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

Monday was a bright & sunny day with a high of 21°C, low 10°C & not so windy 8mph with gusts of 18mph. I was up @ 10:20 about 20 minutes after DH & DSis left. DH was accompanying DSis to a train station as she was going to visit her son T at his aunt’s  house. After last week’s car trip she decided to go by train 😉 DH will be picking them up in the car as T is going home to France tomorrow from Gatwick. DH will also take the opportunity to pick up his now repaired motorcycle trousers. I went out at 13:00 to get cash & call into surgery to book an appointment with the pharmacist. No joy at the surgery - need to phone or go in early a.m. so thought I’d try & catch DH before he set off (14:00) to pick up DSis & T. Plan thwarted as there were no buses 😖 Remembered I needed a flu jab so went into pharmacy & 5 minutes later walked out having had flu jab. Bus home & got in about 14:25. DH phoned about 15:40 to say he had picked up his trousers & was in a cafe having a cup of coffee. I got another call at 19:35 saying they were just leaving. They eventually got home 22:00 😱 having picked up KFC for dinner. I spent the afternoon sorting out DH’s undies & socks drawer + the hanging space in his wardrobe. Lastly I  unrolled the t-shirts on wardrobe  shelf & folded them instead so DH can see what he has. I also started knitting the rainbow hat for DH’s great great nephew. It is very bright 😉 Watched TV with T & DSis, then I went to bed 03:00 as DSis was sleeping on sofa. 

Tuesday is another quite bright day with some sunshine - high 18°C, low 12°C & an occasional slight breeze. Now for a sorry tale which has sent my blood pressure soaring ☹️ I got up & dressed @ 08:15, straight to bus stop & was in the surgery by 08:40. No queue at reception  🙂 but it went downhill from there. I explained yesterday’s conversation & asked for an urgent appointment as I have 3 BP pills left. Earliest appointment Monday (which in hindsight I should have taken 😅). I advised no use so was told that a doctor would phone me & either arrange an earlier appointment or let me have a tide me over prescription. As I was getting nowhere fast I agreed & left. I was back indoors by 09:05 DH was up so chatted to him for a while, made myself a drink & waited for DSis to get up. DH left at 10:00 for his last WLP weigh in. DSis & T got up about 10:30 & I was carrying the phone around waiting for a call & keeping myself occupied doing crosswords & sudokus. Suddenly received a generic email from the surgery about using the website 😡 Decided to phone at 11:30 & finally spoke to a receptionist at 12:15.After much to-ing & fro-ing re when I was going to get contacted by a doctor she advised me I had a phone appointment with the pharmacist sometime tomorrow & had been phoned - er no I hadn’t 😭 She then proceeded to lie outright & tell me that the pharmacist “doesn’t do face to face” Somehow I managed to remain ‘relatively’ calm, giving her the correct information & asking her to book a face to face 🙏 She denied my request as ‘apparently she had to have permission to change the appointment’ Upshot is I am again waiting for a call (either this p.m. or tomorrow a.m.) re a face to face appointment. Good job my medication is the lowest dose 🤞DH phoned - he was very happy as this last weigh in showed that he had lost 2.4kg & was the lightest he has been since August 2023 (he had gone down into a lower ‘stones’ category) + he was ‘star pupil’ 👏🥳👏🥳 He was treating himself to a piece of cake & a milky coffee. After faffing about for a while DSis & T eventually left at 12:35. DSis was saying her goodbyes to T at London Bridge where he was getting on a train to Gatwick. DH got home 13:25, slightly disappointed that his piece of cake wasn’t gooier 😉 He has changed his shoes & gone straight out to Wickes to pick up some ready made concrete & suitable tools in order to repair the patio. 😥 DSis & DH both got back at 14:20. T has just texted to say that he is on his way through security. He arrived home safely as his partner picked him up. I tried the JO omelette recipe (salmon, spinach & cottage cheese) again - successfully cooked this time but DH & DSis have both decided that they are not fans of cottage cheese. Wudupa

