2023 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN Mrs SD

TC77

Trying to read along but the pace is awe inspiring.
Mrs SD the swedish shop were difficult over one item but lovely person on the phone today so we will see. Brought more stuff in:(
Work work taking over, new member of staff tomorrow and in the office or onsite meetings 4 days so washing and have to iron later!
A little paper out, couple of emails moving things forward and 2 kitchen drawers tidied with a few unknown or unuseable bits binned/recycled.  Will come back with numbers. Hope I'm not kidding myself that I will be going through the house like  a dose of salts in the autumn!

QueenJess

Ugh.  After a whole week of feeling ill, the house is an absolute tip and I'm behind on everything.  Feel quite stressed about it and just told DH I was getting rid of everything I could as the house is a mess, it's stressing me out and we just need to have as little as physically possible.  He saw me taking photos of things for Buy Nothing and then took the hat boxes for himself (so I deleted the post).  He did go through some stuff at the top of the wardrobe at the same time and after a loooonnngg conversation I managed to convince him to get rid of one hat out of 6 (of which he only ever wears 2 in the last 10 years) and a cardigan. 

He has moved the photo frame that was gathering dust up there to his desk for use (or alternatively to get rid of if he doesn't use it).  He almost put it back saying he didn't have time to deal with it now (he has to do a bit of work), but I said "No!  Don't do that, just put it in your room to remind you to get it out when you have more time."  I really don't think he gets it....

DS also heard what I said and stopped tidying his room and is sorting through his stuff (including Lego that I've been trying to talk to him about for days) and picking out everything he doesn't use/want anymore.

This is exactly the reason I need to get rid of way more stuff.  I just can't deal with it all.  I have a job, DS has a job and we have kids that I want to spend time with, not time being stressed and tidying/cleaning.  I think it's all worse since everything goes to pot when I'm ill including the kitchen where we've eaten less and so the food is piling up in the fridge and everywhere.

Apologies... end of rant.  I'm off to do some tidying now and possibly some light decluttering.  Still working on the bedroom stuff and trying to get it in order.  I usually only declutter shared things, mine and the kids stuff, but I think I'm going to have to force DH to go through his clothes and it's going to be painful.  I have to catch him at the right time though, so might be a long job...

15,597 - bathroom supplies (used up)
15,598-15,599 - DH cardigan & hat

Florenceem

QueenJess - I feel your pain - Mr F is difficult about getting rid of stuff - don't know what his reaction is going to be when he comes home but what's gone - is gone.

QueenJess

@Florenceem but I bet Mr F doesn’t claim he is a minimalist! I don’t even claim that I am, although I seem to get closer to that as each day passes. I can’t even get him to deal with the box of shoes that he hasn’t worn in the last 8 years because “he still wants them all”. 

This is what happens when you have no decluttering installed into you as a child. I mean we had lots in the house when I was growing up, but we went through absolutely everything every year and got rid of tons of stuff. DH’s parents never did that, although they are now in what is basically a hoarders house where there is a path through and that’s it. It’s so dusty and dangerous for kids that my kids have never been there. DH has seen how much I got rid of from my wardrobe as the hangers were all stacked up on the floor for a while. I’ve told him that he can have one wardrobe for work stuff and then we can nicely hang his leisure stuff in the other. They all have to fit in there. It’ll be a big challenge for the summer. Mine can fit into one wardrobe although there is still a little more than I’d like.

Moorviews

QueenJess - you have my sympathy! I always feel that this is almost the worst aspect of being ill. When everything gets backed up and messy because no one else sees it as important. Then you have to try to restore order whilst still feeling below par. 

I have only decluttered emails today as I am very low in energy. On the plus side I have done plenty of reading on MSE and been inspired by diaries and some of the other threads in Old Style. Hopefully I will be a bit more energetic tomorrow. 

florianatwobob

@QueenJess you’re not alone. DBro finds it very hard to let go of anything. He just likes to have his ‘things around him’. I think It’s the acquisition that he especially enjoys.

After ensuring his room was a pleasant environment when he came home from
hospital he has successfully undone a lot of good work. The current state of it is making me tense and I’ve no reason to go in there! I just know it’s there, throbbing and multiplying behind the door. I’m also fed up beyond words about the Am@zon deliveries. Not helped by the fact I’m often the one answering the door to them! 

When he does decide to dispose of things it’s often DSis or I that
removes them from the house. If we didn’t it would just sit there. Forever. 

He’s found 3 things that are currently listed on fleabay for £25 each. Theoretically that’s £75 (assuming someone buys them at that price) that could go in the house kitty. However as he told us about this I could see he assumed that DSis or I would list them. He was less than impressed when I said that he could do that.

