2023 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN Mrs SD

roundtuit

Hallooooo xx 

I too get a buzz from the 1st of the month being on a Monday. Seems logical to me. 

Following the lead of @Liverpool_Anne I  have ascertained that my first priority is ta-dah: the living room. 

And the first priority of the first priority is to clear the floor. 

So I removed 3 videos from the bookcase in my bedroom 🤣 🤔 - binned the videos and recycled the packaging. 
And then emptied the box of videos that has been sat on LR floor for months. 18 videos binned. Cardboard covers recycled. Box put with a couple of other boxes which will be required for cs/ DS finds.

I'm going to attack the bag of 'to be shredded' papers in 10-15*  minutes bursts. * depends on how long my shredder will keep going before it says 'I'm too hot. Give me a breather' and packs up. 

I'll do my first burst now. 

I do believe I've rediscovered my decluttering mojo. Shhhh. Don't frighten it away. Declutterati membership is on my wish list.

Rxx

roundtuit

First burst of shredding done. Fascinated to learn that I've had my toaster since 2000, and I bought my kettle in 1999 for £9.99. I doubt they're still under warranty 🤣

I've had my mattress for 20 years. Been thinking about treating myself to  new one. Now I know that it's long overdue. 

While the shredder had a breather I dismantled cheque books, a water bill payment book....exactly half the price in 2007 to what it is now, and an old catalogue statement book. Cor. Memories, Eh?

I've started my second burst but the shredder has quickly spit its dummy out. So I'll do some more later.

There's more LR floor visible than there was at 2pm and that's the aim.
 🏹 🎯 

Rxx

QueenJess

@Mrs_Salad_Dodger Sorry to hear your news, it must have been quite a shock.  be kind to yourself.

So last week I declared that I had 42 packaging items (most of these the plastic bags).  After a week of vigorous decluttering to Buy Nothing, I have reduced my packaging down to 17 items which only includes 3 plastic bags (and an extra Jiffy bag DH gave to me from his junk).  That's pretty good I think; reducing it down by more than half! 

I would love to get rid of more, but am starting to struggle to find things at the moment and so I'm probably at a natural lull in my decluttering cycle until I realise I have far too much of X and Y.  It's a natural cycle for me when I go on a spree and then you have to live with it for a while to work out whether you want to be more minimal or if it's the right amount of stuff.  Generally there's always a category of stuff you've forgotten and since the kids are so young, they do grow out of things often.  I'm in the midst of the "worst" bit in terms of stuff turnover for kids, so just need to keep on top of it.  In the meantime I will concentrate on tidying and using things up whilst I wait for the next inspiration to hit.

The big Lego sort is also done and I just have a few more drawers to label up (probably later today).  Somehow I've managed to buy 1 set of drawers, but these were a better size and so I've got rid of another one in the process.  Net nil, but everything is nicely organised and taking up less space.  I've kept the old drawers for now as they may come in handy at a later point and I'm not ready to offload those yet.  They're currently in the attic pile for when I can face going up there again.

Digital:
13,092-13,093 - emails permanently deleted

Physical:
13,094 - packaging damaged (recycled)
13,095-13,097 - packaging (reused)
13,098-13,100 - paper (recycled)
13,101-13,105 - DS socks no longer wearable (recycling pile)

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

1. Write a daily To Do list - only 3 tasks to include MMiM - do this before I go to bed

2. Commence ‘Operation Frog Tickling’ I have an acronym - I.R.I.S. being Identify, Research, Implement, Sign Off - 

3. Implement a new sleep/wake up regime - start going to bed earlier (target before 2:00 a.m.) get up earlier (target by 9:00 a.m.)

4. Deal with ‘Urgent’ daily mail immediately & the rest at the weekend

5. Don’t put it down, put it away

6. If I spot a mini task deal with it immediately e.g. refill olive oil pourer or salt cellar, stitch up a hole in a garment etc

7. Continue to keep kitchen clean & tidy - before going to bed

13:00 DH is out the front mowing the lawn - a high cut which hopefully he will finish before it starts raining as it has clouded over 😬 I went out & joined DH & unboxed my new garden toy - a patio cleaner. DH put it together & set the handle for my height - so no bad back as I can stand straight when using it 🥳 I had a little practice & it is marvellous now I know how to use it 😁 DH also trimmed our hedge & ndn’s hedge + tidied up the kerbside area a bit whilst I used his vacuum (shredder) /blower toy 😂 - outside for an hour & it already looks neater out front - almost as if someone cares 🤣 We then went into back garden & DH filled bird feeders & I added the dead flowers & kitchen compost to the compost bin. 

