2024 Organizing & Decluttering Thread

www.facebook.com/share/p/Pr5LForHwiSqmAgf/?mibextid=oFDknk

Here's our booths if anyone is interested since I talk about it so much on here

The holiday version of the Cleaning Grand Plan kicks off today

During this week, we kick off holiday prep with lists, lists and more lists. We’ll print helpful calendars and forms for Christmas organizing and begin to create a Christmas planner.
This week’s cleaning focus is the front porch: We’ll clean and organize the area around the front door so that our home will be ready to welcome visitors during the holiday season.
Ready to jump into List Week? Let’s get organized with the Holiday Grand Plan!
Holiday Prep Focus: List Week
Print the Holiday Grand Plan calendars for reference.
Make the following lists:
Gifts to be given, amount to spend (include family, friends, school, church, etc)
Christmas card list (computerize it!) Print list and update it, if needed. Decide how many cards are needed.
Visits to make
Parties/Entertaining
Menus for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, other parties
Goodies for Sharing/Gifts. Decide how much needs to be made and divide it between the weeks from now through December 1.
Favorite Meals of Family members for freezing ahead.
Long-term shopping list divided into: canned foods, perishables for each holiday, linens and dishes, decorations, etc.
Create a Christmas planner to organize holiday planning.
CLEANING/ORGANIZING AREA: FRONT PORCH
This week’s assignment, from Katie Leckey’s Cleaning Grand Plan:
The front porch is an important asset to your home. First impressions are important. If the entrance to your home is a mess, then it doesn’t matter how organized the inside is, you’re still perceived as a “messie”. Assemble your supplies, broom, window cleaner, screwdrivers, paper for lists, trash can.
Start at the front door. Is there a dead rug for wiping feet? Is it savable? Toss it into the driveway for hosing down, into the trash, or into the laundry basket.
Remove everything from the porch that you can. Trash bags, recyclables, kids’ toys, those boxes that go to Goodwill. Set things in the grass if you have to but get them off the porch.
Is there a swing? Look at it closely. Are the hinges catching on clothes? Is it a disaster waiting to collapse? A quick turn of the screwdriver can fix that. How about the cushions? If cleanable, put them with the rug for hosing down. If trash, then trash them. Write down “get new cushions” on your list.
Take the screens off the windows. Put them with the rug & cushions for hosing. Using the broom, sweep every windowsill & doorframe.
Sweep down the outside walls. Look up high-are there cobwebs in the corners? Sweep ’em down!
After doing the walls & frames, then you can sweep off the porch itself. Don’t forget the steps. Open the front door and sweep off the sill too. Do you need to change the light bulb? Put new bug lights on your list.
Wash the outside of the windows. While they’re drying, get out the hose & spray off the rug, screens & swing cushions. Put the screens back on the windows.
Now step back and admire what you’ve done so far. Look at the mess in the yard that came off the porch. Does any of it belong back on there? Do you have to keep the weekly trash there or can you hide it somewhere else? Toys in the back yard? Perhaps a big bucket for front yard toys? Only you know what can stay there.
Do the hedges in front of the porch need trimming? Either put that on your list for the next nice Saturday or get out your clippers & trim them up now.
Does the front door need painting? How about its screen? New hardware can make a big difference. What about the mailbox? Does the doorbell work?
Write down any fixes and set a specific time to do them. And then do them when the time comes!
As long as you’ve done this much, go ahead and look at the sidewalks & driveway. Too much junk? Remove it to the backyard. Sometimes it’s easier to hose down the driveway than to sweep it
Now go out to the street and really look at what you’ve accomplished. Aren’t you proud to live there now? You should be! Head inside for a well deserved rest.

I sort of started on this. I really don't have many people to send cards to, and have found that I already own enough Christmas cards to send without buying more. 

*I also still don't need to buy more wrapping paper yet. Trying to whittle that stash down.

I haven't decided how much to spend in total on the holidays, but each year I've been trying to lessen it, lower expectations, and be more realistic on what is affordable for my family to spend on one day's gifts.


