Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

Days 24 - 26  ~ January 24 - 26, 2010

This sucks right now and I don't want to do it! My baby has been so grumpy and draining me! I know it's just an excuse, but seriously I feel like this isn't worth my effort right now! Unfortunately I have some very good friends that are keeping me accountable and are on my butt!

30 books! Now leave me alone until tomorrow!

Sixty

Day 18 - 23 ~ January 18 - 23, 2010

You thought I forgot or gave up didn't you? Believe me, I want to! I'm finding this task quite irritating and annoying right now. Have I mentioned that doing anything consistently is another one of my big issues? There are about a million other things I'd rather be doing! Right now I feel like I'm wasting my time on this little endeavor... but I will push on because I said I would!

Okay, you see I've got two pictures here... If I have to itemize them both for you than I swear I will give up! So to save us both from seeing me fail right now I'm going to have to ask you to trust me on the fact that in those two pictures combined there are 60 things! I raided some kitchen cabinets and these are thr fruits of my labor. If you're curious about something go ahead and ask and I'll do my best to identify it for you!

Backyardigans

Day 17 ~ January 17, 2010

I wonder how many things are really in that box in my kitchen... it's starting to look a lot more empty!

1. Outdated Schwan's catalog

2. Mickey mouse game

3. Old water colors

4. My old watch

5. Wood crafting balls

6. Girl swimming suit

7. Small squirt bottle

8. Christmas cards

9. Old shoe box

10. Old coloring pages

Lava

Day 16 ~ January 16, 2010

More stuff from the kitchen box!

1. Old bottle of mousse

2. Trick or treat bags

3. Lava rocks

4. Hand cream

5. White rope handle for a bin

6. Broken Christmas ornament

7. Suede cording for crafting

8. Baggie of old medicine

9. Coloring sticker book

10. Roll of old crafting vinyl

Remember

Day 15 ~ January 15, 2010

For the next few days I'm going to attack the box that is sitting in the corner on my kitchen counter. It's the place where everyone tosses stuff when they don't know what to do with it!

1. Glow Board empty box

2. Broken squirt bottle

3. Play dress up necklace

4. Purple bendy dude

5. White hankerchief

6. Leftover Christmas treats

7. Bottle of dried out paint

8. Broken top

9. Outdated church manual

10. Vinyl lettering "Remember"

Can you hear me now?

Day 14 ~ January 14, 2010

Two weeks! Today I got to throw away some of my hubby's stuff! :)

1. Computer keyboard

2. Mouse

3. An almost empty tub of stuff to patch holes in walls.

4. Broken flashlight

5. A stereo with a missing face plate.

6. Broken intercom system

7. Broken tail light from an Infinity Q45.

8. Insulated bottle carrier

9. Glass jar from a candle

10. Plastic water bottle

Peep

Day 13 ~ January 13, 2010

He did it! He finally read my blog! My husband was a little worried though when he thought he saw something of his in one of my pictures! Hehe! He gave me a warning this morning about throwing away his stuff. He also said that he may also decide to start gathering 10 things here and there to get rid of. :)

Let me also just mention right now that I am not feeling this activity the last few days. I'm in total resistance right now! So, I'm just going through the motions to say I did it... I hope I get back into being enthusiastic soon!

I raided a couple of kitchen cabinets where some things were hiding...

1. Old trick-or-treating basket.

2. Omega-3 kids vitamins

3. Gummy Bear vitamins

4. Expired anti-diarrhea medication.

5. Easter candy including blue bunny Peeps! Did you know they have heart shaped Peeps? Marshmallow Peeps Vanilla Creme Hearts 9ct.

6. Sale ads

7. SweetTart chicks

8. Crunch n Munch from 2 Christmas' ago!

9. Gluten free pancake mix

10. Leftover halloween candy

Release Your Wrinkles

Day 12 ~ January 12, 2010

Today has not been a good day... I wanted to just throw in the towel! I keep asking myself, "What's the point?" These little things feel insignificant... but I know in the end it will add up to something huge... I must keep going!

1. Information packet on adoption from China.

2. A Walmart sack full of yarn for crocheting.

3. Some old dried up 3D glitter glue pens.

4. Double sided adhesive.

5. More stickers!

6. Those pink and blue puff balls are actually some special fuzzy yarn... they get a number all to themselves.

7. A sack full of all kinds of promtional items for promoting my candle business... that I quit doing over 5 years ago!

8. Wrinkle releaser... I prefer to just wear my wrinkles proudly.

9. An old mug from my candle selling days.

10. A couple of empty boxes that had ornaments in them gifted to my boys Christmas 2008.

Whew! Glad that's done for today!

