support thread for serious decluttering/moving? - Page 4

[worthy]

Yesterday we were expecting a snowstorm, so I tidied the yard, including moving a broken gas grill down to our patio next to our other gas grill so I'll be more likely to get rid of one or both of them when the snow melts (LOL - it will make me nuts to have them side-by-side.)

I moved the remaining containers of canning jars to the shed, and added some stuff to the "donate" bin.

My shopvac parts arrived and I vacuumed and further tidied our "gross" basement.  It's getting less gross all the time.  Yay.

I emptied out the laundry room closet and consolidated all the bins of clothes that need sorting and downsizing.  Project for this afternoon.

Today I finished tidying my walk-in closet.  I also decluttered my entire filing cabinet.  Go, me.  Recycled a lot of paper.

I sure do love a good snow day, or two or three (please?)

[PenelopeJune]

I managed to fit two boxes worth of photos into one box by getting rid of a TON of pictures. WHY would I save duplicate pictures? WHY would I save a horrid picture of my mom blinking? WHY would I save pictures of scenery, unlabeled so I have no idea when or where I took them? Ugh, so much stuff I've been carrying from house to house for YEARS! And the funny thing is, I thought I had done a great job decluttering in previous moves.

I also went through a huge, tangled box of old cords and wires, and got rid of 80% of them. They were to appliances/electronics that I don't even own any more. Some were unidentifiable, but I haven't needed them in 4-5 years, so I feel okay with throwing them out.

It's hard to declutter as much as I'd like, because my husband and I are splitting up so I need as many duplicates of essentials as possible. I wish I had a storage place to stash either his stuff or mine until I move out. (Not until August.)

[worthy]

Originally Posted by PenelopeJune 

It's hard to declutter as much as I'd like, because my husband and I are splitting up so I need as many duplicates of essentials as possible. I wish I had a storage place to stash either his stuff or mine until I move out. (Not until August.)

{{{{{{hugs}}}}}} PJ!  My husband moved out last July, and his stuff wasn't gone until November, and our divorce is still in process, and we only this month agreed that we've split things to mutual satisfaction.

I am so overwhelmed by the number of books and CDs still here (many of which are his---and I did promise to get him his, but he doesn't have storage space for it, and I don't even want to TALK to him right now, and it's such a drag....)  Also I haven't even begun thinking about downsizing the photos.  I think I need to just put them all in a tub and put them in the shed or garage and deal with them "later."

So I'm impressed by your photo culling, and also imagining it's hard for you with him still in the same house.  BTDT and wishing you good luck.

I have to get my house on the market by June 1st and suddenly that seems SO soon.  My realtor recommended April 1st,but I doubt I can do it.  We'll see...maybe after the first weekend in April. Due to scheduling strangeness, my kids are gone for 4 of the next 5 weekends, Thurs eve through Sun eve, so in theory I should be able to get a ton done, but there is work and other distractions.

I think I'm just going to get it "showable" on the surface, with the hidden clutter (like photos) in storage but where I can pull it out and keep working on it even after the house is on the market. My clothes closet is tidy and attractive, even if not decluttered.

Gosh, househunting really inspired me to get the house looking clutter-free.  WOW.  The houses we went into looked like they came out of a magazine or popped right out of the realtor's photo album.  Amazing.

Oh, yeah, there are things like, I want to put together a photo album of the sunrises, sunsets, and rainbows I've captured from the front steps, but that will take time and photo printing, and it's sort of not essential for showing.  But will be nice.  I think there are some "must-do-before-listing" things and some "do-as-soon-as-reasonably-possible" things.

I'm also secretly hoping the house won't sell until I'm closer to knowing what our next home will be!  Yikes. 

Also, about the books, I really do love many of my books.  My good friend said, why do you have to get rid of them?  Why not keep all the ones you love and figure it out better when you know where you're headed (and presumably know what kind of shelf space there will be?)  I was so relieved to hear that, I think I will heed her insight.  Maybe I should be gentler with myself. 

Still ruthless about all the things I don't love, though!  I'm headed to the swap shop on Saturday to get rid of a bunch of stuff; we'll see what I can add to the pile.

[PenelopeJune]

Thanks Worthy! It's actually really great right now. We've not gotten along in over 2 years, and now that we are splitting up it's SUCH a relief for both of us. We've agreed on splitting all the major things we own, and even most of the minor things. We're really agreeing on everything now, which is weird, and very nice!

I'll be living in on-campus family housing while I go to school, and I am really looking forward to decorating it. :) And I'm going to have THREE closets! Right now I only have one. You have no idea how happy that makes me.

