Decluttering one item a day thread number 18 – quickly stashing our clutter in charity shops now we can let people back inside our houses

[stealthninjamum]

Here we are again, still decluttering and still chatting and sometimes getting rid of some clutter.

This is a group of mumsnetters who aspire to live in a lovely clutterfree environment, usually scuppered by husbands, children, dogs and in my house ‘valuable’ bits of twig and stone or origami versions of aardvarks and komodo dragons.

We are slowly decluttering our houses, chatting and updating each other on our slow progress as we go. We only aim to get rid of one a day but often manage more. Newbies are welcome to join us.

Since the last thread charity shops reopened and things got closer to normal. I’ve now invited friends over for the end of June so have a month to get the house ‘guest ready’.

Previous thread here.
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/housekeeping/4183135-Decluttering-one-item-a-day-and-counting-down-til-the-opening-of-charity-shops-thread-number-17?pg=38

I did three boxes of paperwork yesterday. Filed a third and dumped a third so one more go and it should be filed.

I need to do dds summer clothes really. I need to get rid of roughly a bin bags worth to make it all fit back nicely into the summer box under the bed. I'm not feeling up to it while they are at home. I think that's a job to chip away at or leave for term time. Or a bit of both?

I randomly tried ds 9 school trousers on yesterday. He is on the chunky side and all my other kids are thin. Anyway they nearly did up! Only sainsbury's plus fit fit him well and his size has been sold out for a year or so. I managed to get 4 new pairs on vinted thank God for that.

I'm not sure now either when I'm going to resort out their uniform? It's all gone to pot with ds having covid. I was going to do it while they was in holiday club

I forgot I have the week after next off work. I mean I knew I booked it but forgot it was so soon.

So declutter city.

Lawyer got back to us today looks like we are completing on the new house on the 30.8. Ordering kids bedroom furniture tonight after making little models of it from paper for the floodplan last night . Kind of hard to buy stuff for a house I’ve only seen in pictures before it was painted or had a kitchen or bathrooms etc in but we have to get on if we want to move end of Sep so we don’t have to wait for things longer than we absolutely have to while living there . I’m pretty good at visualising though ,generally things that I’ve planned look good in real life .
I managed to look through 2 baby and toddler clothes boxes late last night and get rid of about 1 boxes wort . A big bag to charity of really nice stuff and another smaller one of a bit more worn out items to dump clothes bank. DH is going at least to dump this weekend so can take those and several more bags of fabric and clothes ,books and all the stuff from the topfloor storage cupboard we got rid of the other day like old bedding . Maybe I’ll manage to check through our crockery etc too again before that since soon packing the kitchen. I have 3 more baby and toddler clothes boxes in my room and older kids stuff on my landing to look through . I have real trouble letting go so if i could only keep half for now I’d be happy with that . I’m mentally preparing to list the bugaboo donkey . I guess I’ll earmark that as the first step . After these boxes I’ll ask DH to bring me more kids clothes from storage .
Took DD to her first movie out in 18m ! Felt special after such a long time .
More jobs on the list the bloody sink where the food disposal is has a blocked pipe so now have a plumber coming tomorrow morning . Puppy’s post op check up on Zoom was fine . So far he’s healing well .
We book a Finland Villa we’ve stayed lots on time in a National park for pre Christmas. No flights until later . Dogs boarding is booked for then too . I hope we get to go I haven’t by then seen my family for 2,5 y !

So going out :

• A big bag of baby and kids clothes to charity shop
• small bag to clothes bank
• a puzzle
• a card tricks magic set both to charity shop

We have another large storage box + of stuff to charity again before I add more clothes hopefully so maybe DH will take those this weekend too when on the dump run and picking up my meds . Would be good to get them out of the way . There’s starting to be a big box pile of new stuff in the livingroom and we haven’t even started packing yet . Was going to have a quick look through the books again before asking DS to pack them from the livingroom book case we’ve recently done . Really feel like we need to reduce boardgames further too but I dont know what ,we’ve thrown already so many away and play them all the time . They just take so much space !
Dh and DD also used up 2 mouth guard mould trying to make one last night . Both got ruined so had to order more I hope they’ll get it right next time !

