Mothering Forum banner

Compacting Mommas Winter Thread

17K views 236 replies 78 participants last post by  chiromama 
#1 ·
The last one was getting so long I thought we should start one for the winter months. How is everyone doing? I originally signed on until Thanksgiving since I knew we would be spending the day after in downtown Seattle and Ikea, and I wasn't sure how strong I could be
I didn't spend a cent downtown! Even through the lovely mall and shops, nada. We also made our lunch from leftovers to bring (tofurky of course!) We went to the Bodies exhibit which was really cool, my fil paid for all the tickets so that cost was nothing. I did purchase a few things from Ikea. A spice rack for the kitchen to clear the clutter, two glass jars for bulk grains to match the others I already have, and a tent for ds for Christmas, since my sil bought the matching tunnel for him. I bought nothing that I didn't need and was pretty proud of myself for leaving with only that even though I have to admit I searched high and low for extra things that I "could" need.

Anyway, I am going to sign a compact for the rest of the year, and am kind of nervous. How did everyone do over the holidays?
 
See less See more
1
#177 ·
Well, some of this might be a confession for the decluttering thread...


Yeah, the stuff we "decorate" our house with, we want to have some meaning. So dh's artwork, family photos, T's artwork from school.

Snowbunny, I guess your mentioning your grandmother's house set me off...
Some of what I decluttered this weekend is stuff my dad passed to me after my grandparents died a couple of years ago. They were *major* accumulators of CRAP (as is my dad), definitely had a LOT of knick-knacks. And my dad really thinks that I should hold onto all of this crap (though clearly, *he* didn't want it). We're not talking family heirlooms or anything like that. Grandma accumulated it, and I'm not supposed to divest myself of it. (Oh well, too late!) It's hard for me to overcome guilt in getting rid of it, which is why I hadn't to this point. But this weekend, I guess I got a little indignant and full of righteous energy.


And re the toys... it was a lot easier to stay on top of things when I had one young toddler
(and our house was tiny, and we lived far away from the grandparents). This past Xmas was especially discouraging (my dad and step-mother were the big culprits). It's so hard when they get a TON of plasticky (battery-operated) crap. We need to find a way to talk to them without hurting their feelings, because we have/will be giving the majority of the stuff away. It's a really delicate thing.

I had a pretty good idea re containers when I was walking to school to pick up T (people's suggestions got my mind moving)... one of my objections to cardboard boxes is that they're just ugly and tend to fall apart. I realized I could cover some boxes using a glue gun to tack pieces of colorful old sheets/table clothes/etc onto them (in a nice way... I realize that my description sounds a little tacky, but I'd tuck the ends in). Anyway, it's very low cost/free, and when the container is no longer needed/no longer sturdy, I can recycle the box and stick the fabric in my rag bag or compost poile.

We're in Boulder. I grew up in Montrose... not terribly far from you.
 
#178 ·
I have been doing well since the middle of January when I unofficially started. I did buy a Non-Violent Communication workbook as I can't seem to find used.

I am decluttering the house. Anything not used in recent times has to go.

Big find - dd had her 2nd birthday at the beginning of the month. DH wanted to check out a new thrift store. I stayed in the car while dd slept. I told ds and dh to see if they could find a gift for dd's b-day. They found a baby doll NWT and a book for her. Total was under $5!!!

Currently "need" a new cooking thermometer and a bread pan. Keeping my eye out for them used on FS or at GW.

Woo Hooo!!!
PM
 
#180 ·
In my decluttering this weekend, I found some old skirts of my grandmother's. They just aren't me... granted, they are from her more slender days, but she was more "hippy" than me (and I am much more "hippie" than she...
). So I wanted to get rid of them, but then I got started thinking... the fabric is really nice. And I would like a new diaper bag. I've been carrying an old REI backpack that predated my mama days. It has never fit me that well, and the drawstring is all yucky, and it's not the most convenient or attractive bag. So I'm thinking that maybe I can use the skirts to make a new bag (maybe even two... I find that I have "big bag" days and "small bag" days). I tried to look over at the Wardrobe Refashion blog, but there's no search function. (And I tried to search the sewing subforum here, and I didn't find much, but I'm not the best searcher.) Any suggestions? Any patterns? Should I just go crazy? I think something with an adjustable cross-body strap would be best, or something with backpack-like straps. I'm kind of thinking of asking my mom friends who have nicer/more attractive dipe bags if I can paw through them (for design ideas) and/or go to a couple of stores and look at new bags for design ideas
:, literally. (Don't worry, I won't get tempted to buy one.)