From my point of view DSis and I have done a vast amount of fleabaying but as he’s still signed off work he’s got plenty of time on his hands where he can make the listing and manage any questions (his specialist tastes generate questions on his listed items) and post the items. He’s perfectly capable, IT literate and buys from
fleabay so he can do some of the ‘lifting’.

Sorry for the rant folks, it’s not my normal style but I’ve had it right up to the back teeth this weekend and I know you’ll understand my frustrations. 

Muddy_Walker

Big hugs for frustrated declutterati- this muggy dusty heat doesn’t help either.
MrsF your kitchen and bathroom are amazing!
as the week zipped by I have more or less kept on top of things, got some tadpoles dealt with and a stack of gardening yesterday. I am more than satisfied with the back garden except for a new plastic paddling pool hubby got the dogs. They ignored it….I’ve asked him to move it to the patio as I can at least soak my feet in it that way….and then it won’t be seen….🤨
today I decluttered Gardeners World, last 2 episodes of Annika and the latest Conjuring film - the devil made me so it. Terrible title but awesome film! I love a good horror!
no thunder with me yet…..boo

QueenJess

Tidied up a huge ton of clean clothes, hung out more washing and DS went through most of his clothes and got rid of some.  I now have a total mess in the library again of things I have to sort out.  Can't do any more today and still feel stressed and overwhelmed with it all.

More needs to leave tomorrow, but more urgently I need to deal with some of the piles of stuff as that is stressing me out just as much.  Will box and bag up loads of charity stuff which then gets shifted to DH's room for him to deal with.  I also have DS adding to the piles of stuff for me to sort out which doesn't help.  Will see what I can get done tomorrow whilst on mini work breaks.  I should investigate exactly why the things lying on the sides and floor of my bedroom are there and if they need to find a home or be ejected.

15,600 - DS’s ruined trousers (textile recycling)
15,601-15,603 - useless xmas cracker screwdrivers (I kept the 1 I use for my glasses, binned).
15,604 - mini screwdriver not needed (Buy Nothing)
15,605-15,606 - drying clothes (textile recycling)
15,607 - rubbish cleaning cloth (textile recycling)

Off to bed to see if I can watch something or read to try and relax and get some sleep.

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

Sunday continued to be hot 🥵 but the sun was not so visible today ⛅️ DH has now finished the desk - leg in + desk top screwed down to the frame. DH also tidied up the new cabling which is no longer cluttering up the floor. I know it was hot today but I had planned a full roast dinner & wanted to use my vegetables whilst still fresh 😉 So I turned my kitchen into a sauna 🙂 Roast beef with roast potatoes, roasted parsnips, asparagus & carrots, Yorkshire puddings & cabbage. DH made gravy. A delicious meal (all 3 plates cleared) & all the vegetables were eaten 😋 Still have a decent sized lump of beef left which will hopefully be enough for at least 2 more three person meals🤞Unfortunately the kitchen looks like a bomb site as I didn’t tidy up as I went along 😔 Wudupa. Also sorted kitchen freezer & binned a few unlabelled bits that will definitely not be used 😉

DH is off early Monday morning doing his Round Britain Rally - heading to North Wales with an overnight stop. 

1441 - 1442 Kitchen recycling, drinks cans - recycled 

1443 Kitchen detritus binned

I will cheerlead tomorrow aka later today 😉

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

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

Decluttering Target 2023: 1443/2023

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £166.90

Liverpool_Anne

Hi all, had a very disturbed sleep on Saturday night and despite waking early I fell asleep again so we didn't get going until lunch time. OH wanted to clean the learner car as there is a test on Tuesday so as it was a bit cooler I decided to have a go in the garden. 2 bags of garden waste into the bin and it is now pretty full . I trimmed the holly as it kept attacking me when I walked past it I am hoping it gets emptied on Tuesday or I will have to take stuff to the tip. 
@MrsSD I used your pepperonata as inspiration for tea and uu some sliced peppers from the freezer as well as some fresh and a small jar of sundried tomatoes that has been lurking for far too long and a small jar of olives likewise. We had it with some pasta and it was lovely
Kitchen bin emptied
Also put a bar of soap into the bathroom from my stash. OH objects to soap with bits in so I did buy soap but I have realised I can still use up my stash, otherwise they will sit in the draw until doomsday so that plan was put into action today
I fell asleep on the couch and am now heading for bed. No news on the meeting which may or may not be happening today. I have set my alarm and will check when I wake up.

Sorry I haven't caught up so hugs to anybody who would like one
814 + 815 garden waste
816 kitchen bin emptied
817 uu food from fridge and freezer
818 soap from stash into the bathroom
Take care everyone
818/2023