Just a day in the pantry…

Happy Monday All!!

Hope that everyone had a fabulous weekend.  I volunteered at the Pure American Pageants Ohio State Pageant then had Sunday to myself.  After an exciting day like my Saturday what is left to do?  Declutter my pantry of course!!!

My pantry at time can become a dark hole of food.  Sometimes it is really hard to look in there because it is overwhelming.  See?

  

Scary, huh?

Even thought it seems like a small pantry it is actually very deep shelves.  I dug in to remove everything.  Most of the items I had buried way in the back were expired.  Items that I either bought a few months ago or a year or so ago.  Whoops!!  Here is a photo of a somewhat empty shelf to give an idea on the depth…

  

I managed to organize the shelves by cans, boxes, baking, etcetera.  I did find one of the biggest culprits in the pantry.  Microwave popcorn!  I must have found about 10 half full boxes.  I came up with a solution.  Consolidate in one container.

  
Brilliant idea right??  I thought so too!!  

After a few hours (because I did this during commercials while watching Law and Order SVU) and help from my trusty side kick, Odin, this task was completed.  Here is a picture of my loyal helper, the finished results of the pantry and the bag that is now hauling away my old stuff that was expired….

  

Odin followed me everywhere to make sure I was on task!!

   
 
Now on to the next project…

Have a wonderful week!

-Carrie

DVD Disks versus Netflix. Which one wins?

I apologize for the delay in  blogging.  I started a new job on February 15th and have been adjusting to my new normal.  What is my new normal?  It consists of getting up earlier, learning a completely new area of the industry I have been in and getting to know a new team and a new culture.  And I absolutely love it!!  The company is different from any other company I have ever been with and their core beliefs and my core beliefs align.  I am ever so thankful to my friend Megan for leading me there and all the help that she gave me.  I am so blessed to have her as a friend.

So back to my title and the debate.  DVD versus Netflix.  This can be a tough one.  I knew that I needed to continue my decluttering project.  This was the next step.

I had read that if you have not watched a DVD or Blu-Ray in over a year it is best to discard of it.  Sell it, donate it, etc.  I actually decided to do it another way.  I decided to pull my DVD’s together and see what is currently playing on Netflix and which ones I have not watched for a while.

I promise I am not stupid.  I know that the movies will not stay on Netflix forever.  But they do stay on there for a pretty long time.  Plus, if I have not watched them what good are they doing me on my shelf?  Just collecting dust.

I gathered a pretty good collection and tried to decide what to do.  Do I advertise them on Facebook buy, sell, trade sites?  Do I put them on LetGo or Wallapop?  Or just bring them into Buyback, New Uses or VGMX to sell and either collect cash or use for store credit?  Decisions decisions….

Being the good mom that I am (and please remind my son of this often) I brought them to VGMX.  VGMX  (Video Game and Music Exchange) is one of my son’s favorite places to hang out at.  See, he is a gamer.  He loves to play Magic The Gathering and they have lots of cards over there.  So I thought it would be a good idea to bring them there and then decide if I want cash or store credit.

We got to VGMX and I gave them the DVD’s to give me a value on.  While we waited I let my son look around at the new cards that were there.  Trust me when I say that I only go there because I love my son.  I feel like Penny from The Big Bang Theory whenever I go into a store like that.  Totally out of place but kind of get what is going on around there.

They only took a few minutes to determine the value of my DVD’s.  It was less than I wanted but I was okay with giving the store credit to my son so he could buy more cards for his favorite hobby.  I can tell you that he was more than happy to use that.

Three good things happened from that.  He was very thankful.  I was happy to get some more stuff out of my house.  And they have more movies to sell.  I think it was a win win for all involved.

Have a wonderful rest of the week!

-Carrie

The Ultimate Bookworm

I will admit, I am a bookworm. 

I wrote a post a few weeks ago about getting rid of books.  Today I took the plunge.  

I am off of work for two weeks before my new job starts.  That’s right, I have a new job!!  I’m excited about it but I am just as excited about a couple of weeks off before my new job begins.  So I can get a number of things accomplished! First thing was to get my books out of the house that I am not using.

Brendan and I went around the house and gathered the books that we are no longer reading.  I thought that we may only have a small amount.  We were wrong!!  We had a tote full of books:

  
I’m so glad that he is strong.  That tote was heavy!!  We knew that there were several places we could go to in order to get rid of the books.  We chose to go here:

  
I figured that we could sell what we could here and then donate the leftovers to a library or a nursing home.  It was worth a shot right?

I have never sold books here before.  We walked in to figure out the process.  They had a nice section where you could bring your books to sell.  I let them know that we were book selling virgins and needed to know what to do 😄

They were super nice to us.  They explained that with me showing my ID they will look through my books and give me an offer.  We did have to stay there until the offer was made.  That was fine by me.  Let me wander a place full of books?  Um, yes please.

