put it away so will do that.  I don't have much wrapping other than Christmas.  Maybe a few miscellaneous gift bags but they are in a tub already.  There are some odds and ends in the basement but I ain't goin' there...lol!

[Malarky]

I went back to my profile with the intention of quickly finding my posts on this thread because I wanted to make myself a list of intentions VS reality.

In doing so, I noticed that a lot of threads I've started have been locked.

Anyway, I found this, which reminds me that I have been on this journey for quite a while.

Let me just say in advance, that that room is the same, although some of the details have changed.

Strîng tòó short to be saved...


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  Thread started Jun 8, 2012 at 6:30pm

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Post by Malarky on Jun 8, 2012 at 6:30pm

I've been thinking this phrase all afternoon. It's actually the title of a book I read years ago (early 80's maybe?) that is a collection of memories of the author growing up in New England. I know the author is Donald Hall, the details escape me. It must be screen shots of his life, because that's what I've been going through.

In my quirky old 125 year old house we have this strange little room upstairs, that is only accessible by walking through what is DS's room. Originally I think it may have been meant to be the nursery or sewing room. Over the years, DS's room has been the guest room, DD's room and finally his room. The odd little space has served many functions, depending on our needs.

It was storage, it was Ashley's room (one of my BFF's daughter lived me for three summers when she was a teenager-my kids still call it Ashley's room even though she is grown and expecting her second child) it was the game room when they were younger and played video games all the time. It was overflow sleepover space.

Then we had some work done a couple of years ago and a bunch of construction stuff caused all the stuff in there to be tossed around haphazardly. At that point DS was old enough to not appreciate people traipsing through his room so we just used it to store stuff. Such as all the antiques from DH's family that I either have no place for, or are meant for his brother who lives several states away.

Anyway...this afternoon has been like peeling the onion of my life. I found stuff from before I knew DH, stuff of his from before he knew me. Yearbooks, his , mine, the kid's from elementary school. Kid's school papers. Family photo albums. The games we grew out of.

The "Molly Sweaters" are there (she was my fabulous neighbor from England who hand knit my kids sweaters every year that she was alive) as well as DS's journal that she wrote when Molly died about how much she missed her and how she would wear her brother's sweaters for as long as she could. He was older, so his were bigger and she got three years of "Molly Sweaters" before she finally packed them away.

All the pictures that I would never post on facebook. All the books we all love. Everyone in the family dumped a pile of favorite author/don't donate these books in there.

It's an amazingly small space with a extraordinary amount of memories in it. I'm really cognizant of all the threads where people hate, hate, hate that their parents left everything for them to go through in the end. I don't want to do that to my kids, so I'm trying to weed out and choose the memories to be saved for all of us. Sometimes I look at stuff and think: "Who am I to judge?"

Hence, the string too short to be saved...because how can you throw it away when it still has use/is still meaningful...



Last Edit: Jun 8, 2012 at 6:32pm by Malarky - Back to Top

[constanz22]

Ok, so I ended up working a half hour or more in the stockpile room.  Got the flat tub of Christmas bags/wrapping put back under the hutch where I store it.  Went through and consolidated a couple more tubs of stuff in there.  Pulled out a couple Christmas decorations that need to go downstairs to storage.  Put away some stuff.  Filled a small grocery bag of extra toiletries and stuff for a teen mom I work with.  Made sure all of my other wrapping bags/paper were where I thought and they were, in a tub in there.  Just took a break to eat something.  I was starving, didn't really eat breakfast.  So, will find something else to do in a bit.  It's still a wreck in there but for now I'd like to focus my efforts on the main living areas that I have to see all the time!

[KaraBoo]

Ugh!  I had all of my Christmas decorations, wraps and bags put up last weekend.  We had Christmas with my parents and brother/SIL yesterday - now I have MORE things to put up!  <sigh>

I wasn't thinking when I packed everything away in the attic last weekend it seems....  