On the subject of your books...everyone has to have ONE thing that they have a collection of. Books are mine, too. If I don't like a book or don't think I'll ever read it again, I get rid of it. But books I love I must keep, and I LOVE a LOT of books! :) If I were you, I'd be looking on Pinterest for some really creative book-storage ideas.

My big, horrible icky project is going to be the kids' room. I have a really hard time culling their toys. Their room is...horrible. Terrible. There is a thin path through the crap to their beds, and crap ten feet tall on either side. *shudder* I've been putting it off, but I need to get down to business on it this weekend.

[worthy]

Originally Posted by PenelopeJune 

Thanks Worthy! It's actually really great right now. We've not gotten along in over 2 years, and now that we are splitting up it's SUCH a relief for both of us. We've agreed on splitting all the major things we own, and even most of the minor things. We're really agreeing on everything now, which is weird, and very nice!

Wow, that is great to hear.  I emailed my XH to check in about the books/CDs (deep breath, big-girl panties...) and it went quite well. Here is my update for today:  I got ALL of his books and CDs boxed up and ready to go.  Many of them were in boxes anyway, but...that's 25 boxes of books and 2 boxes of CDs, with the CDs all matched to their cases.  There is a pile of CDs that we will have to negotiate, and my CDs need organizing, but his stuff is done.

And all - ALL - of my books are now in boxes in our playroom.  Many boxes.  LOL.  Next step is to organize by subject and weed out the not-keepers. 

Then (putting this here for my own clarity of thought and so I can look back at it when I get confused...)

1. see if the used bookstore in town will buy any of them

2. see if my friend who sells books online will take any of what is left

3. see if I can fulfill any wishlist requests on paperbackswap from what is left after my friend looks

4. the rest go to the church book sale, which, conveniently, is at the end of April.

I told XH he can either dispose of his unwanted stuff himself or give it back to me for disposal (maybe I will make a few bucks) but I would need his discards by April 1st.

Whew.

Also, my friend J is coming over tonight to do a second-to-last coat of mud on the walls in my laundry room that he's fixing, and I asked him to put a shelf back up in a closet so I can stash stuff in there.

AND the kids and I stopped at Staples and I got a new set of storage boxes with lids to organize my keeper books in (there is room in the garage now, tidy on shelves, now that XH's books are out of there.)  They were buy-2-get-one-free which was perfect.

Now I just have to get those boxes to XH when he drops off the kids, and I'm free of 27 more boxes in one fell swoop (if they all fit in his car...might be two fell swoops.

What a day.  I hadn't expected to get anything done today!

[EarthyMamaofDaisy]

I made some more progress today!  I found some bedding we really didn't need and went through my sock drawer and got rid of some stuff. I went through the games and found one with missing pieces so that went.  And I'm encouraging my kids to use up some of their art supplies so we don't have as much stuff.  I have a huge bag of clothes for the local free clothing place and another huge bag for when the next charity truck rolls through our neighborhood.

I need to go through my photos too, but I'm dreading that...

[PenelopeJune]

I followed EarthyMama's lead and got rid of some bedding. A bunch of king-sized sheets in girly prints. Since my husband will be keeping the king sized bed, and he doesn't like girly sheets, away they went!

Hmmm...what else can I get rid of?

[worthy]

Progress, progress...good job, ladies!

Today I did some basic housework -- putting away clean laundry, that sort of thing.  I also got our downstairs room ready for sanding and wall prep....I consolidated ALL of the books that are left to go through (mine, not XHs) in one area of the room and covered them against the sanding dust.  When the sanding/painting is done, then I will organize and cull them all at once.  I'm glad for the 9' pool table!  (Though that needs to be decluttered also -- I have 2 9' slate pool tables to get rid of, thanks to XH, but I'm not ready to GIVE them away yet, so will try to sell them after people get their tax refunds.)

I feel like I worked hard all day and have barely anything to show for it, but that can't be true...Thursday is my regular house cleanup day.  I sent about a dozen book boxes off with XH when he picked up the kids, and will get rid of the rest when he drops them off on Sunday. 

I have a whole bunch of stuff to take to the swap shop/recycling/town compost on Saturday.  I also have a team of friends coming on Saturday to help me sand and prep the walls, and declutter the tools in my basement.  Those will be wonderful things to have out of the way.

Over the next 6 weeks I have a lot of painting to do (the laundry room, patches in various places, ceilings, plus touch-up paint in every rooms), and need to have another brush bonfire (hopefully the last one), need to get the storage tubs in our shed and garage sorted and squared away (couldn't do it this week with all the snow), clean the carpets and floors, weed those d@&* books and CDs, stack wood, wash windows...  It is a lot but I just keep propelling myself forward.  Hope everyone else is able to do the same.  Good luck this weekend.

