2025 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN MrsSD - The Joy of Decluttering

Green_hopeful

@florianatwobob i like to reuse turf. We once asked a landscaper removing next doors lawn if we could have the turf. He dropped the entire lawn on a tarp on our driveway. We barrowed it to the bottom of the garden and relaid it. We called it ‘crazy turfing’. It all came good and raised a boggy bit of lawn by about 6 inches. 

florianatwobob

@Green_hopeful glad I’m not the only one!

Brie

Mrs_Salad_Dodger said:

Brie, sounds like you are a very accomplished musician 😊 Have you thought of taking it up again or have you moved on to other musical instruments? Shame I fell behind with the cheerleading as I would have asked if there was any chance of a photo of your artwork before you posted it 😕

Not accomplished at all.  But I like music so simply enjoyed it.  Started piano so young I don't remember when, recorder started when I was about 10, high school meant playing clarinet, then flute and piccolo, tried french horn but that was a disaster.  Then in my uni course we tried out loads of very old instruments like flagolets, crumhorns and blatts (which sounded exactly like their name so no wonder they didn't stick around).   

did I show you my owl?  

purplevamp

suprisinglynice said:

Please can someone help me stage an intervention with my OH and his amazon obsession? He needs to remember that if you buy to replace, you get rid of the original!!

This sounds like my DH and his Warhammer fetish  . TBF it's his job to paint miniatures for people and he used to work for them before he did commission work.  But, the whole house is covered in them.  The only rooms that are safe are my DDs room and the bathroom.

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 is a brighter & sunnier day than yesterday - high of 17°C, low 11°C & a very slight breeze. I will be making an attempt to catch up with the cheerleading although I am almost certain I will get distracted 😉 DH is currently in the garage chopping up the first of the ood motorcycle tyres into 6 pieces (our local Recycling Centre doesn’t accept tyres) so DH has decided to put a piece a week in our HH wheelie bin. 

So lovely to see you London_1 👋 I figured you must have been too busy to post 😊 Wishing you a great time visiting family & friends on the mainland ☺️ Seven months is a long time but time does fly especially when you are busy 😧 Excellent idea re decluttering Christmas Cards, you are certainly very well organised 👏 Very well done to Ben, he certainly doesn’t do things by halves does he 😉 5 x 10k runs & for such a good cause 🤩 Hopefully DGD Holly & her partner are settling in well in their new home 🤞Hope you & DD2 have a lovely time 😊

TC77, definitely count the sofa as 3 👏 Hopefully now that you can more easily see what is there, you will be able to charge through the decluttering 🤞☺️

Thanks for the confirmation Muddy_Walker 🙂 Well done getting “…some bits done which I was fretting about. Silly things really! 👏 Remember there are no ‘silly things’ when it comes to completing tasks or decluttering 😊 Pity that Rogan spoilt the owl moment ☹️

Great decluttering TC77 👏 Although I would definitely count each bag out as more than ‘one’ 🤔 maybe ‘5’ if you don’t want to count each individual item in each bag 😊 

BlueJ94, that sounds like a wonderful trip & I do love the transporter 🤩 You are definitely taking in some stunning scenery & Dalmally looks especially scenic 😊 I think you will absolutely love Scotland - the scenery is majestic, even in not so good weather 🤩 I hope you have a wonderful time.

TC77, pleased to find another person who loves Scotland as much as I do ☺️ Good work cleaning fridge shelves 👏 Fingers crossed that the small window is replaced quickly, the decorating finished & scaffolding taken down before any really bad weather arrives 🤞 

vulpix, pleased to hear that babyface J has arrived but sorry to hear that he is in the scbu 😞 Sending good wishes to both baby J & his mum for a speedy recovery 🙏

Brie, thanks for the clarification 👏 Nice to learn a bit about the Canadian education system 😊 I learn something new every day 😊

I am really enjoying the conversation about recorders which looking ahead has moved to other musical instruments 😊

daisy_1571, Good luck learning to play the alto/treble recorder 🍀 from memory a very mellow sound 🤔 

Just noticed the time so had better get started on making dinner 😉 Hope everyone has had as good a Saturday as possible 🙂 See you later 👋 

