2025 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN MrsSD - The Joy of Decluttering

GrannyKate

Hi all - not much decluttering as I have cluttered the house with cat things.  Sox arrived the other evening - a grey and white boy who had been living in a town centre flat with three other cats. He is almost one but has not been 'fixed' vaccinated or chipped yet (Booked in for 12 Feb). He is very nervous but has been finding all the hiding places in the house.  He spent day 1 under a sideboard but stayed around me yesterday and started playing ball games with DGS4 who is nearly 10.  They said he wasn't used to children but they don't seem to bother him and he was making approaches to DGS4 himself. He is very slim and seems to want food - he rushes out when I open the fridge and has started meowing at me.  A bit smelly as he has not been fixed yet - any tips on that and getting him used to us would be welcome.  He just decided on sofa as a scratching post.  Now meowing and showing me his belly. Not ready to be picked up but rubs his head against your legs and the furniture.  He is getting annoyed now as I am sitting at computer and not heading for the kitchen. He has obviously been exploring in the night as washing up sponge is on front door mat and a few bits are on the floor.  

160 Two bags of plastic to SMs
161 DGS4 decluttered a tooth so the tooth fairy decluttered a pound
162 Food cupboards and containers sorted lots of packets and cardboard boxes out
163 New doormat and old one binned.

I need to sort fridge as it is full.  DGCs have been here all week which was unexpected - but sleeping at their dads next two nights and last night.  I'll pick them up to take to school at 8. Not a very good picture but I'll try and get one 

MadamMim2013

Morning @Florenceem.. hope you’re taking it slightly slower today, please take care if you head out in this weather, it really is blowing a out there, even my cats are not wanting to go out for their usual perimeter check..

I too was awake early.. DS1’s window opened itself wide and at 2.30 am the curtain was flailing about out the window in the wind and rain 😬 all sorted yet couldn’t go back to sleep.. so here I am..

Decluttered a mahoosive bag of towels, bedding, curtains and finally.. heaps of wool 🧶🧶🧶🧶🧶🧶🧶🧶 
this sadly was not mine.. it was my Ma’s, her boiler decided to do a giant steaming hot wee all over her airing cupboard on Wednesday night, we managed to get a plumber friend to fix it, the clean up was done yesterday.
I’m very proud of her for letting go of the items as she is a little bit of a hoarder.. (we know she has around 500/600 + balls of wool in suction bags in the bungalow)  I discovered 4 such bags in the airing cupboard 😱😱😱
Still, 4 became 3 and lots more culled as well, also discovered she has just under 70 toilet rolls stashed away 🫨

Have re-distributed 4 more items on Vinty, one being a large fishing bag (Hooray.. it’s been driving me bonkers in the cupboard for 2 years!) Usuals like rubbish and recycling are out to be collected today, that’s if it’s not all blown away in this weather (I’ve packed it down tight & weighed the cardboard down with the food waste bin!) 

Just about to make breakfast for DS1 who’s just finished his night shift.. 

oh and I’m late to the party but @vulpix please stay, it wouldn’t be the same without you.. your insights and humour is most valuable & I love to read about all the things you upcycle! 💐

🤗 & 🥄 for those in need..
Hope everyone stays safe.. 🤗 xx

Dizzycap

Good morning all xxx

@ GrannyKate Gorgeous baby

It's exceedingly windy outside & expecting to build up and continue through to 6pm so a limited venturing out today.

Managed to declutter the HH bins and put the HH wheelie bin out for collection before the wind started.

Looks like, if I've got the energy, I'll have to have a look behind one of the remaining mega wardrobe doors today, as it's going to be far too windy to be able to go out and baby face won't even think about going out in the wind and very soon, rain - Not that she's spoilt

I hope everyone has a nice decluttering day but make sure you take plenty of tea or coffee breaks along the way!

daisy_1571

Wind woke me up, we forgot to turn garden table over and take the whirly down last night. Our volunteering has been moved from today to tomorrow so hopefully all the kitties will be fine (and not too confused about us being there on the wrong day 😹) and my recorder group also cancelled.   If the butcher van doesn't appear that'll be 3 for 3 for our normal Friday 😆 .  Hopefully we will still have a roof by teatime when the winds are supposed to drop to 50mph.  Unusually we are meant to be out tonight  - I know!!  Out on a Friday night like teenagers lol -  ceilidh at the village hall.  Waiting to hear if its still on.

Lovely kitty Grannykate,  hope sox settles in soon.  With cats its v hard to predict what they are going to do, best thing is to let them come to you.  Charlie often offers tummy time but you have to be quick for that split second between this is lovely and I'm going to kill your hand.  Unfortunately their tummies are very hard to resist (even if you can predict the likely outcome lol).  Is it him himself thats smelly or his waste/litter tray ?  

