2021 MISSION DECLUTTER and CLEAN

balabooberlies

Mothernerd

you blow my socks off !

 

bala

x 

Siebrie

I have sorted out a display cabinet I inherited about 10 years ago.... I inherited just the display cabinet (baroque, lovely sculpted set of drawers, glass display on top, intricate painting all over the wooden bits), but someone also gave me the contents which were supposed to go to someone else! I don't think anyone noticed or minded (the lady died without issue or relatives). Anyway, the cabinet was stored in 2 parts in my attic, there were some boxes in front and I never got round to opening the drawers. Now that I have: 5 figurines to donation bag, 1 cracked plate in bin, 2 plates in kitchen, 7 saucers in kitchen, 1 dessert bowl in kitchen, 2 glasses in kitchen. 12 small cups/mugs and their saucers still in cabinet; they are too nice to use at the moment, but will enter rotation when dds are a bit less prone to breaking stuff.

Broken last week: 3 glasses and 1 plate.

Out: 3 holey socks, 1 holey pair of pants, 1 vest, several African children's bracelets (too tight for dds), 15 hair ties.

I've been to the community waste: 1 plastic seesaw, 1 old fauxleather chest, 1 2-seater swing, the packaging for the new washing machine, 2 old carpets, lots of old metal bits, corks, empty batteries, pieces of wood, charger cords.

I received a fancy battery tester for handing in my old batteries, which is kept with the new batteries.

I rearranged the contents of 1 sturdy plastic box in the attic; the clothes inside happened to fit inside another larger plastic box I already have with clothes for dd2. The smaller box now holds the bag of rice in the pantry/garage. It didn't fit where I thought it would go in the rack, so I rearranged and cleaned the rack. The pantry bit is now more to my liking (why were the rice cookers in prime position, and the tins hidden somewhere at the back???)

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

1. KITCHEN WILL CONTINUE TO BE LEFT CLEAN & TIDY EVERY NIGHT

2. JUST DO ONE THING EVERY DAY (courtesy of bit_by_bit) OTHER THAN DAY TO DAY CLEANING & DECLUTTERING 

3. ONCE A WEEK LEAVE THE HOUSE (e.g. Go into city centre for bank & butcher;  go to local town for cs dropping off or buying; visit the pub with DH 😉

4. CLEAN & EMPTY SURFACE AREAS - DAILY

Sunday was damp, dark & cold. I did get dressed but spent the whole day in front of the TV nodding off every 30 minutes 😔 but did manage to watch The Last Train to Christmas - disappointing & The Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Pie Society which I thoroughly enjoyed 🙂 DH & DSis had the 2nd half of Saturday night’s Chinese, I had toast & a tuna sandwich. I even went to bed early ….. for me 😉 DH stayed up watching/listening to the cricket 😔 Monday is bitterly cold - I am up feeling a lot more awake although I haven’t bothered to get dressed yet 😉 DH popped out to pick up a box of LFTs & is now running a bath. 

2291 - 2297 Kitchen recycling, cardboard box, glass bottle, 3 plastic takeaway boxes & lids, magazine - recycled 
2298 Kitchen detritus - binned

mothernerd, sounds like the cleaners have been a good investment overall 👏 Must be a bit frustrating that DS3 didn’t get the point of labelling boxes 😔 Like ruby_eskimo I am exhausted even just reading about the amount of work you have done - especially as you are doing it in two houses 😱  I cannot sing your praises enough & do not have the vocabulary to describe how awesome you are 👏 Your shopping trip sounds like it was reasonably successful & well done for remembering about the foil trays 🙂 Btw if a house is perfect then it is not a home 😉 So the fact that you like to have a ‘nest’ is proof that you have a home & once you have completed your decluttering you will be able to enjoy living in your home 🙂 I must admit to being a bit concerned that you are doing too much & don’t really have the support you deserve so please take care 🙏 Although I do understand that you want to get everything done. Really I just want to give you lots of hugs 🤗 , loan you my DH to help with the heavy lifting & as for me - I am very good at following instructions so could sort things for you whilst you take a well deserved rest. As to your wobble I am again impressed that you recognised & dealt with it. The CBT is a wonderful thing & you are making the most of it another proof of the strong & capable person you are 👏 To quote balabooberlies “ Mothernerd, you blow my socks off !” 

What a marvellous post Liverpool_Anne 👏 one Gold Star ⭐️ on its way. I do so love our community - a wealth of life experience & everyone willing & being generous enough to share 😊 Totally agree about the housework 😉 

You are very welcome balabooberlies 🙂

vulpix, I love it “don’t put it down, put it away” 👏 A mantra for us all to live by 😉 A very succinct plan for next year & yes I have booked you a seat on the ‘Electric Train’ 🙂 As to you keeping your purse locked I know you can do it 🙂

Gem-gem, well done on getting the old wm taken away & getting some £££s 👏 Nice to know that some large companies are trying to beef up their eco credentials 🙂 I will pop round later for some crumble 😉 Thanks for the info 👏

Good work Energy_Shifter 👏 

Lovely post ruby_eskimo 👏 Don’t worry about not hitting this year’s target - you have done the difficult thing by committing to decluttering 👏🙂 & are doing really well 🙂 Your seat on the ‘Electric Train’ is reserved & target noted 🙂

The display cabinet sounds beautiful Siebrie 😻 Well done on sorting it out & setting it up 👏 Great decluttering (shame about the broken bits 😉) 👏 Tins hidden - yet another one of those decluttering/tidying mysteries 😉😉

See you later when I am dressed & have hopefully done something ….. anything 😉

MrsSD   🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🏅🥇🥇🏅   ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Decluttering Target: 2021    2298/2021

2021 Savings Pot:  £675.00 to end of December 

vulpix

Mrs SD , my thoughts too about you mothernerd. I could just get in the car and come and help you right now. You move mountains every day. In our area we have something called Senior Servers. They will do things like garden clearing and tip runs, shopping etc. There might be something similar where you live. I am seriously offering my help. I don’t think we live worlds apart. 