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

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

DSis Awards: ⭐️ ⭐️ 🏅

Decluttering Target 2025: 1905/2025

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £469.00

Deni_debt-free_dreamer

hi all
I've decluttered covid at last and my grey roots - though that is sadly temporary
i tried to drop off some stuff at the CS but they said they couldn't accept anymore donations today, so the stuff remains in my boot for another week.
@vulpix hope baby J and mum keep making a good recovery.
Love Deni
x 

GrannyKate

Evening all.  Just reporting in quick to say I made it to Skye and back although the weather was interesting!  I've skim read 128 posts as trying to keep awake until a reasonable time or i'll wake up too early.  I set off Friday 8 days ago to Edinburgh and was very impressed that I managed to find my booked parking space where my car stayed until Monday.  Four great days in Edinburgh with Dsis and Bil - on the day of Storm Amy we were in central Edinburgh holding on to the side of the cathedral and railings to stop ourselves being blown over.  The storm was amazing.  It was pretty wet for most of the holiday until the last few days but it is very atmospheric even when its wet.  We headed for Stirling and across to Luss on Loch Lomond before following the road past Inverary to our first overnight stop North of Oban.  The next day we headed North over the bridge to Uig in the North of Skye.  Day 3 we spent on Skye visiting some places with ancestor links.  Day 4 was across to Fort Augustus and along Loch Ness to Inverness before heading south on the A9 for another overnight stop in the Cairngorms.  Day 5 we visited Blair Castle and Pitlochry before returning to a hotel near Edinburgh Airport.  Dsis left for Dublin early this morning but I started the day with a swim and a relaxed breakfast before taking a longer route back across the borders with several stops so it took nearly 7 hours to get home. I think I drove about 1200 miles - never driven so far before when I was the only driver but it went ok and car was great.  I've eaten far too much although not much to drink as I was the driver - the odd glass of wine when we could walk for the evening meal.  

Back to normal tomorrow.  Heating is still not right so I may be looking at all central heating pipes being replaced.  First washload done.  Other stuff put away.  Sox rushed to greet me on the drive miaowing about being abandoned - I know full well DS2 will have spoilt him.  

942/3 Dil sold two mirrors of mine this afternoon
944 Coasters in living room binned - odd ones mostly damaged replaced with set of fun ones I bought in Scotland
945 General tat from holiday binned.  Food we had left in cool bag mostly binned. 

TC77

Mrs SD, I have already counted the items in the CS bag usually, and give myself a bonus 1 for the bag itself getting to the shop! 
Keep waking up early, and did some tidying and mopped dining floor, noting things that have to be moved before sweeping and mopping. 
2 pieces of metal from unknown things
blow up mattress
pillow case
over door hanger (my only wombling from a neighbour, did check if anyone else wanted it (our street whatsapp) and as no said I may give to CS
guitar footstool
storage box
only bought food and nothing else brought in today which is good.
ood ice pack
counting as 10 as adding the extra 2 from the sofa...

suzeesu2000

Thanks Mrs_Salad_Dodger, cold much better. Printer loaded like a dream and is working,  which immediately has proved the original one was faulty.
Cooked two 3 bird roasts yesterday. DH sliced this morning. Got 2 generous roast dinners today and 3 more for the freezer. 

Did washing today, small load of each. Surprisingly, the cotton blanket I chanced on the line dried beautifully. I didn’t think it would as it didn’t go out till after 11am. Lights are on the airer and hope to get the darks out on line in the morning.

Decluttered a lot of scraps of paper from family tree notes and junk mail.
Hope to be properly back on the horse Monday.
Sleep tight all, dream sweet dreams xx

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 continued: Change of plans as we are ordering in - burgers & fries 😉 Wudupa.

1906 - 1909 Kitchen recycling, drinks cans, 2 newspapers - recycled 

1910 Kitchen detritus - binned 

QueenJess, This “I still have my recorder from first school (still got the sewed name tag on the cover 😆.  Kids don't seem to learn them these days, which makes me sad.  I thought it was a rite of passage?” is very sad 😞 Probably due to cost cutting 😒 Well done on hitting ‘maintenance mode’ 👏 As to This “I had 1 hand cream and now suddenly have 4 in my bid to find one I like best (why do companies insist on changing products so much?).” is one of those almost unanswerable questions ☹️ Companies possibly trying to cut costs or maybe removing or swapping out ingredients which have been legislated against 🤨 Well done on the continued paper decluttering 👏 This “DH is laughing at my pencil that I stubbornly refuse to give up on until I can't turn it in the pencil sharpener anymore... I think it is 3.5cm long now.  Well this is MSE and I don't like to waste things...” had me laughing so hard I made my sides hurt 🤣