Three food storage canisters out. But replaced with new ones which take up less space. Yay.

Oh and hoping to also declutter a stained table lamp shade to the dump I ordered it a replacement that just came I’m hoping to use it on a night table maybe in the guest room or one of kids ones .
My mum has also been decluttering my kids old paraphernalia from their cupboards shed kept for our visits incase I had that third child I wanted . Out goes the high chair , travel cot and a bunch of toys . Hopefully this will free up a lot of space in her cramped cupboards! I kind of wish she’d asked me before if she could take them to the charity shop …

Exciting that you have a date for your move nordic, good luck with the packing!

I've had both DC at home this week so not a lot of decluttering done. Finally had a response from the charity I contacted about taking our old pram, it's still in usable condition but looks very used so doubt anyone would buy it but it might help someone out. I was hoping to be able to drop it off but they only do courier collection so need to sort out some kind of packaging. Still that will be something big gone.

Hi all
Just thinking out loud… Has anyone else found this… I seem to always have bits scattered about, my stuff, kids stuff. Even though I have tried not to just buy more storage because I think more storage means keeping more stuff just for the sake of it. I think I need my storage organised better. But it’s such a pain. Recently got a bookshelf for my kids room and already it is full with no more space 🤦‍♀️. Same with toy storage.

Nordic well done in the baby outs. It is the most hardest things to get rid of when you wanted another child. We was on holiday last week and I realised I dont have many years left of family holidays with my second eldest and then felt so broody. I'm mid forties so I ordered some at home fertility tests as seeing my results might slap me back to reality.

Cocopopsss try to group things together. So everything of one type or one size in a pile. Try to see if you have too much in that category. I did this and dd has 25 shirts! That's just one example. So for the books, how many is enough?

Like Marie condo but room by room at first.

Sorted a bucket of old bath toys yesterday. By sorted I mean threw in the bin, cleaned out the storage tub and used it for our toiletries, which I also decluttered.

Bathroom is much less cluttered now. Feels good!

Incessant , I’m 46 and my DS is 16 so have been grieving the end of his childhood years for a while now and him leaving for university in 2 y . This pandemic has stolen 18 m from us too like from everyone else ,just as I was wanting to do more travelling etc with him for these last few y . I was doing ivf in 2019 summer still and on was on a break when the pandemic started right after we last moved and then needed to sell our old house find a new one etc so everything was put on hold . Now I feel too old and sick and don’t want to put myself through more fertility treatment I already did 2 cycles to have my DD (9) who took 5 y to make and so many miscarriages and then I got a lifelong illness from the treatment I received for them. I had another cancer scare in the last year with first an ovarian cyst then endometrial hyperplasia that’s now being treated with the Mirena coil which is working thankfully so I think I’m mentally and physically done with this subject . I’m trying to make peace with it and just think that i got my second child that I so desperately wanted and both are healthy and lovely and have one each as well even though that didn’t matter to me . now we have the longed for puppy finally too who’s been the best thing for all of us . He’s my furry baby , lucky he likes hugs because he gets lots of them ! I’m getting better about moving on have definitely made progress before I couldn’t have started to reduce these saved clothes mountains at all after already weeding through them before moving . It’s still very hard it’s something that I’ve struggled with about the last 14 y with since we first started trying for a second when DS 2 1/2 in fact soon is the 14 y since my first second time around pregnancy and mc .

@Cocopopsss

Hi all Just thinking out loud… Has anyone else found this… I seem to always have bits scattered about, my stuff, kids stuff. Even though I have tried not to just buy more storage because I think more storage means keeping more stuff just for the sake of it. I think I need my storage organised better. But it’s such a pain. Recently got a bookshelf for my kids room and already it is full with no more space 🤦‍♀️. Same with toy storage.

I feel the same with storage, the more I have the more I keep and stuff things full. I don’t like to have a lot of stuff out within view, so if it doesn’t fit in storage it goes or if its not bought yet I try to do a one in one out. I had to downsize my storage so I wouldnt hide stuff in them. I’d regularly have a lovely clear room but the drawers and cupboards were overflowing.