Empty Bottles

Day 11 ~ January 11, 2010

Can you believe 100 things are gone?! Wow! It feels awesome to be ridding myself of all this stuff! My bathroom and the area outside my garage door were my target areas today.

1. Who doesn't love a party? We have 3 of them that happen in the month of November. So I figure it's worth it to spring for one of those DIY helium tanks and use it for all three birthdays. What I hadn't figured out was what I was supposed to do with the tank afterwards. Once the last few drops have been sufficiently drained by my 14 year old doing a chipmunk impression the tanks have just hung around in the garage. I finally figured out today that the recycler will take them. This in turn prompted me to go ahead and sign up for recycling service! Yay! It will be worth the monthly $10 fee to know that I am doing my part to keep our planet cleaner.

2. If you know me, you know I hate to clean! That's why I have left that milk crate full of cleaning supplies untouched since we moved into our house over 5 years ago! I've actually eyed that crate quite a few times and knew I needed to get rid of it's contents... but there was just never anything pushing me to do it.

3. Calgon... take me away. I bought this with the belief that it would actually take me away to some relaxing place, but really when I plopped myself down in the bath water I couldn't stand the smell! Maybe I just did a bad job picking a good fragrance. I'd be willing to give it another try with this scent Calgon Moisturizing Spa Bath - Ocean Breeze: 12 OZ as long as it comes with that guy on the box! ;)

4. Empty prescription bottles from my bathroom counter.

5. A bath puff with an old almost empty bottle of body foam wash. Been in a basket on the ledge of my tub collecting dust for way too long. Maybe I should change the name of this one to a dust puff!

Once again I was interrupted mid post... and now it's the next day. I swear I am not going to give up on this!

6. Empty bubble bath and shower gel bottles. My kids have been playing with these for months in the bathtub... but they also have about a hundred other things they play with in there!
7. An old game board and hidden picture coloring book I found stashed together covered in dust.
8. A couple of almost empty bottles of moisturizer. I always think I can get every last drop out in an effort not to be wasteful!
9. What's left of the pump that goes to that exercise ball I got rid of almost a week ago!
10. And yet another empty bottle! This one is from Bath & Body Works... a gift from my friend because she knows I rarely splurge on myself. I suppose it can go now.

Slime

Day 10 ~ January 10, 2010

I've been feeling a little like giving up over the weekend, but I muscled through it!

1. Yeah, you got something to say about my empty laundry soap bottle? So what if it's like the 5th or 6th empty one I've come across! This one was on a shelf in the garage... I actually thought it might have been full! Haha!

2. That is a plastic basket full of diabetic supplies. More specifically, the supplies I used when pregnant with my 5 year old. Another thing I found on a shelf in the garage. I hadn't disposed of them because I was unsure the proper way to dispose of the used syringes... I just figured out that the proper way was to just toss them in the garbage can. Please don't yell at me if that was inappropriate!

3. More books! These are ones that I'm just not up to reading... they are just too long!

4. I know its hard to see in this picture... but there is a container of old orange colored slime I came across in a cabinet in my kitchen. I'm sure slime isn't the only thing contained in there. I assure you it wasn't me that was hanging on to it... but it is me who has thrown it away!

5. My husband really can do very thoughtful things for me on occassion. Especially if it somehow involves electronic devices. There in front of those books is a brand new purple cover for my phone. Purple happens to be my favorite color. When I came across this in the garage I asked him about it and he told me he had purchased it for me, but when he got it he realized it was the wrong one. It looks like I'm not the only one that has trouble returning things. Although in his defense he said it only cost about $1.50. The shipping on the other hand was around $4.50. There was no sense in throwing more money away on this thing by paying to have it shipped back!

6. I love you, you love me... make it stoppppppppp! Please just make him go away! I can't take it anymore! I know my favorite color is purple... but that doesn't mean I approve of an irritating dinosaur covered in it!

 7. BINGO! How I've longed to yell that word, but it has never happen. This girl loves a good game of bingo! One of my best friends surprised me for my birthday years ago with a whole day planned full of fun! One of those fun things was playing bingo! Too bad she couldn't rig the game so that I won... that's okay, I still had fun! And you guessed right, that's my purple dauber! Been up in my cabinet hoping for some more bingo action for years!  I guess it's time to let it go. I suppose if I ever go to play bingo again I can get another one.

