Not quite a horder - decluttering
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Mominator, your post reminded me of one of the very best Christmases I ever had. My oldest sister had two future sisters-in-law who outgrew their many Barbie dolls and beautiful accessories, including some gorgeous homemade gowns and “fur"coats. They gave it all to my mom who hid it in the far back of our fruit cellar intending for “Santa" to put it under the tree for me and my other sister that year. But...my sister and I found my mom's hiding place and played and played with that stuff till Christmas. Nevertheless, we were still thrilled when we opened it Christmas day, we loved and played endlessly with it! I remember my sister, who is two years older, told me “Santa can't make it to every house on Christmas Eve, so he drops off stuff early for the parents to put under the tree." She and I still laugh and enjoy talking about that memory! We always wonder where the heck mom was while we were downstairs playing with our toys meant for Christmas!
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Divine, when my sister and I had started getting suspicious about Santa, we secretly marked the fruit in the house, since we got fruit along with the toys & candy in our stockings..Yep, we got marked fruit in our stockings. Mom still can't believe we did that.
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Another hint about discolored plastic containers-spray them with Pam before using them for chili, tomato or curry based food, etc. It prevents the staining.
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Hubby got to the 7-layer dip before I got a picture!!
Mrs. M.: thanks for sharing your lovely memories.
Melissa: I’m glad my children weren’t are clever as you marking fruit for Christmas!!
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put a bunch of furniture that we don't want to take on our move (part of our downsizing effort) up for sale on a local classified site... and I've gotten rid of $100 worth of stuff already (I am keeping prices really low, which was gratifying today as one buyer was a young couple who just bought their first home, the other was a single mom). WooHoo!
I have a stack of games I want to get rid of (none of which I've played in years: I kept the games we do play and packed those)...and when folks came by to look or buy something, they were encouraged to take a game or two on their way out!
Feeling good to get rid of stuff.
Octogirl
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Mominator--I'm not so sure that choosing a higher quality piece for regular use is really splurging. The higher quality container will last longer, and in the long run save money over buying cheap replacements and preventing the hassle of not having a container for the dip when you need/want it.Nice to have a ready place to send the big plastics!
Mrs. M--what a wonderful memory!And you big sister was so good to come up with that so you could maintain your innocence for a while longer.
Melissa--that was actually pretty sharp!
Mominator--must have been pretty good dip!
Octogirl--Great way to move out the games!!
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Mominator, now I want to go make a bowl of 7 layer dip. Looks like it was good. How did he leave any olives? I'd have scooped those first! ☺
Octogirl, glad to hear you got to pass along furniture to folks who needed it.
We have two *heavy* things to take to the landfill. The challenge has been to find three trustworthy, strong guys to hire to help DH get them out of here!!!
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I want 7 layer dip too! Is there a specific recipe you follow or products you use?
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Our library lets you check out games. They are weighed. Great idea!
Love 7 layer dip!
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Madelyn's / Mominator's 7-Layer Dip
Layer the following ingredients in a serving container.
I use my new Ziplock large rectangle container for easy storage, but use a large glass casserole dish for fancy events.(denotes healthier options)
16 oz can of (fat free) refried beans
about 16 oz of guacamole (I use a brand name and then mash in a whole, fresh avocado)
about 16 oz of (fat free) sour cream
about 8 oz of (part skim or low fat) shredded cheese (cheddar or taco or your favorite mix)
about 8 oz of sliced black olives
about 8 oz of sliced cherry tomatoes
about 8 oz of red, pink, or black beans (depends on my mood)
Serve with Tostito scoop chips
Scoop and enjoy!!
Notes:
I use fat free versions of refried beans and sour cream, and low fat cheeses.
I mash in the fresh avocado to make the guacamole less spicy.
Some folks have chopped onions as the last layer, but I use the red/pink/black beans instead.I'm making another batch tomorrow afternoon. I'll get a picture before hubby (and I) attack it.
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Great recipe! Thanks for the share!
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I had to clear out my parents almost 5,000 square ft. house last year as they moved into a 1,500 sq ft duplex in an independent living community. My sister in law told me something she heard in a widows' support group - as you go through things from the past and get caught up in the memories of each thing, first hold/touch the item and savor the memories. Then "release" the item (donate, throw away etc.) It's amazing how well that worked. By acknowledging those memories, you can enjoy the moment, reinforce the memories, and then not feel so bad about letting go of the "stuff". Touch and release.
