August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Share your decluttering activities and ideas.
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Harriet
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August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Harriet » Thu Aug 01, 2013 9:45 am

Brace yourselves for a shock, organizers....

Are you sitting down?

Mid-August will find Focus cleaners and declutterers starting Round 4 - our final round before maintenance up to the... ... yes, I'm going to say it... ...

holidays. :shock:

As August unfolds, those of us who intend to incorporate parts of holiday plans - crafting, cooking for the freezer, making advance purchases for projects, working on the "gift closet" - will find it's an excellent time to get started thinking.

This is the time for some quiet decision-making. What holiday plan you would like to follow? How "big" a celebration will you choose for each holiday, and how much entertaining do you want to do compared to emphasis on craft time, or kitchen time? Do you want to create a notebook or mini-card-file this year just for holidays? You might want to glance at last year's holiday thread in The Creative Home forum, to remind yourself of your hopes and dreams.

But remain calm - we're not implementing it all yet! If there's a cardinal rule for a happy, welcoming holiday season it may well be this: Don't abandon your ongoing efforts against clutter!

There is no merriment in having lots of creativity if we find it's oozing out of an already too-cluttered home! "All dressed up with a dirty neck!" (as P and P said) is not the way to have fun!

Stick with us, and PREPARE your lovely home for creativity and hospitality. Continue to try for the equivalent of 15 minutes of decluttering time per day, and insure that holiday feeling!

********************************************************


Some of us are following the Focus cleaning schedule in the Organization and Simplification Tools forum, and it might be helpful to declutter those rooms one week ahead. Focus cleaning is adaptable, of course, so even those following it drift in and out of different rooms as needed.

Here's a reference if you hope to find some friends decluttering in the same room "with" you each week.

Week of.........you'll find some of us

7/29/2013 - Decluttering the living room as we Focus Clean the kitchen
8/5/2013 - Decluttering the dining room as we Focus Clean the living room
8/12/2013 - Decluttering the porch/entry as we Focus Clean the dining room
We begin Round Four of 2013
8/19/2013 - Decluttering the bedrooms as we Focus Clean the porch/entry
8/26/2013 - Decluttering the bathrooms as we Focus Clean the bedrooms



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Re: August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Ivy » Fri Aug 02, 2013 11:33 am

:D I DID SOMETHING SMART!!!! :D

DD is downsizing into a smaller apt. and she is giving away many, many things. She called me last night, asked me if I wanted all of my deceased MIL's stemware (wine glasses) and I said, "NO!" :!: I told DD that it's VERY HARD for me to say no! :cry: Because I loved Dmil so much, but my 2 china cabinets are full and cannot let in anymore glass-type things. Also, I told DD we don't drink, nor have DFriends who come here to drink. She said that's okay. So then I said, "Why don't you give them to somebody very, very Special, who will love receiving them, and Bless someone else with them?" :?: :idea: She said thank you, and she would. I just had to say "no" to her, but I said it in a loving way so she'll not be hurt nor mad. She seemed to understand. :D
Touch the earth, love the earth, her plains, her valleys, her seas. Rest your soul in her solitary places. ~Henry Beston

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Ivy
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Re: August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Ivy » Fri Aug 02, 2013 5:55 pm

I decluttered a bedside stand drawer because "Mr. Snoopy Grson" was going through that drawer, giving me a sneaky look when I walked into my bedroom. I've taken out the head lamps, which were in the drawer, hid them, took receipts I'm saving, and I had several 2012 insurance company receipts inside envelopes in that drawer. Since DH's insurance is knocking me off the plan on 12/31/13, I'll need a new insurance, so won't need their old 2012 receipts. They got put in the burn bag.

Also, I decluttered my office top drawer from "Mr. Snoopy Eyes", TOO because I caught him in my office, that drawer had been gone through and he doesn't need to find out what's on my flash drive nor what passwords I use for whatever sites, etc.... :roll: :? :!: Those are put away, the drawers, (both I tidied) are nice, orderly and if "Mr. Snoopy" searches them again, he's gonna "wonder" where things went! :lol: So I'm prepared for this visit better than the previous one where I got caught off-guard, was stunned at his inquisitiveness and being snoopy. The other boys respect our/my privacy, but they're either past "that age" or haven't gotten there yet. :lol: Grandma's prepared! :!: :P :mrgreen:
Touch the earth, love the earth, her plains, her valleys, her seas. Rest your soul in her solitary places. ~Henry Beston

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Re: August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Ivy » Fri Aug 02, 2013 11:06 pm

:D I decluttered old contracts from 2006 - 2011, with my signature and SS#. It's good to keep a S. S. # in private places, I didn't need the old contracts from the old company anymore, I've saved tax info over those years, so why have my signature and SS# hanging around, too. So into the burn they went. I feel so much "lighter". :D
Touch the earth, love the earth, her plains, her valleys, her seas. Rest your soul in her solitary places. ~Henry Beston

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Re: August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Ivy » Sun Aug 04, 2013 10:02 pm

Decluttered 3 boxes of books and arranged them nicely on my long bunny room business desk and on 1/4-shelf area in my office. Everything fit. I got other items, too, which I'll treasure or use. It was a wonderful day of treasures from our DD. :D
Touch the earth, love the earth, her plains, her valleys, her seas. Rest your soul in her solitary places. ~Henry Beston

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Re: August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Nancy » Mon Aug 05, 2013 11:31 am

I've put books I've read to share with the church or donate else where. Also canisters that just took up room on the counters got them off the table and doing so freed up some space I'm glad to have a few other things :idea: as well from our trip the trial size things added as well so that mission accomplished. Yea!!!

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Re: August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Ivy » Wed Aug 07, 2013 12:08 am

I put away Word Search puzzles today and dishes from the DW.
Touch the earth, love the earth, her plains, her valleys, her seas. Rest your soul in her solitary places. ~Henry Beston

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Re: August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Nancy » Fri Aug 09, 2013 3:37 pm

I have books and puzzles plus some other things I've decluttered this week here loaded in the car trunk to donate when we get to town.

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Ivy
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Re: August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Ivy » Fri Aug 09, 2013 8:28 pm

I've been dumping trash, I'm washing grson clothes, which will be out of the house in the morning, when they go home.

Is tidying up hot spots, also a form of decluttering, like when you put things away in homes where they belong within your own home? I don't know if I'm considered just moving clutter around or if the "rule" is to get OUT it goes. :?: I'll be putting together an ARC donation box soon or two of them. :idea:

I've been making bookmarks and sending them out of the house, so in a "way" I've been decluttering my arts/crafts supplies because the bookmarks go OUT to pen pals' homes. ;)
Touch the earth, love the earth, her plains, her valleys, her seas. Rest your soul in her solitary places. ~Henry Beston

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Nancy
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Re: August Appointments for Declutter and Organization

Postby Nancy » Sat Aug 10, 2013 1:43 am

I dumped trash today too but it was light stuff and the wind blew it over two diff. times so I just left it until the storm passed.


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