My home is a mess

candygirl

HELEBORE will the charities not be able to collect your furniture? Think they do that round here.
POLLYPENNY I am shuddering at the thought of my Mum looking in my cutlery drawer :rotfl: I'm a right messsy moo, clean but untidy, whereas her house is like a palace, and she has a cleaner .

Helebore

Ah Candygirl the stuff I have is not saleable, they will do it if it has a fire certificate but some of the stuff is older than me. Some of my things will be going to a friend`s son at some point but I have a lot of rubbish that needs to go. Or I think it`s a lot, it may not be once it`s downstairs! I will get it sorted, I suppose I want it done sooner rather than later. And friend`s son may not even realise he will be getting things from me, he doesn`t drive or have transport although may be able to help at some point. Said friend lives a way away from here so cannot help although she did when she stayed here a few weeks ago. Too much stuff for two females to get downstairs I think and then theres transporting it! Council will take 3 items X twice a year and then I would probably have to pay, which I would do BUT even if I COULD get stuff downstairs don`t know how long it would be before they picked it up etc etc, in full view of neighbourhood which does not bother me but limited space to put stuff out. Have thought all this through +++!! But thanks for your reply! And there is no lift, it`s stairs!

pollypenny

candygirl wrote: »

HELEBORE will the charities not be able to collect your furniture? Think they do that round here.
POLLYPENNY I am shuddering at the thought of my Mum looking in my cutlery drawer :rotfl: I'm a right messsy moo, clean but untidy, whereas her house is like a palace, and she has a cleaner .

Oh, my house is far from a palace, but I do clean out the drawers about once a year.

She did give me permission to sort the middle drawer,,too and bought a couple of plastic boxes to work as dividers.

horse76

Emm-in-a-pickle wrote: »

Hi Horse, and don`t worry that your workplace and your home aren`t on the same pristine clean & tidy level. I`m a very `tidy` worker, more so than some of my colleagues on the ward actually! You`d never believe that if you came to my house though.
But Home is different, because it`s home.
Your little ones, especially a small baby, are not an excuse, but a darned good reason to go gently about your mission to get the house in order!
Enjoy your maternity leave, try and make it quality time for yourself as well as your family. Enjoy any progress you make, however small, on the tidying front, but don`t drive yourself to excess, or beat yourself up that you`ve not done enough.
I`ve had carpel tunnel surgery a few years ago, much better now but still get achey wrists and have arthritic thumbs so some tasks like mopping and Henrying I find are best done in short bursts, because of the way you have to grip the mop/hoover. Using a different grip for stuff like cleaning tiles/wiping doors, fingers against heel of palm is less wearing. (Our Hand specialist physio gave me some life-saving tips!) If I overdo it, my best friend is still a bag of frozen peas.

Chez-Emm:
I have put a load of washing out on the line, and have another nearly ready to go out.
OH and I had supper then DGD started making pizza for her and her dad, he decided to `help` her. We went off to bed leaving them to it, much sound of hilarity from kitchen. Bless `em, I thought. State of kitchen this morning is hard to describe. One jar of tomato & chilli pasta sauce, used as base for 2 pizzas. Who would ever believe that one jar could go so far? It` is everywhere, and they must have eaten some too.
I have cleaned up most of the evidence now.
I mentioned my itinerant teaspoons the other day, now I find after tackling the washing up that there are only TWO forks. I can`t pursue further enquiries now as nobody else is up yet, but the cutlery crisis will have to be sorted today!

Thanks for the advice and encouragement Emm-in-a-pickle. I've been doing not bad in blocking out my work since being off. My maternity replacement isn't as ocd as me, and I've been informed she's moved items around in surgery. I'm not going to fret, I'll fix it when I return. I know sounds obsessive, but I'd rather keep it how I know it, rather than get used to a new layout. .

My Carpel tunnel isn't too bad, every few days I get shooting pains, normally after I've given something a good clean. Been getting terrible pins and needles in hands and feet too, so can't sit in one place too long. I'm putting these things down to recent pregnancy, just thought they'd disappear once dd arrived.

I fret about mess of my home, it makes me grumpy. I normally have good intentions for the day ahead, then I end up having no motivation, so nothing gets done until I get an energy spurt, normally later in afternoon when I've hardly any 'free' time left. Kids are at school tomorrow and my sister is watching baby (she normally does every 3-4 wks). So I've no excuses tomorrow, just don't know where to begin. :eek:

alec_eiffel

Hi horse,

I know what you mean about not knowing where to start. I am a reformed hoarder so it took an age to get round to even being able to tell the difference between good stuff and rubbish. Someone suggested to me that if I didn't know where to start then I should just start anywhere. Although it seems daft it really helped me to relieve that feeling of being overwhelmed.

horse76

alec_eiffel wrote: »

Hi horse,

I know what you mean about not knowing where to start. I am a reformed hoarder so it took an age to get round to even being able to tell the difference between good stuff and rubbish. Someone suggested to me that if I didn't know where to start then I should just start anywhere. Although it seems daft it really helped me to relieve that feeling of being overwhelmed.

Thanks for the advice alec

I'm a former hoarder too, well when I say 'former', I mean I still have heaps of stuff to get rid off, but I'm over getting upset about getting rid of the stuff. Also, I'm not the type of hoarder who keeps say tonnes of newspapers or margarine tubs. I'm more one for keeping items of sentimental value from my childhood - like old toys, magazines etc. Though when I was expecting my first child I sold loads of my old toys on eBay and car boot.