[zebra15]

Worthy you are my inspiration!

[worthy]

zebra, you're my inspiration in other areas, so I think we're well-matched.  :-)

Today I had an amazing day.  This morning I took a full carload of stuff to the swap shop, recycling, and compost drop-offs.  Came home, made some stew, and welcomed two friends who had offered to help me sort tools and stuff in my basement.  We worked for several hours; my car is now full of stuff to take to the salvage store for donation; their cars are full of stuff I gave them and stuff they are going to try to sell for me (yes! I don't have to do it!), and the basement only has stuff in it that I am sure I want to keep.  That is such a huge accomplishment, I am still letting it sink in.

My friends helped me move our trampoline to the backyard to a more obscure spot, and they helped me fix a swing, and helped move some big, heavy pieces of wood to the bonfire area for later burning.  One of them put the last coat of mud on the wall repairs he did in my laundry room. 

My mom is coming to help out next weekend.  I figure her help is best focused on washing windows and stripping wallpaper, both of which are huge projects that will undoubtedly annoy me.  Also there is some mildew in a closet that needs bleaching, and I'm going to ask her help with that because I *hate* bleach.

Tomorrow I'm going to get the remaining stuff in the basement tidied up and straightened out, and the salvage-donation stuff dropped off, and a pile of breastfeeding books and materials dropped off at my friend's house (IBCLC), and get the car packed up with the rest of the boxes of XH's books, and hopefully get the usual housework squared away before the kids come back (dishes, laundry, changing their sheets, etc).

This week, if I have any time at all, I will move things out of the laundry room (prep for painting), stack wood outside, and work on organizing tubs of clothing and other stuff.

[zebra15]

I am joining this thread.  My lease is up in 2 months and I have a feeling we are going to be moving.  I've only been in this apt a year but we literally moved in with nothing, just beds and boxes.  Now I have 900 sq ft filled with 'life'.

I've stopped groceries for the most part and we are only buying perishables and using up pantry items.

I am trying to finish crafts and use up art supplies. (oh such a passion of mine)

I know I need to make a decision and come to terms with this in a very short amount of time PLUS I need to grow a backbone and realize that going 'home' isn't the end all I think it is.

OMG- where did all this stuff come from!!

[worthy]

{{{{Zebra}}}}  I wish you weren't in this situation.  Either way, whether you move or stay (through some miracle), your house will be decluttered and there will be space for new energy and perspective and growth.  I am rooting for you!!

As for me, holy decluttering, Batgirl...  I got up early his morning and decided I must immediately plunge through the boxes of my books.  I went through every one of them and put them in banana boxes for now.  I decluttered 1/5 of my books.  Which may not sound like much, but that amounts to 7 boxes decluttered.  (Yes, I still have 28 boxes, and I know that sounds excessive, but what can I say, I like books....and I am going to go through them at least once more to see if I can squeeze another box or two out of them).

I loaded up the car and made a stop at the used bookstore.  Made $60, which is awesome and will help me make ends meet this month.  I still have a lot of purged books left and need to go through a few other channels of rehoming them, but I am being very businesselike about it.  (Patting myself on the back.)

There is SO much to do, I can't help but just get down to business.  Next up with the books after the second pass-through is to put them in uniform boxes with lids and get them onto the storage shelves in the garage (where XH's books were removed from).  They will be tidy, clean, organized, and accessible there.  Hallelujah.  And they'll be out of my playroom and I can think about painting the playroom.

I am just blasting through these projects because I can't stand that they are not done yet.  The mess in the house is bugging me and I am on such a roll, I'm just going to keep going.

Now I'm going out to stack wood and keep building the fire pile for the weekend's purge-fire.

I'm finding it working best for me to attack the BIG PROJECTS whenever I have a chunk of big time, and then do little projects in between when I'm busy with weekday things.  Today we had some activities cancelled so I had a chunk of time.  Awesome to have this book stuff half done.  I am sort of gasping for breath -- the energy is shifting so fast in my house, I can barely keep up with it.  Love it.

[EarthyMamaofDaisy]

Worthy you are doing amazing!

[PoetryLover]

Hi everyone! I just finalized the decision to move April 1st. Now I have to get boxes and pack our small apartment. But I'm excited!

I plan to spend the day cleaning in preparation.. :-)

[zebra15]

PoertyLover-  You go girl... 

I need this thread to keep my backbone, to keep my wits about me and to keep moving forward.  We have no choice but to move 'home'  I am going to be out of money in a few months and no matter how much effort I put into job hunting nothing ever comes of it.  I have contacts back home and *big pride swallow* my family has contacts back home so I can get work there. 

