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

Second load is hung out & 3rd & final load is in wm….. 3rd load is tumble drying now as it won’t get dry on whirligig. DH went out on the bike to fill up with petrol & do a small amount of shopping. Came back, had a coffee & then went out for his walk. Friendly squirrel turned up again 😉

charlies_tribe, I do hope the ‘teens’ helped your DH with the shed clearance whilst you were looking after the toddler 🤞 Excellent work by your DH - who has definitely earned a Gold Star ⭐️ plus I am awarding you a medal 🏅 for all your assistance 😊 The skip must be filling up nicely 😊

Lovely cheerleading sqwiffy 😊 Well done on making a start on the Room of Doom 👏  Good luck to DGS2 🍀 Hope the interview with RN went well & that he passed the RAF aptitude test with ‘flying colours’ 😅

TC77, well done to DD2 as releasing part of a collection is always difficult 👏 Remember every item out, no matter how big or small, is a victory along the way to having a clutter free home 😊

Brambling, very restrained of you to resist the temptation to prod furry one awake 😉 Those 2 books really were only temporary visitors 🥳 & very well done on resisting temptation in the art supplies shop & the farm shop 👏 Congratulations on your rather nice PB win 😊 I do hope you have enough for a little treat 😊 

I broke off to ‘make’ dinner - ham, eggs, oven chips & baked beans. Also pleased to say that I am just about to start today’s cheerleading 😊

Lovely cheerleading Liverpool_Anne 😊 Tuesday sounds incredibly frustrating although looking on the bright side it could have been worse 😥 - thank goodness you found your phone ☺️ Hopefully you managed to get in touch with the roofer & he will be able to fit you in before any rain🙏

Florenceem, good news that most of the stuff left outside the SA building was taken 😊 11,500+ steps on Tuesday 🤩 no wonder you slept so well 🥹 Excellent decluttering 👏 & good luck with your new listings on V 🍀

Brie, thanks for the article 👏 It made for interesting reading & pleased to say I am also at the merely messy end with too much stuff 😉

Sorry to hear that work is so stressful QueenJess 😔 Steady progress in reducing the net items in 👏

Excellent decluttering Rootle 👏

YBR, great news if decluttering is infectious 😊 Excellent work by DD1 👏 It might be an idea to add the clothing as items for the yard sale 🤔 

daisy_1571, This is well said “Yes ybr, ul find it's definitely infectious.  Do your own stuff, give them time and it's amazing how many partners and family members start to do a little tidying and decluttering themselves 🙂” sadly it doesn’t seem to have worked with my DSis 😉

Brambling dealing with a financial frog is definitely decluttering 👏

Lovely cheerleading Dizzycap 😊 So pleased to hear that babyface’s recovery is going so well & that she is finally eating full meals rather than snacks 😊 I will keep my fingers crossed that the eggs in the swan’s nest stay safe & that if intervention is required it is at no risk to you 🤞🙏 Good luck with the 9.5 boxes from the mega wardrobe - hopefully the bulk of the contents can/will be listed & you will make lots of £££ - for a treat for you, your mum & babyface ☺️

Excellent decluttering TC77 👏 & it sounds like DD2 is doing her bit towards decluttering as well 👏

Finally caught up with the cheerleading 🥳 Wudupa 

649 - 655 Kitchen & office recycling, drinks cans, magazine, 2 large plastic bottles, glass bottle - recycled

656 - 657 Kitchen & lr detritus - binned

Sleep tight 😴 

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

DH Awards: 🏅 

DSis Awards:

Decluttering Target 2025: 657/2025

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £41.00

weenancyinAmerica

@Mrs_Salad_Dodger - Beautiful scarf! I still can't follow a pattern like that. Say hello to the Squirrel Whisperer. Sounds like my Dad. He used to talk to lizards that would come out to watch him work (and go away when anyone else did). His specialty though was speaking to monkeys. Carried on a conversation for 45 minutes one time. Takes a talent which it sounds like Mr. SD has.

My sister and her husband are coming to visit tomorrow. This is the first time in 12 years. It is not a good sign. If anyone can add in some prayers for me, I would appreciate it. Thank you.

Dizzycap

@ weenancyinAmerica - Strangely enough I was just sitting here thinking about you with your 'you can never have too many books' post, which I think is mostly true, especially for those well read or have a specialist career. I've got one large bookcase which I've decluttered off to others a few times only to replace books gone with those preferred I've decided that the books that I now have, I love and do read on and off.

