2023 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN Mrs SD

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

I did go back to bed then rather shamefully didn’t get up until 13:10. I have done nothing but read so have finished the 1st Shetland novel. Thoroughly enjoyed it although the TV version was slightly different. Unfortunately I don’t have the 2nd book so I can see a visit to the CS armed with a list 🤞Lunch was a chilli salmon sandwich with lettuce 😋 Yesterdays washed & dried bedding is now folded & put away & I have selected several balls of yarn to continue knitting scarves & beanies. 

vulpix, what a beautiful photo of your walk home 😍 So relaxing & I am just imagining the silence as the snow was falling 🥹 I must admit to liking the idea of ‘hokey socks’ 😉

TC77, “magical” is a lovely word to describe vulpix’s photo 😊 Well done on your continued decluttering 👏 Don’t forget to update your numbers 😉

Wednesday2000, congratulations on your lotto win 🥳 (Reminds me that Ernie finished off my year with another £50 win 🥳) Excellent decluttering & tidying yesterday 👏 You were busy 🤩

Brie, I did have a wry grin at the thought that your OH thought he had come up with a cunning plan 😁😉 Now you just have to persuade him to help you get the room cleared before Christmas so that all the kitchen fittings & appliances can be stored 😉🍀 Are you doing the kitchen renovations or are you getting someone in to do the work? Either way hope it all goes well 🤞

vulpix, what a marvellous setting for a concert although I imagine you would have to wrap up really warmly 😉 I am just trying to imagine the acoustics 🤔 

charlies_tribe, what a relief that it was just a blown fuse in the car 😮‍💨 I’m glad that it was only DGD who screamed the place down 😉😉 although it probably warmed her up a little 😅 Any chance of a picture of your snow 🙏 We rarely get snow here & you have to be quick to get a photo before it turns to that horrible grey/brown slush 😔

TC77, I think I need to print that out “……… if everything is precious then nothing is precious” It might help with my decluttering 🤞 Well done on clearing out the freezer 👏 reminds me that I really need to sort mine out 😔 Great decluttering 👏 only 65 to go 🥳

weenancy, I really love hearing about your genealogy work 😊 The young man is very lucky to have you working on his family history 🍀 Yesterday’s dinner sounds delicious 😋 & even more so as it was mostly free & someone else did the cooking 😉 Fingers crossed that your shopping trip isn’t too expensive 🤞Also wishing both you & G good outcomes re your medical issues 🙏 Good luck dealing with your frogs 🍀 Also I hope your friend in Colorado is managing to stay warm 🤞

Nice to see you Liverpool_Anne 👋 I am still surprised at how fast the EDT is moving 😮  so well done on reading 17 pages of posts 👏 Wow you have been really busy - not only at your sister’s house but also yours now that you are home after the dog sitting 🤩👏 Your comment “I realised while hunting for a spare quilt that while her house looks tidy, if a bit cluttered with ornaments etc. The cupboards are rammed, as are under the beds. This made me feel a bit better about the state of my house as I have far less storage than her and I know she has loads of stuff in the loft as well” gave me a huge grin 😁 It is always a pleasure/relief to realise that your home is not quite as cluttered as you thought & that you can allow yourself some pride in your decluttering successes 😊 Good luck with the ACAS case now that it has gone to tribunal 🍀 Fingers crossed that the warning light only involves a quick & cheap fix to the car 🤞

Brie, good luck with your decision re the raclette cheese 🍀 

vulpix, please be careful not to “give away MrV” 🤣 Your comment “I read somewhere that at the end of the day to treat your home like your workplace and close up shop, ie leave everything tidy for the next day” sounds like a great idea 🤔 I need to give that some serious consideration as currently the only room that is completely like that is our bedroom 😔 Hope you managed to get your CS drop off & your shopping done today 🙂

Wednesday2000, an eclectic mix of events for next year 🙂 Good luck with emptying & using up the contents of the freezer drawer 🍀 I might have to pop round later to taste test your soup 😉😉

Thanks bit_by_bit 😊 I am considering knitting a baby blanket as I have some soft yarn in pastel colours but need to decide on a pattern 🤔 Excellent work on your decluttering 👏 & I loved the autocorrect at the end of your post “12 nags …..” 🤣