Once I've got the house sorted from top to bottom, I'll start on my attic. The start anywhere suggestion sounds a good plan, I'm now putting things away or throwing them out when I set eyes on them. I was passing stuff in my hallway and thinking I know where it should go, but I'll do it later, which of course never happened and 6 months later the stuff is still sitting in the same corner. I've stopped keeping things that 'might come in handy' and only keep it if I know I'll definitely use it.

Well, so far I've got a bag full of different sized kids welly boots cleaned, and put them in a large storage tub to go in hall cupboard. DH thinks I'm mad, but there's nothing wrong with them, so the youngest can use them when she's bigger. My view is these are useful, and no point chucking to have to buy new ones when she'll need them - so money saving too.

Baileys_Babe

Horse my sister is the keeper of our families wellies, my children know that if they grow out of them they take them to her for an exchange. Some sizes she has multiple pairs, which is great as 2 of ours are quiet often in the same size. She has a very large garden and when friends with their children if they haven't brought suitable footwear she can usually sort something so they can still have fun.

I have sorted my floordrobe, which has been annoying me for a while, took all of 5 minutes in the end

Kept up with the laundry hokey cokey, along with the dw and washing up.

I am very lucky as my parents, MIL and a couple of friends pass to me novels which they have read and enjoyed and think will appeal to me, saves me a fortune as well as widening the authors and genres I read, the problem comes from getting snowed under the books. I am currently on top of the situation as I had a good clear out of books I had read, passing on those to others in my network who would enjoy them and the remainder I sent to the local charity book stall. I have saved myself the job of having to go through all my many bookshelves again by clearing one shelf and once I have read a book I put it on there, with a note for the next recipient if I their is one, my visitors can browse the shelf of unallocated books and take any they fancy and the rest I will pass on to the next book sale. Seems to be working well so far and I have saved myself a job, leaving me more time to do things I enjoy

horse76

Baileys Babe - you made me chuckle there, about your sister keeping assorted wellies, as thought surely no one else would do that too! I feel a bit better now. . Sounds like a good system you've got with the books. I sorted some of mine, all reference books, cookery books and photo albums sorted out in bookcase. Got rid of my other bookcase at a car boot, so now have 3 boxes of books to sort out - a job I'm saving for last, as I don't know what I'm doing with them yet.

Well, not a great deal done today, but got a load of washing done and tumble dried. Two vacuum bags filled with some of oldest dd's clothes she's outgrown, will keep for youngest dd to grow in to. I was so glad I kept her best baby clothes, as it's saved us a fortune since baby dd came along.

Besides getting the wellies sorted, also got a rug washed and dd's outgrown football boots cleaned, as they're in great condition so ds can use them.

Emm-in-a-pickle

Hi Messies!

Re a Wellies stash - we used to have a breeding colony of wellies in a crate in the hall, back in the days when we fostered it was incredibly useful!!

The Where To Start question - sometimes fate decides for you, as happened here on Monday....the corner of living room where computer lives has been a no-go area for a few years, even when DS recently had to do some computer first-aid (he refused to do it when I was around as I`d "be fussing around with cables and cleaning, getting in his way") Also, beside the computer desk is a 2-tier glass table, and wedged between them was a floor lamp uplighter thing, which died on Sunday night.
Piles of unsorted paperwork on both shelves of computer table and both shelves of glass table.
Assorted crud that had fallen down behind all this and been forgotten.
Well on Monday with OH`s help I managed to drag the whole lot out, remove lamp, and get to inaccessible parts without disturbing the cable spaghetti too much, and we also went out and bought a replacement lamp and got everything except the paper and carp back in place, after a much needed clean.
It was a bit of a marathon hands & knees jobbie, my knees and back are still feeling echoes this morning, but the whole corner looks so much better. I swear I will not let it build up like that again.

Another Where to Start may be forced upon me too-
I had a phone call from DGD last night, she`s coming over again this weekend, there`s a Comicon in local college, and she`s asked if she can bring a friend with her. I said ok, but still waiting to hear if said friend is able to come.
I`ll have to do a floordrobe clearance and make room for the camp bed in her room, so may as well get on with that even if the friend doesn`t come after all.
While I`m doing this I plan on boiling up 2 chicken carcasses for stock, that`ll free up some freezer space, and make a minced beef/sweet potato curry for tonight, which will use up lingerers in veg box.

If I get through all this I`ll feel quite pleased with myself.

Emm-in-a-pickle

Doesn`t a bit of sunshine spur us on?

I did get through yesterday`s list, as well as finding a lump of pork loin in the fridge and roasting that - we ate it last night, so the curry is on hold for tonight. Apart from doing some rice in the steamer later on it`s a no-cook day today, so when DD rang this morning to ask if I`d run some bagged stuff to the CS for her I took the time to fill a bag myself, and the whole lot has now gone.
On the way back we stopped at Morrison`s and I`ve treated myself to an olive tree,now standing shyly beside the bay tree enjoying the sunshine.

DGD`s room is far from tidy (that would take a month!!) but there`s clean bedding out and I`ve unearthed a large patch of carpet and the camp-bead stuff to go on it if required.

I`m now torn between making the most of the sunshine and doing a bit outside, or getting on with making DD`s cushion covers. Meanwhile, I`m reading here and procrastinating over a coffee, so getting nowhere.