I have a 4 box ikea kallax in the living room, 2 boxes hold blankets, 2 hold toys. It used to be all toys but I cleared it the other day. Everything has a place now in the living room, nothing is stuffed full so i’m not buying anymore storage.

Oh yes and I got one more kids clothes box emptied about 2/3 to go and a few bits put aside to find rest of the outfit and a some to the maybe pile . Haven’t gotten the heart to look at the tiny baby shoes yet …
Took two plumbers and wasn’t cheap but the kitchen pipe blockage is cleared hurrah !
Went to bed early morning again so am half asleep but have managed some admin so far ; placed 4 next w online grocery orders , called 2 furniture companies about having the deliveries a few w later still need to place orders now that I’ve checked that and did some emails . Need to do a bunch of online shopping , fold laundry pile or some of it now that my wrist feels better and go through more kids clothes I have 4 more boxes here and who knows how many in the storage locker . DH will do the dump and charity shop tomorrow so am looking forward to getting another car load out of here !

Nordic I'm not sure if you said before what illness you had. Sounds incredibly hard. I am 47 and had a MC at 44. My first ever so I think really I was too old then but who knows.

Two of my kids are in SEN school and I grieve for the normal childhood we didnt get.

I'm a emotional hoarder. Maybe I hoard kids too. I had a abusive mother and there is whole in me that nothing can fill up.

I had councilling about my mum.this year. Its put everything in place but I guess it's also left me feeling that my life and my mums was just a terrible waste. I'm a science graduate. I had a corporate job. But no one hoards who hasnt known trauma. I would love another child but I would necessitate a CVS as my dh carries a genetic duplication.

I have spent my of my kids younger years in appeals with my LA over education. My eldest is 18 soon and I struggle with that too.

Decanted some vitamins into a new pack. So that’s one package gone. I’m also using kids bubble bath currently so am wondering why I bother buying seperate for me and DH. Makes no sense. Just buy one!

Also ditched an empty bottle of calpol. And its syringe. 😉 if in doubt calpol syringe.

Not much progress this week, but DH did another tip run yesterday to take a few things he’d forgotten last week (old shower pole & old light bulbs).

I’m going to try to do some more of DD’s old clothes this weekend. Feeling a bit frustrated as I’ve contacted a couple of charities about some baby stuff (including a cot and a travel cot), but haven’t had a response yet.

Nordic you’re doing fantastic!

Namechanger

I went through the utensils and got rid of some doubles, also gave my friend a giant bag of makeup and skincare to go through and then pass along. My makeup bag is getting smaller and smaller by the month, currently holds 14 products but i’m trying to get it down some more. I’m astonished as how much ive downsized my makeup over the last 8 years, I used to have drawers and drawers full to the brim.

Planning to sort out the medicine cupboard in the kitchen today. I’m really happy with the downstairs so far, it’s taking me just minutes to clear and clean at night time. This weekend (or next) i’m focusing on the kids room and spare (i.e junk) room

Thanks for the kind words guys ! I need the encouragement!!
DH just decluttered our bank account out of a huge chunk of money to pay for our new house 😳! I had found him two big bags of coins to take and asked for DS to put them downstairs so he won’t leave them , do you guys think he took them ? Lucky he’s going back to charity shops next door later since I hadn’t yet gotten quite everything ready so he can then take them . This is so typical of him !
In the aft he’ll also do the dump run so I’m trying to organise the clothes bank bags etc .
Out today most of which I’ve counted before ;

• cardboard boxes
• the old duvets and pillows and mattress protectors from topfloor storage cupboard
• a few old plates
• general trash and paper from DS room he did his desk drawers yesterday when asked
• a broken wii remote
• a little leather coin purse he didn’t need
• lots of coins to the bank
• books
• lots of clothes to clothes bank
• some more to rags
• old sheets to rags
• several bags of kids clothes to charity shop
• a few puzzles go charity
• a few board games to charity
• an unused art kit to charity
• card magic set to charity

I will now try to add something to these loads I have a lot more clothes to look through …

Also I got the laundry mountain folded last night and there were a few more outs from that to clothes bank and charity

Ice cube tray that’s seen better days and also a plant which is quite plainly dead.