8. I'm a fabric fanatic! This particular piece is from Ikea and is part of their Saralisa line. I bought this almost exactly a year ago when I was redecorating my oldest son's room as his birthday present. He's happy that I decided against using this!

9. For a brief moment I considered humming out a tune on this harmonica, but then my inner germaphobe stopped me. I'd rather just let those thoughts go along with the instrument.

10. R.I.P. May all this junk rest in peace along with that old styrofoam headstone!

Bungee Glasses

Day 9 ~ January 9, 2010

It's time to play catch up after the weekend. I did my 10 things both days, I just didn't get a chance to update the blog. And here I am typing one-handed once again!

I'm looking at this picture and counting the items trying to figure out why I thought I had 10 things! If I count those pajamas all together as 1 item I've only got 8. See what happens when you wait until the end of the day... you forget how to count. Luckily there are several pairs of pajamas there so technically I'm covered for my 10 things! Whew! That was a close one!

1. Pajamas ~ gone!

2. Pajamas ~ gone!

3. Pajamas... These came from my neighbor who generously passes on her son's outgrown clothes to us. These are definitely ones that fit my boys, but they are polyester. We can't do polyester because of my son's severe eczema. We will send them on to someone who can use them.

4. Hmmm... it's looking like I may just have a holiday thing to get rid of every day of the year! I do think this is a really cute snowman wreath holder for the front door, but the only thing it's ever held for me is a bunch of dust in the garage. Another thoughtful gift from my MIL who always has her place decorated so beautifully. I guess I just prefer to decorate with Legos, dirty clothes and kids!

5. Who's up for a fishing trip? Here's a pole for you, although I have to admit that it seems to make a much better eye poker outter than fishing pole... just ask my left eye.

6. It's almost laughable how long that paper towel holder has been around. I bought it to paint and hang in my first home. Have I mentioned I've been married for almost 17 years?

7. Such a colorful sand sifting toy... I'm sick and tired of kicking that thing around the garage!

8. You can use a bungee cord to strap sunglasses onto your baby and they still will find a way to pull them off! That's pretty much what these are, sunglasses with a bungee strap to hold them on tight. I imagine if I had my sunglasses bungeed to my head I probably wouldn't like them either!

9.  Brain Quest: 1000 Questions & Answers to Challenge the Mind/2nd Grade/Ages 7-8/Deck 1 & 2 Now this is pretty cool... but not when it's been sitting in the hallway on a shelf for long enough to accumulate an inch of dust! I think my 13 year old mastered these years ago... now we will pass the brilliance onto another.

10. Why yes, that is a piece of "furniture". I guess my husband wasn't far off when he expressed his concerns of me emptying the house! Okay, but let me clarify about this particular piece of "furniture". I am using that term very loosely. I ordered this lovely piece from a catalog and imagined something very different. Yeah, it had the dimensions listed, but who reads that stuff anyway?! I was so looking forward to my shelf/hook/bench combo piece that was going to serve so many wonderful purposes. A place for the kids to hang their backpacks after school. A nice little shelf to put their shoes all neatly inside. Here's an idea of what I really had in mind when I bought it. Mini Hall Tree and Storage Bench Ummm yeah... I'm done with this thing and maybe someday I can own it's upgraded version!

Twinkie Boy

Day 8 ~ January 8, 2010

First thing this morning my husband asked me when I was going to start ebaying that pile that is accumulating in the garage. Bah hahaha! I said never, but that I'd be calling the Salvation Army soon to pick it up! I'm not doing this to make money... I'm doing this to better myself and our home. You can't put a price tag on that!

The next thing he told me is that our neighbor is having a garage sale. Noooooooo! Say it isn't so! If he brings one more piece of junk into this house he's going to get it! He told me he has to restock because soon there will be nothing left for me to get rid of. You've seen the pictures, you and I both know that's NOT true!

Hmmm... do you think the neighbor would mind if I moved my pile out to my driveway and stuck a sign on it that said FREE? I mean is it rude for me to piggy back off of his sale and just give stuff away?

1. I really am embarrassed to admit that Twinkie Boy there has been in my possession for probably over 8 years. He's made to hold a Twinkie. I bought him as a gag gift, but it looks like the joke ended up being on me! Hey, at least I'm not hoarding real Twinkies... or wolffing them down!

2. More stickers! Very cute and colorful stickers. Stickers that I have no purpose for!

3. I got suckered in and bought that clamp on purple lamp during a back-to-school sale. I figured it would be perfect for clamping onto the bottom of a cabinet and giving me more light when crafting in the kitchen. The problem is the pole would never stay in the clamp... that is unless I came up with something to craft to keep it there! Oh geez, I crack myself up!

