De-Clutter Check in Week of 2/7

jonahnah

Cathlete
Another round of checking in and chucking out has begun! Please share your successes and ideas...Everybody welcome! :D
 
Jonahnah, THANKS for doing this for us! Ignore the post I started just seconds before you did! LOL We must have been typing at the same time. I'll go try to delete the other one.

Here's what I posted:
uttering goals for today, I fear I'll just let it go (again).

SO.....today's goals for me include:
  • clearing the small leftover pile of Christmas gifts that sits on the floor in my back living room.
  • have younger DS clear out his stuffed animals and decide which ones he can do without. I want him to move the ones he wants to keep from the basket in his closet to the hanging net I just put in his room.
  • I am going to clean out my bathroom closet and cabinet.
  • move the Christmas Tree (artificial, of course) from the garage to the basement shelves (or return it to my parents, since it's theirs...either way it will be GONE from my garage today).


That's my BEGINNING list. After I tackle all those items, I'm moving onto my dining room, which is starting to collect too much PTA stuff and has a ton of scrapbooking that needs to get organized and DONE!

Have an awesome decluttering day, ladies!

Gayle
 
Decluttering Check-in

Jonahnah and Gayle, I would love to join y’all! I have a big problem with this here clutter! I surveyed the mountain of clutter in my home and decided that it is time to declare war on clutter. My closets and drawers are suffering from chronic stuffitis! LOL! This is clutter’s last stand, and I am kicking it to the curb!

STS is all about smashing the strongholds! I am fired up this week and ready to take on hell with a water pistol! I am reclaiming my health, my body, my home, and my life in 2009! I spent several months of 2008 in a downward spiral in a bottomless pit of depression. I allowed the clutter to pile up in my home because I was too tired and blue to care. I am kicking butt and taking names this year! During my STS preview party, the music inspired me to get off my butt and clean and organize my workout area. I moved my living room furniture to the center of the room and dusted the ceiling, walls, and furniture! I wiped down the baseboards with a wet towel and shampooed those sections of carpet. I could not believe what I found behind my sofa! Oh my! The dust bunnies have been having a wild party back there! LOL! I got my workout toys in order for STS too. That was my pre-STS goal. I wanted a clean and organized space to enjoy these workouts to the fullest!

My next step is to pare down my collection of books and DVDs. I have more books and DVDs than I need or have room to store, and I am tired of seeing piles everywhere. I am keeping the ones I really love and taking the rest to Hastings. They buy used books and DVDs, and I could use the extra cash. I also found a bunch of phone books from years ago when I cleaned my workout room for STS. They are on the way to the recycle bin!

I am reading a few books for inspiration: Clutter’s Last Stand by Don Aslett as well as It’s All Too Much and Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat? by Peter Walsh of Clean Sweep fame. The last one makes an interesting connection between the clutter in your home and the fat on your body!

Happy decluttering! I will likely check-in mostly on Saturdays and during my STS recovery weeks.

Blessings,
Heather B.

"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV).
 
I just showered and cleaned out the shampoo and hair spray and other junk in the bathroom cabinet!!! I am not a big "beauty" kind os gal, so there wasn't a lot of make up and stuff. But barrettes and pony tail holders. And I still had one of those 80's hair clips that pull your hair back in a mane!!!
Time for that to go!!!!

I cleaned out the towel closet in the process but don't have time to tackle the linen closet until after DS birthday party today.

I'll BBL for more

ellie
 
PROGRESS in my home today, ladies! WOOHOO!

I shouldn't be on the PC right now, but I just HAD to report in. My bathroom closet is DONE! Younger DS's stuffed animals are DONE! I hung 2 netting-type things for him and we pared down from 2 OVERFLOWING laundry baskets to just 1. I had him empty both completely and one became a KEEP and one became a DONATE basket. Then took what was in that 1 KEEP basket and put them all in the hanging netting thingies. The DONATE basket was emptied into a garbage bag and will be donated at my school's Spring Cleaning Donation Drive in March. I now have RECLAIMED 2 big laundry baskets!

Both boys are now in their rooms going thru all their cards....Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon, baseball, basketball, and football cards. They worked a little on their bookshelf, but that's bigger project for tomorrow for them! They're rockin' and rollin' up there! I better go join them.

I'm hitting the garage and the Christmas tree this afternoon when we get home from baseball sign ups (I help run that league so I have to go to sign ups for 2 hours this afternoon)!

WE'RE ON FIRE!

Gayle
 
How appropriate! I'm working on chucking stuff this weekend, too. Started last night by going through my month old giant stack of mail -- woooh, some of those bills are gonna be so late!! But I got through it. Today's goal is the boys' room -- way too much cr^p in there!!

Loved the mane hair clip!! Brings back memories......