1874 - 1879 Kitchen recycling x 2, 3 newspapers, drinks cans - recycled 

1880 - 1884 Kitchen detritus x 2, lr, office & DSis bedroom detritus - binned

A little bit of cheerleading before I head to bed - I have fallen way behind 😞 

Soontobeoap, oh my goodness those elves are wonderful - so cute 🥰 & This “We are going to hide them around our community for people to find” is marvellous 🤩 There will be some very happy people 😆 I do hope Open Reach have sorted out your broadband 🤞As to This “On a much better note the carpenter that works for us has made our new fire surround and is bringing it over to fit in the morning. DH will be here to help him get it out of the car. I am very excited” great news 🥳 & made so much quicker than the original sorry lot managed 😉 Sorry to hear that you have had Covid 😔 but pleased to hear that you are on the mend 😮‍💨 

 suzeesu2000, great work with raised bed number 1👏 Hopefully your DH will do the ‘manly stuff’ quickly 🤞I might leave mentioning the loft decluttering until after all the gardening work is done 🙊 Good luck with both the ottoman decluttering & the family tree investigations 🍀

TC77, pleased to hear that you enjoyed your walk on Sunday 😊Hopefully you slept well. Excelllent  work dealing with so much paperwork 👏 I will p my fingers crossed that ‘watchers’ will turn to ‘buyers’ 🤞

BlueJ94, beautiful pictures - a perfect day for a walk & well done on walking so far 👏

Excellent decluttering QueenJess 👏 Well done on tackling DD’s clothes 👏 2cm a month 😧 

purplevamp, great decluttering 👏 Re the BJ film, I have absolutely no idea why she was channelling Monty Pythons Ministry of Silly Walks 🤣

Just noticed the time so am off to bed. Sleep tight everyone 😴 

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

DH Awards: 🏅 ‘Squirrel Whisperer’ ⭐️🏅🏅⭐️😇

DSis Awards: ⭐️ ⭐️ 🏅

Decluttering Target 2025: 1884/2025

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £469.00

BlueJ94

Morning all! 

Im officially first aid trained! Woo. Anyway back to work today, they've decided to start monitoring how we drive the work vans which I've no problem with. My only issues are when they want us to do 20mph and the vans are so rubbish that they feel like they'll break down at any given moment! 

Christmas.. for the last 5 years I've hosted Christmas, my OH has helped cooked the beef and I've done the rest on Christmas day which I've no problem with but now OH says he wants someone else to do it next year, so I have the lovely pleasure of letting everyone know that 😅

I have to write a list and budget how much for each person too as I've kind of started but need to get a wiggle on!

Scotland.. 18th we're going away and im counting down the minutes, a whole two weeks off work! 

Decluttering.. slowly but surely im getting there, momentarily have slown down due to being so so tired after work! Trying to stick to the one in one out method. Also, trying to stick to a method of "dont put it down put it away" which helps a lot!

Debt.. Barclaycard I've been chipping away at, im still stuck on what to do with this new card of £400 (380 after transferring fees) 0% until June.

Muddy_Walker

Thank you for the cake recipe!

TC77

Mrs SD, sorry to hear about your trials with the GP and receptionist - very frustrating!
Yesterday got out bedding and have 4 items for CS and a new cushion cover, took out the inner and in a cushion cover which matches another and never used since I got them made about 15 years ago!
Out pen, some inedible tofu (clearly not good at cooking it), and more plastic wallets for donation centre, and some paper recycling.
This morning found a 'sort it out' article on my phone and made me think I could/should have got rid of many times more bedding. Have some space in various storage bags/ drawers (and many things out) but haven't worked out what I want where.
Will add 9  to my total. In office today but when working at home find time that I would be travelling I can do bits of housework and sorting.
Sofa being picked up by BHF tomorrow which makes me abit anxious as only a few years old, and seems wasteful (hopefully will go to a good home) but will put an armchair in its place and when DD2 home we'll move a sofa from the 'talking room' as she calls the front living room - abit like the front parlour that never gets used as for best!