Yeah, I *can* sew, though time is always precious. (But I want to get rid of the old dumpy backpack pretty badly.)
 
#181 ·
KKmama - making a new diaper bag sounds like a great way to reuse those old skirts. I'm no help for pattern ideas, but would you want like a messenger style bag? Maybe you could search specific types of bags and come up with a pattern that way. Good luck! Post pics when you're done with it.
 
#182 ·
Oh my! I need to get in on this Compacting thing. May I join?

Please forgive me for butting in!

Dh and I just miraculously found ourselves out of debt - literally tens of thousands of dollars of debt... gone.

We got in the hole because of my very contagious acquisition/shopping habit. Just when I reached bottom, and we almost couldn't afford food, I learned why I couldn't shop anymore... I finally realized that we weren't borrowing from banks, we were borrowing from our (and our children's) future.

Now, with this miracle, I'm restored and redeemed and have a second chance.

I'm actually not too bad about clutter - but I buy all the time, and just give away (sometimes I do sell things at a great loss) when I'm done with them. I have started buying all the kids' clothes 2nd hand and selling them when they outgrow them to get more, though.

Dh and I need to make a pledge... I'll revisit when we've figured it all out. Thank you mamas for intoducing me to this!
 
#183 ·
I am wondering about thoughts on kids clothes. We currently have 2 girls, ages 4 and 2 so I have saved everything from oldest to youngest. We are undecided at this point if we will be having any more but it is possible so I have been boxing up everything from the youngest and putting the boxes in the basement. We almost always buy second hand so its not as if I have a lot tied up in these clothes but I am wondering if I should be passing the items that the little one has outgrown on or if it makes more sense to hold on to them? Just to give you an idea as to how much "stuff" I am talking about we have one 30 gallon tote for each clothing size (ie 1 tote for 3-6 months, 1 tote for 6-9 months etc). BTW I know this probably sounds like a lot of clothes to some but we do not have our own washer and dryer so we only get to do laundry about once per week.
 
#185 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by KKmama View Post
Any suggestions? Any patterns?
I used to make 'boutique' diaper bags from amy butler fabric. They were basically a rectangle with a variety of coordinating fabric. The closure was a flap that was actually a pouch for your wallet, etc.

You don't need a pattern, just draw a crude 3-D image of your bag you want, and decide on measurements.
Sew together, voila! New bag!

I think I have Amy Butler's rural messenger bag pattern lying around somewhere (I guess I need to de-clutter my pattern stash!). If I find it, I can send it to you if you like!
 
#188 ·
Thanks for the tips on the bag.


I had another good idea this morning... I decluttered stuffed animals yesterday, and I realized (as I woke up) that I could convert a few of them into puppets (rip their butts, gut them, bind the edges, voila!
). We could actually use a few puppets, and they're more fun to play with than stuffed animals, anyway.
 
#189 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by KKmama View Post

I had another good idea this morning... I decluttered stuffed animals yesterday, and I realized (as I woke up) that I could convert a few of them into puppets (rip their butts, gut them, bind the edges, voila!
). We could actually use a few puppets, and they're more fun to play with than stuffed animals, anyway.

Oh My....that is such a GREAT idea.....who would of known???
 
#191 ·
Hi there!! I am enjoying this thread. THinking about doing this starting March 1st. DH lost his job early January due to his dept shipped to India. He is in the TAA program and going back to school ( for the 3rd time LOL). He has a severance package that runs out in May, so right now it seems like we have more $ becuase of unemployment, and severance does not take social security & medicare out. I went back to work in July mostly becuase we knew he was losing his job, but I have worked on & off since my youngest was 18months. I am hoping this helps simplify my life a little bit too- I have always been pretty good about consumerism etc, but when I went back to work I needed quite a few things, plus I spent some $ on makeup & nails polish collecting that I need to cut back on. ANy tips for writing my compact?
 
#197 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by jlazx2 View Post
ANy tips for writing my compact?
I think a lot of us have our compact contracts in our blogs. Here's mine!
I probably should edit mine because an exception was stuff for graduate school, but I have since decided to not do that at this time in my life (too much else going on!). Hope that helps give you some ideas!
 
#200 ·
I'm not concerned about dirt or crumbs...I guess I'm just wondering if I'll be able to find one. I've been perusing the Thrift Stores for a few weeks and havent seen anyhting except a toaster oven. I got to thinking...why does someone get rid of a toaster? Probably because it doesnt work.

I've found several broken ones! But I've already got one of those!

Well- it still toasts- but it doesnt time right- and the lever wont stick down to hold the bread in anymore.

We'll keep making it work!
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top