2025 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN MrsSD - The Joy of Decluttering

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

Saturday: another bright sunny day - high 14°C, low 5°C with a gentle but chilly breeze. DH did a couple of things this morning - planted out a new clematis (the old one didn’t survive the incident when the bark caught fire 😥) & created a concoction of fat, flour & seed which needs to be baked for bird food.  He is currently watching MotoGP practices & the Sprint Race. I am going straight into cheerleading the last of Thursday’s posts:

Florenceem, sorry to hear about your grandson’s car accident 😔 I hope that he was not injured 🙏 I also hope that MrF woke up & chatted to you during your visit 🤞 Cwtches for you, MrF & your DGS 🤗 Good luck with both the sewing repair projects 🍀

Liverpool_Anne, when I read This “…..the surveyer arrived 3 hours early …….. I thought he was just going to look in the loft but no he wanted to do a full house survey. He remarked on all the mess, starting with the comment that I needed a gardener 😂. If only he knew how much garden I have chopped 😂. When he got to the room of doom he just looked at it and said why don't you just get a skip?. 😂. I gave him a lecture on the evils of landfill. Luckily OH was at work as when I repeated the conversation OH was furious. "How dare he say things like that? It might be true we need to sort things out but he's got no right to say things like that". I did say to him at one point that this was my house, bought and paid for by working hard and I will do what I want in it. Anyway we shall see if I get the loft insulation.  He was here for about an hour and a half.” I was in full agreement with your OH 😡 The surveyor was such a rude & unprofessional man that I am surprised he still has a job. However, I will keep my fingers crossed that you do get the ‘free’ loft insulation 🤞Good news that your sister doesn’t need an immediate operation & hopefully her two month wait for an appointment doesn’t turn into 6 months 🤞Lovely cheerleading as usual 😊

Lovely cheerleading Dizzycap 😊 Sorry to hear that babyface had a rough few hours on Thursday afternoon & evening 😔 & then very relieved to hear that because you are so knowledgeable about babyface’s health, you whisked her off to the Vet immediately & obtained the stronger meds 😮‍💨 Sending lots of gentle cwtches 🤗 & a fervent wish that babyface’s recovery is now smooth & uneventful 🙏 Great work decluttering all the washing overnight 👏

Now starting Friday’s cheerleading 🥳

Lovely cheerleading Moorviews 😊 Also some excellent & eclectic decluttering 👏 especially with all the family visits 🥹 Well done on the quick turnaround of clothing 👏 A Gold Star ⭐️ is winging its way to you as I type 😊 P.S. This comment “I know which two old dresses will leave my wardrobe. I only kept them there to provide the illusion that I have things to wear 😂” had me in absolute stitches 🤣

Florenceem, apologies I didn’t remember that your Doctor daughter lived so far away 😔 Well done on the V sale 👏 

sqwiffy, last years holiday  to Ecuador, Peru & the Galápagos Islands sounds very adventurous to me 😉 Sorry to hear This “I was looking forward to our holiday this year which is few days in US and then a cruise in Alaska but I'm starting to dread the US bit. Hearing stories about Trump and how they are treating people at airports has put me off. Sadly might be my last one there until he's out of office.” although I would say that when he was elected DH & I looked at each other & said “oh well, no U.S.A. holidays for us until 2029” A wonderful 2nd post 🥹 I especially loved This “Why do they always go on about us needing growth? Can't we just be satisfied with what we've got?” 🥹 & I agree with you completely 👏 Also thank you for sharing the stories about family gatherings ☺️

Lovely post TC77 😊 Hope the cats are OK & that if a visit to the vet is needed that it isn’t anything serious 🙏

GrannyKate, hope Sox has recovered from his fight with his collar & that you weren’t too badly scratched 🤞 Excellent decluttering 👏 Also thank you for the before & after photos of your bedroom 👏 Love the colour scheme ☺️ 

Lovely post daisy_1571 😊 I have also watched a couple of videos about knitting with circular needles & just couldn’t get the hang of it 😞 probably too impatient as well as having the wrong lengths of wire 😉 Who knows, I might try again at some point in the future 😅

I am flagging now, so will post & run. Hope everyone is having as good a day as possible 🤞Cwtches to all our poorlies - human & non human alike 🤗 

MrsSD Awards: 💐 🌟 ❤️ ❤️ 🏅 💐 💐 💐 🏅🥉🏅 🎂 🌟⭐️⭐️❤️ 🍫🐾 😍

DH Awards: 🏅 

DSis Awards:

Decluttering Target 2025: 579/2025

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £41.00

vulpix

Hahaha, Muddy, what makes people think they can give advice you didn’t ask for. I love the scarf, the colours are so rich. 

Here are the knitted dolls. I know the cat looks like it’s wearing a bikini bottom, the real cat does too!