-Beth
 
I love it, Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat? by Peter Walsh LOL!! That must be my problem!:eek:

So having trouble motivating... it seems I can hardly get past the basic cleaning to do the deeper stuff....but came here to get motivated and it worked. Good Jobs Ladies

So my tasks this weekend are: the stomp room which is a jumble of coats, shoes, misc...and the upstairs linen closet.

Question: what do you do with the 'stuff' that you don't know where to put them. It's those homeless things that end up getting shoved in a drawer or a closet that are really stumping me.

ex: from the kitchen misc. drawer, random parts or fuses that kinda of thing you might need one day and might even forget you already have?????
 
Hey, Laura, good question!

So, to sum up my productive day today:
  • My bathroom closet is done.
  • The Christmas tree in the garage got put away for storage.
  • DS' stuffed animals are done.
  • DS' (both DS's) trading cards are all organized and put away.
  • The boys also cleared off their dressers and dusted them.

All that DONE. The one thing on today's original goal list was the small pile of leftover Christmas gifts...I got that about 1/2 weeded out and will finish that tomorrow. I'm SUPER happy with the way the day went and my kids did an awesome job!

TOMORROW's goal list:
  • Boys' bookshelves
  • Garage (put last few holiday stuff in attic, break down boxes, etc)
  • Grocery shopping (which is a way of de-cluttering as well! I'm currently working my way thru the freezers so I can defrost the BIG one, before buying more)

Have an awesome night!

Gayle
 
Hi everyone! Today my decluttering hasn't been quite as extensive as I had hoped. I did gather up unused kitchen appliances (electric griddle, bread machine, cappuccino machine, and toaster oven) and am going to post them on

www.freecycle.org

This is a really cool site to get rid of your stuff. Of course I am being careful and not letting anyone into my home. I'll meet them on neutral territory accompanied by DH or a friend.

I also cleaned out the coat closet. Wow, I have so many coats that I didn't even know that I had. Yikes, that's embarrassing. I got rid of quite a bit of stuff and have another pile for Goodwill.

Ellie - OMG, banana clips!! Ha ha! I remember those things. Wow, I really thought I was so cool when I wore those things.

Gayle - great job today. You are just on fire. I am very motivated by your post to get my butt moving and do a bit more today.

Heather - it sounds like you have a great plan.

Beth - I think that mail is one of my biggest problems. We get so much of it and it just sits there and piles up!

Laura - how's the stomp room going? I am going to leave your question for Ellie to answer. She's so good at this. I don't know what to do with all my stuff like that, so I'd like to know too.
 
Hey Everyone, I am still working on the paperwork clutter. Haven't reconciled my accounts in three months! Oops! Along with reconciling I am purging files as I go. I only have one more account to go!:D:D:D:D
 
Okay, here's a few hints and tips
I can't give away all my secrets at once!!!!! :p:p:p:p

For those things without a home- take a small tupperware container and label it MISC. place it in a handy cabinet or drawer. If you have say a bunch of fuses, put them in a ziplock bag and put a white label on it with the item name and place it in the misc. box. Do this with all those little things that end up in your junk drawer.

Get rid of the mail!!! Open it over the trashcan or shredder and anything that is not a bill or important notice THROW IT OUT!!!!
If it's a reminder or appt, write it on the calendar and get rid of the notice.
If it's a bill to be paid, put in in the bill holder.
Receipts, same thing.
Cancel magazines that you don't read.


Do you need 3 extra sets of sheets. It's much easier to own 1 or 2 sets and when you strip the bed, wash the sheets and put them right back on. Your bed is then done and your linen closet is not overflowing.

In my mud room I have a rack to hold coats and my pocketbook etc. Then I have a lower one for the kids coats and backpacks.

Make a "Nothing on the kitchen counter rule. Dishes in the sink or dishwasher, no piles of STUFF, no keys or loose change.

Once a month go thru the corkboard and remove all past dated things.

Invitations. RSVP write the date and time on calendar and get rid of the invitation.

Have fun
ellie
 
Ellie, are you our ring leader???? ;)

Wanna know what's funny? I already do all those things. Mail, invitations, kitchen counter, coats, etc. I WILL do the linen thing though. I think I have about 30 pillow cases in my closet. And twin sheets for the kids' rooms? I must have about 12 sets....but in my defense, my mom gave most of those to me, but what makes it funny is that they were MINE when I was a kid. :D

'Night.

Gayle
 
Shoot, I posted to Gayle's check-in first and didn't see this one until now! I'll repost here too if that's okay.

You are all so inspirational. Ellie - I wish I had your ruthlessness when it came to clutter. When I had a smaller house - I got rid of everything that I didn't see an immediate for, but now with a bigger house and two grown daughters I find I am a "storage unit" until they settle into more permanent places. Here's what I posted earlier -

I cleaned out the sock drawer today and separated the socks with navy on the left, black on the right and misc colors (2 brown, 3 khaki and a couple of striped socks) along with my workout socks in the middle. Now if I keep this up, I won't have to keep taking socks into the bathroom in the morning to decide if they are black or blue (DH goes to work later than I do so I hate to turn on the light in the bedroom).