Hello recent newbies, sorry been remiss welcoming people 

Agree mehefin always has amusing tales of his locale/horses/decluttering 

WeenancyinAmerica if its not one thing its another for you guys!  Possible landslides if it rains?  Wow, I hope you do get rain but the right amount.   I had a huge box as a playhouse for a while as a kid, lots of fun.  Beware if you have big cats in your area - cats of any sizes gotta get in a box 😆 



Take care everyone

Daisy xxxxx

GrannyKate

I think it's the litter tray that smells.  I have bought a different litter which DIL recommended and which I used before.  People we got him from used wood pellets which I got to start with.  Will clean and change it this morning.  Of course I know he needs fixing and that is booked in.  He is going round the house sitting in each spot for half an hour then finding somewhere else.  I am allowed the occasional stroke but that's it.  

daisy_1571

Aw the wee sweetie, hopefully in time ul get more than one but at the moment everything must be so exciting for him.  We used to use Thomas for our 3 but the rescue uses wood pellets and we like them better, find them so much easier to clean up so when we took on Charlie we stuck with them

Dx 

Moorviews

@Grannykate - Sox is a beautiful cat, I hope he settles in soon. I have never had a rescue cat but ours always took a while to settle even when we moved house. 

@scandimore - my children always purged their rooms when they saw me doing mine. I used to sometimes regret this as it gave me a landing full of stuff to process for donations and recycling!

@~FlowerPot~ - I wish I could paint as you can, what a glorious painting, especially with the gold shimmering on there. 

@Florenceem - it sounds like a complex picture for Mr F. Good to hear that you had some fresh air and enjoyed some chocolate. 

It has been very windy here and we don’t even have much of a warning. Hope you can all stay safe and won’t suffer too much disruption. 

Liverpool_Anne

Hi all, another one awake early due to the wind blowing the curtains up to the ceiling, I always have my bedroom window open but it has been pulled slightly closed now 😁, it is blowing a hooley 😁.
Good day yesterday, 2 sessions of ironing, 1 first thing and 1 after tea 😁, 1 shower gel uu and next from stash put in the bathroom to be used, kitchen bin emptied, 2 LDFPA,  200 emails deleted, large body lotion previously sorted given to ln who said "I love this and I have just finished the last one you gave me" win win 😁 and another 100 images deleted from my phone. When I have a problem reading instructions on things I take a photo on my phone so I can expand it to read them 😂😂😂. After the ironing after tea I did some crochet. The frog didn't get done as the recorded message said the wait time on the phone was 35 mins and I wanted to do something else but I tried and will give it another try today 😁.

@Vulpix glad you had a nice time with baby V, shame about the knitting and the cafetiere. I have one that I got at a very reasonable price from the Swedish shop if you need to replace it 😁. As for the baby visiting I was kind of expecting something to raise it's head knowing the Mum, wasn't expecting that but it is what it is and I have suggested that when the weather gets better maybe we could meet in the park or somewhere where it will be easier. I must admit I am not particularly a small baby person, once they are crawling around and getting into mischief is when I start to enjoy them 😁.  Excellent suggestion for the top box and when I have the energy to deal with the expected fall out I will bring it up 😂😂. It doesn't actually block the exit as long as it stays resting on the radiator under the hanging coats but if it slips down it would block the front door. I am usually quite good with fire exits etc as I used to work in a place that made fire fighting chemicals and part of my job was to set things on fire and then put them out 😁. We had some spectacular fails on occasion but consequently I always check fire extinguishers and exits when I am staying away from home 😁, you are right though, it is a hazard. I once had to advice a person from a nuclear power station about what would be best to deal with a fire in a corridor where they were storing things, I think I convinced her to find somewhere else to store them, the mind boggles.

@Mrs SD hugs, here's hoping you have a better day today

@~FlowerPot~ lovely painting, I wish I could do something half as good 😁

@scandimore welcome aboard and I look forward to following your journey 😁

@Blue_Doggy hope the dog has recovered and you can catch up on your sleep. I find it very hard to be productive when I am sleep deprived, hugs

@weenancyinAmerica I really wish we could all come and help you but know we are thinking about you, big hugs

@Dizzycap hugs, good luck with the wardrobe 😁

@Squiffy re the baby visiting, yes I am sure it will work out soon 😁 as for my sister we are just very different people and over the years I have learned to bite my tongue and become much better at calm negotiation when needed, after all she is the only sister I have and you can't choose your relatives 😁.

@GrannyKate sox looks lovely 😁. I think all it will take is a bit of time for him to settle. He might be a bit smelly until he's done 😂😂 and the food thing is probably because he's used to having to fight for his food but once he realises he has no competition for the food he will probably relax a bit but he is a teenager after all and as we know they have hollow legs 😂😂. I am sure he will bring you much joy 😁. Frequent clearing of the litter tray will help with the smell until you feel happy to let him outside 😁

@MadamMim2013 shame about the boiler but well done to your Mum for letting things go 😁, nearly 70 toilet rolls 😂😂, she's determined not to be caught short 😁.

