I know, for a project like this I really should have been taking before and after pictures, but to be honest I don't want to be reminded of how it used to be!
So far I've done Step One (clothes) and Two (books) for me, Daniel, and Tristan, and got a good start with Catie. (Jake's a big boy, he can handle his own stuff.) The older kids have had input on what to get rid of and what to keep, and I only overruled when they were trying to keep outgrown items. The boys are currently sharing a room, and the bulk of the mess was books and clothes - we tackled that room entirely, and it's been almost completely tidy and vacuum ready ever since!
I was stunned to see how much STUFF we got rid of. The first few boxes of books, I took to a resale shop, but frankly they didn't do well there, so the later rounds of everything ended up at the thrift store. Thank goodness for my mom - she's been helping with the purge, and hauled away at least two car loads so far for me!
In practical ways, this is going really well - I no longer have an overflowing bookcase of my own, and the kids actually need bookends. (Remember bookends? They're for people who don't have stuffed bookcases!) We were able to have Tristan's third birthday party (no big thing, just some family) and getting everything clean and party ready was much easier with less stuff around.
I've done a bit of Step Three (papers) and I did a run through Tristan's toys, since he doesn't have much storage space - that was a Hefty bag all on it's own! So a few days ago, I looked around and thought the upstairs could use a vacuuming. AND I DID IT. Because everything was already picked up and out of the way! I vacuumed the living room, dining room, and two bedrooms in about 10 - 15 minutes, and sighed with relief.
Downstairs... that's another story. That's Catie's room, the family room, the laundry room, utility room, and the under-construction new bedroom. Like I said, we got a start on Catie's room, and her closet looks great. The rest of the room still needs a LOT of work. Even though (hopefully) that won't be her room much longer, it still needs to be arranged better so she can be comfortable and enjoy her space. Thankfully, with the initial purge, we may actually be able to eliminate a few pieces of furniture. A small bookcase nightstand is looking unneeded, there's a futon in there that's going to a relatives house, and a 4 story Barbie-sized wood dollhouse that will go into storage until we find out if the new baby is a boy or a girl. Then we're going to move her bed into a better spot, move her desk to a spot that will make it easier for her to use, and shift the dresser and bookcase to logical places.
Then I have to purge and organize the kitchen, laundry room, bathrooms, linen closet, family room, storage closets... sigh. The important thing is to focus on the progress being made, and not the work ahead. All I know for sure is with every bag and box we haul out of here, I feel lighter and better.
Friday, January 15, 2016
Tuesday, January 5, 2016
KonMarie - a cliche', but I'll try it.
So, I jumped on the bandwagon and read Marie Kondo's "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up".
First, is there anyone here who hasn't heard of this book yet? The general gist is pick up every item you own, ask yourself "does this spark joy?", and if the answer is anything other than an enthusiastic YES, out it goes.
Obviously, if you only have 3 bras and none of them feel good or fit well, you're in some trouble with this system. But most of us have quite a bit more stuff than we actually need, like, or use. We tend to hold onto things either because we're worried we'll need it in the future, or we feel like we should hold onto it because of the history involved with the item.
I'm not very sentimental when it comes to most items, and I thought I was great at purging items, but I got started with this program and was inspired to get rid of a bunch of things that have been flying under my radar.
Part of it lies in her method for dealing with items - she has you get ALL your clothes, put them on the floor in front of you, and handle them individually. Then the same with your books - they all come off the shelves, and as you pick up each one, you either say that you love it, or respectfully thank it for its' service and send it on its' way. (She used to be a Shinto temple maiden, she's big on energy inherent in items, and she anthropomorphizes personal items as all wanting to be of service to their owner in some way.) The next category is papers, and generally she says to pitch them all. Manuals, warranty paperwork, old school work - get rid of it. Then it's a category she calls komono, or miscellaneous. Personally, I think she covers too much ground with this, because it's EVERYTHING except sentimental items. Toys, makeup, kitchen things, housewares, furniture - everything. Then and only then do you deal with sentimental keepsakes.
Of course, the other part of this is what you do with the things you keep - she's big on treating your items with respect, even thanking them for their hard work at the end of the day. That goes a bit far for me, but her folding and storing of clothes is like art. Seriously - go check out KonMarie folding tutorials on youtube - it's gorgeous!
