Moving along

Everyday I'm reminded of how much I want a simpler life. Today just watching the fabric blowing in the breeze while hanging from clothes pins on the clothes line, made me long to leave this house of stuff and town of pollution behind. Four years is a long time to wait, but it is the way it has to be for now.

I was looking at my furniture today, trying to see what would be "easy" to get rid of. I have a cabinet that once I clean out, I have no attachment to. I also have no attachment to our couch and loveseat. There are other pieces as well that can go. The hard pieces are the ones I do have emotional attachment to. Like this black shelving unit that belonged to my grandmother, then my father, and then my parents together once they married. Standing in the entry of our home you could see it in the "toy room" holding all my childhood toys and books, along with my younger sister's. It then came to live with us. We have used it for all sorts of things, currently it is a bookcase. What makes it neat is that you can take it apart and put it back together very easily. Only one other time in my life do I remember seeing a piece like this.

Yes the memories will still be there if the piece is gone, but letting go is hard!

Where will all the stuff go?

If the world didn't produce another vase, I'm positive we will still have plenty for everyone who needs one. I'm noticing a problem with cleaning out my house.....most people already have full houses and don't need my stuff either. I have been offering boxes of stuff for free and here they still sit. No one has come to claim them. That got me thinking....what will happen with all the stuff that is still good and can be used, but no one needs it? If we stopped producing products today would it really be so bad? Certain products people use once or twice and then give away. The same group of these items that was made 2 years ago could probably circle the earth and everyone who wants one can have one without one more being made.

Will that ever happen? Probably not since most companies have the goal of making money and without a product to sell, they don't make money. Thrift shops exist to sell what is already out there, but I have sadly discovered if it doesn't sell there within a certain period of time they throw it away. Is there a solution, yes, will it happen, hopefully, we can only pray!

Huge progress today!

I worked this morning and that always wears me out! I have some fun with the family and then hubby and I decided to watch Hoarders. We don't have cable, but we have a free trial to Netflix and the Hoarders DVD arrived in the mail today. After having my heart break for the people who struggle with that burden, I was determined to clean out something....anything! I walked into the kitchen and the cabinet under the sink was open again. I shut it, and it popped open, I did this for a few times before finally getting on the floor and pulling everything out. It took a few hours to go through everything, but it is done! I'm getting rid of 18 cleaners, 11 vases, 2 dog products, 20 candle holders, a bag of candles, a bag of plastic cups, and a 30 gallon bag of trash! I am still left with more than I care to keep, but for now, this is great!

I kept some of the cleaners, but ultimately my goal is to have one cleaner concentrate that I can put into a refillable bottle. I kept 6 vases of varying sizes that my younger daughter picked, and I kept a few of my favorite candle holders. Now there is space and finding everything is so much easier!

Hubby is really on board!

Today my hubby sold his paintball marker and supplies! He enjoys paintball, but doesn't get to play often. The paintball marker is NOT going to be part of his 100 items! Wahoo! I'm so glad he is on the save page with me. Together we are going to plow through this "stuff" and move onto a happier life together!

Praise be to God!

Tugs at your heart

I am done cleaning out the cup, dish, and bowl cabinets. I asked my family what their favorite pieces were and that is what we kept. The hardest moment was when my little one said "mom, we collected all those tea cups". We did, it is true, she and I spent several months looking at yard sales and thrift shops in order to have enough teacups and saucers for her princess birthday party. What a beautiful memory! I told her that she could pick two set to keep, it was hard, on both of us. My heart wanted to let her keep them all, to hold onto childhood and memories. My mind knows that there just isn't room for them all. My hubby is pleased with how the cabinets look now. So much cleaner and neater, no risk of breaking one item while pulling out another. My counters and table are now filled with pieces that will need to move on to another home. Some I posted on craigslist, others will be donated. Tomorrow I am meeting someone who wants to buy the crinkle cutter and fly-saucer maker that I was telling you about earlier. One by one the pieces will leave, but the memories are always mine to cherish! Dreaming of the day I'm out in the sun next to my cabin in the woods, with my children playing or reading nearby and my husband holding my hand!