4. Oooh say can you seeeeeeee that those festive stars would be so cute worked into an adorable hair bow for a sweet little girl? That's what I thought, but I'm really totally over that idea now.

5. Who doesn't like to have a collage of pictures on their refridgerator? That's why I bought that little box full of acrylic magnetic picture frames. I kept telling myself I was going to print out some pictures of the kids to put in them.

6. Speaking of acrylic... I used to get my nails done all the time. Truth be told, I had dreams of being a hand model at one time. I was told on a regular basis by strangers that I should be... but it's been a few years since I've heard that. Time and motherhood is not kind to the hands. Anyway, at some point I was given that handy little can/bottle opener so I wouldn't break a nail.

7. Happy Holidays! I can't seem to quit finding holiday stuff! This is a sewing kit to make a Christmas stocking. One that I very thoughtfully started making for my mom about a month before Christmas when she was going to be celebrating with us. Then I got real and put it away.

8. Since we're on crafty stuff... here's a bag full of beads and safety pins to make your very own patriotic American flag pin! These are leftovers from when I was a cubscout leader... over two years ago.

9. I always have big ideas of making things for the new baby growing in my tummy, but most of the time they never get completed. I think it's more about trying to find something to distract me from being uncomfortable and moody. Here's a blanket I started crocheting... I'm not sure which boy this was intended for. I hope someone will complete it and snuggle it around their little one since I never did!

10. I'm straining my brain trying to remember the last time I used puffy fabric paint to decorate something. I know there was a time and place I thought this was cool as evidence shows in that box of dried out colorful splendor.

Wonder Coaster

Day 7 ~ January 7, 2010

Let me start out today's post by sharing that my husband informed me this morning that he doesn't think this will last past about 4 months. And he says if it does it means we will no longer have any furniture. So basically he's saying I can't accomplish my goal... that we do not have 3,650 items to get rid of. I'm sure most people know that the best way to motivate a woman to do something is by her husband telling her she can't! Bring it on baby!

1. Sealed package of Christmas cards. Yes, I said Christmas and not holiday! The last two years I've  purchased photo cards to give out, so you know how old these must be!

2.

Okay... it's now the next day January 8th. My posting got cut short yesterday by my internet access going down and then an evening that I'd just rather not talk about. So, lets get on with this... it's going to be short and sweet because I refuse to get behind!

2. Old tie that's falling apart ~ gone!

3. Baby blankets ~ gone!

4. Gift bags full of baby clothes ~ gone!

5. Parenting book from the hospital ~ gone!

6. Empty reed difuser w/it's original box ~ gone!

7. New baby clothes with tags on ~ gone!

8. Old set of early reading books ~ gone!

9. Baby sleeping positioner ~ gone!

10. Wonder Coaster ~ "Mommy! Mommy! Can I play with that?! Pleeeeeeeeease?!!!" Dang it! They spotted me! "Fine!" I hope they are enjoying it because tonight when they go to sleep it's going out the door! I know you're wondering why I bought the Wonder Coaster to begin with. It was santa's last minute desperate attempt at an exciting gift that would be all set up and ready one Christmas morning many years ago. I hated it from the second I took it out of the box! Having it strewn across my family room floor at this moment I can tell you I still hate it!

$50 Shampoo

Day 6 ~ January 6, 2010

Can you believe it? I've already tossed 50 things... if you don't believe me then look back at the photographic proof! Go me! Today as I picked my 10 things I would say that my pain level was about a 2 on a scale of 1 to 10! (10 being excruciating pain and 1 being no pain at all) I'm getting very optimistic that I'm going to stick with this! Although, I know that as more things are gone it will get harder and harder because I will have to start taking a hard look at things I may not really want to let go of. Okie dokie... here's today:

1. You will probably see a repeat of this pile throughout the year. A pile of miscellaneous catalogs, papers and magazines. This one contains last year's Ikea catalog, last year's PartyLite catalog and part of an old airline ticket probably from my trip to Washington state back in 2007. There are other things in that pile, but let's just let it go already!

2. I know there's got to be a princess out there somewhere that would love to own that sweet little purse I crochet one day many years ago. It is much cuter in person... I swear it is! It even has a flap with a blue button closure.