Siebrie I imagine the old lady would be happy that her things are being used once more.

 Whilst I will endeavour to not buy clothes, toiletries or frippery next year. I am going to buy some new duvets in the sales. I am cold at night and I don’t recall how old my current duvet is. I would like a new to me sofa and bed. We had a new mattress this year. I can’t get on with it. The type with a girls name. I would also like a smaller bed frame. Want rather than need. I will see how long I can defer gratification. The trick is to not look.

Vx

Happy_Kitties

*436-440. Clothes and fleecy quilt cover x 5 dropped off at CS
*441.        Shoes-CS
*442.        Gym skipping rope-CS
*443.        Knitting pattern binned after cat weed on it!

TC77

@Vulpix... I bought a 15tog duvet from As*a I think about 5 weeks ago - fabulous and makes such a difference and v inexpensive.

few frogs being done...felt overwhelmed so wrote 3 small things down and then the several things I did by being sidetracked. Will add nos later.

elsien

I am trialling an wool duvet. It wasn't cheap, even in the sale, but I do find it regulates my hot/cold temperature swings better than my previous synthetic one. I'm allergic to feathers/dust so can't use down.  It is heavier which takes some getting used to, very slightly reminiscent of being back at uncentrally heated grandparents with many layers of blankets piled on till you can't physically turn over. 

Still not much going on here at present. Work carries on getting harder -  more people leaving, extra pressure on the rest of us - all a bit of a cycle. I'm trying really hard not to think about January. 

Duvet had to go to landfill as although it was newish and clean I couldn't give it away and they don't recycle.
Roll of wallpaper and an old bag. Some Xmas decs earmarked to be binned rather than be put back in the loft when they come back down again. 

Gitdog is due to have some teeth decluttered on Wed - wish him luck that it's not too many. 

nannywindow

Hello all, lots more cardboard boxes jumped upon and cut up, they are now in the recycling ready for next week. All presents now wrapped including DGS's present from his Mum and Dad, it's so big ( large TV ) that DD didn't have the room to store it. I nearly decluttered my Dad yesterday 😡, he made me lose my temper with him. Normally I just let things go over my head but I couldn't yesterday so he had it both barrels. He's as sweet as pie today, he's probably forgotten how hurtful he was.
Bin emptied from my craft room/ spare bedroom and all craft detritus hoovered up. I helped DH replace a broken castor on my day bed as the DGC and DD are staying with us on Boxing night. They only live 5 mins down the road but we haven't seen much of each other lately, not in person anyway. Good news is DD is now negative for the virus and DGS is also still negative. I hope he stays that way 🤞
I am going to strip the chicken ( ooh-err missus 😁 ) and we'll have the left over meat for tea, not made up my mind as what to make with it yet.
Liverpool Anne thank you for the thyroid info, I didn't know that there was more than a usual test available. Thanks
Mothernerd gosh you make my head spin with all you accomplish, I am in awe.
I must say I am learning a lot of things on here. It's wonderful that so many people share information, I'm learning more and more each day, thanks.
I haven't read back, well I have but nothing has stuck in my head so I will wish everyone good health and send hugs to anyone in need. 
nan 

GrannyKate

Just checking in as I have lots of posts to read and catch up on.  Mainly decluttering money at the moment.

1631- Used up M&S voucher I have been carrying around for ages 
1632-1633 two bags of plastic to recycling
1634 - sorted out fridge and freezer contents - threw a few bits away and put oddments in the slow cooker with some cooked sausages and other random frozen veggies etc.  Will make several portions of sausage casserole.  
1635 - decluttered Christmas gifts to DD on Saturday - met up at National Trust place half way between our homes - terrible foggy day but we had a walk round, a cooked breakfast etc and bought things in shop. It was very quiet there and loads of space. 
1636 - decluttered cobwebs on Friday by taking grandchildren to coast again in thick fog.  They had a run in fresh air and played on 2p machines - nobody around.

DD had overnight visitors at weekend and one of them tested positive when they got home.  Hoping for the best and doing tests every day - I hope to see them Boxing Day but we will see. Stayed in all day today but need to venture out to get a last few bits tomorrow.  Collect veggie box on Thursday. 

oceanspirit

Kitchen tidy and clean is going well.  Have just made a mess all over the breakfast bar by spreading out the piles of papers that were on it but I am ok with that.  Anything not sorted out by end of play on Thursday will go into a cardboard box ready to be looked at again next year.  The purpose at the moment is to reduce it quickly and get it out of the kitchen.

There won’t be time to do the kitchen bookcase before Friday but again I am ok with that - the important areas have been done so the Christmas dinner can be cooked and eaten without having to keep moving piles of stuff out of the way. The living room is very nearly at the point of being tidy too - just need to write Christmas cards and get them in the post.  They won’t get there in time now, but that’s ok.  I have always prioritised the cards over my own needs but decided to change that this year.  Next year should be a breeze in a clean, tidy home and cards will be done at the beginning of December again.

OH has volunteered to cook lunch on Friday and we will have cheese, crudités, mince pies, chocs and popcorn etc that we can pick at in front of a film during the evening.