The countdown to Christmas - but still decluttering one item a day. Thread number 15

[stealthninjamum]

Thread number 15 of the ‘declutter one item a day thread’ and this bunch of mumsnetters are still decluttering our houses slowly by getting rid of one item a day.

It’s always challenging at Christmas for declutterers, as we fill our house with more presents, food and children’s toys. This thread should give us a bit more accountability as we keep plugging away slowly while we making our homes more organised and decluttered.

Obviously Christmas won’t be the same this year and the stealthninjahousehold won’t be having any visitors but I’m still keen to spend the last couple of weeks making my house a nicer space to spend time in.

Newbies are always welcome. We just get rid of one item each day and report back on the thread.

Previous thread here.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/housekeeping/4053749-Getting-rid-of-one-item-a-day-thread-number-14-where-we-extract-precious-autumn-leaves-rocks-and-twigs-from-our-children?pg=1

Week 1 of x weeks home schooling done here. DD is Y6 so SATs cancelled, yay!
The work on Monday and Tuesday took quite a while but she's got through it quickly the rest of the week so been out for walks albeit around the streets. Thankfully school are better this time and she doesn't need much help.
However, DP working from home too so it's a nightmare trying to doing any decluttering. There just isn't enough space for 3 adult sized people and a cat to be here all day every day.

@ememem84 Orchids seem to like bathrooms, usually mine die as I'm the orchid murderer and current orchid is very happy due to humidity. Pineapple and avocado plants sound great, do you live somewhere exotic?

@footprintsintheslow Thank you for the homeschooling advice. Nearly there with the baby, good luck for Monday. Make sure you have a rest this weekend.

@Nanalisa60 Thank you for the ebay tip and wise words as always!

@EllieQ I'm having an absolute nightmare with my DD too. Lots of meltdowns, and doesn't want to learn. I have wondered if she has SEN and I think I declutter the house as all the visual clutter on top her meltdowns is too much to deal with. She has a medical issue which made her very tired, she is having treatment now and I'm hoping it will help. I have also tried what @stealthninjamum was suggesting and made up my own work. I write a list of words she likes (think princess, dinosaur, ladybirds etc) and get her to copy it in a different colour pencil. Or type a list of words on word app and get her to spell them out with phonics.

@SleepingStandingUp Lack of sleep is hard, hope you have a better night.

Thank you for your kind words everyone - it’s reassuring to read that I’m not the only one having homeschooling problems. I have seen a couple of other threads today talking about how hard it is. Today was a better day - DD was calmer and more cooperative, but still only did two out of the four tasks - she has maths, English, and phonics each day plus an extra topic/ task. It seems a lot for Year 1. I’m only able to WFH as normal because SH is at home and can do all the teaching.

Onto decluttering and the 2021 day 8 update:

1. General decluttering: shredded more work paperwork. I’m slowly making progress on this!
2. Toss app prompts: today was medicine cabinet, and I threw out a pack of folic acid tablets that were several years old!
3. Mum’s stuff: nothing. Need to decide whether to keep waiting for the storage boxes to come back in stock, or just buy some in a different pattern. I just really wanted a nice matching set!

Hoping to get more decluttering done this weekend, if I can get some time to myself.

My outs today were pitiful. I packaged up some online purchases for returns. But I had a mini meltdown about current COVID/lockdown/shit show and couldn't cope with more. A bit of a cry has helped and I'm starting to see that having survived the longest week ever, with everyone fed, homeschooling completed and work not a catastrophe is a good place to be. Toss also suggested side boards and candles but I couldn't face it.? Should have skipped, will do that tomorrow. Hang in there.

@1stMrsF every day survived is one longer til the apocalypse
Just keep going

I'm sensing a lot of homeschooling rants Ng being decluttered onto here

52: babbles returned to Amazon as I never used them. £11 refund on my account. Result.

53. Put photos in albums and binned 20 photos of zoo animals taken on a 2010 camera phone. I mean I've seen a wild giraffe in Kenya I probably don't need a photo of one in a zoo! Gonna need another album for the cake smash photos so hoping I have one amidst the clutter

@EllieQ it is a lot for year one but it's what they'd do in school every day. Remember you can only do your best and you need to maintain a positive relationship with your little one and no activity or school work try is that.