It was a quick process.  I looked around and about 15 minutes later they had an offer for me.  They bought all of my books!!  I did not expect that.  Final offer was $25.  I thought about it for a few seconds and accepted the offer.  I figured it this way, if I would have brought them back they would clutter the house again.  I rather take the money. They also gave me a coupon for 10% off of a purchase for selling my books there.  

We went to the checkout and they gave us our money.  It was a super easy process and I recommend it to anyone wanting to declutter their books.

-Carrie

Time to “Work It Out”

TGIF!!!!

I cannot express this any clearer or louder if I tried.  It has truly been a horrible work week.  Lots of things happening and some are good and some not so good.

So what can be the best way to de-stress yourself?  One way I do is to take control of something that I can have absolute control over.  One thing that no one can take away from me.  One thing for me to handle that I can get taken care of and have a feeling of accomplishment.  For me, I chose my top drawer of my Ped.

My Ped is a rolling file cabinet that we have by our desks.  Our workplace does not allow us to have personal items on the desk.  So we hide the items we need in our Ped.  Here is what the top of my Ped looked like the other day:

I know.  A hot mess of clutter and disorganization.  And some bling.  Because it is necessary.  In between different items I was working on I would stop and straighten it up a bit.  Just a little bit here and there.  Sometimes even counting five items at a time to remove.  Call it my OCD but sometimes it just works out the best that way.

By the end of my day I had this finished masterpiece to admire and feel accomplished about:

By reorganizing a few items, moving a few things to the stock file cabinet and by pitching a lot of items that I did not need I have achieved this final product.

I felt much better.  I may not have a lot of control on what my future holds in the work force I have one little thing accomplished.  Some people say that cleaning calms them down.  I never believed that was possible.  I think for me this was just a zen moment.  A chance to look away from the other things on my “To Do” list and to have an item added to my “It’s Done” list.

Everyone, have a wonderful weekend.  We all DESERVE it!!

-Carrie

Weekend of Organizational Madness

Hello Everyone!!

Sorry for the lag of time from when I last blogged.  I have been sick for a week with whatever my husband thought would be a great idea to bring home.  There was some kind of virus going around and it finally came to pay me a visit.  Oh joy, Oh bliss…

Before the illness knocked me out for a week I was on a mission last Saturday.  I have been doing great with disposing of at least one bag a day but I wanted to get organized as well.  I went to my trusty Pinterest account and searched for decluttering ideas that were cool and could work for a busy person like me.

The post I loved the best was the Organize From Items At A Dollar Store.  It had two things I like.  Organizing and the Dollar Store.  So after watching Brendan bowl on Saturday we went back and I jumped on Pinterest to see what I really wanted.  Once I found what I wanted it was off to the Dollar Tree we went.  I bribed Eric with a trip to Home Depot in order for him to come with me.  Call it a married people date 😉

We dropped Brendan off at his friend Josh’s house and went to Dollar Tree first.  Since I kind of knew what I was looking for but did not know exactly the route I was going to take I was nice and left Eric in the car.  Don’t worry.  I left the keys in, heat on and music playing.  There was no cruelty to the husband on this mission of organization.

I roamed the aisles of the Dollar Tree and found some of what I wanted but not quite everything I was looking for.  It still did not stop me from buying $20 of items for the house….

From there we went to Home Depot and looked around.  We got the major items we needed from there but I still did not find what I really wanted.  I was trying to describe it to Eric without using a picture.  Yep, that was hard.  Luckily that man knows how my mind works and found the 3M hooks and explained how we could use them.  I agreed to pick them up and try them.  Actually I wanted to see a picture of them being used.  That way I could show Eric and he could help me out…

We get home and as a thank you I made Eric homemade tortilla chips for a snack and roast for dinner.  We all know that the way to a mans heart is through his stomach.  I took the day to declutter the refrigerator, declutter the one cupboard and start to tackle the junk drawer.  That is perhaps the worst part of the process.  I am convinced that the stuff in there multiplies like rabbits do.  It can be overwhelming but I just took it one item at a time.  Tried not to get overwhelmed.

After dinner I sat down for a break.  It was then that Eric got up and arranged my measuring cups and measuring spoons for me exactly as I wanted them.  Here is a picture of them:

Sorry for the photo being sideways.  My phone and I are having an argument.  But you get the idea.  This method will keep these items out of the drawers and they are easier to get at.  That cupboard will be turned into my baking cupboard very soon.  As soon as I find other items to put my flour, sugar, baking soda, etc. into.  I am looking for cute containers that are durable and look nice.

