2015 Declutter and Get Organized Thread

[debthaven]

Snap they won't be moving in till March or April, and I'm not sure if they're buying a washing machine or not.   

Saveinla I would prefer he having something to unwrap, even if they opt to exchange it. :-)

I did go to the mall with DS3 but we got there late (dentist) so I didn't have time to look at the dishes. I did find presents for DD and DS3 though. :-) I still have time. 

ETA: They've been living together abroad but they don't have anything that matches, and this is their first home together so I thought dishes (and maybe glasses) would be nice. The cutting board is a good idea too, thanks! 

ETA: I'm pretty set on the dishes, I was asking whether you thought I should get 6 or 8 ... sorry if I wasn't clear. :-)

[saveinla]

Got it - if you can give them Corelle sets they come in sets of 4 - they are about 30-40$ USD depending on the pattern and you can buy them two. They come with dinner plate, salad plate, salad bowls and either mugs or glasses.

The square sets are more expensive.

[Sharon]

The living room is once again navigable.  I have two more Christmas presents to wrap.  One should arrive on Friday and the other needs to be bought.  I need DD and her feet to purchase that last one.  She asked for a specific pair of shoes but I want her to try them on.  Those may or may not happen before Christmas.

I need two buy 2 birthday presents and 3 cards and get those wrapped and then I will have all family Birthday's covered until end of June.  It is so nice to have a stash of wrapped presents in the closet already to go.

The house got a major vacuuming today.  Next week I will probably just "vacuum down the middle" to freshen things up before the holiday.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Dec 16, 2015 8:55:17 GMT -5 debthaven said:

I'd like you ladies' opinion on something. 

DS1 asked for things for the new apt for Christmas. It's a 2BR apt but it will be modulable: initially it will be a 1BR apt and a studio and they will move between them depending on how long they are here for. I was going to start with dishes then see what else I get depending on cost. They are absolutely not the fancy china type (and my wallet isn't either). If I go with something basic and tasteful, how many place settings would you go for? I'm thinking 12 is too many, 4 is too few. So I'm thinking six or eight? Which one do you think? 

I know they have a starter kit at Ikea but I wanted something a bit nicer than that. 

I think eight is the best choice.

[busymom]

I think, too, that 8 place sets in enough for someone starting out. And, I'm a big fan of Corelle for everyday dishes. That stuff wears like iron, both in the dishwasher, AND I've never had a dropped piece that chipped or broke (of course, I currently have vinyl flooring in my kitchen, which may soften the blow...)

My writing hand and arm is sore, as I finished 29 Christmas cards between last night & tonight. And, those were the easy ones. I've got cards for relatives that I need to write longer notes in, so I've still got aways to go.

[snapdragon]

I got home last night and forgot what my list was so now that I have re-read it I will write it down and work on it tonight. 

[Jaguar]

WOO HOO, GOODBYE to 5 bags of 15 years of clutter.......YES !!!!!

[Jaguar]

This was 15 years of paper clutter that I wanted to shred, well brother is going to burn it all. I had it hanging in 5 bags in my small linen closet, and another bag hanging on the door knob.

[Chocolate Lover]

Oh Debt, I'm so sorry to hear this! How awful for all of you, especially your friend! 

Good thoughts and all versions of good juju for DS1's surgery tomorrow! 

[debthaven]

Chocolate I just erased I was worried there were too many details. Thank you. 

For the others, one of our close friends, one of my best friends' husband, killed himself yesterday, in a horrific way. 

[Chocolate Lover]

Do you want me to amend mine in any way? 

[debthaven]

Thank you Choc but no it's fine. There were too many details in my post. 

I just don't get it. 

[Jaguar]

Oh Debt I'm so really very sorry.

[Chocolate Lover]

Ok, I thought it looked alright, but wanted to be sure. I knew you meant YOU had too many details.

I don't either.  