3. Who doesn't love smores'?! Me! Because that little package with all the parts to make the cutest smore' ornament has been hanging around in my bedroom for over 3 years now! Yes folks, that's 3 YEARS! Another project that I promised I'd do with the kids... hmmm... I wonder how much time has been wasted just on my kids saying, "Mom, can we make this?" and then it traveling to another random spot in my bedroom. "If you ask me one more time about making that smore' I'll show ya what I'll give ya smore' of!!!"

4. A small wooden shelf with a peg... another blank canvas for my genius. It was really going to be awesome!

5. When I bought that lamp from the antique store I was sure I was bringing home a great treasure for my future daughter's bedroom. We'll just leave it at that and say goodbye. :)

6.  I really hope my boys don't start reading my blog because I may end up finding them digging in the trash. One of them got that brain puzzle game for Christmas a year or two ago... it's still sealed in the package. I guess they weren't interested in getting smarter!

7a. A Million Little Pieces by James Frey. I'm pretty sure that's what Oprah tried to break James into once she found out he was a fraud! Okay, maybe not a fraud, but that book was not full of personal facts. I personally never finished the book. I was enthralled with it, but it sucked me in so hard and fast that it sent me into my own state of anxiety and I had to quit reading. I thought I may pick it up and finish it one day, but I don't think there would be anything beneficial about doing that.

7b. Yeah, I'm grouping all the books together in my 7th thing I'm tossing. I'm pretty sure Dr. Atkin's New Diet Revolution would not be the smartest revolution for me considering my recent status as a diabetic. If it wasn't for that I was just about to devour this book!

7c. The only thing I know about that novel is that my MIL passed it on to me one day. Never read it, never planned to. I just wanted to keep it on my shelf.

8. There are occasions when I attempt to read a book. This attempt usually takes place at about midnight since it's the only time someone isn't whining at me, pulling on me or asking me to do something for them... well, except for my husband. Anyway, that wad of black cording is my book light. The book light that has been used and abused by my children. The book light that no longer has all it's parts. Lucky me got a new complimentary one that came along with my new leopard print Snuggie!

9. Speaking of complimentary... look at that complimentary shampoo and lotion I got at the hospital back in June when I gave birth to my last son. Complimentary... bah hahahaha!!!! Those are worth $50 a piece and I just threw them in the trash!

10. Have you ever had your son walk in the room with colored marker on his nostrils? That's what those scented markers are for... decorating your kid's nose! This set has been sitting on the armoire in my bedroom for a long time. Every time my boys are in my room jumping on the bed they spot them and ask for me to get them down so they can color. What they really mean is will I let them decorate the house in wonderful fruity scented colors?

Pantry Purge

Day 5 ~ January 5, 2010

It was long overdue! Today's 10 things is all about cleaning out the pantry. I went in there to get a snack for the boys and the next thing I knew I had a box and food was flying off the shelf! Everything that made it into the bin had either been opened a long time ago or was way past the expiration date.

I have no idea why that photo is posting sideways... it's a blogging mystery. Anyway, there is far more than 10 things in that box... probably closer to 100. I'm not going to itemize it for you because I'm sure the blow by blow on my old food would not be that exciting. But there it is, the proof of meeting my goal for today! Man that felt good! The pantry looks so much better! Empty... but better!

Nice and Easy!

Day 4 ~ January 4, 2010

Today was a little bit of a challenge. First thing this morning I started in search of my 10 items and quickly felt a little overwhelmed knowing that I can't just chuck everything directly in the trash... some of these items need to just go to another home... to someone in need. This means I now have to figure out where to send them and how to get them there... and it requires a commitment from me to follow through! I mean, I can't really count getting rid of them if I'm just moving them from one spot in my house to a pile in the garage that will sit there for another year! So, I'm working on this... I will come up with a game plan! For now, it's on to my 10 things for today!

1. Coupons! I have a love/hate relationship with coupons. I love how much money they save me when I really put in the work to work the system! I've been known to save hundreds of dollars in one trip to the grocery store! But when I start letting them stack up and get behind on my organizing I'd rather pay $10 for a jug of milk than sort through them! So, it's time for this stack to go!

2. My 13 year old loves origami. Because of this I often find things around the house that are folded into all sorts of things. In fact, and this is going to surprise you, I have a little crane hanging from the bottom of my kitchen cabinet that has been there probably for 2+ years. Okay, back to that folded up black piece of paper in my photo. It's one of his huge scores from some teacher taking down a bulletin board... what it was folded into I'm not sure. What I am sure about is that it's been sitting on a shelf outside my laundry room for a very loooooooooong time!