1077 - 1079 Cardboard box, 2 lots of cardboard packaging - recycled

1080 Plastic packaging binned

Comparing 30th April 2022 page numbers to 2023 page numbers we are 174 pages further along this year 🤩 The EDT is still speeding along 🥳

GrannyKate, hope you are having a lovely visit with DD 😊 Your mention of ants has reminded me to mention that DSis didn’t see any more ants in the kitchen whilst we were away 🥳 🤞Great decluttering 👏

Florenceem, hopefully your bin won’t be quite so heavy next time 🤞otherwise the bin-men will start to think that you are as strong as SuperGirl 😉

Siebrie, you just reminded me to go through my emails 👏- 39 deleted 🙂

dND, you are very welcome 😊 All I can say is thanks to the OPs (whom I took over from) who started this “set” of decluttering threads way back in 2015 👏 I would think there were probably earlier ones but as the first posts on MSE Old Style were way back in 2004 I have dissuaded myself from looking at more than the first 20 pages of threads 😂 I am just so easily distracted 🤣Like you I am enjoying & taking heart from reading the current direction of reasons why we have so much clutter & what we are doing to help ourselves to free up physical, digital & mental space to make our lives less stressful 😊 

Excellent decluttering on Friday QueenJess 👏 especially finding more stuff to go in your revisiting of desk drawers 👏

2Scratters, more excellent observations for not only gettingthrifty but also for the large number of us who still haven’t quite got a plan in place for doing the massive declutter & then moving onto maintenance decluttering 😉 The more I read, the more I pick up & try different methods of decluttering 😊 Now I just need to list the methods that work best for me but using pen & paper as typing doesn’t quite seem to work for me 😔 Look at that, I have definitely learnt something about myself 😂

Brie, very succinct 👏

Liverpool_Anne, but really are dragging their feet 😖 Although I suppose that the upside when you finally get the returns bag is that you will have a large empty space clear of clutter 😉 Thank you for your insight into the ‘conundrum that is decluttering’ 👏 As you say, the more information we have & share the more likely we all are to be successful 😊

Great post Moorviews 👏 I especially liked your observations  “I am much more challenging of the guilt now and am getting better at recognising what may be some remorse or regret for an error (fine and rational), or a habit of guilt for not always doing the perfect thing and grossly exaggerating the consequences in order to then give myself a hard time over it. Definitely not fine.

Also, if I value my home then I can choose what to have in it and therefore I am finding my way slowly to move things out as well as around. Not everything has my permission to be here anymore! It’s quite liberating really and I am getting more fulfilment as I go on, finding many things easier and sometimes even enjoying parts of the process”

Dfw38, brilliant post 👏 A reminder to us all that decluttering can be a bit easier if we have a specific ‘end goal’ in sight 😊 Hopefully your parents home will not take as long to declutter as you fear 🤞 By the way, very well done decluttering  so much of your debt by being thrifty - one Gold Star ⭐️ coming your way 👏

Another page caught up 🙂

MrsSD (a superwoman) 😇 🎖💐🤩🏅🦸🏅💐🏆 💐🍰🍾🌟⭐️🌟 💐🏅💐🏅💐💐💐🏅💐 ⭐️ ❤️🏅🍾 

DH Awards: 🥇🏅⭐️💐🏅 perseverance medal 🎖️ 🥇 🏅🏅 

Decluttering Target 2023: 1080/2023

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £74.70

roundtuit

All the shredding done. Shredder emptied. Large bag of shedding put into paper recycling box. Carrier bag put in bag of bags.

😊

gettingthrifty

Could someone tell me how i copy peoples user name so i can respond to them?  I suspect its super simple but ive not done it before thank you x

Brie

gettingthrifty said:

Could someone tell me how i copy peoples user name so i can respond to them?  I suspect its super simple but ive not done it before thank you x

@gettingthrifty

putting the @ in front is the easiest thing.  quoting works too I think.

Florenceem

Brie - I will go and check the shredder is plugged in.
MrsSD - my black bin is just as heavy - I am going to start using my neighbour's bin - have her permission. I will have to find a strong man again when black bin day comes round again.
The red suitcase that I put outside had gone when I came home from the hospital.
Mr F was fine in himself but in bed as he has swollen feet and ankles - they have put him on a diuretic.
My 2 Freeglers booked for today - turned up so stuff went out of the house.
I now have 7 bags ready for the charity shop - I can only manage three each trip.

