Not quite a horder - decluttering

Good morning- took a lot of my extra kitchenware to consignment and she took everything except 1 thing and a few linens too. Everything else went to the thrift shop down the road. My deal of the day at the thrift shop was a long black Eileen Fisher fleece coat that fits like a glove. For a smokin deal of $15. It is in great shape outside a bit of dog or cat hair that can easily be removed (in the washer right now). I love thrifting and consignment.

Going to finish going through some cabinets today to reorg things into pots, pans and mixing bowls, a cabinet of small appliances, and then another cabinet of serving dishes I use on occasion. My hope is that I have things more handy to do some cooking and room for a mixer I plan to get in the new year.

Hi Melissa- I am a larger woman (size 12-ish) and find lots of good things at consignment and thrift, so don't think it is like some stores where they only have certain sizes. They have everything from size 0 to 4X in the places I go. Shoes from size 5-11 (I wear a 9.5 and found some great things there too). May depend on the city and store, sometimes good to call before you go to ask what size ranges they have? The store your sister goes to may not be the right store for you.

MinusTwo- you are right that a 12 is in the average range. I have always been a 12-14 my whole life at 5 feet 7 inches and remember that was considered big back in the day. Think the big sticks in my brain from that time. All sizes matter!

I wanted to pop in and wish everyone a good holiday week next week. And well, here is another way to get rid of stuff I just saw too!

Muddling, your decluttering activities sound productive! It’s great to not worry about any big jobs till after Christmas. Why stress yourself out unnecessarily.

This year I’m pledging to myself not to buy any additional Christmas wrap, bags, bows or boxes. The last few years they’ve been a weak spot for me. I’d go in to Dollar Tree or Dollar General or Big Lots, etc., and think, well this stuff is all so inexpensive and pretty. So now I have too much. I plan to use what I have, and I also pledge not to even buy any of these items after Christmas when they’re marked down. I could probably go this year and next without needing to restock amd maybe even a third year.

MinusTwo, it’s always a good idea to clean when the spirit moves you no matter what time of day it is! Probly felt good to wake up the next day and know you’d cleaned so thoroughly the night before!

Jazzy--LOL, and unfortunately, too true!!

Muddling--Good for you!! Just imagine all the time you are going to save going forward, not bad for a couple day's time investment, especially things like getting like sized bags together.

Mrs. M--My Mom used to do the after-Christmas sale paper/ribbon/decorations sale shopping, all the time I was growing up.I don't think she's had to buy any of that sort of thing for years, now, except for the years when she can't remember where she stashed them away after the last holiday!

Minus--who cares why you got the urge at that time, as long asyou can take that time to do the work! I bet all that purging did feel VERY good! .

Andi--I hear you about mice. I live in a home that is impossible to mouse proof (the garage is the basement, always some little spot under the garage doors that they can get in, not to mention a dozen other places like the dryer vent). Live mice freak me out more than dead ones, but only to a degree.I buy inexpensive traps and put on gloves and toss out the dead mouse and trap together.Since there is only me, I've had to learn to cope! Very sturdy work gloves are a life saver, so is a little brush and dust pan set.

I have lurked here for a long time hoping to "catch" the urge to declutter--so far I have not caught the bug--but I have caught mice. I also hate them and how fast they move! About every few years I seem to encounter one or more and this fall had one a couple of weeks ago. I've learned to set traps in paper bags by putting the disposable trap, set with very tiny amount of peanut butter, in a paper bag and laying the open bag on its side along a wall. Mouse walks in to open end of bag, trap catches them, and I don't have to see or touch them--just pick up bag, roll the top closed and dispose--mouse, trap, bag and all! When a dollar store sells traps at 4 for $1, I would never reuse!!! Usually have caught them in the garage before they enter the house. Handling the bag is much easier on my fears of mice than getting any closer! Good luck all on ridding your house of mice!

Back to averages - apparently the CDC knows something that the fashion industry can't figure out. No matter what your height is, 166 lbs is NOT a size 10 or probably even a 12. I'm guessing 14/16.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the average American man weighs 196 pounds — nearly 30 pounds more than he did in the 1960s. The average American woman weighs 166 — nearly 19 pounds more than she did in the 1960s.

Edited to say - I love the idea for putting junk in amazon boxes on our porches. It's probably not a joke.

Ceanna--great tip with the plastic crates, too!

Hi all...just checking in after being MIA...I am now officially moved and in New Mexico... and the good news is that a whole lot of stuff (or should I say junk?) didn't make the the trip with us!

We are in a rental and have been house-hunting, and it quickly became apparent that hubby and I didn't see eye to eye on style and size of home...I wanted small, but I will admit that I did want room for my standard king bed which was an issue in some of the smaller homes we looked at....the real issue for hubby was outdoor space. So, in the end, we are in contract on a home with more space and more closets than we need, but a really nice BIG patio and yard (although still 500 sq ft smaller than our California home, so I guess that is progress). I am determined not to fill the storage space, and will rely on this thread to help me with that!

Jazzy, was your cooking class Southwestern cooking? Hubby wants to learn it as a post retirement hobby...if you liked the class, please pm me with info, would love the referral for him (I will benefit from his cooking, after all). While we got rid of a LOT of dishes in the move, I did let him go out and buy one new gadget: an instant pot: my first few failures cooking rice at high altitude convinced me it would a better option than a rice cooker and a crock pot!

Octogirl

I love the paper bag method. I put steel wool in the holes I saw outside. Dig watched. Hoping she hasn't taken them out. So far they are just in the garage. Should be warm tomorrow so cat might have to spend a few hours in there.

I'm still getting rid of kid clothes and bedding. I think it grows. Have a bag to drop off now.

Son bought shoes mid October. Bet he'll need new after Christmas.

I have bad chemo brain. Bought during the year. Proud of myself for wrapping presents as I go and not Christmas Eve. Have no idea what I've bought or wrapped.

Happy Thanksgiving bc sisters and fellow de-clutterers. I found myself unexpectedly decluttering a box of old recipes I have been hauling around for decades this am. I went to look for a recipe my mom gave me for sour creme apple coffee cake (which I did not find yet), but found my old recipe box stuff with lots of magazine cut outs, cut outs off of boxes and containers, some hand written things I have no idea about, and more. I was able to sort through a lot of stuff I never even made nor have memories of who gave it to me. Lots of stuff with no meaning went in to recycling, but found some real keepers of recipes I have come away with from friends when celebrating holidays together, or during their visits.

The ones that are most special are the recipes on the old index cards that my mother wrote out for me. My mom was a great cook and taught me many things about how to make meals and bake holiday treats through the years. Although we all miss people this time of the year during the holidays, it just made me smile today and that she was somehow here with me on this Thanksgiving morning. Some sweet memories of our time together in the kitchen baking and cooking together were my gift today. I am thankful!

thrdage--THAT"S PROGRESS!! Celebrate the progress! That's what it's all about!