3. Another empty laundry soap bottle... and that's a BIG one! It was taking up a fair amount of space on the shelf!

4. FORE!!! Watch out because anybody can pretend they are Arnold Palmer with this next little gadget! A gift I lovingly bought for my husband for Christmas one year a few days after sitting and watching the HSN infomercial with him. We were rolling on the floor laughing at that little mini Arnold swinging his clubs! Sure, my husband probably only took him out of the box once... but I still consider that a great purchase, after all they are selling on ebay now as a vintage toy. If you'd like to see this baby in action click here.

5. The blue Swiffer handle that you get every time you buy a new box of Swiffer pads... surprisingly I only came across 1 of them. I know at some point I had many more because I recall giving a lot of thought to coming up with another use for them, I guess I must have bagged that idea a long time ago. Miracles do happen!

6. Such a proud puffed up moment! The moment your son walks through the door from school and excitedly says, "Mom, I'm student of the week! You need to put together a poster all about me so I can take it to school tomorrow!" That wonderful moment was 4 years ago, and there's the remains of the beautiful poster that has been sitting in the garage ever since.

7. Files from 2004... I'm not trashing the file box, but the contents are finally gone! I've been meaning to do that for months so that I could use the portable filing box to organize my sewing patterns! I wonder how long it will take me to get them in there?! Go ahead, you can take some bets on the side if you want.

8. Smartwater... I can vouch for the fact that it doesn't really make you smarter... but the bottle might! My straight A 7th grader had been using that for his daily water bottle through the summer months. But honestly, I don't think he was using it for it's smartness properties... I think it was more about reinforcing to those watching him drink that he is indeed smarter than them.

9. I don't know of a single mom who doesn't feel unnerved at her newborn sitting in the backseat facing backwards where she can't see what the heck is going on. The what-if's are endless. Something else unnerving is the cost of baby gear and that is why I bought my special backseat baby mirror at a discount store. When I purchased it, the anticipation of knowing I was going to be able to see my baby while driving was so exciting... and relieving! Until I got it home and pulled off the protective plastic that covered the mirror and realized that it had permanently ruined the mirror's surface! (Hmmm... the Arizona heat might have had something to do with that.) Like all hoarders though, I'm not really great at following through with returns. So I used that mirror anyway... for about a month. And every time I tried to look in the mirror to see my baby it just ticked me off all over again! It was like someone (myself) was playing a sick joke on me, making me think I could keep an eye on my baby when really all I saw were foggy images of movement! So I finally took it out! And put it in my garage! Hmph!

10. Seeing as we are a family of 7 living on one income, I don't allow myself the luxury of going to the salon more than once a year. I think going that long without a real hair makeover also somehow messes with my head because I will have a temporary moment of insanity where I will decide I'm going to buy hairdye and do it myself! This is a Nice N' Easy auburn color... luckily at the last minute I decided against doing it myself. I guarantee you that if I would have followed through with the insanity I would not have looked nice and to my husbands dismay I would not have been easy... I would have just been really grumpy!

Getting My Birdie On!

Day 3 ~ January 3, 2010

My 3rd day! Woot woot! I only wandered around my house in a daze for a brief moment before grabbing my first thing! How many days before this just becomes a natural habit?

1. Hey there sister! I know you're going to want to grab that brand spanking new sweet vest you see just hanging there! Another of my great deal purchases! Who could pass up that great $5 deal... apparently everyone but me. I thought that purchasing this might somehow make me look hip... the girl in the ad did! I have to say I have never understood the concept of a winter coat with no sleeves, especially one with fur on the hood. I mean obviously this is meant for some cold weather if you're going to be adding a dead carcus to your head! I have no idea what kind of fur that is... real or not... I'm allergic so don't ask me to check! Have I mentioned I live in the desert?

2. Suds Yer Duds! That's a cute sign that my MIL lovingly made at a church craft night for me to hang in my laundry room in hopes that I would start washing her son's clothes. What she doesn't realize is that I have no problem washing the clothes. What I really need is a sign that says, "FOLD THE CLOTHES WHEN THE BUZZER GOES OFF OR THEY WILL BE FOREVER WRINKLED!" Hey, don't get the wrong idea... I actually love my MIL and I know she loves me! :)

3. When I bring new clothes home from the store I know those hangers they are on are just trash, but do you think that keeps me from letting them pile up on my washer? Nope!