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

1. Write a daily To Do list - only 3 tasks to include MMiM - do this before I go to bed

2. Commence ‘Operation Frog Tickling’ I have an acronym - I.R.I.S. being Identify, Research, Implement, Sign Off - 

3. Implement a new sleep/wake up regime - start going to bed earlier (target before 2:00 a.m.) get up earlier (target by 9:00 a.m.)

4. Deal with ‘Urgent’ daily mail immediately & the rest at the weekend

5. Don’t put it down, put it away

6. If I spot a mini task deal with it immediately e.g. refill olive oil pourer or salt cellar, stitch up a hole in a garment etc

7. Continue to keep kitchen clean & tidy - before going to bed

The bags from the trip have been emptied & everything put away appropriately or added to laundry bag. My DBro phoned & chatted to DH - apart from his elder boy who has a hairline fracture of his knee caused by a snowboarding accident everyone else is fit & healthy. His MiL & FiL came back from their 3 month round the world cruise in February but are now gallivanting in the camper van for another 6 to 8 weeks - thoroughly enjoying their retirement 😊 DBro still hasn’t managed to find a job (he is nearly 62) but this means that all the outside work & any inside decorating or DIY has been done ✅  DH is cooking dinner tonight 🥳

1081 - 1082 Uu deodorant can & uu lens solution bottle recycled

Dfw38, I have bookmarked this & will read when I finally catch up with the cheerleading 😉

Brie, ditto above 🙂

Muddy_Walker, a perfect end to a challenging week - tucked up in bed with chocolate 😊 I believe you are allowed to mention that a person is quietly spoken & has an accent - as long as you don’t specify the accent 😂 I am pleased to hear that you are making notes about any ‘challenges with your boss etc’ so that you will be fully armed if/when you see HR 🙂 Perhaps we need a ‘dog whisperer’ to persuade your dogs that you NEED the cruise & expenses rather than the vet 😅 Fingers crossed that it is a temporary glitch re the mortgage payment & that you will not have to phone them 🤞

gettingthrifty, it appears you have realised how far you have progressed & that Soontobeoap, QueenJess & Siebrie have all reminded you to 1) celebrate your successes & 2) how much you love Dana K White 👏🙂 Marie Kondo is mostly too full on for me 😉 see below re my thoughts on ‘spark of joy’ 😂

Siebrie, thanks for the more useful translation 👏 My home would be empty if I was waiting for the ‘spark of joy’ 🤣………. 🤔 now there’s an idea 😉

gettingthrifty, you never, ever have to apologise for posting - long or short posts 😊 This whole discussion with thoughts & ideas is proving tremendously useful & we are still obeying Forum rules by being on topic 😁 I would again like to thank you for being so open in sharing your life & thanks also to daisy_1571 & TC77 for sharing their lives as well 👏😊 From my POV this whole discussion is proving very cathartic & is further proof that none of us are alone & will thrive in the right environment 🥹

Well said daisy_1571 😊

Fizz2015, you had a very busy Friday 👏 The sun shining makes so much difference to our decluttering mojo 😊 Good luck to your OH ‘getting all the ducks in a row’ to transition to being self-employed 🍀and I hope you had a successful weekend of clothes decluttering 🤞

Liverpool_Anne, love it 😊 Just shows how time moves on 😔

stellata, sorry to hear that the last 2 years have been so stressful & exhausting 😔 I do hope that you took at least the whole of Saturday for some TLC & preferably Sunday as well 🙏 Bank Holiday Monday is soon enough to go back to your decluttering journey 😉

Look at that another page caught up & ready to post 🙂

MrsSD (a superwoman) 😇 🎖💐🤩🏅🦸🏅💐🏆 💐🍰🍾🌟⭐️🌟 💐🏅💐🏅💐💐💐🏅💐 ⭐️ ❤️🏅🍾 

DH Awards: 🥇🏅⭐️💐🏅 perseverance medal 🎖️ 🥇 🏅🏅 

Decluttering Target 2023: 1082/2023

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £74.70

Deni_debt-free_dreamer

Hi everyone

Sorry for my lack of posting.
Condolences MrsS_D on the loss of your uncle
Florenceem and Floss - hugs as you go through a difficult time.
Hugs to anyone else who needs one.
Well done dfw38 on your marathon achievement, very impressive!

My decluttering has been low in number but high in value - I decluttered my mortgage!!

In less exciting news, DD1 took 2 bags to the CS last month and I have been slowly and steadily shredding paperwork. I've also been deleting emails - sorting by sender like others have said

love Deni x