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Sold more furniture cheap yesterday as part of our downsizing mode (and got ride of more games in the process :-)).... and finished packing up my kitchen. There is a LOT of glassware I am letting go of: I just don't use it, ever. Wine glasses, water glasses of every possible shape and size, cheap vases, etc etc etc. It takes up room and gets dusty.
Some of it will go in the recycling, some I may donate or give to friends. I did keep one cut glass vase that was my grandmother's.
So nice to see the house without a lot of clutter.
Octogirl
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I made a double batch of my 7-layer dip.
Discovered today that the dip also makes a great filling for burritos.
Close up of dip:
MuddlingThrough: I also go first for the olives!
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Borogirl--what a great way to approach decluttering!
Octogirl--WTG!Keeping grandmother's cut glass vase is wise, you do need ONE vase in the house and this is a great choice!
Mominator--so pretty!Almost too pretty to eat!
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Some things is easy to toss. I bought a brand new cordless stick Dyson vacuum cleaner on line this week and am excitedly waiting to receive it. With dark carpet and two cats, I unfortunately find myself vacuuming often. I’ve been putting small windfalls of money into a ”vacuum fund” for when the Dyson went on sale (which it did this week). The fund includes coins wrapped from our garage sale last year, a rebate from a lazyboy chair purchase, a few left-over bills I didn’t spend on vacation, ect.
The vacuum I currently use downstairs is going upstairs to replace the pretty-much-worthless one that’s up there so I brought it downstairs today, i started saying something derogatory about it to dh and then said, “No, this vacuum served us well for many years.” and I thanked it for its service! It’s sitting in the garage to be put out for trash day on Friday.
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I like that--thanking the vacuum for it's service!
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We had come back from vacation last Monday to a funny smell in the house. There had been heavy rains while we were away and many neighbors had flooding in their basements.
We couldn't find any problems, but the smell persisted. DH finally found a 10' by 10' area of the finished side of the basement where the carpet was damp underneath. The seal of the window above had failed. The was a wooden table in the corner, and all four legs had a small, smelly patch of mold growing beneath them.
This was DH's corner of the basement, he used to have an office down there. Now there is a lot of office and technical equipment cast-offs.
We rented a steam cleaner and spent 2 days working on the corner. We got it cleaned, although the black stain didn't entirely come out of the carpet.
Now DH is sorting through his stuff, and lots of it is going out. We had to toss 6 reams of paper that got waterlogged. I was lamenting what a waste of paper and money. Hubby said maybe by absorbing all the water, the paper saved the carpet.
We'll be spending the next several weeks sorting through this mess.
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That's not a fun finding when you're just back from a vacation. If his corner is like my DH's, some necessary cleaning would be a good thing.
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Mominator--Wow, what a problem to come home to! Glad it cleaned up well. Got to wonder if the paper didn't, in fact, help the carpet! But what a mess to clean up.
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Today I've donated 4 large bags of beatiful baby things, I've kept just a small box of the most treasured baby clothes, such as those our babies had been fotographed in. I will put the photos in the box too and leave it somewhere for the kids to discover when they grow somewhat. (they are just pre-schoolers now)
And I got rid of a large Ikea bag full of my clothes, donated it too. Nice things, but I won't be able to wear them anymore... like low necks etc.
I've donated those to a safe house for mothers and children in need, I drove there myself. I like to hand my stuff directly to the people running the house, they always comment nicely and sometimes say what they need most.
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JaBoo, Good for you with the donations. It is nice to have a more personal connection with the recipients.
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Mominator, why does that stuff always seems to happen after a vacation? It sounds like you have your work cut out for you.
JaBoo, good work going through the clothes and donating! It's even nicer when you find the right place to donate to.
Hey, this Dyson cordless vacuum is a dream. It is different, but works great! So lightweight and non-cumbersome. Easily switches to a handheld vac so I can clean the carpeted stairs.
Lately, I've been counting and wrapping the change in a large 5 gallon water dispenser bottle. It's about 2/3 filled with coins. I'll keep pennies before 1982. While I'm going through it, I also keep an eye out for a couple other possible coins that might be worth a little more than their face value. I'm going through it a little at a time. Nice hobby to do while watching TV. Once the coins are all wrapped, I'll cash them in and get rid of the bottle.