That's okay - I'll figure something out with the items....

Today's projects:  

• Finishing sewing the color guard flags I promised to help with back in August for Marching Band (they decided against using the flags, and said - no rush, we'll use them next year.  Worst.thing.in.the.world.to.tell.me.)
• Finishing filling out the parent taught driver's education paperwork so oldest can take her driving test on Friday.
• Laundry

DH's plans are the following:

• Replace shocks in both vehicles.
• Change oil in Suburban

His plan is lagging behind currently - it's almost 11am and he hasn't gotten out of bed yet.  No...he's not sick... 

[constanz22]

Malarky- that was a sweet read, thanks   I still remember helping my mom clean out my grandmas home after she passed 7 years ago.  She lived in a single wide mobile home that was always neat and clean, but we still found plenty of "stuff" when we cleaned it out.  Some stuff made us go "WTH"?!  But other stuff was amazing.  Now, my grandparents moved no less than 20 times during their marriage.  Some of the stuff she saved were old letters and envelopes.  Some of the letters dated back to the late 1800's.  They were just amazing to read and I admit, we got very little done that day because we started reading these letters.  Sadly, we only saved a few as we didn't know who the people were.  Now I almost wish we had saved them all.     She also kept a diary every day from her early teens on.  Those we saved.  What treasures, even though half of them may say, "cold and snowy today, got kids off bus, went to visit so and so" LOL, but some have really priceless family history.  

[busymom]

I've got a question for those of you who count items. (I got rid of a lot of things last year, but I wasn't counting.) Anyway, I'm purging old paperwork this morning, & by the time I'm ready to stop for lunch, I'll probably have a 30 gallon garbage bag full of paperwork. How do you count that?

[FreeSalsa]

Hooray for flat surfaces!  And getting rid of bags of paper!

Coincidentally, I got a suitcase for Christmas so I'll be getting rid of the broken one.  I emptied it of Christmas presents and emptied all the other bags from Christmas shopping and vacation.  I put everything away except for the empty bags themselves.  I'll go through those later today.  I also looked at my sweaters but since I only have 5 I didn't have much to get rid of.  But I think when summer comes I will get rid of one.  It's not that comfortable so I probably won't even wear it in the next few months.  If I don't, it will be a sure sign to donate it.  Today's challenge is gift wrap.  I already put that away and inventoried it and it's all good.  It's contained and I'll just keep using it up and not buy any more until I'm really low.

Spent another part of the morning tidying up random surfaces and drawers.  I made a box of Christmas returns that I'll take back this week.  DH will decide today on what he wants to keep and what he wants to return.  Found the receipts and put them with the items.

[constanz22]

Well, I even ventured into the pit of hell (my basement).  I had several rolls of Christmas wrapping paper leaning in a corner.  I put them all in a cabinet down there, but now I have wrapping stuff in three locations.  Hmm, will need to rethink that.  I definitely keep my bags upstairs cuz of the dampness factor in the basement.  Paper seems to be fine down there.

[FreeSalsa]

I have two shredders at home and several at work.  At work they know that we save up the paper to be shredded and when I make plans to visit my aunt (no, that's not a PMS metaphor) I shred everything and tire out the shredders and give the paper to my aunt for composting.  There's nothing more secure than returning it to the ground!  I think my coworkers appreciate me doing their shredding for them and helping the planet.  I appreciate them helping the planet and getting paid to sit and shred paper.  It's win-win.

[ilovedolphins]

I was really excited to get back to decluttering and exercising before the first of the year. Then on New Year's Eve my sister in law had a heart attack and I haven't done anything yet. I know it is only the 5th day of the year but I just can't seem to get motivated. I just got done listing 6 Barbie dresses on eBay so I guess I at least accomplished something. I want to at least get the shower and bathrooms cleaned and hopefully the tree taken down.