I also cleaned out my pajama/swimsuit/slip drawer (actually it is an old clothes hamper) It is deep and so many things have fallen to the bottom that I forgot I even had.

Then, I went through the workout clothes - just how many old shapeless t-shirts do I need anyway?

Finally, the sewing machine is my bedroom so I went through all the drawers in that too. Wow! I got rid of a ton of stuff there - I lost count somewhere after 117.

Now all the cleaning I have done so far has been hidden in drawers or behind closet and cupboard doors, but I swear when I walk in the bedroom that it seems cleaner and lighter somehow!

Again, thanks for the check-in. Good luck to everyone this week.
 
Lori Ann, great job!!! I know what you mean about something looking better even if it IS behind cabinet door! :)

I just wanted to come back one last time for the night to say that the leftover Christmas pile IS GONE! lol The kids and I watched a movie (Madagascar 2) and after, I flicked the lights on to straighten up the room and that little pile was SCREAMING AT ME! So I shut it up and put everything away! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....I feel better now!

NOW, for the last time tonight....GOOD NIGHT!

Gayle
 
Happy Decluttering!!!

Oh crap Lori Ann, you had to mention the socks and undies drawer!!!:eek::eek::eek::eek:
I must confess, I have not even touched those drawers in like a year!!!! I hate when I can't tell which ones are blue or black and have to get my glasses and turn on the light!!! I soooooo need to do this.

I also need to do the bathing suit thing. I have a few old ones, some that don't fit right etc. I am constantly pulling out the wrong top or bottom. This is on my list for the week!!!!

Today I NEED to do the coat closet!!! Kids coats, snowsuits, boots etc, somehow got all thrown into one after the snow last week. I also need to do the craft closet in the laundry room. Neither of which I am looking forward to

KEEP ME ACCOUNTABLE!!!! I need a push

Gayle- I know you do all these things that's why i love you. But I envy your ability to do all this and workout and PTA and etc etc. I just wanna be like you girlfriend!!!!

Any hints/ideas for my bedroom closet???? It's a mess!!!

ellie
 
Happy Sunday, folks!

Ellie-This is what I'm currently doing for my closet right now. I just went thru and anything that is too big, out of fashion, or just OLD, I got rid of. For all the things still hanging on hangers, one day about 2 months ago, I turned all the hangers facing away from me (the open ended hook toward the wall). When I washed and re-hung the items, I put the hanger facing me. Then next Winter I will go thru and anything that is still facing away from me will be taken out and tossed. I have a shoe rack running the length of the one wall, and I only keep as many pairs that will stay on that rack. If I don't have room, then I ditch something to make room.

Today's goals for me and my home:
  • boys' bookshelves, with their help
  • my garage
I LOVE THIS!

Gayle
 
Gayle that is a great idea about the hangers. I'll have to try that. I went through my sweaters a while ago and had about 6 that I couldn't remember wearing, but I just couldn't give away either. I have them in a pile in the front of my closet and I am going to wear one every day of this week. At the end of the day, I will know if it is a keeper or not.
 
OMG Gail,

That is the best idea I have heard in a LONG time!!!!!:D:D:D:D:D
I am sooooooo doing that today. What a great way to realize what you wear and don't wear!!!
My friend sent me a pic of me and DH at a wedding 10 years ago and I thought. I STILL HAVE THAT DRESS!!!!!! DH laughed when I brought it down to show him, because he still has the same SUIT!!!

So I am FRUGAL and Need to de-clutter.
Come on El, buy a new dress for goodness sakes!!!!

I'll take any and all tips for boys toys too!!!!

ellie
 
Decluttering Check-in

Ellie and Gayle:

Y’all are amazing! I need to find a decluttering check-in for beginners. I appears that I have stumbled into the advanced course and am clearly out of my league here. LOL! The decision making process is what slows me down. I hate wasting money down the road replacing something that I had and tossed out in a frenzy of decluttering. Just last night, I bought a pair of the Fitness by Cathe weighted gloves. During my first week of STS, I discovered that I need these to make the most of STS. I had a similar pair of Altus gloves a few years ago that I did not think I would ever use again because I prefer my cushy Ironwear gloves for kickboxing. They did not take up that much space, and I wish I had kept them. It is hard for me to let go of things I spent hard-earned money on unless I find a good home for them.

I started reading books in my stack to see what I want to keep and what I can take to Hastings to sell.

Blessings,
Heather B.

"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV).
 
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Heather - LOL at the advanced vs beginners de-clutter levels! I thought I was pretty good until I read Ellie's and Gayle's tips. Clearly, I am an amateur...:confused:

I did not do any de-cluttering this weekend which means I will it do this week while the kidlets are in school. (insert evil laugh)

Great job everyone and thank you all for joining me in my quest for more control over my stuff!
 

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