Now, Kondo claims that no one who does her method EVER relapses to clutter. I call bull on that - I think the folks she works with keep it nice for months, maybe years, but eventually they'll hit an emotional upheaval in their lives and THEN the clutter starts to come back. And I guarantee you, if you're under the depression cloud and your clutter is building around you while you have no force of will to make it nice again, when you see Kondo's number on your phone, you're not picking up. Or returning her email. Or opening the door. Because you don't want to admit that you let it happen again! She claims she only has to tidy her own house twice a year, for about an hour each time. I'd say that's because she's a single woman living alone - if she had to deal with kids growing in and out of clothes, toys, books, furniture, fads, etc, she'd realize that for MOST of us, it's a lot more of an ongoing project.
Even so, it's worth a good run through - she really has you look in all the dark, shadowy corners and pull out the junk you forgot was sitting there. It's full bore, hard level cleaning out, and sometimes you just NEED that. It gets you to a good base, so you have a place to return to every few months when the kids belongings overflow again.
First, is there anyone here who hasn't heard of this book yet? The general gist is pick up every item you own, ask yourself "does this spark joy?", and if the answer is anything other than an enthusiastic YES, out it goes.
Obviously, if you only have 3 bras and none of them feel good or fit well, you're in some trouble with this system. But most of us have quite a bit more stuff than we actually need, like, or use. We tend to hold onto things either because we're worried we'll need it in the future, or we feel like we should hold onto it because of the history involved with the item.
I'm not very sentimental when it comes to most items, and I thought I was great at purging items, but I got started with this program and was inspired to get rid of a bunch of things that have been flying under my radar.
Part of it lies in her method for dealing with items - she has you get ALL your clothes, put them on the floor in front of you, and handle them individually. Then the same with your books - they all come off the shelves, and as you pick up each one, you either say that you love it, or respectfully thank it for its' service and send it on its' way. (She used to be a Shinto temple maiden, she's big on energy inherent in items, and she anthropomorphizes personal items as all wanting to be of service to their owner in some way.) The next category is papers, and generally she says to pitch them all. Manuals, warranty paperwork, old school work - get rid of it. Then it's a category she calls komono, or miscellaneous. Personally, I think she covers too much ground with this, because it's EVERYTHING except sentimental items. Toys, makeup, kitchen things, housewares, furniture - everything. Then and only then do you deal with sentimental keepsakes.
Of course, the other part of this is what you do with the things you keep - she's big on treating your items with respect, even thanking them for their hard work at the end of the day. That goes a bit far for me, but her folding and storing of clothes is like art. Seriously - go check out KonMarie folding tutorials on youtube - it's gorgeous!
Now, Kondo claims that no one who does her method EVER relapses to clutter. I call bull on that - I think the folks she works with keep it nice for months, maybe years, but eventually they'll hit an emotional upheaval in their lives and THEN the clutter starts to come back. And I guarantee you, if you're under the depression cloud and your clutter is building around you while you have no force of will to make it nice again, when you see Kondo's number on your phone, you're not picking up. Or returning her email. Or opening the door. Because you don't want to admit that you let it happen again! She claims she only has to tidy her own house twice a year, for about an hour each time. I'd say that's because she's a single woman living alone - if she had to deal with kids growing in and out of clothes, toys, books, furniture, fads, etc, she'd realize that for MOST of us, it's a lot more of an ongoing project.
Even so, it's worth a good run through - she really has you look in all the dark, shadowy corners and pull out the junk you forgot was sitting there. It's full bore, hard level cleaning out, and sometimes you just NEED that. It gets you to a good base, so you have a place to return to every few months when the kids belongings overflow again.
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
New Year's Resolutions
It's the New Year, and we all try to make it a better one in some way, right?
If your New Year's resolution has anything to do with paying down debt and saving money, I have a treat for you! The Kindle version of my book will be FREE (you don't have to sign up for Kindle Select) on Jan 2, 3, and 4. Why then? I figure by then everyone has settled down enough from the holiday to order it!
What if you don't like e-books, and want something papery to hold and smell? If you order through this link and use code Q7QRAE5N, you'll get $2 off the list price of $9.99!
Just consider it my little way of helping you with your resolution to save money in the new year!
If your New Year's resolution has anything to do with paying down debt and saving money, I have a treat for you! The Kindle version of my book will be FREE (you don't have to sign up for Kindle Select) on Jan 2, 3, and 4. Why then? I figure by then everyone has settled down enough from the holiday to order it!