@1stMrsF I had a little cry yesterday so you aren't alone. I think it does is good.

@SleepingStandingUp it's only due to this thread that I knew we were allowed to him photos. Zoo animals are great to bin. Why do we take them?!

glumygloomer raspberryblonde thanks for the placemats recommendations, I’ll google glass placemats. Currently I have lovely placemats that are cork with cream and gold but water just gets under them so they’re ruined. I would like something similar only of good quality that doesn’t let water in but it seems like that’s an impossible ask so I will look at glass or maybe slate in some sales?

Anyway yesterday’s outs are 6 child placemats, 4 adult placemats (so far), 5 coasters, 9 tealight holders, 6 stubby ends of candles, and two plastic giraffes. That’s 32 items. I stupidly only told Toss just now so I have to wait til tomorrow for the next task. I found a few unboxed CDs and random bits of crap shoved in sideboard drawers so I’ll find homes for them today.

glumygloomer that’s so funny!

Homeschooling went ok but school upload tasks and some have lessons and some don’t. I told dd2 she’d done really well as I thought she’d completed nearly everything and discovered I’d missed a big task so today I give her the big news that we’re still doing schoolwork! Things have been better than I expected but we’ve only done it for one week and I was so tired I had an afternoon nap yesterday!

iceisnice we saw the Horrible Histories movies at the cinema (oh happy days when it was open) and that was about Bouddica and the Romans. That might be worth a watch for fun?

alexthelittlecat glad it works. My dd2 does have SEN and school are aware that I sometimes ignore their work and give her something that she finds interesting. So for maths a few months ago we read the Guinness Book of Records and she got to see a real life use of measurements and high place value numbers. Yesterday dd2 spent about four hours doing art that wasn’t what she was asked to do but I thought was very good so I uploaded that. Tomorrow I’ll be doing painting with her, even though school have asked for pencil drawings, but I think she’ll be more likely to engage with it and I can submit the work as ‘finished’. We have a little tickbox on our homework system and I love to be able to tick that somethings completed – if it’s kind of done our way.

1stmrsF footprintsintheslow I’m sorry you had bad days. I think we all deserve a big glass of wine / hot chocolate as we’ve got through the first week and managed to feed and sustain everyone and even done some decluttering.

@footprintsintheslow and in the digital era, even if we feel compelled to take them why have i PRINTED THEM OUT!!! I love proper photos but the quality of the cell phone photos from even 8 years ago on honeymoon... eek!!

I'm off to sort the babies clothes on about 3 hours of sleep. Got to sleep at 2, eldest got in my bed at 3.45 and failed to find a comfortable position for over an hour. finally fell asleep on my arm which was fine but every time i fell asleep i fell into a nightmare where he (darling DS, 5) was trying to trap me and hurt me. even had one of those where you wake up but youre still in it. joy.

@AlexTheLittleCat I’m in jersey. Nowhere tropical!! The pineapple and avocado were lockdown projects. You tube said if I planted a pineapple top in 2 years I’d have a plant with a fruit. Same with Avos. Planted the stone.

Couple of seat pads out . We bought 6 new ones for the dining/kitchen table chairs .
Couple of the old ons were knackered , couple we recycled for the cats .

I'm going to look through my candles on top of the fridge

And empty my handbag to fill up my Brand New Handbag

And I need to clean the downstairs loo

My last take on the homeschooling is this:
We hardly ever complete all the planning in one day. You over plan just in case so please don't feel bad when you don't finish the work. We just carry it over to the next school day and don't bat an eye lid.

Anyway I'll stop going on now!

Toss told me perfumes but I've only got keepers that fit together nicely so nothing out there.

Toss told me to clean out the trunk of the car. It’s empty so I’ve ignored that. The inside of the car however is another story. I’m at the stables waiting to ride (and decluttering my bank account in the process) so thought I’d gather up the rubbish. Except I don’t have a bag for it. So will do that once I get home and can wing it right in the bin. There is a bin here but it’s my instructors dads house so don’t want to tip in his bin.

Thank you for your kind words. Today is another day, we will all soldier on. Just finished a foot cream and a hand cream. Back in the game!