[startsmart]

I've been MIA this week and trying to get back on the bandwagon before the end of the year! Dad ended up in the hospital Monday after having a mild heart attack that required more stents to be put in his heart valves on Tuesday. I went down to help and then back home for more work. The house is BAD so I've hired someone local who is coming to clean for 5 hours tomorrow. I have so much business stuff to do that can't be outsourced and zero motivation to get the house sparkling again. 

I did get rid of the presents for Mom & Dad and took them down this week so I have nothing more to hand out (mostly because I'm being a grinch this year and do not care). So now I'm taking advantage of sales to buy myself things I need and won't get like a soft new robe and a few sweaters for the winter. 

I did pick up 2 shelving units for the garage and I'm hoping to get those assembled and set up tomorrow but I also need to move 2 bookshelves into the guest room and rearrange furniture in there. It's all part of the plan to make space in the dining room so I can begin working on building by the end of the year but there's so much going on it might have to wait until spring. 

Still need to make a drop off to Goodwill but I will update my count as a few more things went out the door this week. 

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Dec 17, 2015 17:22:10 GMT -5 debthaven said:

Chocolate I just erased I was worried there were too many details. Thank you. 

For the others, one of our close friends, one of my best friends' husband, killed himself yesterday, in a horrific way. 

Dang it. I'm sorry. 

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Howdy!
I have made it to Winter Break. I'm so relieved. It was a long week. I have the next two weeks off, and I return to work on Monday, Jan 4. 

We have a bit going on this weekend. DH's family Christmas party is tomorrow evening. This wouldn't normally be an issue. However, DH had decided in late October that we were not going. I did not budget for it, nor did I plan for it. He decided Wednesday evening that we were going. That meant that since Thursday morning, I've had to plan what our dinner contribution will be: (mashed potatoes and gravy, dinner rolls, cranberry sauce, and a veggie platter that I will arrange to look like a Christmas tree) and White Elephant exchange gifts. 
I have the food and the gifts now. 

Tonight, I need to wrap the gifts and pack the clothes for the trip. 
I want to update YNAB transactions and the holiday portion of the budget. 

Saturday, we'll go to the party. 
Sunday, we'll be home in the afternoon. 
I'll have a pretty comprehensive list for the two weeks off by Sunday evening. Most of it is already on my phone, my calendar, my head, my classroom list clipboard. I just need to consolidate it all. 

[busymom]

I'm so sorry to hear of your friend's husband, debthaven.    (Is that the 2nd death among your friends, or am I thinking of another poster here?)  That is just awful, & so close to the holidays, too.

I've been doing more card writing since I was here last.  DH did help some.  We've got a total of over 80 cards going out this year, & I just checked the count, & we've still got 26 more to go.  At least we've made some progress. 

[debthaven]

Start I hope your Dad will be OK! 

Yes Busy, that is indeed the second one in 5 weeks. Just horrible. The funeral is Wed. 

DS1 had laser surgery yesterday. I got up at 6 to beat the rush-hour traffic to meet him at the clinic, wait for him, and bring him home. He couldn't get traditional LASIK and this form is painful so he had a very bad day. I couldn't leave him at all (he's blindfolded for 48h). By the time DH got home it was too late to see my friend. DS1's GF arrived from the UK last night so she's here now. 

Needless to say I am way behind on my shopping. I'm working Mon, and the funeral is Wed. I'm going to try to get some shopping done this weekend as well as spend time at my friend's house. They are (were) wonderful people and thankfully they have a huge support system.

Some of the things people have done bring me to tears. They have a rota of girlfriends so someone is sleeping over every night (I'm on it). Another friend is supplying all the wine for the wake. The same friend has offered to write a check for her son's last tuition bill "until the dust settles". DH is designing and printing the leaflet for the funeral mass.  

DS3 was invited to Disney on Wed by his best friend's family as his Christmas present. That works out really well because the funeral is Wed. When they heard about my other friend they offered to keep DS3 there overnight and send him back the next morning (they are spending 4 days there over Christmas). 

[lund]

How very, very sad, Debt! Depression can be such a horrible disease!