[Saving4Norway]

Jan 5, 2014 12:28:15 GMT -5 busymom said:

I've got a question for those of you who count items. (I got rid of a lot of things last year, but I wasn't counting.) Anyway, I'm purging old paperwork this morning, & by the time I'm ready to stop for lunch, I'll probably have a 30 gallon garbage bag full of paperwork. How do you count that?

Busymom - Do you want to keep track of how much you purge? I'd ask yourself to first determine what your measuring "tool" will be. Some people are counting each piece, some may count per grocery-size bag, others by lawn/leaf-sized bags. When you purge, what do you use most often?

Once you figure that out, then just translate the size of the thing you used into what your measuring tool is. For example, maybe you decide to count in grocery bags. Here's how I'd think it out...

A grocery bag could hold about 2 gallons of milk. So If I use a 30 gallon bag, I'd count that as 15 grocery bag "points". In the same way, I might say a paper copy box might be about equivalent to 3 grocery bag "points".

No matter how you count your purging, or even if you don't count your purging, you're still going a fabulous job making your life less cluttered.

[Sunnyday]

I am in. I've been waiting for the 2014 thread.

I'vr already started listing things to sell, and filing up bags of baby stuff to give to SIL.

Hoping this thread keeps me accountable.

[grits]

If you watch several hours of tv per day, get up for every commercial break, and clean hard and heavy. In a three hour time period, you'll get an hour of heavy cleaning done.

I need to watch more tv. I'd get this place in top shape.

[raeoflyte]

Dh and I are trying for a kitchen trash bag of stuff to donate every day for the month of January.

So far 2 trash bags and a few oversized items have made their way to goodwill. I have a box of infant toys waiting to donate, and today I'm going through the tubs of baby/kid clothes and have 1 bag ready to go. Trying for 2 more bags today, but I swear I put 100 items in my last bag.

I'll give dh the chance to go through the kids clothes, but he was in agreement to be brutal. We certainly aren't having another soon, and sil loves to shop and isn't hurting for money so anything that looks worn or wasn't a favorite needs out of the house.

Sent from my ADR6410LVW using proboards

[Malarky]

Jan 4, 2014 22:00:40 GMT -5 KaraBoo said:

Malarky - question- you freeze soups in mason jars? How? I'd be afraid of breaking the jars. Do you Stack them? How do you store them?

Do tell! Inquiring minds want to know!!

I leave plenty of headroom, and wait until they're frozen to put the lids on. I have an upright freezer to store them in. I've only ever broken one jar.

Today I finished putting away Christmas. I definitely need to cull my inventory, but for now it's enough to have it back in the basement.

The family that was so willing to help before was dismayed at the projects I had set up for them today.

Entire downstairs is dusted, including over the doorsills, windows, pictures...everything. All clutter in the first floor is gone. Put away, thrown away, put in the donate bin or recycled.

They are currently hard at work on the floors downstairs. DD is in charge of tile floors, DS is in charge of rugs and hardwoods.  Sweep, vacuum, mop etc.

Before Christmas I had warned the family that after the holiday, we would be cleaning and then the house would be put on a schedule and everyone would be expected to pitch in.   I'm hiding in my room waiting for them to finish.

[Saving4Norway]

Rainyday - Hi, welcome! This is a great place to get help with accountability. Have you determined what your goals are for 2014, yet? Do you need the whole house cleaned up? Just kids' stuff? Or do you have something else in mind?

[grits]

Jan 5, 2014 13:13:05 GMT -5 @tbird said:

Jan 5, 2014 12:28:03 GMT -5 @tbird said:

Getting very excited - this is really going to work for me!

Went up to the attic - ds old room, and found this super delux timer I got to help him years ago - so I am going to use that to keep me honest.

Set it for 20 minutes - and I got a lot done in the entry/hall area. It is decluttered and ready for cleaning - and I donated 3 items from visible areas.....not alot I know - but as a daily thing - it's alot. Also - got the bag ready and labeled. Its in the closet ready for more donations.  