What if you don't like e-books, and want something papery to hold and smell? If you order through this link and use code Q7QRAE5N, you'll get $2 off the list price of $9.99!
Just consider it my little way of helping you with your resolution to save money in the new year!
Friday, December 25, 2015
Merry Christmas!
And what a Merry Christmas it is here!
You know why?
My dear husband is finally employed again! He starts his new job making dehumidifier systems for indoor pools on Jan 4.
It has been long and stressful - after all, he's been out of work since April, and we've been relying on savings, side jobs, and food stamps ever since. We've made it through with $600 still in the savings account, and we had a bit of Christmas money set aside for the kids since January, so while we couldn't give to extended family the way we usually would like, we were at least able to get the kids some nice things for Christmas. That last little bit of savings should keep us going until his first paycheck comes in - I feel like along of Christmas, we should have celebrated Chanuka this year - the savings has lasted a lot longer than logic would say it should have! Of course, between my book sales, very occasional Uber driving, Fivver gigs, and Jake doing construction jobs for friends and family, along with us almost never buying a non-need item or going out to eat (unless family was treating us), we've really stretched dollars from dimes.
We're all relieved here. I mean, it's not like our worries are over - he starts at a low beginning wage, but within 6 months his salary will be close to what he used to make as an electrician. Meanwhile, we've been used to spending nothing except paying bills, so we should manage OK until he starts getting those raises.
Whoo hoo!
If I weren't pregnant, I'd hoist a glass of (cheap) red wine - I can't, so you drink one for me, OK? ;)
You know why?
My dear husband is finally employed again! He starts his new job making dehumidifier systems for indoor pools on Jan 4.
It has been long and stressful - after all, he's been out of work since April, and we've been relying on savings, side jobs, and food stamps ever since. We've made it through with $600 still in the savings account, and we had a bit of Christmas money set aside for the kids since January, so while we couldn't give to extended family the way we usually would like, we were at least able to get the kids some nice things for Christmas. That last little bit of savings should keep us going until his first paycheck comes in - I feel like along of Christmas, we should have celebrated Chanuka this year - the savings has lasted a lot longer than logic would say it should have! Of course, between my book sales, very occasional Uber driving, Fivver gigs, and Jake doing construction jobs for friends and family, along with us almost never buying a non-need item or going out to eat (unless family was treating us), we've really stretched dollars from dimes.
We're all relieved here. I mean, it's not like our worries are over - he starts at a low beginning wage, but within 6 months his salary will be close to what he used to make as an electrician. Meanwhile, we've been used to spending nothing except paying bills, so we should manage OK until he starts getting those raises.
Whoo hoo!
If I weren't pregnant, I'd hoist a glass of (cheap) red wine - I can't, so you drink one for me, OK? ;)
Thursday, December 10, 2015
Holy moley, that's a lotta clothes!
I put the word out that I'd be happy to accept any used maternity clothes, and a friend of a friend just came through in a HUGE way!
Well, I should say first that another friend graciously offered her maternity clothes first, but I'm about 4 or 5 inches taller than her and at least 60 pounds heavier, even when I'm not pregnant. So as sweet an offer as it was, my 5'8" self couldn't fit into size Medium petites.
My other friend had a friend who was all done having kids, and passed along 2 HEFTY bags STUFFED with adorable maternity clothes in Large and Extra Large. Some cold weather clothes, some warm weather clothes, some pretty dressy dresses, and even a maternity swimsuit!
2. Hefty. Bags. Stuffed. I started washing them (like I always do with new or new-to-me clothes), and it was 4 large loads of wash all on it's own!
That's about double my current regular wardrobe, and way more clothing than I'll even be able to use. So I've asked another pregnant friend of mine, who's due in March, if she could use some of the cold weather clothes (still waiting to hear back). If she can't use them, I'll have to find someone who can - this is more than my closet can hold! :)
Well, I should say first that another friend graciously offered her maternity clothes first, but I'm about 4 or 5 inches taller than her and at least 60 pounds heavier, even when I'm not pregnant. So as sweet an offer as it was, my 5'8" self couldn't fit into size Medium petites.
My other friend had a friend who was all done having kids, and passed along 2 HEFTY bags STUFFED with adorable maternity clothes in Large and Extra Large. Some cold weather clothes, some warm weather clothes, some pretty dressy dresses, and even a maternity swimsuit!