I hope that your son will feel and see better soon!

[debthaven]

Lund, yes, terrible. We knew he had occasion bouts of depression but nobody, not even his wife, imagined that it was that bad, nor that anything like this could ever happen.

I had a very busy but productive day.

I spent a few hours at my friend's house. There were much fewer people than on Thurs, just her and 3 close friends. I left when 4 other people arrived. She needs people around her but not too many at a time, I think.

I went to the mall TWICE today, on the way there and on the way back. (Luckily my parking karma was in great form!) Between both trips I got the last 2 gifts for DD, PLUS DH and I (he met me there) found the perfect dishes for DS1! They are from Habitat (do you have Habitat there?) Plain white porcelain, but very nice, simple and elegant, which is what his GF said they wanted. They come in $37 starter boxes of 4 settings, so we got him 2 boxes: 8 dinner plates, 8 small plates, and 8 bowls for $74. Perfect!!! 

Plus DS2's gift was delivered this morning! So I'm nearly there, and feeling MUCH better about that. 

I would like to get a few more small gifts, glasses for DS1 to go with the dishes, and some stocking fillers. DS1 is a klutz so I'd prefer cheap glasses. Ikea would be perfect but it's 30 min each way and I don't think I can manage that tomorrow. They have decent cheap glasses at the giant supermarket near my school, and I'll be there (and driving in) on Monday, so I'll probably get them there.  

And I've even wrapped everything except DS1's dishes (he's still here so I left them in the car). 

[debthaven]

I'm trying to figure out tomorrow. Not sure it will all happen but hopefully most of it will.

Sun
- talk to M to work out when we visit A (separately)
- visit A (with DH so he can work on leaflet for church service)
- drive DS1 + GF to Paris or train station (DH drove them to Paris)
- More shopping (Ikea)

ETA: My last final was yesterday, so I still have ONE paper left to mark. My Admin kindly scanned it but I haven't printed it out yet. I sent in ALL the rest of my marks yesterday.   I'm working on Mon (3.5h of teaching) then I'm off till 6 Jan. 

[Angel!]

Hi all! It has been a while, so I wanted to check in.  I last posted here in August & I had gotten nothing done over the summer and I complained about being perpetually exhausted.  I was constantly so fatigued that I really wondered if there was a health issue or diet issue causing problems.  Well, about 2 months ago I figured out the problem.  It was truly just lack of sleep.  I am kind of embarrassed that it was that simple.  One morning the kids didn't bother me until almost 9 AM & that day I had more energy than I had in months. I scrubbed the house & got tons accomplished without even needing a nap.  So I changed my sleep schedule & it has me back to feeling like my old self. There are still rough days, but those are limited now.

The problem was (and still is) that I generally get woken up 2-4 times per night between the kids & dogs (we are working on this ).  Then I viewed the time after the kids went to bed as mine & wanted to take full advantage.  So many nights I didn't go to bed until past 11, limiting myself to 7 hours of sleep at best.  But when you add in the number of times I am woken up for various things during the night I was probably only getting 4-5 hours of real sleep.  And it turns out I cannot function on that level, so I zombied through months and months of pure exhaustion even though I truly thought I was getting enough sleep.

So the new rules are:
- in bed by 9:30
- no one bugs mom before 9 AM on weekends & I make an effort to not get up before 9 AM

Obviously those don't always work out, but the difference has been astounding.  So in the past 2 months I have made quite a bit of progress.  Had some junk guys out & cleaned out the backyard & a bunch out of the garage.  I've been making giveaway piles & sent several boxes off to a cousin with a 1 year old.  Gave some stuff to a coworker with a newborn.  And just been taking tons to Arc.  While I haven't been updating on here, I have been occasionally updating my count towards my 2015 goal.  Suddenly last week I realized I was over 75% there.  I was amazed as I didn't think I would come close & it kind of has lit a fire under my butt.  So this weekend I am making another big push.  I have another carload going shortly to Arc & another box started for my cousin.  And I'm at 1780  .  Since there is only 1 more weekend I don't think I will hit my goal, but that is ok. I've still made huge progress this year & that was with ~6 months lost to utter exhaustion, so much wasn't accomplished during that time.  Next year will be better & eventually DS2 will sleep through the night.