Dizzycap

Afternoon all

I'm just catching up on a few of the many missed posts which is a refreshing change

@ D123456789 - Nowt wrong with changing your wardrobe. I declutter sold alot of mine and tbh a number of items were still brand new from 2 years ago! I kept what I really needed & then purchased a couple of items from Vtd that I knew I really needed & would we ar & have most weeks - Job done!

@ Muddy_Walker - loving the scarf you're doing a grand job! Helpful hints?! Many peoples reality relies on social media for the 'feel good factor' - personally mine consists of predominantly MSE, banking, and GB News with a couple of decluttering selling sites, and certainly excluding Faceache Mrkt - I can get the 'feel good factor' by walking out my front or back door and enjoying my home with nature & babyface xxxxx I only use & check my mobi phone when I'm in the office and I'd think I'd go nuts with constant notifications from FB & the messenger to the point of smashing the phone up into tiny pieces and binning it with sheer delight

After another hours rest, babyface and I have been pottering in the garden again this afternoon. I did a little weeding and watering for 15 minutes while talking to babyface before we sat on the swing chair on the mooring for 10 minutes. She's very alert but a little nervous of too many noises of nature all at once, but to be expected after the dreaded anthesthetic Babyface is back in her Bunty comfort bed after a nice drink and little snack and has just rolled over on her back so that I can have a look and all is looking very good & clean, healing well, and she has no temperature

I've also spent some time rearranging the boxes of clutter and Mr. Sains free packaging so that everything is easily accessible as and when it needs to declutter off to postie My dear mother has been an absolute God send over the past few days. I usually sort out HH bins & do 2 loads of babyface washing and out on the line before she gets up and then she takes over with any other washing, changing bathroom towels, mats etc and hoovering, dusting, and floor cleaning when needed. Tonight she's decided she's making a Chicken Chow Mein after going off shopping this morning for a few extras and some more milk. I'm really looking forward to that and especially as I really fancy it 

I'll be cooking a Sunday roast dinner tomorrow as it's Mother's Day, not that she isn't special and appreciated for the rest of the year xxxx

I've managed to take some more pics and list a few more decluttered items as well as taking a trip to the CS with a fully loaded dolly trolly yesterday while babyface was out for the count I'm just about to strip the sheets off the bed again, load the washing machine, turn my matresses around with a little help before putting clean sheets on ready for bedtime, which is going to be early again tonight and as soon as I've managed to had a nice hot shower which may take a little time due to pain and the effort needed from start to finish.

Toodle-pip for now as dinner calls xxxxx

Soontobeoap

@Muddywalker your scarf is lovely. I love the colours. It is hard to crochet in a straight line. I have been doing it for 55 years and still don't stay completely straight however hard I try. I love the colours.

@ vulpix I love your knitted fold particularly the little sheep.

I have decluttered another quarter of a bin bag during my card making. I have binned trimmings from old Christmas / birthday cards, old envelopes, creased cards and broken cut outs as well as taken a lot more completed cards to the club to sell to raise funds. 

I was feeling a bit overwhelmed with it all yesterday. It is holding up other decluttering and our house is messier than ever whilst I slowly work through everything. I don't really want to put it away when there are so many lovely bits to use. I think I will eventually come to the stage that I think it all has to go but there is so much moneys worth that can be used and as my dear sis had cut out all of the pieces I would like to make her efforts worth it. I am having a bit of a fight with myself over it. I know that if I put it all away it will probably never get used! I am now questioning why I thought it was a good idea to bring it all home in the first place!

QueenJess

@Wednesday2000 I find with SYLO, I relate more to some than others, but I wish every single one didn't come with a sad backstory as it suggests people only get in a mess when life is terrible.  The reality is things stack up and you don't notice when you are busy and one day it's overwhelming.  No need for any other reason..  I quite liked the one from possibly the first series when they helped an older couple with grown up children who had their house absolutely stacked with a lifetime of stuff (and lots of crafts as the lady really enjoyed doing them).  Now I think of it, there was a backstory there too, but it seemed like only a tiny bit of it and not that significant as to why they had so much stuff.  I suppose they think a sad backstory is required for good TV.  I quite liked the last one in the series as I could definitely relate to working full time with two very young kids and having absolutely no time to do anything.  I still enjoy being able to use the toilet on my own (which DD doesn't let me do when she's here).  The fun of kids!  Anyway, this is the exact reason I decluttered in the first place as I just don't have time to deal with "stuff" and only want to spend time enjoying my life and spending it with the kids.

All my efforts now are very slow in decluttering as I am using things up (and then not replacing them), which obviously takes ages.  I am also using things in an mse way and not "overusing" stuff just to get it finished up. I am trying to make things last as long as possible.

I did manage to defrost the big freezer yesterday, although I still had 3 large shopping bags of stuff with ice blocks in when it was defrosting.  It mainly seems to be fruit which I am still working through slowly.  More work to be done there, but at least I can find everything now and I definitely know everything that's in it.  I did find one box of fruit I bought that was untouched and if I'm honest I will never use it.  Put it on Buy Nothing and it was picked up earlier (cue DH looked very confused when he answered the door as he had no idea what the name of the fruit was, that we even had it or someone was picking it up as I forgot about it!).