Also I placed the large kids furniture order . More later !

To dump also a few broken storage boxes and lids I forgot about
Added to the load now :

• a few white strapping storage baskets from DD room , keeping the others until the new bookshelf and the new kubu baskets I’m getting for them arrive then the rest will probably go too
• 5 wooden magazine holders that had papers in them inside the filing cabinet ( this is DH tidying 😒) he actually quickly filed the papers properly now so can get rid of these
• 2 potato growing pots the soil and last years plants after we check if there’s any potatoes . Keeping 2 veg trugs for now we’ve got late planted carrots that grew through the winter and some last y strawberries we’ll eat before moving . Earmarking the trugs to go since we will have the next garden landscaped and raised boxes for growing veg put in .

Earmarking also the ugly coloured metal cycle storage box to go ,it was meant to be white / ivory but is an awful yellow cream colour so I’ve told DH I’m not keeping that . we will get a dark brown for the side of the new house and he thought he’d try to sell this one it’s in good condition and was expensive . The little boat he listed ( without a motor ) was last going for around 800£ Don’t know what it’s now but I’m happy with that , the outboard engines had also attracted bids in a few hundreds each so that’s a plus too hopefully handing them over end of next week when he’s over at his moms where they are . Alternating between feeling completely overwhelmed and then hopeful again here . Mainly just really really dizzy and tired like always and hurting if I move at all . Right wrist isn’t bad despite all the folding so that good since I need it today trying to do all this !

DH is on holiday since yesterday and so far we've figured out a few things we need to do or change:

DS2 needs a new bed. He's 6'7" and can not sleep comfortably in the 6' 6" bed he has.

DH has been using the blue room as an office since last May, understandably. But this can't go on any longer, the room needs to be a bedroom for DS4 as him sharing with youngest two in yellow room is a source of a lot of arguments and stress. So DH will work from my craftroom (I never craft there, it's just storage), DS4 moves into blue room. He needs a new bed too.

We need to reorganise laundry system & move furniture around so everyone has their clothes in own room - atm DS5's wardrobe is in the blue room (so is massive shelving unit for sorting laundry), DS6's stuff is in master bedroom and DS4 has no wardrobe, his clothes are kept under his bed, back of an armchair, on his bed & on the floor🙄.
I need to sort workspace in laundry room so all folding can take place there as originally planned.
getting rid of old uniforms, buying new and sorting all other clothes are also on the list.

DS2 & DS4's beds convert into a bunk bed - DD & DS6 will use that and we can finally chuck the king size mattress they sleep on. it's a disgrace but they love it so we let them have it. no more, I'm sick of the sight of it.

Part of moving furniture around means we need to cull books so we can free up 2 bookshelves out of 3 in yellow room. (we'll stores those in shed until we figure out what we need to keep).
Bedding kept in green room needs to be relocated to make space for DS5's clothes (he shares with DS3).

That's quite good progress so far.
I can't ever change things around without thinking through every aspect & step.
I'm very happy with game plan and the motivation it gives me!

Sounds good Zing ! I don’t know how you manage with so many people where ever we are it feels noisy and messy with just us 4 and one dog . And we have had so much stuff just for us . I’ve been going through it for years and it will never end apparently .forgot a few things and we’ve looked through more since so out also

• DS scratched too small sunglasses
• 1 baseball cap to bin
• 2 to charity bag
• 1 Wimbledon one to DD
• 3 to memory box ( London Olympics , nasa space center space camp it was a DS school trip …)
• half a cardboard box of bank statements are going to Mil to be burned next weekend . DH was going to also get rid of his post grad degree notes but thought DS might want to look at them first since he’s into computing although will do engineering hopefully .
• earmarking if I haven’t yet DD this y school books I’ll look through and add what I’ll keep to the box with DS ones soon maybe today