I will certainly be praying for you and hope all goes well but I'm sure your visitors will be reminded of where the front door is should it be required

@ TC77 - You're doing great Slowly but surely with the decluttering and especially with paperwork. Even if you repeat declutter a few times once organised; which we all have to do at some point, it'll all be done and dusted into a few important files / folders. A little a day keeps the doctor away

TC77

@weenancyinAmerica sending prayers and hugs and hope the visit goes the best it can. X
@Dizzycap and Mrs SD ( and others) thank you for all the encouragement. There are the odd shelf etc which looks nice where not too many objects and my favourite teapot etc. I did think I would have been onto photos by 2024 but think now 2026 
At least I can smile about this.

Going to my dad's house after work so I can clear some stuff to the charity shop/ gumtree tomorrow and and sat. I can only go when someone to look after cats especially with Little cat having medication twice a day.
Noticing I'm using crockery I like and clothes I like and less keeping for things for  best or that occasion that doesn't happen.

Moorviews

@TC77 - you have probably made a lot more progress than you think, especially as you had to start dealing with your dad’s things too. Using things is the key I am sure, then it becomes more obvious what isn’t used, liked or needed. 

@weenancyinAmerica - I can do that and also will send positive vibes across the pond. I hope there will be some positives to the visit too. 

@Mrs_Salad_Dodger - how cute that Mr SD and the squirrel had a little chat 😊 The scarf is lovely, as is all your knitting. 

@Dizzycap - an interesting article thank you. I think we qualify as that type of hoarder in many respects, although one of us will have read every book at some point. We don’t have piles of newspapers and rubbish but definitely more stuff than we need. Glad that babyface is getting her appetite back and feeling better. Try not to do too much yourself. 

Things are not going well with the shed, far too much dusting off, stacking and putting back going on for my liking. It isn’t my stuff though. I am just hoping that Mr MV has an epiphany soon and realises that he isn’t really gaining any space. Yes, Mrs SD, I am escaping to deal with weeds and my frustration at times!

Muddy_Walker

Dizzy cap of course you can use the photos, thanks for asking 😊 

Blood dr has replaced the blood thinner injections with tablets! Woohoo! Don’t see him for 6 months now. I am def rattling 🤣

Usual rubbish binned and a pottering day ahead of me I think…

QueenJess

Definitely winning today, although I still don't count gifts as there is generally little I can do about those.  In theory it means I do need a negative net output each year because of that.  Just popped out into the garden to sow some more seeds and set up my new to me free plant pots.  Still loads of plant pots to fill up, so hopefully I shall be using up a lot of seeds this year!

Lots of stuff in... +3 packaging, +5 DD and DS clothes/shoes I'd ordered at the weekend, +4 DS books I picked up on Buy Nothing.  Someone asked for bubble wrap on Buy Nothing last night, so I was straight in there and got rid of a big pile of it!  They picked it up today

1 - DD dress grown out of (Buy Nothing)
14 - packaging (Buy Nothing)
2 - packaging reused
2 - seed packs used up

New total 1,133
Use it up total 86
Net physical things in/(out) +71

YBR

@ weenancyinAmerica - I am praying for you and your sister;  I'm sorry a visit is a bad sign and hope that can be changed.

@Dizzycap - an interesting article, I know a good number of our books haven't been read in the last 12+ years but there's a better ratio on the fiction than the rest. We're definitely that model of hoarder, and I really identify with the idea that an untidy house leads to low mental health along with being too overwhelmed to sort it. It might be easier without the kid's tendency to instantly de-tidy a room"!

I've finished taking detritus off the bookshelves in one room, binned the 30 year old computer manuals while DH wasn't looking, and generally shuffled them into their categories again. The recycling bin is looking fairly full, and a few more bits lined up for the yard sale.

I've dug out DH's Safeguarding training materials and we've agreed those can be passed to another trainer. I asked him to reduce his v.old science text books down to a couple of dozen, but he said I could take it down to 40 . I know it's symbolic of holding onto identity as a Physicist so that was always going to be hard sell .

TC77

@YBR you're doing so much. Many of my books haven't been read for 20+ years and frustration when dd2 bought her own version of books I already had when big reading phase doing a level English and degree includes it although interest in other area. I bought lots of classics and modern novels at cs and have v little time to read. Have got book club book from library  where my new office is and invited to join their  book Clun. A Suitable Boy - well over 1000 paged so I declined. 
Why is it always important things that the goblins and pixies move? 
Anything out is a win.... in my books

Florenceem

Week's declutter total - late! 
Out - Doll, Book, Scoring Board, Packaging, Birthday Card/Envelope/Stamps, Shoes, Dungarees, Packaging, Baby Clothes, Bag of Cards, Pinball Game, Book , Weeds, Socks, Packaging, Carrier Bag.