All caught up so off to start making dinner 🙂

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

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

Decluttering Target 2023: 2402/2023

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £679.00

TC77

I think I'll print out ' if everything is precious, nothing is precious'  - I think it's an Andrew Mellen phrase
Decided 2 more unidentifiable frozen bags out, first outing down the road since ankle incident, and returned 3 items - not sure I should count these next year and focus on things that have lived here more than a month I am for this time. 1963

London_1

Out: sorted out a bag of china ornaments to go to the charity shop tomorrow after coffee morning ,plus some books as well. Most of them were in my spare bedroom which is rarely used and were just dust catchers to be honest
 as well I shall be posting off my overseas Christmas cards so another job done

Apart from close family and two old friends most of my Xmascard cash gets donated to the Sally Army. My youngest DD and I haven't exchanged a Christmas card in over 20 years. She said" It's daft Mum, you are here on Christmas Day anyway, why you buying one to give to me and me buying one to give to you" Bless her she is a chip off the old block.I have to get one for the eldest DD or she takes umbrage   but if it keeps her happy I don't mind.

 worked it out that I can do a carrier bag of stuff to the local CS when ever I go across the road. I only live about three minutes from a small precinct. We have six CS in my little town so I will donate to each in turn and slowly stuff will start to go Fingers crossed


JackieO xx

Liverpool_Anne

Hi all, I will try to finish my post from earlier now . Sunday was mostly taken up with another footy match.  This morning after dropping the car at the garage we went shopping as OH informed me we needed all kinds. Honestly I was only away for just over 2 weeks but apparently nothing was done. There was even a sink full of dishes and zero work space in the kitchen which I am still refusing to deal with plus 2 bags of shopping on the kitchen floor, but we went to 2 different sm to get everything we needed. I unloaded the car while OH made a cup of tea and put away the fridge and freezer stuff, had a sit down with my cuppa and the garage phoned to say the car was fixed so back to collect it then went in to see ln who I had briefly seen on my way out this morning, had a coffee and a catch up. By then it was time for tea so put the rest of the shopping away while tea was cooking and emptied the kitchen bin. After tea I fell asleep on the couch . 
Tomorrow I am meeting a friend for coffee in the morning but I have no further plans so hopefully I can sort out a few things. I am out for tea on Wednesday's with ex colleagues and on Saturday I have my b12 jab so hoping not to feel as knackered in the final run up to christmas. I have a couple more presents to sort and a few to wrap, a few remaining cards to write and that should be the lot
Oh yes I forgot to say I broke a tooth while eating a sandwich. Luckily I have no pain from it and I have a dental appointment in January so I will see if I can last until them but my sympathies to those with problem teeth and maybe this is the third so nobody else will have teeth problems for a while
Hugs to everyone who would like one

1519 - 1549 stuff done at my sister's
1550 - 1552 toiletries sorted, 3 uu and containers recycled
1553 clean clothes put away
1554 post dealt with
1555 shopping put away, there was lots
1556 kitchen bin emptied
Take care everyone
1556/2023

Wednesday2000

We are moving furniture and stuff upstairs ready for the floor guy tomorrow as he is only doing downstairs.

I sorted out the kitchen already so it is more just moving things onto the kitchen surfaces to get them out of his way. I threw away some OOD chives and oregano I hadn't noticed. I never eat them anyway. I won't buy them again.

I have a bag ready to go with the random pen holder and I went through my wardrobe again. I put in a River Island jumper that I like, but not on me, a dress, a top and an M&S cardigan. They were all chazzer buys, but are all in good condition. I will take the bag out on Friday as we are going out in London.

I am using up a scented candle today and I will use up the last of a body lotion after my bath tonight.

It is a dull day here and it was raining, but at least it isn't as bitterly cold as it has been.

