Murderer

Today I turned my back on my son's friends. I let hubby stuff them into garbage bags and take them away. Never to be seen or heard of again. Time and time again we have tried to separate from them, but to no avail. They were tenacious reminders of days past, but  today was the day it all ended.  We had to physically drag them out of the house, their bodies a dead weight - almost as heavy as our hearts.   Who, you may ask, were the victims that filled out these four huge sacks? Every single one of his stuffed animals.  From Aretha Orangutan to Victoria Albina the Cabbage Patch Doll!   Each one of them gone by my command.  Who knew it could be so hard to separate from bits of faux fur, fabric and stuffing? 

Now, there remains that  trunk full of Lego and Matchbox cars....be afraid little wheeled ones, be very afraid....

Did you ever have one of those days?

With the house ripped apart, my computer decided to rebel...to the point where I had to restore factory settings. Everything over the last couple of months is lost...and of course, I did a major overhaul and sorting of my pictures and files just a couple of months ago...all for naught. I have to redo it.  The reason I have files to even worry about is due to this little gadget I have called "Click Free". It really saved the day today because I was able to retrieve my files from the last time I backed up the computer.  What a sigh of relief it was to see things come back to live on my desktop! The only problem is, that the icons from banks etc. are missing in action. So this is what I have been up to today. Nothing but trouble!

Swiss Chalet...How do I love thee?

Just perusing my copy of the nutritional information from Swiss Chalet. How can you not love this restaurant? Many gluten free options, and the calories are negligible. Supper for me will be a chicken breast (no wing) with sauce (25 calories for 100 ml - I have no idea how many ml there are in those little cups, but who cares? It is gluten free and delish!

My favourite side is Greek Salad - dressing and all, comes in at 220, but we always share, so my share is 110.  Half a baked potato and the deal is done!  Of course, it would be nice to have that lovely multigrain roll, because the heart wants what the heart wants. I have learned a lot, and in this case? My heart wants what it absolutely can not have! ;)

The decluttering is going well. Bathroom vanity is sorted...starting to work on the dresser drawers.  So much to go, so little to stay!

Laundry Room Progress

At least one room is done.  I have already put the new arrangement to the test, and found the configuration much more worker friendly.  There is a table for folding to the left of the hanging tablecloth, an unexpected use of my shelving.  All in all, it is so much easier to wash, dry and fold than it ever was!  I find the rawness of the room rather unsettling, but what can you do. It is what it is.

 What looks like clutter, really isn't!  There is order on them thar shelves!  All of the cleaning supplies are now all together, and I will make an effort to keep my hoarding to a minimum. That being said, it is quite nice knowing that I won't have to buy dishwashing soap for quite a long time!  Since it was being kept in the storage room, in various spots, I had no idea I had over a year's supply.

 No excuse for not ironing. Board, iron and electricity are all available in this corner.

 There is still room for a couple of shelves over the freezer. It looks so tiny in it's new spot! 

 And there is one more little space to fill....

or not!!!

Major MESS!!!

Still working away at the storage room in the basement...fondly referred to as the Hidey Hole, for obvious reasons. The key questions I am asking are:

1. When did I use this last?
2. When will I use it again?

I find this a lot more enlightening than the standard decluttering questions. The truth of the matter is, a lot of the stuff I just keep "because". What a stupid reason for hanging onto something that only gets in your way and collects dust. Minimalism is the way to go. Keep what you use and love, and get rid of the rest!

Now ALL I have to do is apply those questions to this lot!