2023 Declutter & Organize Your Life

[megaptera]

Hi girls, I'm in again for this year. Better late than never, amiright?  

I enjoy reading about everyone's moving adventures. In Spring last year, we moved from a 3000-sq. ft. house on 5 acres near Seattle to one half the size on a tiny lot in a Dallas area neighborhood. Much decluttering happened. Another move may be in the works for next year though, when our lease is up. We really like Texas (especially the sun, proximity to our Kansas family, and the $3.20 gasoline!), but I'm moderately allergic to the area, and the mountain biking options for DH are not great. We're looking at Northwest Arkansas or the Phoenix area. Anyone have any experience with those places?

I really want to live by the ocean, but that's not in the cards at the moment, so I'll have to live vicariously through snapdragon for now. 

In the meantime, my list for the weekend:

Drop off current Goodwill boxes.
Pick up library book.
Schedule October bills.
Add items to online shop.
Descale water filter.
Bedding laundry.
Clean out fridge before weekly grocery shopping.

Have a great weekend.

[debthaven]

Hi megaptera ! That's a big move! Bonny lives part-time in Arizona, but I don't know where. 

The dentist redid my temporary bridge, but a tooth was acting up, so he wants to wait to order the permanent one. My insurance finally kicked in, so it'll cost less than I feared!

I need to stop complaining about work and be grateful that I can still work to afford these things! I am giving myself a much-needed attitude adjustment! 

[debthaven]

I got the estimate back from the reupholsters ... part of it (redoing the base of the two couches) was reasonable. But the price of replacing the foam in the cushions was insane.

I had lunch this week with my friend D ... we always meet in Versailles because it's halfway. She bought chair cushions at the market, and I saw that they also sell/replace upholstery foam.

So I'm thinking, have the first company redo the bases, and then have the market guy replace the foam in the cushions. That saves about 25%. But I should get another estimate or two.   

I won't redo the couches till next year ... I need to pay for the dental work this year. 

They're over 20 years old, but they're leather, and the leather is still in great shape. They need fixing up, and this way they won't end up in the landfill in our lifetime.

[startsmart]

I’m feeling a lot better after COVID, it was a solid 2 weeks of rest and a bad cough. I still have a bit of a cough but not nearly as bad. This weekend is a big festival/parade in my town so that’ll take up most of tomorrow. If I can I’ll work outside a bit to get the yard in order before our first freeze. 

I am still applying for work and today finally had the close out conversation with the owner of the last company I worked for 3 months late). 

in good news I have been spending more time on the bike now that I’m over COVID and doing 90 min a day which has really helped me increase my miles. I still need to do a lot more consistently to hit my goal this year but I feel good about it. The 1,000+ miles I’ve done this year is probably the reason my shorts fell off my body last week (thankfully I was at home!). 

[TheOtherMe]

startsmart  I'm happy your Covid is over.  3 weeks tomorrow and I think (hope) I am at the end.  I'm very tired still.  I do think some of that is related to the coughing.  I don't get a full night's sleep yet because of coughing.

[debthaven]

I'm glad you're feeling better startsmart

[debthaven]

We were supposed to see DS2 and his GF for lunch yesterday, and have lunch at a colleague's place today. The colleague cancelled, so DS2/GF came for lunch today instead. We had a much quieter weekend than planned. 

I'm at school 1 day this week, and on Zoom 2 days. Then it's 2 days/week at school until late Nov.

[TheOtherMe]

I have been breaking down boxes to go out tomorrow evening with the recycling.

[Sharon]

I've been doing some get ready for winter prep work.  DD and family came over yesterday and DSIL finished shutting down the pool.  He removed all the hoses and drained the filter and pump.  Today I washed the skimmers and got all the debris out.  Everything is in totes in the shop until next Spring.

Today I also brought in two of my hoses and hung them up in the shop.  There are still two hoses outside.  Yesterday DD mowed the backyard so today I got the front yard mowed and all the hand mowing around the trees done.  This afternoon I broke down a bunch of cardboard boxes and will drop them off at the recycling center tomorrow after my hair cut.

I need to make an appt to have my furnace serviced before winter sets in, last night we got down to 36 degrees so the first frost isn't too far off.

[TheOtherMe]

My name is on the list for the furnace servicing.  