TC77, an interesting rabbit hole 😉 Shame about the change to your ‘in office’ days 😞 - just wondering why they were changed 🤨 

Brie, now wondering if ukuleles are easier to learn to play than recorders? Although I would have thought that they were a more expensive instrument to purchase 🤨 

Excellent decluttering Soontobeoap 👏 A medal 🏅 is on its way. 

weenancy, your library does so much 🤩 Re Di’s cluttered room, is there any chance of arranging for the missionary people to move the furniture 🙏 rather than you causing more damage to your back 🙏 Sorry to hear that your back is now so bad that you are struggling to move 😢 Hopefully the surgeon will be able to suggest some gentle exercises to help 🙏 I just wish we weren’t all so far away as I think our Declutterati family would/could make a big dent in the decluttering, cleaning & tidying 🥹 😮‍💨 

Well said TC77 🥹

surprisinglynice, not sure what to suggest 🤨 It sounds like your OH needs to be banned from using his computer & phone 😉

Willowtree222, salmon with chilli is definitely tastier than with herbs 😉 Yikes to the glass 😱 Sorry to hear This “Think I have decluttered my sanity this week dealing with a big frog….” 😞 however well done on tackling the frog 👏 a medal 🏅 is on its way. 

BlueJ94, This “OH has had to go to work for a few hours which is a rarity on a Saturday so that means I can declutter stuff without him knowing when his usual answers are "we might need that" even though its been sat in thr junk draw for 3 years 😂” made me laugh 😆 Hopefully you had a very successful day of decluttering 😊 & OH won’t notice anything missing 🤞

vulpix, thanks for sharing This “School recorders were an introduction to music for me and 2 of my kids. DD1 went on to play flute because of it and played at our wedding with her flute ensemble. ( For the beauty of the earth john rutter.) School ukelele introduced DD2 to playing the guitar.” ☺️ I love that DD1 played the flute at your wedding - what a special memory 🥹 Pleased to hear that Mum & baby are doing better 😌 & hopefully baby J will be out of scbu very soon 🙏

Excellent work in the garden florianatwobob 👏 & This “We’re taking recycle, reuse, repurpose to a whole new level by replanting the grass clumps in the bald spots in the back garden!” is a brilliant idea 🥳 This “Handily the bin men (lovely lad with a sweet smile) turned up mid garden session and took away half a bin of garden waste…..” brought a smile 😃 

Great decluttering BlueJ94 👏 Fingers crossed that you haven’t hurt your foot too badly by dropping a candle on it 🤞

Green_hopeful, that is brilliant 🤩 Not only saved you money but also saved the gardener disposing of the old lawn - win, win 🥳

Brie, so many instruments 🤩 Can I ask which of the modern wind instruments you preferred? Your owl is brilliant - you are very talented 🥹

purplevamp, yikes 😧 Just wondering if the kitchen is free of Warhammer figurines? 

Deni_debt-free_dreamer, pleased to hear that you have finally decluttered Covid 😊 This “I've decluttered …… and my grey roots - though that is sadly temporary 😉” did make me giggle 🙊 

GrannyKate, what a marvellous holiday with your DSis & BiL 🥹 You certainly packed a lot in 🤩 This “It was pretty wet for most of the holiday until the last few days but it is very atmospheric even when it’s wet.” is a perfect description of Scotland in the rain 🥹 although not as friendly when riding on a bike 😉 As for This “…. on the day of Storm Amy we were in central Edinburgh holding on to the side of the cathedral and railings to stop ourselves being blown over.  The storm was amazing.” sounds rather scary 😧 I imagine you are exhausted so I do hope you get some rest before getting back into your normal routine 🙏 Pleased to hear that you got such a lovely welcome home from Sox ☺️

TC77, okey dokey as long as you are not missing out on your numbers 😊 Great decluttering today 👏

suzeesu2000, This “Printer loaded like a dream and is working, which immediately has proved the original one was faulty.” sounds absolutely typical 😉 Pleased to hear that your cold has almost gone & well done on getting so much done 👏 

And breathe…….. all caught up 🥳 Sleep tight 😴 

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

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

DSis Awards: ⭐️ ⭐️ 🏅

Decluttering Target 2025: 1910/2025

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £469.00