2. Hefty. Bags. Stuffed. I started washing them (like I always do with new or new-to-me clothes), and it was 4 large loads of wash all on it's own!
That's about double my current regular wardrobe, and way more clothing than I'll even be able to use. So I've asked another pregnant friend of mine, who's due in March, if she could use some of the cold weather clothes (still waiting to hear back). If she can't use them, I'll have to find someone who can - this is more than my closet can hold! :)
Friday, December 4, 2015
Giving.
Before Thanksgiving, the Silence of Mary home (a charity my family works with) does a massive giveaway of turkeys, food, and other needed items to families, either directly or through social workers who came to pick up donations for them. And when I say other items, I mean there were coats, blankets, PILES of hand knitted hats, gloves... whatever the Silence could round up that they knew would be needed in the winter.
I took Daniel to volunteer with me that day, so he could see how many people were in need - and they are all through the year, not just during the holidays, but this day is a particularly big drive. He was very helpful, too, carrying bags out to the cars and suggesting different food items to take to the families.
One thing he didn't see, because the Silence is so careful about filtering the donated items, were expired, buggy, or dusty food items being given to the poor. They're really careful to check for expiration dates (and they usually re-write them in large numbers on the top of the can or box, so rotation is easier), and if something is given that is expired, it's thrown away.
Gasp! How wasteful! People could still use that if they were desperate, right? I mean, it's just a "best by" date - I wouldn't eat it, but it's still usable, right?
C'mon. These are human beings, and they have dignity and taste buds. If you haven't touched that dusty old bag of navy beans in the back of your pantry, what makes you think they'll get it and say "yay, protein!"? Why would they feed their children expired, rancid, Bisquick? You might think you would IF you were really poor, but have you ever been that poor? It's depressing! And being given awful food that no one else wants because people felt bad about throwing it away? That's even more depressing.
See, I saw a nice thought online today. A reverse Advent calendar, where instead of taking something out each day, you add a donation item for the food bank. And someone immediately commented "oh, this is good - I need to clean out my pantry anyway!". If your pantry needs to be cleaned out, eat the food or throw it away, if it's that old. But please don't use the food bank as a way to throw away food without throwing it away. If you want to give, then give fresh, palatable, easy foods. Add a box of Oreos while you're at it - I know, obesity crisis, but it will make someone feel cared for. Like someone actually wants them to be happy, not just grateful.
Now, if you've been couponing at CVS and you have a bunch of free goodies that your kids won't touch, by all means, donate them. I guarantee you, toiletry items will be appreciated just as much as SoyJoy bars - it's hard to buy toiletries when you're getting by on food stamps, since there are no programs to help people afford shampoo and toilet paper.
But please - when you give, give things that you would like to see in a bag if you needed food. Someday it could be you at the other side of the food pantry counter.
I took Daniel to volunteer with me that day, so he could see how many people were in need - and they are all through the year, not just during the holidays, but this day is a particularly big drive. He was very helpful, too, carrying bags out to the cars and suggesting different food items to take to the families.
One thing he didn't see, because the Silence is so careful about filtering the donated items, were expired, buggy, or dusty food items being given to the poor. They're really careful to check for expiration dates (and they usually re-write them in large numbers on the top of the can or box, so rotation is easier), and if something is given that is expired, it's thrown away.
Gasp! How wasteful! People could still use that if they were desperate, right? I mean, it's just a "best by" date - I wouldn't eat it, but it's still usable, right?
C'mon. These are human beings, and they have dignity and taste buds. If you haven't touched that dusty old bag of navy beans in the back of your pantry, what makes you think they'll get it and say "yay, protein!"? Why would they feed their children expired, rancid, Bisquick? You might think you would IF you were really poor, but have you ever been that poor? It's depressing! And being given awful food that no one else wants because people felt bad about throwing it away? That's even more depressing.
See, I saw a nice thought online today. A reverse Advent calendar, where instead of taking something out each day, you add a donation item for the food bank. And someone immediately commented "oh, this is good - I need to clean out my pantry anyway!". If your pantry needs to be cleaned out, eat the food or throw it away, if it's that old. But please don't use the food bank as a way to throw away food without throwing it away. If you want to give, then give fresh, palatable, easy foods. Add a box of Oreos while you're at it - I know, obesity crisis, but it will make someone feel cared for. Like someone actually wants them to be happy, not just grateful.
