Decluttering

Well done.

I have done the cutting in paintwork -,a bit better than my boys did, and am halfway through laying my cheery new red rug down.

There are things in every bedroom which shouldn't be there. Boxes, piles of clothes DH thought he might sort out on one of the beds.
I've shut the doors on them.
Thank goodness no-one is coming to stay this Christmas.

The dog walk I did last weekend has done my bad knee in so I’m having a duvet day in the hope that it feels a bit better tomorrow. I’ve now given up on the Swedish death clean. Things are being put in the spare room, the garage and the loft. In plastic boxes and in sections but, instead of trying to get the house in a way that my kids won’t have mountains of stuff to throw out I’m going to leave it to them. I was going to my partners after New Year but my dental appointment means I’ll be going a week later. That gives me another week to clear out a bit more stuff but in a less pressured way. I found a list I’d made a few weeks ago and was pleasantly surprised to find that I could tick off 90% of the things on it. I might make another New Years list ( I do like lists!).

MayBee70

I’ve put the Christmas tree up. First time since I bought it years ago. Still not decorated it though. Have put a fireguard round it in case the dog tries to eat the decorations.

We put it in the playpen one year when DD2 was crawling and very inquisitive.

Today is a Monday.
Ie I'm doing washing, changing the bed, trying to tidy up.

As well as writing cards; one neighbour suggested we didn't send cards this year - good idea we all said, then they've come piling in!
Still gift wrapping.

There's a bare Christmas cake waiting to be decorated but I've had enough.

No more decluttering for me this year.
Well, at least before Christmas.

I've no energy left, and still a few things to do.

My husband has left to collect daughter and the dog. They'll be ages, so I'm enjoying the calm before the canine storm, then I'll dog-proof what I can and do last-minute titivation of the house in readiness.

I’ve put the Christmas tree up. First time since I bought it years ago. Still not decorated it though. Have put a fireguard round it in case the dog tries to eat the decorations.

Nansnet. I’ve still got most of my kids art work. Right from being toddlers they made things, then went on to do A Level art and all their projects are in my loft. One of them does have a house big enough to take it, but the other doesn’t. Even though I had a big photo sort out when I retired, they seem to have increased again, even though I don’t take photos any more. I loved making up photo albums. Now I just feel sad looking at them. I dismantled a picture frame last night that had pictures of my grandchildren in it. It never made it onto a wall, being too big and heavy and I’m hoping someone can use the frame. I did shed a few tears.

I use Amazon because I can't get round the shops now.
Most things have come in cardboard which can be recycled. I haven't seen any bubble wrap, only brown paper to pad out the package.
Only one package arrived in inadequate packaging, just its original cellophane wrapping, but it was ok, thank goodness, as it had been sitting on the doorstep in the rain when we were out.

I went to pick some pictures up from the picture framers today and we got chatting about how guilty we feel about using Amazon because of the packaging and he said he can use all of the bubble wrap that I keep in the hope of finding a use for it ( I did cover my old front door with it last year because it was made of thin glass and I lost so much heat from it). I, too,can’t get anything done if there’s anyone around. My husband was always doing something; usually in the garage, building something, working on the car or away on business. But my partner, who doesn’t live here, just sits and watches tv if he isn’t walking our shared dog. I struggle to achieve anything until he goes back to his house, which is why I’m nocturnal.

Nansnet

I'm feeling rather overwhelmed right now. Not only do we have a new home to move into but we're also moving country, back to the UK for retirement, and I have 25 years worth of 'stuff' that I need to go through and declutter!

I've been procrastinating for quite a while, but time is getting on now, and I need to arrange shipping, etc. It's difficult to know where to begin. So many memories and sentimental things that I'll find it difficult to part with. I even have school work/projects from when my kids were young ... and they're in their 30s now! But it can't all come back with me just to be shoved up into the loft! My DD says I need to get rid of it, as she and my DS definitely won't want any of it when I 'pop my clogs', and it'll go straight into a skip!

How do others deal with things like this?! I know it's silly really, hanging on to things that you don't really need, and they just spend years in a box in the loft. I need to be brave, take a deep breath, and let it all go ...

A bit scary then, but it could also be exciting and a new beginning.
I remember reading somewhere about someone similar to you who had a lot of possessions to dispose of. She photographed the items she would have kept if she could, so that she at least had the memory of them. Personally, I think I would bite the bullet and give everything I can’t keep away to good homes and then forget them. I would hate to be reminded constantly of what I had lost, so no photos for me!
Make a fresh start, and I wish you the very best of luck.

💪🏼 Here you are

I'm getting nowhere fast.
Can hear bang bang bang...
"What are you doing??"

"Nothing"

Clank, clank, clank...
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING???

"Nothing"

Move my teatowel, there's a pair of grips and a spanner underneath it.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING? WHY ARE THESE UNDER MY TEATOWEL?"
"Why is what under your teatowel?"

And so on... give me strength... please, somebody..

I don't know about you, but I struggle to get anything done when someone's in the house, even if they are in a different room.

Mr D's gone Christmas shopping (it must be nice to be able to leave it until so many things need doing), and I am trying to get the bedrooms sorted whilst he's out. I've washed the electric blanket, sheet and coverless duvet on my son's bed, and have put the blanket back on, but am struggling with the topper that goes over it, and can't put the sheet on until that's in place. I'll wait for Mr Dog to get back and fix it, and in the meantime move the clothes and other assorted detritus that's on my daughter's bed, and put it away.

If I get the rooms straight, the cleaner comes tomorrow and can do the cleaning, then it's 'just' a case of working out what I'll need from the wardrobes and drawers whilst they are here, and getting that moved into the main bedroom so I can get at it without disturbing anyone. The tree will go up this evening, and I'll then be able to clear the hallway, which is where I've put the presents in readiness for them to go under it.

My daughter arrives at the weekend, so things should be ready for that, and my son's not here until Christmas Eve, so it all seems positively leisurely compared to the nightmare of last year, when there was no kitchen and all the bedrooms were being done, and the year before when the dining room and hall were out of action.

We're getting there.

I'm really hoping to get some stuff done today, but am waiting for my boy to go out.

And will he hurry up and go?
Nope!!!!
I'm really struggling to keep my irritation in check, as I'd really like to shout at him.

It is infuriating when things like that play up, particularly at Christmas. My oven conked out one Christmas ages ago, and there was no time to get another one, so Mr Dog ordered a thermostat with a view to fixing it himself. There wa no guarantee that it would arrive in time though, so I ordered ready-prepared veg for Christmas dinner, in case he was going to be in the kitchen fitting it when I needed to be in there chopping.

Unfortunately, the veg weren't just pre-chopped, they were pre-cooked, which I didn't realise, and proceeded to cook them as though they were raw. It was the worst Christmas dinner ever. I made another one as soon as the shops reopened after what was then the extended Christmas closure.

I hope your freezer is just playing up, and not on the way out, MayBee. Things are stressful enough without misbehaving machines.

It’s back down to -18 again. But I don’t understand why it goes to 14 at times. It is very old.

Is the plug clear of clutter and in the socket properly, MayBee?
Daft question, I know, but worth checking.

I don’t believe it. My freezer is playing up again. I’m really brassed off. For the first time in nearly twenty years I want a cigarette.

Oh yes, but in accordance with your wishes. POA is making decisions on your behalf, rather than following instructions.

But, as my children are executors of my will they can still deal with everything?

Yes, it dies with you. I suppose the point is that a named person can act for you when you are unable to do so yourself; but after your death nobody can act for you.

I didn’t realise that POA ceases when someone dies. This is what I was told at the building society last week.