Today is hard

I'm going through my dishes, they are harder than I thought they would be to part with. I'm extremely sentimental and every dish has a story. I prayed the rosary today for my priest, the school my daughter is going to starting on Monday, and for money to pay tuition...I guess I should have also prayed for strength to let go and do as God has asked me. These are just things, pieces of material that one day will cease to exist....why do I cling to them so? Why is it so hard to let go of something that was never mine? Every thing I have is because of God, it all belongs to Him. God please help me today to let go of these things that clutter up my life and keeping me from what is important.

The Process

Today I decided to tackle an area that will have an immediate impact on my family. Yes I do know I said I would start with the bookcases, but that won't take care of stress immediately (I'm also really struggling with that!).

We don't own a working dishwasher. We have been hand washing our dishes for 10 years now. You would think by now we would be used to it, but we aren't and we don't like it! I have a little piece by paper by my sink that says "Thank God for dirty dishes, they have a tale to tell; while others may go hungry, we're eating very well" Author Unknown. As I stand at the sink day after day, I read this poem to myself, sometimes it does help. I am also offering it up to God for the intentions of others. One in particular is for a friend whose baby is struggling to nurse. He has had some surgeries to help, but is still struggling. This helps too. When I sit back and think about it, it isn't necessarily the doing of the dishes, it's the time I spend away from my family and other things I would rather do.

One of the last things I had planned to downside was the kitchen (My list of last things to do, is growing!), but today I decided that there is no reason to wait! I pulled everything out of my utensil and special kitchen tool drawers. I should have counted or at least taken a before picture of the drawers, but it is too late now. The utensil drawer is very easy to clean out at this point because almost everything is in the sink. Once I have washed all the silverware, just 4 of each piece will remain. 4 forks, 4 spoons, and 4 knives. We are a family of 4 and that is all we need day to day. Yes I hear you out there saying "what about guests"....well we rarely have guests, something that might change when we have no more clutter, but for now just my mother comes over and I can promise you, she has no problem bringing her own place setting. She doesn't trust things that aren't washed by a dishwasher anyway. For the occasional time that another guest might stop by I have a few plastic pieces that I will use and give my guest the silverware. For those who are still focusing on what we are giving up, let's look at what I'm gaining! By having just 4 of each, dishes will not sit in the sink, washing will take just a few minutes, and drawers that struggled to be open, will flow freely in and out! Most importantly I will not be stressed about the dishes and my family will have time with me where I'm not upset about the dishes! Praise be to God!

Now moving onto the special kitchen tool drawer, this was harder. I opened the drawer filled with shiny metal and colorful plastic tools, tools that can do just about anything :-) I found 5 pizza cutters and I don't even care for pizza... 1 blue plastic one, 1 big metal one, 1 small metal one, and 2 plastic ones that I got for the children to use. According to hubby he doesn't like the blue plastic one because it makes the pizza move when he cuts it, he also doesn't care for the 2 kid ones that my children don't even use. We both agree that we like the metal ones, but we never need more than one at a time, so the little one is gone, along with the plastic ones. Pampered Chef has some great tools, and many have lived for years in my kitchen. Rarely is one used. Today I listed on craigstlist a Cut-n-seal, it's very cute, to make flying saucers out of sandwiches for children! And a Crinkle Cutter, great for making carrots crinkle. Why don't I need these? With the Cut-n-seal two things happen....I get fat from eating the area the cutter, cut off and I spend twice as much on buying bread to feed the little mouths that are eating 2 flying saucers instead of one sandwich! These items are neat if you have little ones, but they take up space and time and I can't even remember the last time I used them! There were also three pokey things to hold meat while you carve it....I have never used a one of them, there is also a zester which I still think is cool, but never have used. Now there is a box half full of all the items that are moving onto other homes!

I'm left with two drawers that my hubby will be shocked open so well and look so good! I feel good! Now to work on the cups, dishes, and bowls!


Contents of drawers sitting on the stove


What the drawer looks like now. It will need to be downsized again, but for now I'm happy