I guess on the positive side my parents are getting older (68-69 this year) someone responsible should live near by.  I've been gone since 1999 and dang Arizona is HOT in the summer.

[EarthyMamaofDaisy]

Zebra :hug

I felt so motivated today!  DH and I took some scrap to the dump and I moved some other stuff to our burn pile.  I also posted at old woodstove on CL in the free section and I'm supposed to have someone come haul it away tomorrow.  We still need to get our broken grill to the dump and my Dad said we can borrow his truck so DH said he would take care of that Thursday when the dump is open next.  And I reposted my things I have for sale on Craigslist to hopefully get them sold and gone.  Some of it is taking up space in my parents' basement.

[worthy]

Awesome, Earthy!  We have a burn pile getting bigger in the yard -- l plan to torch it Thurs night after the kids leave.  Fun and productive.

Poetry - good luck!  Short timeframe...tell us how you manage it!  I will be thinking of you.

Zebra, you sound calm and resolved.  It is so hard but good when you make a decision and move forward and don't look back.  I hope there are opportunities and joys waiting for you on the other side of this.  Keep us posted on how your decluttering/prep goes.

I'm going through my (remaining) books a second time and organizing them by topic into storage boxes.  I can only stand to do it for short stints because my eyes get all itchy from scanning the titles!  So, this part will go slower.  Hoping I can get another box or two of discards to rehome.  A friend works at a wonderful local college, very small, and he said their library would undoubtedly be grateful for good academic books.  (Like my collection of feminist ethnographies). So I'm going to pack some up for them.  I feel better knowing they might be truly useful to someone, than just dumping them off at a local booksale, though that is my last resort.

Today we are getting a truckload of rocks and broken bricks from a friend, to dump in our defunct inground pool.  The kids and I are going over to help load up her truck and then come back to our house and THROW ROCKS.  It's sort of the opposite of decluttering, but all in the spirit of leaving this house in as good shape as we can.  I doubt I will get the cavity all filled in and raked over, but I'll save the next person time and money by filling it as much as I can.  The idea is to turn it into garden space eventually, but in any case it will never be a pool again.

I've been doing so many big projects, now I have lots of little bits lying around that need tidying up.  So today and tomorrow, besides the rock project, it's the little bits that count.

[EarthyMamaofDaisy]

Throwing those rocks sounds like fun!  And a good way to let off the stress of decluttering.

The lady came today for the woodstove so that's one less thing in the yard.  I've got another small pile of stuff to get rid of too.  Once the warmer weather is here to stay I need to go through the kids' summer clothes to see what they can wear again this summer and what is too small.

[worthy]

Earthy, you are so awesome to give away the woodstove.  I got one on Freecycle once (best Freecycle score EVER) and it has kept us toasty warm all winter and kept our fuel bills down.  I am forever grateful to the family who posted it and gave it to us.

Bonfire is burning in my yard.  Kids left early yesterday so I got it going early.  Lots of yard waste in it - sticks and leaves - along with tree limbs, branches, rotten logs, etc.  This morning I have some scrap wood to pull out from behind the shed and throw on the fire.  I am determined that this is my LAST BONFIRE so I can clean up the circle and grow grass to erase it.

Yard clutter is clutter, and it counts, LOL.  I cleaned up the whole in-progress pond/waterfall corner.  Need to figure out how to get some plastic for a pond liner that won't break the bank.  Work in progress.

I am thinking, as I comb through my stuff, that less stuff = less clutter, and the simpler life can be.  I'm so sick of the clutter.  I want a simpler life.  I deserve a tidy house, and the more clutter I have to move around, the harder it is to have that.  I'm seriously thinking of getting even stricter about what to keep and what to not keep.

The book project is whipping my butt at the moment.  Seems like I'll never get those piles out of my playroom.  Time, time, time.  There is no instant fix.

My mom is coming over tomorrow to help me get the windows washed (inside and out) and corners scrubbed.  Maybe we'll start ripping off wallpaper in the laundry room.  We'll see how much time we have.  I have...let's see...a huge multi-paned bay window, two outside doors with glass (not counting the two in the garage), two sets of sliding doors, five large flat picture windows, and eight regular windows.  Yikes. 

Still up for later this month:  Wall prep, painting, and cleaning all the floors/carpets.  {sigh}  And smaller stuff.  No way am I going to make my deadline of "mid-April."  The divorce agreement says June 1, so I have until then, but it's less favorable timing with the market.

[sleepingbeauty]

Joining in!  Moving in the middle of June from my apartment to my grandmother's house.  Looking to declutter.  :)