Mama Kelly
Lady Rose
R.I.P. George Carlin
1937-2008
As I’ve mentioned here and on twitter I am using whatever free time I have this summer to do a thorough top to bottom clean and de-clutter of the upstairs of the house (where the family and I dwell). The purging is going well. Tomorrow is Mr. Grumpy’s birthday and any cleaning energies over the next couple of days will need to be focused on getting the house clean enough for company. Saturday we are going out with the extended family to a local restaurant to celebrate. People will be meeting up here both before we go out to eat and afterwards for cake. The purging will recommence next week
I have accomplished a good deal over the course of the past 2 weekends. I have gotten rid of over 500 individual items from my house: bras and books and baby clothes; bathrobes and bathing suits. I have sold a few on Amazon.com and have another 60 or so listed for sale. This money is earmarked for my Holiday Shopping fund.
Some of it was hard - the baby clothes were often stoked lovingly before being placed into the donate pile. A few items were “rescued” when the memories they evoked were simply too vivid. Some of it was easier - the boxes of hardcover books that were mom’s but had been in the attic since we moved to this house when I was 16, but were still mom’s nonetheless. Some of it was a piece of cake - fluff books and paperback novels I’ll never re-read.
Now, bear in mind the purging is part of a larger goal. I need to be able to turn 2 bedrooms and a living room into 3 bedrooms (and no living room). The plan is to begin in the attic and to create enough “holes” that I can move other items (that will no longer be used) from the living room and “master bedroom”. This means I need to open up enough space in the attic to hold a couch and entertainment center. We have to be able to move enough out of the bedroom to allow us to set up GamerDude’s computer system in there instead (odds are we’ll have to install some kind of shelving for the printer(s) and scanner).
The grand end result? The living room will be emptied, repainted and filled with Misss Artistic’s bed, a dresser, and the TV armoire. The finishing touch will be gifting Miss Artistic with my late mother’s drafting table to encourage her in her artistic pursuits. When I tell you she will totally “freak” about the last thing I am understating it by a long shot. This is one of those things she would never even dream of asking for. Imagining the look on her face is enough to always make me find the energy to lift another box or clear another shelf.
That being said, it is more work that I had even anticipated. It means digging through boxes, emptying out drawers, sorting closets and getting rid of ALOT of “stuff”. The upside is that my “stuff” can help a lot of people. The clothes that no longer fit the girls, the books we’re never going to read again, can boost the content of my local library system and help impoverished or homeless kids.
If nothing else as I work, when I am not buzy imagining a very happy teenager, I keep the thought that I am clearing out the old to make way for the new …
- for new beginnings
- for new growth
- for new hope
- for new dreams
May you all be blessed with “the new”
Mama Kelly
PS In other news I have become completely and hopelessly addicted to a stupid game I purchased at GamerDude’s suggestion - Viva Piñata
Filed under: * author - mama kelly, Books, Hearth & Home, Life & Family | Tagged: house, home, cleaning, charity, library, Books, clutter, purging, donation
I’ve been doing a lot of decluttering and shifting of stuff lately, too. We are trying to make our unfinished store room into, basically, a large pantry. Right now it’s doing the job of an attic, or a garage — holding keepsakes and junk.
Trying to thin the keepsakes is much harder than I expected. I am very sentimental (some would say overly so!) and have tons of stuff saved (like every single note my husband’s ever written to me).
Sad part is, I really haven’t been able to thin any of that stuff. Thank goodness there was plenty of other stuff to freecycle or give away!
Its a hard job to clear out stuff and create fresh new spaces — but just imagine that wonderful feeling when you see and then sleep in those “clear-and-clean” bedrooms! But stashing stuff is so hard — like setting up dominoes — each item must be assessed and then given a “spot” — this is where a good label-maker can really be a lifesaver! Label those plastic bins with item names AND the date too! So you can see just how FEW times you do need these items — for future cleanouts! LOL! Don’t forget to check out Big Lots for closet organizers — cheaper than most stores — and right now those stores are well stocked with those items for the up-and-coming school year!
Take care — and keep going! Brightest blessings on your hearth and home! Jan at Rosemary Cottage
[...] video just cracks me up. I found it on my best friend’s (Mama Kelly) post Purging is Good for the Soul. She is also on a mission to declutter her home and get rid of junk; she has gotten rid of over [...]
[...] Purging is Good for the Soul - Getting Rid of My Stuff [...]