4. If you knew me you'd say I've really got that sporty look. That's why I've been keeping that wadded up badmiton net around... I was just about to get my birdie on! Unfortunately my boys somehow misplaced it somewhere out back during one of their adventures... too bad they sword fought with the rackets and split them to smitherines, I could really use one to chop down those weeds to find that birdie! I guess the badmiton net will have to go since I don't plan to do any crab fishing anytime soon.

5. I've been holding on to the hope of having a daughter for a very long time... and that's the reason for that Great Wall of China adoption dvd. I pretended for a short time that I might actually adopt a girl from China... she'd be my china doll! The thought of the cuteness just gives me warm fuzzies! But,who has that kind of money? I decided it would be cheaper to try one more time for a girl and here I cuddle the cutest baby boy in the world! We are now overgross in this family and I've decided being queen is actually quite awesome!

6. Since we're on the subject of babies, I might as well talk about that deflated exercise ball. As I approached my due date with son #4 I was desperate to put myself into labor. I spent many a bounce on that ball. I figured it was a good purchase because after I had the baby I could then use it for exercising and getting back in shape. Well, it failed to put me into labor and it failed to give me my 20 year old body back. What it did accomplish is taking down an overweight worn out mom when the 14 year old decided it was the perfect size for dodgeball!

7. Have you ever had butternut squash? Neither have I even though I did pretend for about 4 months that I was going to try it. I swear I read up on it and people said you could keep them for a couple of months and they'd still be good to eat!

8. At what point is it okay to throw away a baby gift? He's going to be 15 in a few weeks. Another mysterious bag. But this one is a gift bag with the gift still inside! A bag full of all sorts of stickers and die cuts ready for scrapbooking my 1st son's baby book. I've used a few of the stickers here and there. I've considered many times tossing out the whole bag. But how could I throw away all of those awesome stickers that my boys could play with? Sticking them on walls, the tv, dining room table, the glass on my $2,000 entertainment center... I mean that's fun!

9. Oh how I love a blank canvas! Such freedom to create and beautify! What husband wouldn't want an embellished treasure to wear while doing the man job of grilling on the bbq? Luckily for my husband I decided at the last minute to abandon this project!

10. No matter how many times I told my 13 year old that there was a great science experiment contained in that box he just wasn't buying it. It was afterall a Christmas gift from his uncle 3 years ago and he needs to use it and appreciate it! What kid wouldn't want to make electricity using a lemon? He mumbled something about making an air powered car instead...

Rudolph's Remains

Day 2 ~ January 2, 2010

On to today! I had a moment of anxiety as I told myself it was day #2 and I had to find 10 more things! I quickly pushed the feeling aside and started scanning my surroundings.

1. There's the pesky Dryel bag that goes with the Dryel stuff I threw out yesterday!

2. What a shocker... more empty laundry soap/bleach bottles that hadn't made it to the garbage yet.

3. That broken foam sword had been hidden on my laundry shelf for at least a year collecting dust. The problem is, the boys don't see it as broken piece of trash... its just a shiv now!

4. Don't even get me started on the invention of magnetic letters. Yeah, it seemed like a good idea when I bought them, after all they are educational! I soon learned that the only eduction was being had by me learning how to repeatedly pick them up off the kitchen floor! I've had it! The kids can just wait until kindergarten to learn how to spell their names!

5. Air freshners... that require a refill. I bought those on one of my awesome coupon shopping trips and I knew I'd never spring for the refills, but I guess I was hoping they would still somehow take away the boy stench in my house!

6. What's so magical about Magic Bubbles? Is it that I can magically glide across my back patio right after the kids have dumped them out there? And then I can magically fall on my butt and a big black and blue mark appears?

7. How is it that a store that sells everything you could ever need to hunt and fish would not be smart enough to know that white glue is not going to dry in a matter of minutes? Seriously?! Those bags sitting in the middle of the floor are Rudolph's remains from a free ornament craft offered at the Bass Pro Shop. You see, there is no kid on this earth that would sit there and hold a piece of brown foam bent into a cone shape "glued" with white glue until it would actually hold on it's own. In fact, there's not an adult on this earth that would do it either! Sure, against all logic I did sit there with my boys for a short period of time holding onto Rudolph's brown foam head praying inside that it would hold... but before long I was shoving his eyes, antlers and shiny red nose into the bag and promising my boys we'd use the hot glue gun to put him together when we got home. Here you can see that didn't happen and therefore I must get rid of the evidence!