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Since it's still too hot to work in the basement, hopefully weather will cool off next week,I decided to switch out my table coverings problem is I tend to go with the seasons and I'm probably going to have surgery in October and won't be able to lift the tv or other heavy items to place the coverings for months so I did it today.
I am now looking at a table covering full of Christmas poinsettias and Christmas candles thatsvin a tapestry large throw on my huge coffee table/tvstand ( it's a studio apt,things are used for double duty).
That's nothing, I got an orange and green (Halloween!!!) giant granny square blanket with a white,black and red Christmas penguin tapestry throw one on top of that covering my storage bench. The storage bench holds blankets and sheets inside and I considered cleaning it out and getting rid of some but realized I use most of it either for my bed or as coverings so it's staying.
It's like my apt is confused.
Actually I'm gonna be confused it's still summer...
That's my attempt at decluttering at the moment.
That and creating a workout corner with a container holding resistance bands,workout tops and shorts, yoga blocks,light weights, a wee towel and such.these days that corner gets more use then anything else in the apt. I also have a folded blanket on top to cover it when not in use so people who might come in don't see all that just a pretty blanket draped over something unknown.
Not a lot but I do what I can at the moment.
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JaBoo--good job!I like the idea of keeping the baby clothes and pics together.I like the idea of finding out what various organizations need most, too.
Mrs.M--It would be really interesting to find out how much money a 5 gallon water bottle can collect!I have a jar I collect change in, when it's nearly full it will have about $100 in it.I use that for vacation spending money.I've heard the Dyson vacuums are really nice.
Jadedjo--while it does sound a little confusion with multiple holidays on display it also sounds very unique and eclectic! I can imaging studio living prevents a certain amount of clutter. Love the work out corner idea!
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NativeMainer, I’m curious how much has been saved in the bottle, too. I’m keeping all the wrapped coins (and a few bills that got tossed in also) in a box till the bottle is empty, and I’ll let you know!
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DivineMrsM, we keep coins in a large plastic pretzel jar, probably 2 or 3 gallons if it held liquid. I dont even know where we got it since we don't eat pretzels very often, lol. Probably from the snack room at DH's office. Several times I'd scoop out a plastic bowl full and wrap rolls of coins. When I had a little more weight than I could comfortably carry I'd take them to the bank. Those bags were heavy!! I'm sure the tellers hated to see me coming, but they were always nice. For what it's worth, I'd get between a hundred and a hundred fifty dollars per bag. I'd set it aside to spend on vacations, for a nice meal or two and a garden flag souvenir from a roadside shop. I'd get to enjoy the flag all season (Christmas, spring, whatever) and remember the trip without having to dust anything inside, ha ha.
I can't do it now since my dominant hand doesn't really work so the jar is filling up again. Those pennies! Lot of work for little gain, except in clearing space. I did find one or two wheat pennies to keep. Why did you set 1982 as your target year?
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Muddling, I love hearing your story about the pretzel jar coin collection. Great idea to get a vacation souvenier to enjoy but not have to take care of!
All pennies before 1982 have a small amount of copper in them. So they might be worth 1.5 cents! Lol. It is fun to collect them as they are everyday coins you come across naturally. The wheat pennies are so scarce these days! I can remember seeing them always in change when I was growing up. I also remember the buffalo nickels and loved them and wish I’d saved a few of them back in the day. The wheats and buffalos fetch a little sum on ebay now and you’ll even pay more than face value for bulk pennies before 1981. Not that I’m interested in selling. I like the idea of passing along a small coin collection to my son and hopefully future generations. They take up very little space and will retain value. I have a handful of silver coins from late 1899s, early 1900s from my grandfather and love them.
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DivineMrsM, so that roll of pennies I turned in for 50¢ might have been worth 75¢! Dang! LOL
Sad story- my grandmother had collected a nice jar of wheat pennies but when she was hospitalized one time for the cancer that eventually killed her, her house was robbed and they took all her coins and other things including my grandfather's watch AND they trashed her house thoroughly and disgustingly. Sad story part 2: between the time she died and her funeral, her house was robbed again and trashed. Ironic part of the story - her house was in sight of the police station in a formerly nice neighborhood overrun by drugs and gangs. Naturally no one was caught but I still hope they will get their just desserts one day. People who prey on the elderly are despicable.
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Years ago we collected pennies in one of those giant water bottle/jugs. When we got ready to move, we went to pick it up, and the bottom broke off - spilling pennies all over the floor! From then on we made sure to use the plastic bottles LOL!
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