The search continues…..

Let me know what you think or if you have any cool decluttering ideas.  I would love to add input for my blog…

-Carrie

The EASIEST Room to DeClutter

Hello Everyone!!

Hope that you all had a great weekend.  I spent mine with my parents in Cleveland.  My dad is having a lot of medical issues lately so I try to get up there and see them at least twice a month.

My goal was to do some decluttering with them while I was there.  It did not happen.  They have been pretty good at getting rid of items (much better than me!) so as I was trying to think of things to help declutter, my dad had an ocular migraine.  This is when the vision gets blurry and distorted.  He had the episode in church and my mom brought him home.  We spent the rest of Sunday keeping an eye on him and I ended up cooking dinner to help them out.  No time to help them declutter an area.

I did arrive home yesterday to the thought that I am behind.  Way behind on this project.  I do not like that thought whatsoever.  So I disappeared to my bedroom after the college football game started to find a good start to my one bag project.  I emptied all of the bathroom waste baskets and a few other wastebaskets.  It filled half of a trash bag.  So my thought was “Where to next?”.  I looked down my hallway and it dawned on me…

The teenagers bedroom!!!

No one ever wants to enter the teenagers bedroom…  Never ever!!  Especially a teenage boys room.  You never know what in the world you will encounter.  And from what I heard it does not get any better the older they get.  My friend Stacey is my confidant on that one.  She told me that when her oldest son moves out she will have to napalm the room!!!

I took the brave risk and tackled the room of the teenager.  It is by far the easiest room to clean out.  There is so much crap in there.  Tons of stuff.  You know when you ask the kids if they got everything out of the room and they said yes.  They lied!!!

Final result, the bag has been filled.  Items have been disposed of.  And the kid has a cleaner room.  Hallelujah!!!

Even Pageant Girls Have To Clean Their Closets…

I took a different route yesterday on my decluttering mission.  I cleaned out my pageant closet…

For some people it may not be a big deal to clean out a closet.  For someone who has competed in pageantry it is a HUGE deal.  When you have items that you have worn for competition it is harder.  Each piece has a sentimental value.  It may have been a gown that you won a crown in.  It may have been that power suit that gave you confidence in the interview room.  It may be that appearance outfit that it was the most meaningful appearance that you ever made.  Point of story.  It is hard.

There are many decisions to be made when cleaning out the pageant closet.  Do you want to save the outfit to pass on to your children one day?  Do you want to donate the clothes to another person or an organization that gives them to girls for homecoming or prom?  Do you want to sell them yourself?  My decision was to bring them to my friend Ashley who will sell them for me.

Now, is it very nice to take the items from your house and clutter someone else’s house with it?  Not really but since she is using it for business purposes it is okay.

We took our hour drive to Ashley’s house to see Gary (her husband), Avanlee (her daughter) and Jackson (her baby bump).  It was nice to visit with them again.  They recently moved so we got to see the new house.  We had dinned and then we promptly put Eric (my husband) and Brendan (my son) to work to help them move furniture and lift carpet.  As a result, we helped them remove three bags of trash from their house, three rolls of padding from the carpet, five rolls of carpet and I did them a favor and re-installed Avanlee’s car seat for them.  She is now in the new vehicle nice and tight.

And for those who are wondering, I did NOT use a trash bag to bring clothes over there.  I used a garment bag.  It was very heavy by the time it was filled but my hopes is that all the clothes sell and sell quickly.

Have a great weekend.  Take a challenge this weekend and declutter part of a room this weekend.  How many bags can you fill??

-Carrie

 

Oh Books, How I Love Thee….

I had a great conversation with my friend Betsy yesterday.  She follows my Pinterest account and saw my saved pins on decluttering.  She contacted me because she thought it would be a great topic for me to blog about.  I lead her in the direction of this blog and now she is a loyal follower!!  Yay!!

As we were chatting yesterday we got on the subject of books and getting rid of them.  Betsy has done a great job of it.  She had over 500 books when she moved in with her partner and now, because of her beloved Kindle, the amount of physical books she has are now reduced.  I asked her what she did with them.  She had some that she sold and some that she gave away along with magazines.

Anyone who knows a book lover knows how hard it is to part with them.  Books can be best friends for some people.  Books can give them their escape from reality.  Books have nostalgia to an easier time.  And as much as I love my iPad I still love the touch of the pages on a book.  Owning books is a bond I have with my niece, Lorilea.  Whenever I am in town, we make a trip to Ollie’s Bargain Outlet and buy a book.

After researching the best way to go through books and decided what to keep and what to give away or sell these are the questions I found most helpful when decluttering books.