Toss has told me to do the medicine cabinet, so I’ve backdated the Abidec I binned yesterday, and added a leftover OOD pregnancy test I found lurking at the back. It was one of a pair, and the result of the other one is currently creating havoc in the living room . I really hope I don’t need to take one again and if I do I want to be sure of the result so I would definitely buy a new one.

Also binned my razor as the handle was looking very grim, but that’s only temporary as I’ll get a new one in next week’s Sainsbury’s shop.

54-55: Going through my wardrobe cupboards and found another load of clothes I'm too fat for. Some with labels on, some worn but good condition. I think I'm going to try selling anything with a label on and donate the rest
56: discarded some lovely white satiny PJ's the ILs brought me when I was pregnant with eldest. White. Needless to say I didn't wear them and tbh I'm not really a pajama girl.
57: pulled out a tip of DSs that is short on him, couple of festive shirts and some other bits. Also going to cut down the vests and sleepsuits as we're drowning in them.
58: going to try and find a rag bag as I have some t-shirts that can't be sold - think printed work t-shirts, volunteer t-shirts etc
Load more emails and photos off my phone

So I have ordered six gold placemats from John Lewis (less than 50% in a sale) for Xmas and I am going to order 6 glass placemats. I knew it sounds a lot but I am throwing away about 22. These should fit nicer in the drawers too as the others were four different types.

Declutteringwise I am throwing away a table runner and a bottle of conditioner that makes my hair greasy.

59: cleared out a changing mat, lots of unopened bum creams, a new baby dummy etc which I'll pass on to a Mom friend due in march

60: snow suits and a random cost in ,charity bag as I've found next size up in garage

61: pram toys that don't work on a double have also gone

62: decanted and chucked some bottles in the bathroom and rehoused a few bits so I know where they are

63: bathmat off wall to be binned

64: some Christmas presents that were over-buys rehoused at the charity bag as I won't be giving them out for the next year

Day 123:
❄️ iphone box recycled. I did it offer it on freecycle as I've seen people ask for them before now but no takers.
❄️ photos and emails.
❄️ lots of wool getting used up on last minute baby projects.

The holidays really slowed down the tiny bit of momentum I had, so I'm posting on here with a promise to start tomorrow (DH and I plan to give the house a good clean) to make me more accountable.

I also wanted to cheer on those of you who are doing homeschooling. You are heroes!

And health and happiness to you @footprintsintheslow for your very exciting Monday plans!

Shower puff, 4 pairs of pants, some packaging from cosmetics, and washed out two candle jars.

2021 day 9 update.

1. General decluttering: two more old towels have gone in the textile recycling bag as they are being replaced by the towels I got last weekend.
2. Toss app prompt: today’s prompt was underwear, so I went through my knicker drawer and found one pair to get rid of - the rest are all in ok condition.
3. Mum’s stuff: no further progress (still trying to decide on storage boxes).

I also put away the last few Xmas things, including putting the cards we received in the box where I store Xmas cards, so we know who sent us cards last year - thank you to whoever posted that suggestion earlier on this thread

65: socks and pants. I refuse to keep socks any longer for the next kid, it's such a faff trying to remember what size they were meant to be.
66. Broken Christmas ornament

Anyone else still not taken down the Xmas decs?

No outs as long day in work. Just checking in to say well done everyone on the ongoing efforts. Sympathies on the home schooling front we are not enjoying it too much here either!

Day 9 of 2021 update: cleared up a lot of stuff that was on the floor and on my reading chair. I used to live alone but DP's movend in 2 years ago and since our home has very little storage space it's now a tqd more cluttered looking than i'd like. We don't have anywhere designated for linens and similar stuff; it all used to live in her side of the wardrobe but now things are tucked in diferent places and some don't have a home (or have a very small home and when i do laundry a few pieces have to live on the chair). Not happy with this. While i cleared the chair and floor i got rid of bits and pieces, but am counting it all as one single item.

Out: 16
In: 12

Oh, and i'm probably the only one who doesn't really identified with Toss. It always sugests stuff that doesn't make sense for me or that i don't really have. I've been thinking of using a radomizer to give me prompts and i'e create the prompts myself. Will se if it works.

What room/space/cathegory will you be decluttering this sunday? Hoping to get inspired!