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[rnmom]

@gidgetgh -I'm exactly the same way, I know as soon as something comes into the house if I will use it or not. Every year I'd always get gifts from my in laws and I knew right away if I'd use them and I'd always feel guilty about getting rid of them.

Now we've finally decided to stop exchanging gifts with everyone except our own family of 4 and it's wonderful. Sometimes my mother in law will still send over small items with the kids randomly throughout the year and if it's something I don't like/want it immediately goes into the donate bag. I didn't ask for the items and I no longer feel bad about not keeping things that I don't want. I'm sure it doesn't help that I don't really like my mother in law either. If it was a close friend I might feel worse. 

[rnmom]

@drizzellla -Isn't it amazing how much "stuff" we have? How much we as a society accumulate? I always think that too, whenever I go to a thrift store and see the excess of items that get donated, given away for free, because we simply have too much. It's mind boggling actually when you think about it. I wish that I could say that I don't contribute to the excess, but I do too. 

Some of the girls I work with laugh because just about all my clothes come from thrift stores. I don't buy dirty, torn or stained junk, I buy nice tops and pants, many brand new with the tags on it. There is no reason not to, it saves me money for sure and helps save the environment too, I hope. 

[rnmom]

I went thru some papers that were in the drawer of the hutch in my kitchen and tossed a bunch of them that we didn't need anymore. Tossed a pair of slippers that had holes worn thru the bottom of them.

I gave a 10 gallon turtle tank and accessories to someone I know that does wildlife rescue and rehab. We had turtles for several years when the kids were smaller but don't intend to have them again, so I'm glad someone can use it and it's out of my basement.

Kiddos sold off 22 old PS2 games to a used game shop so they can use the money for something they will use. 

This weekend I'm going to try to take the Christmas stuff down and put it away. I went shopping the day after Christmas which I haven't done in years, and I bought a bit of new stuff half off, lights, ornaments, wrapping paper, bows, table cloth, etc. I should definitely be set for next year for sure. I will go thru my current stuff and see if there's anything that I want to get rid of, but I already got rid of a lot, that's why I wanted some newer items. 

I look forward to getting Christmas out, but it also feels good to put it back away after a month and get back to normal. 

[gidgetgh]

We went to recycling this morning.  It's our normal weekly run, but we had a bunch of stuff today. Lots of cardboard boxes. 

While there, I gave 3 rolls of brand new wrapping paper to Goodwill. 

Then we stopped at the consignment store and I gave them 8 brand new jewelry sized gift boxes that I'd bought from The Container Store this year and didn't need. They were thrilled to get them. I also brought them 4 boxes of candy to put in the candy jar they keep on the counter. 

[Mominohio]

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@gidgetgh wrote:

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@drizzellla wrote:

Well, I tried.

I cleaned, I mean Clorox cleaned, the refrigerator. I wanted to purge so I would have room for the Christmas food and meals. I did purge a bunch of things. But now I know why the refrigerator is always full. I found 3 bottles of maple syrup, 5 bottles of mustards, 4 bottles of steak sauce, 8 bottles of jams and jellies and 6 bottles of apple, cherry or quince butter.

You can't tell I got rid of anything. I guess I should go back and purge some more. I am so discouraged. 

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@drizzellla -why don't you purge down to one of each of those items? Maybe you'll feel encouraged and notice a big difference by doing that. I keep our refrigerator very lean. I don't want it cluttered. 

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I always ask my self 'how' when I find multiple bottles/jars of the same condiments in the fridge. It isn't like I have a bunch of kids, or even a husband that is always messing in the kitchen, bringing up things because they are too lazy to bend over an look for it. I'm obviously the one doing it. I think it is because we have a rather small fridge, and when it gets full, it's hard to find things, no matter how long I stand there and move things around and look. 

When I find multiples, I combine what I can, and I'm not proud of it, but out of desperation, I will throw out the oldest ones, even if not empty, just to get my sanity back. I normally don't waste, but sometimes I just can't stand the clutter in the door of the fridge anymore!

[Mominohio]

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@rnmom wrote:

@drizzellla -it is hard to change our thinking for sure, but rather than just automatically buying specialty items for a recipe or from a small local market maybe you can stop and ask yourself some questions before you buy: Can you substitute another item for just the one item that you need for the recipe? Are you really going to eat that tasty jam from the local market? Do I already have something at  home that will fit the bill?

It might help cut down on the spending and also the clutter. In the meanwhile, rather than tossing out perfectly good items in the fridge, make it a point to use some of it up. Money saved and clutter gone. 

Hubby and I are trying something new this morning. I/we usually get groceries every weekend. Sometimes Kroger, sometimes Meijer, or Aldi, but usually every weekend, we rarely skip a week. There's no really good sales this week and we're pretty well stocked other than staples, so we are trying ordering online and just picking it up outside. 

I have never done this before but today we thought we'd give it a try. Neither one of us felt like spending all morning getting groceries. If it works I might do this every few weeks, either when we don't need as much or if there's no good sales that I want to check out in person. Maybe it will help cut down on how much we spend and also how much we stockpile because I'm just buying the things on the list and not adding a bunch of impulse items to the cart.

I cannot tell you how many times I've gone to the store with a list of a dozen things and come home with a whole cart full of items.That's fine when I want to stockpile really good sale items, but I don't need to do that every week. Hopefully it will work out, we'll see, 

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Part of our declutter plan for the new year is two fold. I need to "declutter" some debt incurred with all the work we did on the house this year. I've set a goal to pay on the note this year, and to do it, I've instituted a no spend period for January through March. 

