Not quite a horder - decluttering

Well, the ornaments and decorations are all put away.  I have a box on my kitchen table for the boys to go through.  I threw away some damaged and broken ornaments, and DH helped thin a couple out by accidently breaking them.  I have two boxes of ornaments which may not be used next year, but sometime in the future.  I also kept a couple of decorations out to see if I could reproduce them as gifts for next year.  My guestroom still looks like an explosion at a gift wrap factory, which I should go get taken care of today.

I was good this year.  I used up a lot of extra old wrapping paper, and some of the newer stuff, but this year I only purchased three rolls of paper in the after Christmas sales.

I think this week I will hit the dresser drawers for stuff that does not fit.  That's a lot since my hips have expanded and I can't keep them under control.

I have been doing good the past couple of days.

Yesterday I sent a small telescope and a box of collectable bottles which belonged to DS2, home with him.  Today I cleaned out some boxes in the garage and shredded a bankers box full of outdated paperwork.  It felt so positive!

We sent 8 bags and boxes away with the big truck on Tuesday. Somehow I am on a phone list for the charities and get a call every week or two for pickup! I quit work on July 7 after 35 years of nursing. I had already started on my master plan of a huge decluttering. We have been in the same house and I have trouble letting my dead relatives things go........well July 17 the diagnosis of bc ruined those plans. Just now getting started again. I am going to try to read this thread daily for the great inspiration! Beatmon

I used to be a Creative Memories consultant at the beginning of the scrapbooking craze (many years ago).

There was a minimum amount of "product" you had to purchase every quarter. Of course, I bought more than I actually sold...

Consequently, I have TONS of supplies, including paper, scissors, rulers, stickers, punches, glues, and other embellishments and tools. I was wondering what to do with all the excess (much of it still new and in the original packaging)....

With all my other interests, I just don't do any scrapbooking any more, and what I DO plan to do has more to do with "heritage" scrapping, using copies of antique photos of family members. That kind of page doesn't need cute stickers or wavy rulers or seasonal punches.

Happily,  the family that our church sponsors as missionaries in Colombia, South America, came home for Christmas, and we had a chance for a wonderful visit last weekend.

They have a club for teenage girls who would otherwise be on the streets. A huge part of the draw is all the crafting they do when together.

The mom would be THRILLED to have these supplies, and I would be just as thrilled to know they are being put to such good use.

SO - just have to box everything up and send it off!!!

I've been lurking here looking for tips. I have a question. Do any of you have a bulldozer I could borrow?

My surgeon absolutely refused to let me use my arm on mx side to do anything. He gave me 4 drains for a single mx, and insisted on removing 1 per week, and I wasn't to use it or even drive until the last one was out for a week. So, by the time I could use my arm chemo started. AC followed in march with 12 weekly taxol.



So, come ladies I really need a bulldozer!!!



Blessings

Paula

I discovered another junk find today. After my mom passed away I kept all her antique vases because I thought they were valuable. Well today I unwrapped them all to find that they all had cracks that she had glued back together. There goes the value. I think I will keep one that was her favorite but the others are history. I have a few friends that will love them. I love this thread. That box would still be there if not for getting motivated by everyone here.

I may not have mentioned this before, but when I left my marriage 9+ years ago, I just wanted out with my life and left much of my possessions in the home I shared with my ex.  He held the stuff hostage, but about a year and a half later he conceded and brought a bunch of stuff to my condo.  I just poured it out in my garage floor.  There was so much stuff.  Yes there were some boxes but he claims I just left the stuff without boxes so that's how he delivered it.  SO, I packed boxes quickly, thinking I would soon get to them.  Now I am just getting to the stuff I had scooped from the floor.  I packed up four boxes for my newly married son and found two boxes of my middle son's stuff.  I also found my stamp collection in a box, so I am setting it aside for DS2.  I can't wait for them to come visit this coming week.  It means 6 midsize boxes and one small box are out of my garage! I'd bet it's close to 20 cubic feet!

It's monotenous work going through boxes of stuff, but it will be so rewarding when it will be finished.

My goal will be to clean up the garage enough to get my woodworking tools out and use them.  I wouldn't even attempt to get them out right now.  No room to park the car!

@meece, I will be in a similar situation when I get into the house I bought to move into when I retire (planned for sometime this spring if not sooner). When I was diagnosed, I wasn't sure I would be able to work at all but not quite ready to officially retire and thought I might have hardly any income for several months during treatment. All I could think of to do was clear out my townhouse as fast as possible for immediate sale. I had planned to have a year (starting last spring) to go through, sort, discard etc, but BC threw a monkey wrench into that plan. I threw everything in boxes and put it in storage, no sorting, no culling. I will take all the boxes from storage to my garage, and I guess then the thing to do will be to set up a sorting area in my garage and not even bring items into the house (which is about 1/3 smaller than the townhouse was) unless I'm going to keep them. That is going to be a job and a half. I went to a decluttering class with my mom, who is planning to relocate to a retirement community after 30+ years in the same house. I asked the teacher if I should do one box a day (or a week) until I get through them all. She said that was a good plan.

I'll be busier than a one-armed paperhanger. Hopefully too busy to worry about BC .

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Dance party at Meece's garage!!!! WooHOO!!!

Sounds fun.  Can't wait until more than 3 of us can dance in it.  

Mmmm my favorite snack foods!