2026 DECLUTTERING CAMPAIGN Mrs SD - our Year of Redistribution

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

1. Daily To Do List - written the night before
2. Sort out sleep patterns - initial targets: bed by 03:00, up by 10:30
3. Don’t put it down, put it away + deal with mini tasks as soon as they are noticed e.g. refill olive pourer or salt cellar, stitch up a hole in a garment etc.
4. Commence ‘Operation Financial Frog Tickling’ using the acronym - I.R.I.S. (Identify, Research, Implement, Sign Off) - One per quarter
5. Continue to keep kitchen clean & tidy - before going to bed
6. Plan & Execute ONE Major Project - 2026 New Bathroom
7. Target 2026 items out

Thursday continued: Forgot to mention that the recycling wheelie bin was emptied today 👏 Wrote menu plan & shopping list. DH & DSis left 13:50 & back by 15:45. I put all the shopping away immediately then resumed knitting & clearing programmes from planner. Another hat finished & a new one started. Dinner was bacon, fried eggs, roasted tomatoes & mushrooms + fried the lo new potatoes. Wudupa.

Started raining 23:00 & has carried on until 04:30.

476 - 477 Kitchen recycling, drinks cans - recycled 

478 Kitchen detritus - binned 

Floss, I am rather sad that information is now mostly restricted to online 😔 far too easy for it to be manipulated ☹️ Rather more difficult with a book 😉 Thank you for sharing the story of how your mum & dad met ☺️

surprisinglynice, such a shame that you feel you need to declutter one of your jobs & all down to politics/workplace drama 😔 

TC77, so interesting 😊 There is something quite therapeutic about looking for information in a book ☺️

Florenceem, sorry to hear about your disturbed night 😔 I hope that you are no longer in pain 🙏 Fingers crossed that you solve the problem with your sewing machine 🤞Pleased to hear that the chairs will soon have a new home 😊 Also relieved to hear that your bestie turned up today 🥹 & brought a couple of lovely gifts ☺️ Excellent decluttering to both your bestie & your DD 👏

purplevamp, I had to giggle at This “……. but decluttered my 86 year old dad back home 😂” 🙊 

suzeesu2000, we just had a very strong wind all day making it feel 7° to 8° colder all day 😞 Sounds like you were lucky to avoid sleety showers 🤔 Well done getting the laundry dry indoors 👏 & good luck with the ironing 🍀Fingers crossed that your new listings will result in quick sales 🤞

Great decluttering Willowtree222 👏

GrannyKate, well done getting so much done despite the distractions 👏 Good luck dealing with frogs 🍀

Lovely post dND ☺️ Let us know when you make your hot cross buns as I think several of us will pop round 😉 Pleased to hear that you enjoyed your knitting group 😊 Good luck with your dairymaid activities tomorrow 🍀

Excellent decluttering Florenceem 👏 Fingers crossed you can find at least one bag of your clothes amongst the many bags 🤞 Also hoping that the new gas pipes are installed quickly & efficiently 🙏

Excellent work in the garden Pennypincin 👏 Hopefully it won’t be too long before you start seeing the fruits of your labour 😊

Floss, your dad certainly had an interesting career ☺️

oceanspirit, great work keeping your email numbers constant 👏

Brambling, interesting job & love that you you were trusted not to misuse the internet☺️ Sorry to hear that you had to return your friend’s cat to Cat Protection 😔 Hopefully she will find a new forever home soon 🤞 Good luck cleaning the inside of the car 🍀

weenancy, it is making me feel way too warm just reading about your high temperatures 🥵 My thought re bad leaders is that they always seem to be long lived 😖 I think all we can do is be kind to each other & have faith that everything will come right in the end 🥹

Sleep tight everyone 😴 

MrsSD Awards: 💐 🙏💐💐🌟⭐️❤️💐💐 

DH Awards: 🏅🏅

DSis Awards:

Decluttering Target 2026: 478/2026

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £73.00

London_1

Hi Chums, bit breezy today and a bit drizzly as well so I'm in my sitting room hopefully finishing off eldest DDs cushion cover that I've knitted to match her throw for the caravan.

I've just got to sew three strips of squares together, then knit the border all around and sew some stud fasteners on the open ended bit so she can remove it from the inside cushioon for washing in the autumn

Youngest DD and I are off to the Medway next Friday for a long weekend, and I have lots of stuff to take with me

A stack of books for my great granddaughters and the eldest ones birthday present, plus eldest DDs ma-in-laws birthday present, and DGS Jack wants us to bring up the spare double blow up bed for his place for when his buddies come to stay

He teaches out in deepest Kent in the middle of nowhere at a boarding school, and lives on site, so when his uni pals come to stay they have been camping on his sofa. We have a spare blow up mattress thats not used so we can declutter it to his place in Kent.