Some years they have called and said they can be here in 5 minutes.  I don't turn them down.

[debthaven]

Our fireplace insert is due to be serviced tomorrow morning, and our boiler on Wed afternoon. I hope they both show up. Both are overdue. 

I'm on Zoom exceptionally tomorrow. 

Sharon I'm so admiring of everything you manage to get done in your new home, with all that land ... as well as working full-time, being a very hands-on grandma and taking care of your mom. I wish I had your energy levels! Kudos to you!

moneysquirrel I think your surgery is coming up soon ... best of luck!

[TheOtherMe]

Time to get the trash and recycling to the curb.

[startsmart]

Oct 2, 2023 11:06:52 GMT -5 TheOtherMe said:

My name is on the list for the furnace servicing.  

Some years they have called and said they can be here in 5 minutes.  I don't turn them down.

I read too quickly and thought that said FUNERAL servicing 😮

I was wondering what kind of services they provide!

Today was a good day, I slept weird all weekend so now I’m back to my schedule and did 16 miles on the bike today. Tomorrow I need to take out a lot of trash and clean up the fridge and freezer.

[finnime]

I, too, need to make arrangements for the furnace and boiler servicing, thanks for the reminder, debthaven. After having replaced the hot water tank last month I think that's it for major maintenance.

DD is moved completely in next door now. I think she has all her Stuff.

I need to organize and clean the entire house in the wake of having DD live here and Franklin the Dog shedding. Plus, the last this year of the outdoor fairs with us having a booth for our photography was last weekend. The next events will be indoors. 

[Sharon]

debthaven thank you for your kind words.

Yesterday I got some cookies made for Mom and I's annual fall trip to the cabin on the river.  I also hard cooked the eggs I will use later this week in a macaroni salad.  The fridge has been cleaned out so there shouldn't be any science experiments when I return.

[TheOtherMe]

All of the recycling is gone. 

I did notice the wheels are off the neighbor's trash bin.  

When the city switched providers, we were all giving a bin for garbage and one for recycling.  The way they toss them around, they better replace his bin.

This is the week the cleaners come and I have work to do or I will be madly hiding things on Wednesday.

[Iggy aka IG]

I am very glad to hear everyone is on the mend.

Welcome to fall indeed!    It was in the mid-30's when I was preparing for the office this morning and I had to pull a shirt out of the winter clothing tote.  This weekend DH will remove the (floor based) window AC units, clean them and put them into storage.  He'll turn the boiler back on cleaning the filters first and I'll ask him to turn back on the gas to the fireplace.

I had a wonderful time with the neighbor kiddo over the weekend (his brother decided to stay home and spend time with their dad aka play his video games).  We baked a pie topped with freshly blended cinnamon and sugar and then crescent dough wrapped little smokies in the Trager, made deviled eggs using the eggs his family raises, and unprompted he made what we call a snack plate (the 9-year-old version of a charcuterie board) before supper was ready.  We then watched monster trucks and Storks the movie.  The next morning, I made a delicious brunch consisting of chocolate chip pancakes, cheesy eggs and bacon while DH and kiddo were on a hike.

Also, over the weekend:
-5 loads of laundry including our sheets, mattress pads and throw blankets
-Unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher and did a bunch of handwash dishes
-Scrubbed two toilets
-Refilled the PTs, TPs, napkins and ice trays
-Took an inventory for this month's grocery pickup
-Planned suppers
-Got some light reading finished, watched football, stayed up way too late listening to music

[seriousthistime]

I was getting phone calls from my furnace servicer. I checked to see if I need to renew the annual contract for this visit, or not until the next one. It's the next one, so my early November service is free except for parts and materials if any.  

I am not going to renew with this company.  They are the kings of the upsell.  Two out of two times in the year I've been here they've suggested "accessories" for my furnace and AC.  Last time they were here they said they "think" there is the start of mold growth in my ducts. They showed me a picture. It doesn't look like much, if anything, to me and I couldn't even be sure the picture was taken of my ducts.  I didn't see him taking a picture. And if there was, why not call me over to have a look? He could have snapped the picture in my presence. He recommended an $1,100+ UV light.   

And then very irritatingly they are pushy for you to leave a 5 star Google review.  Last time I got them out of the house by telling them I couldn't remember my password.  He was willing to wait for me to figure out my password or set a new one. 