Ventured into the garden today, so declaring 1 seed packet decluttered as I used it all up (I am not allowing myself to buy seeds this year until I use up what I have).  I should be able to use up a few more this year as I know some packs are getting quite low now.

Physical:
4 - paper, reused then recycled
1 - seed packet used up

New total 981
Use it up total 73
Net physical things in/(out) +171

A hm apple and blackberry crumble with custard is hot right out of the oven in the tlc carriage (I still have 2 massive bags of blackberries to work through that I picked last year!).

Dizzycap

vulpix said:

Hahaha, Muddy, what makes people think they can give advice you didn’t ask for. I love the scarf, the colours are so rich. 

Here are the knitted dolls. I know the cat looks like it’s wearing a bikini bottom, the real cat does too!

Absolutely love the animal dolls & so excellently & stylishly set off by the awesome Vincent van Gogh picture reflected in the mirror! but had to @ 'wearing a bikini bottom' & the piggy belly button

Florenceem

diminua - cute little dog.
vulpix - yes the previous rehab place was lovely but hard for me to visit. I was taken by C when he visited his parents who have now both died.
Muddy_Walker - I used to struggle getting straight edges on my crochet at first.
Very quiet at the table top sale. We didn't have our usual amount of stuff to sell as I haven't been sorting donations. We made nearly £300. I got home early so decided to do a surprise visit to Mr F. He saw a Dr today - still has the catheter.
Mrs SD - love the cute little dolls.
Feeling tired now so will have an early night - done nearly 9000 steps.

Muddy_Walker

Thank you all! I’ll get the name of the yarn when I’m next downstairs but the shop is a Danish one (don’t think I’m allowed to say the name). I bought 2 balls which will do a nice length and I’m going to put tassels on the end. 

I pottered about a bit today then went for a snooze and then had tea…….which tummy decided it really didn’t like …..so back in bed with my furry nursemaids…..

Vulpix I didn’t even notice the bikini til you said! They look great! I watched how to do an arugami turtle on uuuu tube and it looks…..ok. Remind me I said that when I try to do it and it joins my granny squares in flying lessons across the kitchen 🤣🤣🤣 I don’t actually like granny squares but am determined to get the hang of them…..
MW

weenancyinAmerica

Maybe you can start a new campaign - "See Your Home Country First" until The Idiot is out of office. Pick a part of your country you haven't seen before and save money at the same time. I've been to almost every part of the British Isles except Scotland beyond Inverness. There are a lot of wonderful places to visit, Stratford, Inverness, York, Belfast, and Hay on Wye still being my favorites. 

May not have to wait until 2029 if he gets impeached and it works. Will also have to impeach the The Second Idiot who would take over though as he is awful. We are being run by a bunch of idiots over here. My best friend is considering moving to Scotland. She is worried about her Social Security (so am I - even if Idiot Number One says he has not plans to touch it. Not exactly known for being honest.)

Watching the news here is so depressing that it hard to get motivated to clean house or write books or even do family history. Slowing me down a lot so I am making lists and trying to keep up with what I put on it each day. But it is piling up on me. Roommate G helped me clean the refrigerator today - at least that was a start. Swept half of the kitchen floor. Cleaned up fingerprints. Need to write three letters and fill out two forms. Will be my afternoon projects.

Hope all of you are staying warm, dry, and somewhat sane.

TC77

@Muddy_Walker I love the scarf - great colours. I can't get past the first row of crocheting. I used to knit and inspired by those fabulous dolls @Vulpix.
Mrs SD, thank you for the great cheerleading.
Reported 10 items this morning to make355, then 2 pairs of jeans and a jumper in CS bag, added envelope of stamps, and a book, duvet cover and matching pillow case. CS bag dropped off
4 electrical items in bag for donation hub

Tried on most of my clothes and have so many! too close to the CS - used to have 5 within a 7 minute walk but one has closed down. |I've bought many pairs of trouser and shirts and realise I like these most, although shirts need ironing. I always think I don't have tops as tend not to think of shirts to wear casually but will start doing. 
Another top in CS.
Found a few unworn expensive silk and good brand dresses ( not a dress person) and tops which I may list to get some pennies in.
Put away heavy winter coat and also thick winter trews, and managed to squeeze summer tops in drawers. Bought cards and 2 tops in the CS, one green gap short sleeve and a burgundy long sleeve which is a contrast to the couple of dozen blue based tops!
The house is a tip as not put everything away and about to write my to do list (mostly things from todays) for tomorrow and head to bed. 
and Millie is a cutie as others have said.
@weenancyinAmerica... staying warm, dry and somewhat sane sounds a good goal for all of us! 
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