We have a ton of food in the house, many things a good years supply. So I've set a grocery budget of $50 per week, (and I will allow carry over of unspent money) to pick up fresh produce and dairy. I am planning on buying nothing but fuel, medicine should be need it, medical appointments (already need dental work that wasn't foreseen!) or emergency repairs. We had scheduled tree removal for Dec 23rd, but it has been moved because of unseasonably warm and wet conditions, they cannot get equipment into the yards, so that expense will be paid in 2020, but the cash is set aside for it already. 

I'm hoping by not spending for the first quarter, that I'll stop the stuff coming into the house, use up a lot of things that have a shelf life, and continue to remove unused/unwanted items in my winter purge.

[Mominohio]

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@Bird mama wrote:

I went through the kitchen (dish) cupboards above the countertop earlier this week.  I retired 18 months ago so I no longer needed 2 lunchbox/lunchbags.  I noticed one had duct tape on the inside so that's the one that went, lol.  

I also got rid of some glass items (already recycled).  I tossed an acrylic tumbler with a split in it.  I also got rid of some weird round wooden thing, I don't know if it was some kind of display board for cheese.  I never used it so it was tossed.  

I got rid of some older curtains (sheers).  I recycled a decorative metal tray that I think I got from work.

I need to really assess my cookie sheets and various baking pans.  That will come after Christmas.

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@Bird mama 

I did this a few years ago. 

Many years ago, Cook's Essentials made some really nice quality cook and bakeware (newer stuff isn't that nice overall, in my experience). They had sets of non stick baking pans, that had 9x13, 8x8, and cookie sheets with nice domed lids with handles. All just super quality for the price. 

Well, I had bought two sets of each. I had one set in the kitchen, using it , and one in reserves in the basement for when I baked heavily or the main ones wore out. 

Well, after decades of baking for church events, school events, holiday entertaining and gifting, I did wear out some of the pieces. I ruthlessly went through all my metal bakeware and dumped some, sold some, and restocked my kitchen with the nice and the new. 

It feels odd to not have those great and favorite pieces in reserve anymore, but I came to the realization that I'd never be baking in the mass amounts I had to for many of those functions in the past (I was often feeding 50 people at some events). It was time to toss the embarassing (or I kindly called it my 'well seasoned bakeware") and stock the kitchen with the best of the new stuff in reserves. 

It was freeing, not seeing that stack of extra in the basement. Now, on to doing the same with a lot of other stuff! LOL

[Mominohio]

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@gidgetgh wrote:

My kitchen dishtowels are out of control. And, to be honest, I always have two out on display and I rotate them, but I hardly ever use them.  We use our dishwasher so I don't have need for a ton of them.

Spur of the moment thing, but I just went through the little chest in our kitchen that holds them and several, that are basically new, will be going to Goodwill. Probably 7 or so. 

I still have way too many, but they're cute so I hated to get rid of some of them. 

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@gidgetgh 

Yeah, I have a dish towel thing too. 

I have them for various seasons/holidays, and I finally had to go through them and set a space limit. I bought some of the Kano foldable storage cubes here a few years ago, and I made myself keep one for fall towels (dishcloths, pot holders/mitts included in this), one for holiday/winter, and one for 'regular'. I tried to pare down to just what would fit in those three containers. I did good for awhile, but I noticed it's spilling beyond that again, so I need to reevaluate that this winter again.

My downfall is that when I see them on 80% off clearance and they are nice quality or I like the design, I just can't resist. I also frequent one particular thrift store that gets in so many high end, like new and beautiful dish towels, many that cost $20 each new, and they sell them for 99 cents. I can't resist them either. To the point I have my mom over stocked, my kid overstocked, and would willingly buy for anyone else that would take them! LOL

Then there was my vintage dish towel phase, and that added a ton to the stash.

We don't have a dishwasher, so I use a lot of towels, and with canning, I go through a lot too, but still, I'd be embarrassed to actually take a piece count. It's sinful I'm sure.

[Mominohio]

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@gidgetgh wrote:

I dropped off 3, filled to overflowing, short shopping bags at Goodwill this afternoon. Lots of miscellaneous stuff and, to be honest, some Christmas gifts I received that I knew I'd never use (I feel really guilty). 

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I get that guilty feeling too.

We have cut back our holiday buying considerably (and our receiving has dropped a ton too), but I still get a few little things I don't want because they are duplicates of things I already have and like better, or just will never use. I need to send back a Joan Rivers necklace my mom bought me. It's beautiful and I really like it, but I'll never wear it, and it was like $80. I just can't see her spending that kind of money on things I won't use. I just will return it and have her Q card credited. But I feel guilty doing it, because I know she was trying to find something I would love.

[mousiegirl]

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@Mominohio wrote:

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@gidgetgh wrote:

I dropped off 3, filled to overflowing, short shopping bags at Goodwill this afternoon. Lots of miscellaneous stuff and, to be honest, some Christmas gifts I received that I knew I'd never use (I feel really guilty). 

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I get that guilty feeling too.

We have cut back our holiday buying considerably (and our receiving has dropped a ton too), but I still get a few little things I don't want because they are duplicates of things I already have and like better, or just will never use. I need to send back a Joan Rivers necklace my mom bought me. It's beautiful and I really like it, but I'll never wear it, and it was like $80. I just can't see her spending that kind of money on things I won't use. I just will return it and have her Q card credited. But I feel guilty doing it, because I know she was trying to find something I would love.

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@Mominohio   I just sent DD back with at least ten pairs of earrings that I won't wear any longer, most were Joan Rivers, beautiful, they look wonderful on DD now.  I plan to do this every year, told her to consider them a birthday present.