Now, if you've been couponing at CVS and you have a bunch of free goodies that your kids won't touch, by all means, donate them. I guarantee you, toiletry items will be appreciated just as much as SoyJoy bars - it's hard to buy toiletries when you're getting by on food stamps, since there are no programs to help people afford shampoo and toilet paper.
But please - when you give, give things that you would like to see in a bag if you needed food. Someday it could be you at the other side of the food pantry counter.
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
Whoops - I have a blog, don't I?
Hi guys!
I have very few excuses for not writing for so long. I mean, my computer was "broken" for a while - thankfully it just needed a new charger cable. And there was Thanksgiving and stuff. Oh, and while I never ACTUALLY threw up, I sure felt like I would at dinner time every day for quite a while there.
But now? I'm feeling a lot better, and my computer works again, so I'm back!
So I guess I should go back and think of the cool stuff I did while I wasn't posting.
I bought a fair number of maternity items at Community Aid on half price day - 2 pairs of maternity jeans, a pair of stretchy long pants, a pair of stretchy capris, and 5 maternity tops, all for $19! And a friend has a bag of maternity wear for me to pick up later tonight - she's smaller than I am, so I don't know if anything will fit, but she assured me she had a blend of sizes in there. Being only 13 weeks along, I'm still able to fit into all but my smallest jeans for now - every time I pull a pair on that I can't button, they get folded up and put in under bed storage.
I rode my bike in the "Christmas" parade that actually happens before Thanksgiving here. No, I don't know why, go ask your mother. But to my absolute delight, I now have another mom within biking distance who has a Virtue School Bus, and we rode ours side by side along with the Bike Harrisburg/Recycle Bicycle group. I wrapped the cargo box in wrapping paper and added a bow, but she had hers decked out like Thomas the Tank Engine! (She wore it better.) I wish I had gotten photos! But I had Daniel along as my passenger, and he got to give high fives all along the parade route.
Tristan is trying to quit naps - he didn't nap at all yesterday or today, and I'm not sure who suffers the most by it. It's lousy all around.
The family is sharing a nagging cough that doesn't go away for weeks at a time - I'm the current sufferer. And I can't use anything super heavy medically to get rid of the cough, so I'm trying tea, honey, cough drops, essential oils, and sleeping upright, all with limited success.
I know this has been a scatterbrained post. Hopefully the next one will be better.
I have very few excuses for not writing for so long. I mean, my computer was "broken" for a while - thankfully it just needed a new charger cable. And there was Thanksgiving and stuff. Oh, and while I never ACTUALLY threw up, I sure felt like I would at dinner time every day for quite a while there.
But now? I'm feeling a lot better, and my computer works again, so I'm back!
So I guess I should go back and think of the cool stuff I did while I wasn't posting.
I bought a fair number of maternity items at Community Aid on half price day - 2 pairs of maternity jeans, a pair of stretchy long pants, a pair of stretchy capris, and 5 maternity tops, all for $19! And a friend has a bag of maternity wear for me to pick up later tonight - she's smaller than I am, so I don't know if anything will fit, but she assured me she had a blend of sizes in there. Being only 13 weeks along, I'm still able to fit into all but my smallest jeans for now - every time I pull a pair on that I can't button, they get folded up and put in under bed storage.
I rode my bike in the "Christmas" parade that actually happens before Thanksgiving here. No, I don't know why, go ask your mother. But to my absolute delight, I now have another mom within biking distance who has a Virtue School Bus, and we rode ours side by side along with the Bike Harrisburg/Recycle Bicycle group. I wrapped the cargo box in wrapping paper and added a bow, but she had hers decked out like Thomas the Tank Engine! (She wore it better.) I wish I had gotten photos! But I had Daniel along as my passenger, and he got to give high fives all along the parade route.
Tristan is trying to quit naps - he didn't nap at all yesterday or today, and I'm not sure who suffers the most by it. It's lousy all around.
The family is sharing a nagging cough that doesn't go away for weeks at a time - I'm the current sufferer. And I can't use anything super heavy medically to get rid of the cough, so I'm trying tea, honey, cough drops, essential oils, and sleeping upright, all with limited success.
I know this has been a scatterbrained post. Hopefully the next one will be better.
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