I kept thinking -time is up - but with the timer going, I knew it wasn't, and no need to check the clock. By the time it dinged, I got a lot more done than I would have anticipated.....

who needs a whosit on FB? I need to write my own book!

Isn't Helen Ready retired from singing? 

[plugginaway22]

Well, today, day 5, was productive.  Lots more laundry done, sewed a button on a sweater I haven't worn in a year, and made a pan of brownies.  Emptied a drawer in an old file cabinet in the basement, there was paperwork from the 80's, haha.  That all went out in the regular garbage, nothing that needed to be shred.

Tomorrow is back to reality, since it will be the first regular 5 day work week I have done in awhile with all the holidays and weather stuff!  My goal is to do something, anything, each evening of the week, and that will be the challenge. 

[constanz22]

Jan 5, 2014 17:05:03 GMT -5 plugginaway22 said:

Well, today, day 5, was productive.  Lots more laundry done, sewed a button on a sweater I haven't worn in a year, and made a pan of brownies.  Emptied a drawer in an old file cabinet in the basement, there was paperwork from the 80's, haha.  That all went out in the regular garbage, nothing that needed to be shred.

Tomorrow is back to reality, since it will be the first regular 5 day work week I have done in awhile with all the holidays and weather stuff!  My goal is to do something, anything, each evening of the week, and that will be the challenge. 

This will be my first 5 day work week in a long time, too.  I am already dreading it, cuz my job sucks the life out of me!  I, too, was just sitting here thinking about how I could keep the momentum going after tomorrow.  Maybe I will try setting the timer for 15 minutes every evening and work on something/anything.  That has helped in the past, I just never stuck with it...

I added two pillows and a mattress pad to the donation stuff in my car.  My car looks like a hoarder.  Can't wait to get some crap out of it.  I still have some holiday returns that are in there that need to go back too.  I really need to get that done this week!

[Deleted]

I feel like I have come full circle, if that makes any sense. I think I started actively decluttering here in late 2012 because the space under the stairs was too cluttered. There were too many bags, so I started putting them away, and one thing led to another. I DID do the closets / drawers / toys regularly, but I never did EVERYTHING until then. 

Now with Christmas "gone", I put back that pirate's chest I renovated a few days ago. I was going to put the Christmas deco in it, but then I decided if I did, DH would just fill up that empty space in the basement with crap.

So instead, to DH's disappointment LOL, I filled it with items that we store under the stairs: a bag of Ikea throws to protect our couches when we/the kids throw big parties, and cushions for our two garden recliners that we only use in summer. 

It reminded me of the children's book, "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" LOL. 

Rukh, it makes me happy to see you taking control of your house!

Constanz, you too! You have made such great progress during your time off!

And all of you! I   you all and I am very thankful that we can share this journey to make our homes "havens". 

PS The only thing that have not made it into the Xmas deco box are: a small lovely snowflake chime candle that is somewhat fragile, so I'd rather not take it apart, a table runner, and ... that seal LOL. 

Going back to work on a reduced schedule tomorrow ... I don't feel ready (or well) enough. 

DS1 is leaving tomorrow, and it is the first time in 12 years I will not be available to take him to the airport. (Teaching in the morning, my very close friend's aunt funeral in the afternoon.) DS1 is 27, and he lives in war zones, so I know he will be OK LOL. But I LOVE that last "alone time" together. We will all miss him dreadfully. He has asked DH and I to come for a long weekend in May or June, I want to try to make it happen. 

[Deleted]

And Malarky, I LOVED reading that post! 

[Deleted]

I'm aiming for the AM as I generally poop out in the evenings.

I'm the opposite, Rukh. I must have been a vampire in a former lifetime LOL. 

[kjto1]

I much prefer trying to do 10 minutes in the morning rather than the evening.  I'll try to remember tomorrow morning...