Brie

Pleased that I remembered the box of Christmas tat lovely decorations that I boxed up last January and got them to the charity shop.  The vast majority were things to put tea lights in - very pretty but such a lot of clutter.  There were a couple of prize items - one was a decoupage plaque my adopted grandmother gave me when I was 9 or 10.  It's lovely but I've not had it out on display for a few decades now.  The other was a cross stitch lovingly done by my MiL - showing Santa Claus praying to a crucified Jesus.  I kinda regret having got rid of this now as it might have been a horrifying prize winner secret Santa gift at tomorrow's work Christmas party.  Horrifying in more ways than one.  While it's a lovely bit of needle work (MiL was very good at it) the combination of images would likely incense the faith based organisation for which I work.

Muddy_Walker

Just dashing in to say hi 😁 the house is a bit upside down what with the living room partly decorated for Christmas. We seem to have misplaced a bag of baubles and the fairy somewhere….and that well known online store has boxes waiting to be crumpled for the bin men tomorrow.
Dog2 has “helped” by pinching the odd box from ROD and trotting off with it to destroy….. Dog1 has also assisted him (she never does this!!!)

Treatment day Friday and really feeling it. Kind of wiped out as though a cold is trying to come out and I have been freezing - not like me at all. Who knows? Perhaps I do have a bug that’s trying to come out…..wish it would make its mind up 😜

One last thing - my artificial tree is about 50 years old! Very knackered and bits fall off but I refuse to get rid of it as it’s one of the very few things I have from my childhood. Definitely precious ❤️

bit_by_bit

Thankyou once more @Mrs_Salad_Dodger

Slowly depleting the mountains of stuff. 3 bags of dvds and cds to the local supermarket charity table today and a box of ornaments sold on Gummytree. Quite pleased.

Tomorrow I have child care but two boxes of books, dvds and cds are prepared to go to online buying sites plus if I get my act together a bag of wigs will be going off to a charity that reuses them for cancer patients.

I am counting 4 bags for today. Yay.   

London_1

Evening all, well I had a nice freebie hot chocolate for a change at Dobbies for coffee morning,gosh it was lovely topped with the marshmallows and whipped cream I didn't bother with breakfast this morning as I knew I was going to treat myself ,although its a freebie with my loyalty card or my eldest DDs one, as she only uses hers for discounted gardening stuff  so mum gets her free hot drinks on a Tuesday.

 Before I went there I popped to the village post office at 9.00 to send off 7 overseas cards to relatives, that decluttered part of my Christmas budget to the tune of £15,35 far more than the cost of cards but a lot cheaper than flying out to see them in Australia Canada Mexico Monaco, USA and Eire   a lot of my relations have gone to far flung places I definitely needed the hot chocolate to get over the shock of the postage

Came home and tackled my filing cabinet of quite a lot of useless paperwork that was shredded and bagged up for recycling. Then gathered another carrier bag of books together for the CS tomorrow. We have one of the CS that collects stuff for the Demelza charity which is a children's hospice locally. I'm sharing my unwanted goods between various charity shops locally as we have a good few of them.Next weeks one will be the Marie Curie one.
Far better than going to landfill I think.

Right off to bed for a read I think as its getting nippy now and nothing appeals to me on TV 

Night ,night, God Bless all here,
 stay warm if you can 

JackieO xx

Liverpool_Anne

Hi all, not a very good decluttering day but I have had a nice day . I met my friend for coffee this morning and the weather was lovely. We met at a cafe on the river front. After coffee I took myself off for a little walk in the sunshine . Lunch time by the time I got home so I had some soup from the freezer. Working through the supplies in there before I fill it again. Did a little shopping, 2 gifts bought so that list is getting shorter . The kitchen recycling was emptied and all the empty shopping bags from yesterday have been coralled and put back in the car boot for next time . After tea I had a bit of a battle with my laptop which I have been saying for well over a year needs replacing as it keeps crashing. Sorry to say after a couple of hours I gave it up and admitted defeat for today. I will try it tomorrow but I feel the time is rapidly approaching when I will have to buy a new one . I then just did some crochet. I started another little blanket at my sister's after I had finished the one for ln. This one is for me I did have to call into a cs to get some yarn as I had only taken enough to finish the one for ln but it was very cheap and will be used quite quickly . That's my excuse and I am sticking to it

Falling asleep now so hugs to anybody who would like one

1558 & 1559 presents bought
1560 kitchen recycling emptied
Take care everyone
1560/2023