Next week will be a busy one as

Monday: U3A games afternoon at Newpoort

Tuesday: U3A new genealogy meeting at Newport in the morning and picking some bits up to take to DGGDs for easter

Wednesday: Stitch & Bi**ch at Ryde (I've promisded to knit a cardi for one of the crochet ladies who will have a new grandchild in August).

She doesn't knit :)

Thursday: I have to make a stack of my shepherds pies in containers for DGD in Medway, then in the afternoon its off to the hairdressers to get my barnet shorn

Friday: off on the ferry to the mainland and hopefully the M25 will be clear and running well by mid morning so we get a good run through to Kent.

Then its going round seeing friends and relations for several days until late Monday afternoon when hopefully we will be on our way back home to the Island once more. I also hope to fit a quick trip to Hither green in London where my late mother and brother are buried to tidy up the grave for the summer

DD and I usually only go to the mainland twice a year in the spring and again in the autumn which is more than enough for us :) By the time we get back home I shall be putting my feet up and relaxing I think for a day or two then fingers crossed the weather will have brightened up and DD and I can get out into the garden

Its all go being retired :)

Onwards and upwards chums

JackieO xxx

GrannyKate

Evening all. A cold day again but I managed to get washing almost dry before it rained briefly. Plasterer came to go through next week's work plan and will add checking a very bouncy floorboard once they take carpet up. He took a set of keys. Hair cut and a few beers and wine purchased for DD's visit.

291 Plastics to SM

292 Post for an unknown person sent back

293 Minutes of Weds meeting done and agreed with chair

294 Random paperwork and email frogs connected to the above munched up

295 Stuff moved out to garage - don't think most of it will come back in.

I need to stay up later - I went to bed at 9 last night as so tired but I was wide awake at 4.30. I seem to have got out of sync. Long chat with dsis in US - you can imagine what we talked about.

Florenceem

I have had a very busy day again even though it was a day at home.

I emptied a chest of drawers and hoovered the dust bunnies from the back of it. J didn't arrive until 11.30 but then got straight on with helping me get furniture outside which he then broke up. J then helped me by climbing up and getting stuff from on top of the units downstairs and carrying them up to me so I could stack in the room.

Gas man said that he wouldn't turn off my gas until he knew where the connecting chap was and how long till he would be here.

J the builder arrived - I wanted him to attach the headboard onto my bed. However I asked him to remove the defunct security system from near the front door. We stopped the contract years ago and it was so unsightly. J tested it and it was live! He tried to find what circuit it was on but I said - switch the main one off for safety.

Then the gas man came in and said they couldn't find my outside pipe. They turned off my gas. So now no electric or gas. The front door was continually being opened so the house soon got cold.

Gas men decided the pipe went at an angle across the side alley so dug a hole. They told me my meter would have to be moved as there were too many pipes near it to safely reconnect the supply with a different pipe system.

So now I have a hole in my alley - men will make it good - Monday or Tuesday. The side alley is muddy from the digging so J will need to power wash it. They made a lot of noise and kept having to squeeze past builder J who was working by the front door. As there were live wires - J installed a double socket - so now I have 2 double sockets by the front door.

Grandson J went home. Builder J tried to fix the new headboard to the bed but it hadn't come with the long bolts/screws and washers. So J put it against the wall and moved the bed to it. He could tell I wasn't happy when he left. He phoned and said he thinks he has found the right bits at home so will be round in the morning.

I want to empty the black sacks back into the under bed drawers. I know where the 4 black sacks are but have no idea where my clothes ones are lurking.

There were 3 houses and 4 flats being connected to the new pipework today - I was last to be done. The house was cold and the heating took a long time to get going after the switch off.

I had to put the garage end back how it was before the gas man worked in there - tired now.

florianatwobob

Fingers crossed Florenceem that your gas men do as good a job of making good as my ones did. They’d had to lift my block paving and dig down about 2- 3 foot to access the pipes. I was concerned with the shifting of the soil underneath was going to result in some subsidence when they were relaid but, the lifted and replaced them so well I can’t tell they’d ever been lifted!

I think some of that may have been down to the copious lollies and cold drinks when they were first laid and then the cuppas when they were lifted and relaid. I and one of my neighbours were in competition to keep the lads hydrated! It must’ve been hilarious to watch.