1. Is it a duplicate? – If it is, you already have one.  Just donate the other.  Duh!!
2. Is the material dated? – I was watching an episode of Modern Family last night and it answered this question.  The one daughter had to do a report for school without the use of the computer or internet.  She received a lower grade because she had to use out of date encyclopedias.  Point of story – if it is dated, its got to go…
3. Have I even read the book? – I have received books as gifts because a person may have thought that I would like to read it.  I am a picky reader.  It has to interest me.  If I have never read it and have no intention to read it, it needs to go as well.
4. Will I read it again? – Is it a book I really enjoyed that I have to pick it up and read it over and over and over again.  If so, it can stay.  Otherwise, bye bye book.  Or compromise and buy the digital copy on your Kindle or iPad and say goodbye to the paper copy.
5. Why am I keeping it? – Very important question to ask yourself.  Are you keeping it for sentimental value?  Is it the last gift a deceased friend or relative gave to you?  If that is the case, you have a free pass to keep the book.
6. Can I buy it on a Kindle or the iPad? – Another very important question.  I have a series of books that I purchase from when I was younger.  A set of Christian books that are not and will not be converted to digital.  As a result, they have to stay on my shelf and be read at my leisure.
7. Can I borrow it at the library? – Another very valid question.  If you can rent it you don’t necessarily need to keep your copy.  Unless you read it over and over and over again.  My beloved Christian book set is not in the library so yet another reason to keep them…
8. What would you rate the book? – If you love to rate items, and I do, then rate your books with a 5 star method.  If it is more than three stars, keep it.  If it is less, pitch it or pass it along.
9. Has the book served its purpose? – Were you looking for some self motivation?  Were you looking for self improvement?  If so, gift someone with the knowledge that you received from your book.
10. Is there room for your books? – Let’s be honest.  Belle from Beauty and the Beast has the most amazing library but most of us do not.  If there is no room left then sorry folks, the books have got to go.

If you truly need your books I cannot judge.  I have certain ones I absolutely must have and keep.  But after going through this list and finding that you absolutely cannot part with them I will extend a challenge to you.  I challenge you to hide a box of books away.  If you do not miss them after the 6 months then send them on their merry little way.  They are already packaged and ready to go.

-Carrie

Virtual Clutter vs. Physical Clutter. Which is worse??

I did a small experiment over the weekend.  For some of you it may not seem like an experiment but to me it was a big deal.

I did not check my emails over the weekend.

Oh the horrors!  Gasping!  How can that be?

Did my OCD kick in with seeing the red bubbles showing that there were messages?  Oh yes it did.  But I reminded myself of my experiment and to keep calm.  Monday would be here before I knew it.  Because it is evil like that….

After a full weekend here is what my phone screen looked like:

And yes, you are seeing that correctly.  I had 299 emails waiting for me.  299!!  That is crazy!!

So I took some time to go through the emails.  And about 5% were actually emails that I needed.  The rest were advertisements.  Ugh….

I felt like it took more time for me to go through the emails versus actually de-cluttering something in my house.  How can that be?  It’s only electronic right?  Wrong!!

I think that my emails are starting to do what my paper mail has been doing for years.  Multiplying like rabbits.  And when I go to unsubscribe, I get even more.  Something that people always warn you about.  I am here to verify that it is true…

So what do you think is worse?  Virtual clutter or physical clutter?  The forum is yours…

-Carrie

 

That Pesky Kitchen Drawer

Another day, another bag in the books….

I finished another trash bag today.  This bag was to get rid of the boxes and leftover containers from the weekend and items around the house that needed to be thrown away.

I decided to not only get the common items that need to be thrown away I decided to tackle that pesky kitchen drawer.  You know the one.  The one that everyone has even if everyone does not admit it.  It is the infamous junk drawer.  The one that items get thrown into and will eventually be cleaned out.

It is amazing what can be found in this drawer.  In mine it was filled with gum, candy canes, suckers, cough drops and other cooking items.  I had no clue I was such a gum hoarder.  I guess it is in my thrill of finding sales that I stock up on gum and other food items.

The first thing I did was look to see if there were expiration dates.  I have always heard that chewed gum can last seven years in your stomach.  I figured that if it could last that long in your stomach there is no expiration date.  Boy was I ever wrong.  There are expiration dates on gum and on cough drops.  Who knew?  After I discovered that it was a lot easier to purge the drawer of any loose candies and everything that expired.  As a result, there was barely anything left in the drawer.  I was shocked with how much I had in there.

Now the only items left in that drawer are instructions for some of my appliances and small notepads so I can jot notes if needed.  And what is gone is a bunch of extra unnecessary clutter.

I recommend that if you are going to tackle that drawer, make sure to take the time and look for a clue of what can make it easier to get rid of.  For me, it was expiration dates.

Have a great night!

-Carrie