Yes! I been working on Thanksgiving's menu already. 

It's been so blah and robotic and same-same for years. But...tradition. Ugh. And asking family what they want to eat? A list of desserts is all I get. 


Thank you for posting these lists. They really help.



Woo-Hoo! So much progress!

What if instead of giving them a blank slate, have them list their favorite things from specific categories: main entree, starch side dish, vegetable side dish, appetizer, beverage, dessert? An alternative to this would be for you to list the options they can choose from for each category and the items that get the most votes is what you’re going to prep and serve.

I got a huge tote of photos and memorabilia out of my house yesterday. We had a BBQ at my brother's house, so I grabbed it. I told my siblings to take what they wanted. Anything left is going in the trash.

I have my fingers crossed that my son will drive here later this month. I have a pile of stuff for him that won't fit in a suitcase.

Yesterday I was in one of those moods where getting rid of things is easier than normal. I went through some of my clothes and have three or four boxes of clothes to donate and some other random things. Today I saw a post on FB asking for household items for a woman and her kids who have left a violent situation. I know we have some of the things that were on the list that are in the crawl space so I am going to gather some things for them as well. If they don't end up needing them they can be donated elsewhere. I am just at the point right now where I am tired of dealing with stuff. The crawl space is horrible and I really need to go through it so at least this will be a start and helping someone.

Sold a few things so they are posted and out of the house - woohoo! Nothing like making a little bit of cash especially at the moment cos the bills keep rolling in 🤨

Have also been making a HUgE effort to not buy a tonne of craft items and make myself use my stash instead. Also trying to finish the projects I have lying around - I’m great at getting 75% done and then really procrastinating with the last little parts or pages.

Also did some smaller home repairs and once I’d made the repair I got rid of any screws/tools/glues etc I no longer need for anything instead of storing them just in case for the next 20 years until I don’t remember what the screw goes to and the glue dries up.

Threw out the random dishwasher extension part I will never use.

Cleared out two serving platters to take to the markets as I never use them. Kept one for sentimental reasons, the rest of my platters etc now fit so much better in their cupboard AND I can actually easily reach in and get the things I need without having to move things out of the way first.

Dropped 5 boxes off at Goodwill, have another box going. trying to make room in shed for more units and so I can maybe work in it.

Good answer! 

I’ve been trying to use up all of the somewhat old marshmallows, the ones that aren’t too far gone, by mixing them half and half with a new bag in Rice Krispie treats. Somehow we always end up with three open bags at the end of the summer at the cabin and I don’t really know how that happens since we don’t have a fire pit anymore. 🤔

Do y'all save plastic shopping bags? If yes, what do you end up doing with them? I have been taking them to flea market we have booths in so they can reuse them but they don't need any right now. Should I just hang on to them? Just take them to store to recycle?

Should add we do use some for trash bags so can't get rid of all of them, just a fast majority

We have a bag of bags but once that's full, we bring them to the recycling bin at the grocery store. The ones we save are used for small trash (chicken bones for instance) and for scooping the cat litter and cleaning up yucky cat messes.

I'm not done - but I've gone through ALL the clothes and I have a large (black)bin bag full of ones that are leaving. They won't actually leave my house for a bit because my dds want to have a look and see if they want any and the older won't be here for a couple of weeks but whatever they don't take will be donated.

Taking a break and then will tackle the shelves and cubbies in the closet. I did find two things that DH needs to hang on the bedroom wall so hopefully he can take care of that tonight

I should probably go through mine - I have quite a few coats/jackets in there that I only wear if I travel in the winter (and only to cold places - I live in Florida) - I don't do that often but my sister does live in upstate Vermont and my kids live in VA where it does sometimes snow (and we'll probably eventually end up moving there also). They are really NICE coats/jackets that would be expensive to replace and are classic styles and in excellent condition (since they aren't used often) so I lean towards keeping them but...I dunno...

I should probably at least pull them out and make sure I don't have duplicates at least

Working on my arts and crafts fair things today. Trying to combine unsold items into junk journal kits. I know I have at least one sold.