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

1. Daily To Do List - written the night before
2. Sort out sleep patterns - initial targets: bed by 03:00, up by 10:30
3. Don’t put it down, put it away + deal with mini tasks as soon as they are noticed e.g. refill olive pourer or salt cellar, stitch up a hole in a garment etc.
4. Commence ‘Operation Financial Frog Tickling’ using the acronym - I.R.I.S. (Identify, Research, Implement, Sign Off) - One per quarter
5. Continue to keep kitchen clean & tidy - before going to bed
6. Plan & Execute ONE Major Project - 2026 New Bathroom
7. Target 2026 items out

Friday is overcast but the sun is trying to break through 🤞Forecast high of 12°C (feeling -6° colder due to WSW wind which is less strong than yesterday 😮‍💨) & low of 4°C DH is in the garden sorting out the wormeries. The beautiful shiny new bird feeders have been completely ignored by all the birds ☹️ & we have no idea why 🧐 Dinner was quiche & boiled new potatoes for DSis & salmon fillets, boiled new potatoes & peas for DH & me. Wudupa.

479 - 483 Kitchen recycling, magazine, drinks cans, 2 glass jars - recycled 

484 Kitchen detritus - binned 

I will do the cheerleading tomorrow. Sleep tight 😴 

MrsSD Awards: 💐 🙏💐💐🌟⭐️❤️💐💐 

DH Awards: 🏅🏅

DSis Awards:

Decluttering Target 2026: 484/2026

1p Savings Challenge Running Total: £73.00

mehefin

Finally got permission from the community council to donate the humungous A3 printer which has been living in my dining room to our community library. It had been with me ever since we had a change of clerk, and the new clerk has umpteen printers at home already and didn't want another one! Not a lot in numbers but a lovely cleared space. There are spare inks too.

A load of old sheets to the school to use in their outdoor woodland space - not quite sure what they will do with them-must ask at a later time.

vulpix

Iv'e been awol, twas my Birthday and family came to stay. I am having a lie down! A lovely if chaotic time was had by all. We are going to do it all again at Easter so I would really like to get the last bedroom decorated by then.

I have started by buying a blind. Not decided the colour for the walls yet. My stepson dismantled a " hood thing" over an air brick in the bedroom. It makes it cold and noisy in there. Mr V has made like a box which has been pushed into the hole which has a big piece of polystyrene cut to fit in it. My job is to skim plaster over the wood as it is very slightly deeper than the wall. Then decorating can begin. Should be easy enough, no painting of furniture or anything to do.

Lovely stepson also put the radiator shelf back up where the sofa delivery people knocked it off. I filled the holes the other day.

I have had 3 lots of flowers which I now have time to put in vases. Currently they are just in water, waiting.

Sent away with the overnight visitors, a clip from a food box that has been driven up and down the country several times and forgotten to hand it over. A big knitted blanket has gone plus the 5 Dennis the Menace jumpers. In coming was a blanket I knitted for the baby which had a boil wash. Think it is past help, despite soaking it overnight in cold water and fabric conditioner. It is now pretty much felt.

Time for a brew and a bit of DD1's magnificent cake she made.

Vx

Yorkie1

Happy birthday @vulpix 💐

Florenceem

vulpix - Happy Birthday.

I have ordered a mirror for my bedroom - should be here Tuesday.

J the builder arrived and my headboard is now fixed. I shall get young J to help me move the bed a tiny bit as it is not quite level on each side. Yes - it bothers me.

I emptied a cabinet in my craft room. Everything to go upstairs is ready at the bottom of the stairs. My J couldn't come round today as he was doing something for his Godfather. J offered to come round tomorrow morning - I have decided it is a sign for me not to attend my old corps which I was going to do as bestie is spending time with her eldest daughter.

I cleared the table top and folded it down and then emptied the cupboards. J will help me move it into the garage tomorrow.

I also emptied a corner unit - again lots of dust bunnies behind it.

I washed a floor mat and it snowed on it. Wetter than when I put it out.

I asked SA friend to hang onto donations she had collected rather than me meet her at the hall. She can take them in tomorrow.

When the sky was brighter I popped to Asd. for some puddings to take to my daughters tomorrow. I was not in baking mood.

Decluttered yesterday - wall hook x 2, part of duvet inner, drawer lining paper x 4, envelope x 2, bookcase x 2, chest of drawers, embossing boards, laminator, laminate tool, lamp fitting, socket front, box of card, wipes, tall boy, corner unit, pad of card, vellum x 2, clipboard x 4, leaflet, door knob, electricians tape, pieces of thick card, magazine, brochure, Tim Holtz masks and dust bunnies.