[FreeSalsa]

Put away everything on the bathroom surfaces so it looks like a bathroom again and not like a tornado hit it.  Cleaned the sink and toilet.  Put all the toiletries from the suitcase away.  Just need to get the bags/suitcases sorted and back in the closet.  I just purged them recently so that shouldn't take too long.

Then it's on to making some food for the week, at least one thing.  DH has been doing all the cooking and cleaning and he's working on a project for the next few weeks so he won't have as much time.

This week's projects are short:  take back Christmas returns and use Trader Joes gift cards so we have some yummy food in the house!

[startsmart]

Working on the shelf for my bathroom and now I'm just waiting for the last bit of stain to dry. I had to cut some of the edging pieces down to size and as soon as the stain is dry and off-gassed then I can attach the vertical boards. Soooo excited to get this done and put it in the bathroom

My lists are definitely moving slower now that I have bigger projects to complete. I have someone interested in the second bookshelf and hoping I can sell it this weekend. Until the stain dries I guess I finish painting the mantle... sigh.

(this is so my habit, I love to start projects but finishing them takes a lot more energy!)


January List
finish staining and assemble second bathroom shelf
remove the tool storage in the garage
organize tubs & banker's boxes in the garage
find someone to take away my loveseat
sell bookshelf 1 + nightstand + small shelf + bookshelf 2
give old blender to my parents
create a warranty and manual binder for appliances & furniture
finish painting and varnish the mantle
rent and steam clean my carpets

[raeoflyte]

From the basement today I went through 6 18 gallon tubs, 1 small box, and a kitchen trash bag (of baby clothes).

Of that 4 totes are going back downstairs for storage. A few clothes will fit dd now so went into the laundry and I'm streamlining storage so a few other things found homes upstairs.

I only have 2 trash bags of stuff to donate, so I am technically behind. But the bags are stuffed and as long as we keep up the forward momentum I can't complain.


Sent from my ADR6410LVW using proboards

[WholeLottaNothin]

Finally made it to rescue mission this afternoon. Took some stuff for my mom too. Got a cple shelves in the bathroom organized but didn't finish them all. Donated 80 things so far. Hope I can keep up the momentum.

[Saving4Norway]

Shhhh, don't tell DH... I'm involving him doing a cross between Grits' commercials idea and Peter Walsh's plan. I'm trying to do the first 5 days today, during commercials of the GB / SF playoff game. (GO GB!!!)

First, we each grabbed a kitchen drawer, brought it into the rec room and cleaned it out while we continued to watch the game. (donating 3 wine openers)

Next, we each went to our rooms (I have my own room for clothes, shoes, craft supplies, etc.) and thinned out our sweaters (I had done mine last week but DH found one to donate)

After that is under the bed which is more than just a commercial's worth of time so we just pulled out random socks and shoes that got shoved underneath.

Right now, we just did the gift wrap. It was easy because we keep it all together in the hall closet. We had more paper than either of us remembered. I suppose that's because we don't often give gifts other than at Christmas time. I should say that most of the gifts we give during the regular year are gift cards to our nieces and nephews so we don't use paper to wrap them.

Lastly will be the luggage but we'll be putting that off until after dinner. There's 1:06 left in the tied-up game. I gotta go.

[startsmart]

Dropped off a bag of magazines to the assisted living home! I'll count that as (1) for my count. I also dropped by to invite one of my cousins to mom's surprise party in a few weeks. Gotta start getting the word out and making plans

The mantle got another coat and I'm hoping once it dries it'll be "done" enough.

Still have a big tub full of things that need to go to Salvation Army and starting another big tub of stuff for consignment. I'll continue to scan the pages that I tore out of magazines so those can get recycled.

It's been a pretty low-key weekend here, cleaning out stuff in the fridge, working on my business and trying to get projects closer to being done. The guest bedroom is looking a little better, mostly because I pulled out some big stuff to donate.