After how they overcharged when I had a plumbing leak in the crawl space and couldn't just wait for my usual plumber to work me in, I am done with this company.  If I'd had to pay for the upcoming service call, I would have told them to forget it.  So now I'll get one last service call from them and call a different company in the spring. 

[TheOtherMe]

I signed up for one of those deals.  It was month to month.  He totally forgot me on the furnace so I told him to cancel.  I got charged again and let him have it.  He took over a company after the owner died and kept the name.  If I had known that, I would not have called.   For the first service, he must have done the bill in the truck.  It was in my email before he was out of the driveway.

I like my local company who has taken very good care of me.

[debthaven]

The fireplace insert people came yesterday.  They came late, but they came.

The boiler people come this afternoon. They are very local. They used to sweep the fireplace too, but they don't do inserts. I hope there are no surprises with the boiler ...

If they don't leave late I'm going to visit my friend who had peritonitis. She goes back to work on Monday.

[debthaven]

Just routine maintenance on the boiler! What a relief!

Here is my list from 4 Sept, so exactly one month ago: 
- get estimate for new insulation in the cathedral ceiling Estimate done, not doing it.
- get the (not-so-new) fireplace insert swept Done!
- get the boiler tuned up Done!
- get estimate to fix up two couches Estimates done, will do later
- call gardener for fall maintenance

 

[seriousthistime]

I arranged for someone to weed, plant grass seed in the bare spots, and create a new garden bed for me.  I've gotten a number of perennials from various people who were thinning their gardens and I need to get them in the ground. 

[debthaven]

I envy you seriousthistime ! It's very difficult to find an occasional gardener here.

[seriousthistime]

I do have a regular person who mows the lawn, but the gardener is a different guy.  

[debthaven]

I meant for planting/clearing up, not for mowing. 

[seriousthistime]

I know.  I'm super lucky!

[startsmart]

I am in the midst of organizing my fabric stash and it’s going to be so helpful when I do a quilt shop hop this month in terms of not buying too much.

I have enough outdoor fabric to recover outdoor pillows and recover my chairs so I think that’ll be a winter project.

In terms of current projects I have 2 pillows, 2 table runners and 2 quilt tops to quilt and may try to push myself to do those all by thanksgiving.

I plan to spend an hour or two a day upstairs organizing and cleaning up. So far the fabric project has been extensive and I had 23 bins (many small) with linens and fabric. I can’t wait until the upstairs sewing room is ready, it’s going to get a lot of use.

[NastyWoman]

My first storage area is now done and only~40% of the things that were in there now remain. Big find in those boxes that were untouched for two decades: coins that I had started rolling  before two very unexpected moves (the houses I rented were sold). I finished rolling them and this morning took them to the bank. I am now $223 "richer" than I was before I started this project. There will be no windfall when I get in the other storage area because I know (mostly) what is in there, I just need to decide what to get rid of. 
That will have to wait until next week though as we will have a mini (4 day) heatwave starting today and I am not going to be sweating all over the place on top of doing something I don't like doing to begin with.

[debthaven]

Yay for your continued progress NastyWoman and for the $233! You should treat yourself to something as a reward for all that hard work lol.

[snapdragon]

Things have been going along.

Painting is 95% done! I adore my green study but trying to take a photo just doesn't work. It is sooo much better in person than on photo. Found a issue with the ceiling in the laundry room so that is being taken care of this week, then the painters will be able to finish the house. I also found out that there is still a opening somewhere in the attic because I have live bats. I thought I had blocked all entrances, but I guess there is still one opening somewhere that I can't see or find yet. 

I was told by a neighbor that the bears are out in force a few days ago they got into everyone's trash all down the street and made a complete mess. I have found traces in my side yard so I will have to pick up trash and dispose of it when I go back down tomorrow.

I paid bills today and started my IRA rollover.

I need to start boxing up more things and getting ready to arrange the movers. Still need to empty out my attic storage and the patio storage. Progress is being made though.

Phoned the Ford dealership that I have delt with in the past on getting reimbursed for the tranny brains replacement. Waiting for a call back from them.

Looking forward to the 7th when I getting with friends to have a fun night out. 

Everybody take care.