8. That Mickey Mouse hat may have started at the happiest place on earth... but it's not looking so happy now. It spent a fair amount of time on my husband's head while he did a number of things. I'm sure that disgusting brown stuff on there is a combination of grease, dirt, oil, grass and who knows what else! The Mickey hat also has friends in that box... they all got thrown out together so Mickey won't be so lonely.

9. How long would you hold on to an item of clothing that still had the tags on but you had never worn? That beautiful cream colored skirt has been hanging in my laundry room for a minimum of 2 years...

10. The skirt's friend... the vest and tie. Also still have tags on... also living in my laundry room for way too long!

Whew! Day two is done!

Don't Judge Me!

Day 1 ~ January 1, 2010

If you're here to judge me, it would be a good idea to just look away now! I promise you this is not going to be pretty! So let's just get that out of the way first thing! If you want to see someone try to recover from her hoarding tendencies then by all means stick around... hopefully I won't grab you and throw you out with the rest of the garbage! ;)

Yeah, yeah... I missed posting my 10 things yesterday... my first day. So what?! I was busy trying to put this blog together! Geez! Don't fret, I have indeed thrown away my 10 things for January 1st and here they are!

To some it may look like a bunch of garbage, and I assure you they are right. But, for some reason these are the kinds of things I walk by every day and never see. Or when I do see them I see a use and purpose... I don't realize they are crowding my life!

1. The Hungry Howie's Pizza box. You see that brown strap on it? That's because it was my son's trick-or-treat bag when he was a slice of pizza for Halloween 2008! Yes, the box still has candy in it and has been sitting on the top of my refridgerator for over a year!

2. & 3. Well, since I'm finally getting rid of 2008's candy I might as well send off this year's as well in those two jack-o-lanterns. Okay, I admit it! I looked inside and saw all those glorious suckers that could make my life easier on days when I need a bribe for my kids... and I picked them out and put them in a Ziploc bag and stuck them in the cupboard! Shhhh!

4. In the spirit of the holidays being over for 2009 I decided to grab the box of Christmas cards from 2008! Yep, they've been sitting in a box on my counter since last Christmas! I have to say though that I consider this a big win since the thought crossed my mind to cut off the pictures and repurpose them for something else... and there was a whole pile of perfectly good envelopes in there as well. But, I closed my eyes tight and tossed!

5. See's Chocolates! Need I say more? Who wouldn't want a box of those sitting around??? Those were given to me by my dad back in June after the birth of my 5th son. I resisted the urge to pull off the lid to see how many half bitten chocolates still remained inside!

6. Being the SAHM that I am, I don't have much use for clothes that need dry cleaning. I mean seriously, with 5 boys I'm either puked, slimed or pooped on daily! And let's not forget the stray spit wad grazing my backside! Therefore I have absolutely no use for the Dryel that has been sitting on my laundry room shelf for over 5 years!

7. You see that roll of T.P.? You're asking yourself why would I throw away a whole roll of T.P. I mean there are so many uses for it! Even if it's old and a little dirty it could still be used in an emergency or at least to get back at the neighbor who keeps letting their dog bark at all hours of the morning! But not this roll of T.P.! This one has taken on a more solid state since at some point some sort of cleaner was spilled on it and then it was left to dry and take up space on my laundry room shelf. Enough said!

8. The mysterious brown sack... is it empty or does it hold a treasure? I'm sure you don't know the answer to that, because on one hand you are realizing that I am the type of person that would hang on to an empty brown sack for yeaaaaaaaaaaaars... but on the other hand you also know that a person like me needs as many places as possible to stash stuff! I won't keep you waiting any longer... it's filled with old worn out socks! Who wouldn't want an old worn sock to slide over their hand on dusting day? What's dusting?

9. An empty laundry soap bottle. Someone really should put a trash can in my laundry room... the one 5 feet away outside the door into the garage is too far away!

10. A box of Clorox Ready Mop pads. These traveled with me from our old house over 5 years ago. I've never used a single one on my tile kitchen floor in our current house. I actually pulled one out of the box and looked it over. To myself I thought, "Hmmm... these are expensive, I really shouldn't just throw them out. Hey, wait a second... that looks like the same kind of dry-weave that comes on my maxi pads..."

That's it! My first day of purging! I keep telling myself that I was not injured in the process! Now on to tomorrow... or I should say today!

The start of a new adventure!

Today I woke up with a brilliant idea... for my New Year's resolution I will get rid of 10 things everyday! As I shared this idea with others I had several people scoff at the prospect of me having 3,650 things that I could indeed get rid of! So here it is, the proof that I have plenty of things from which to choose my 10 daily things!