@daisy_1571 cats and boxes, never a truer word 😁 love the photo 😁

Right off for another cuppa, I have to go to the pharmacy today to collect my meds so that will be fun in the wind, and thinking of all teachers and those with child care, kids always bounce a lot when it's windy 😁
Hugs to everyone who would like one

125 shower gel uu
126 kitchen bin
127 & 128 200 emails permanently deleted
129 body lotion to ln
130 & 131 LDFPA
132 & 133 ironing
134 photos from phone deleted
Take care everyone
134/2025

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

1. Write a daily To Do list - only 3 tasks
2. Concerted effort to sort out sleep patterns - Realistic targets: bed by 2:00 a.m. & up by 10:00 a.m 
3. Continue dealing with mail & email on a daily basis
4. Don’t put it down, put it away + deal with mini tasks as soon as they are noticed e.g. refill olive oil pourer or salt cellar, stitch up a hole in a garment etc
5. Commence ‘Operation Frog Tickling’ using the acronym - I.R.I.S. (Identify, Research, Implement, Sign Off) - One per quarter
6. Continue to keep kitchen clean & tidy - before going to bed

Friday: Woke up at 07:45 with a very dry mouth so decided to get up, put my fluffy dressing gown on & have a cuppa 😉 It is very damp & breezy outside & the overcast sky promises more rain ☹️ We have a moderate wind warning  & the temperature is 10°C although feels a lot chillier 🥶 Not looking too favourable for a trip to the Post Office sigh 😞 I have my cuppa & am about to start cheerleading:

weenancy, I do hope that G is still helping out, after his bit of activity the other day 🤞Rather than make any comment, I will just echo daisy_1571’s whole post 😉 Sending many cwtches to you 🤗 & a dose of common sense to Di along with get well wishes 🙂 Hopefully the cats will settle down as they get used to more space & having everyone home again 🤞Sorry to hear that there are even more fires & that the winds have picked up again 😢 I hope that you & your family are staying safe 🙏

Well done to DD2 charlies_tribe 🙏 A great decluttering ratio: 2 items in, 8 items out 🥳 You are training her well 😊

Well said daisy_1571 ☺️

Florenceem, sorry to hear that you were feeling down yesterday 😔 but not at all surprised. You are dealing with so much & with such grace 🥹 please take time to look after yourself 🙏

Lovely post daisy_1571 😊

Lovely post Moorviews 😊

Liverpool_Anne, sorry to hear that Wednesday was a poor decluttering day 🙁 but at least you got the union meeting out of the way 👏 Also sorry to hear that you have already had 2 days of bad weather ☹️ Yippee to OH clearing the bags from the hall 🥳 Hopefully they have been put in the car with a view to being taken to the Tip 🤞The “b12 tiredness’” sounds particularly bad this time 😔 I don’t know if it is just me, but I find it rather odd that you can’t get the jab a couple of weeks earlier & have a shorter time in between jabs 🤨 Lovely cheerleading as usual 😊

Florenceem, it sounds like the fresh air has done you the world of good 😊 Pleased to hear that you are eating properly 🙂 I do hope the hospital visit went well 🙏 

Excellent decluttering Dizzycap 👏 Pleased to hear that, although you recluttered your shopping trolley, none of the parcels were for you 😉 you were just being neighbourly 😇 Good luck with the sorting of packaging & the tidying of your art & crafts room 🍀

vulpix, how lovely, unexpected baby sitting duties 🥳😊 I do hope Baby V is feeling better 🙏 It sounds like you had a lot of fun 🤩 although not quite sure I would have coped with all that activity before 8:00 a.m. 😉 I suppose leaving items behind is one way to declutter 😉 but it only really works if the items are no longer wanted  🙊 You do realise that you might not get the cafetière back 😉 Lovely comments - especially for weenancy 🥹 I do worry about her 😟 & I do like your choice of word “insane” 👏 I think having looked up the meaning “nefarious” might be my choice. 

~FlowerPot~ gorgeous painting 😍 my favourite so far ☺️

CRANKY40, well done on keeping on track with your target of 5 items a day decluttered 👏 Hope your sister stays safe & doesn’t have to go out 🙏

Excellent & eclectic decluttering Happy_Kitties 👏

One page caught up 🥳 The first load of washing is on & I am about to make my 2nd cuppa. I hope that everyone is staying safe & restricting themselves to indoor activities 🙏 I will be back shortly to continue catching up 😉

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Decluttering Target 2025: 154/2025

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Floss

Dizzycap said:

Besides, I'm suppose to be bed resting....

If you've been told "bed rest" then that's for a reason...