[debthaven]

Angel I'm glad you're feeling better. You've made great progress! 

We managed to get everything done today. DH is still at our friends' house working on the leaflet for the mass. I ended up going to Ikea and getting really inexpensive glasses, which is fine (about $15 for 12 wine glasses and 12 water glasses). 

DS1 is moving back home temporarily on Tues, so I need to wash his and DS2's bedding. I want to do at least one set tonight. Too bad I didn't think of it on Fri when I was home all day with DS1. 

The trackpad on my computer went so typing is hard.

Sun
- wash DS2's bedding
- remake DS2's bed
- wash DS1's bedding
- remake DS1's bed

Mon
- call re DS3's doc appt
- work 11.30 am - 3 pm
- shop for soft drinks (A), food for the wake (A) and salad (S)
- hopefully more shopping (knapsack for DS1 + stocking fillers, at the mall near school)

ETA: After tomorrow I'm off till Jan 6. I am exhausted. We are going to the UK after Christmas to see DH's family, his uncle has been very ill. I will be happy to see them but part of me wishes I could just stay home. 

Also, it's funny how things work out. This is the first year that we don't necessarily keep our first-semester groups for the second semester (because of scheduling issues). I was REALLY upset to learn that all 3 of my first-year groups have changed. However, 2 of my new groups are particularly small. So, I will have 42 first-year students instead of 59 ... that is a BIG difference in the number of papers / exams to mark. 

[Ombud]

I promise to be more proactive next year, meanwhile today I:
1. Cooked breakfast for 12
2. Cleared off all kitchen counters
3. Dropped GS1 off at Bart
4. Picked 3 boxes of oranges, barely made a dent

debthaven, so sorry to learn about your friend's DH's death ...

[Sharon]

While I did not get everything done that I had hoped while on vacation this week I did get a lot done.  The house is in good enough order that we should fine for Christmas day.  There will be a total of 14 of us on Christmas day.  I got the turkey out of the freezer today and into the fridge to start thawing.  It takes a while for a 20+ lb bird to thaw.

Dad's Christmas present arrived but still needs to be wrapped.  I suspect that DD won't be getting her shoes until after Christmas.  We got them moved into their place on Wednesday.  Once they are a little more settled I will be making a big push to get the stuff out of my house.  That will probably happen after the first of the year.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

This is what I've written down so far for the next two weeks. I've come down with a cold, so I know there's more. I just can't breathe well enough to know what it is!
This doesn't include my daily routines for morning and evening, plus meals.

[busymom]

Hi Kids!

I only have 6 more cards to write up (I can't believe it!). But, I'll have to do a lot of writing on them, so if they don't get done until after Christmas, I'm not going to worry about it.

I put some treat bags together today. I also tried to catch up on some laundry.

Just one more stop at a store, & everything should be bought for Christmas (except some groceries). And tomorrow, we'll be driving down to pick up DD!

[debthaven]

Holy cow Chloe, that is some list! 

I've done everything I needed to do today but shop for the soft drinks for the wake. 

[Saving4Norway]

Christmas Break Day #1 - And so it begins...

Mondays always begin with quilting with the retired ladies at church, I've got 19 minutes to post this and get dressed.

Christmas Eve will be at our house again this year. Numbers looking like 23-24 this year. Major focus will be on serious house cleaning for the next 4 days. Thankfully MIL organizes the potluck and makes the main dish.

Our summer was hot and dry so the dog has brought in lots of dirt/dust. Everything needs a deep cleaning. DH already steam cleaned the kitchen floor and the mud room/back door/dog area. So that's one major job already done. But there's still more - LOTS more. Like Santa, I have to make a list and check it twice to make sure the place isn't an embarrassment come Thursday.