Minimalism Game Days 21-31

The last stretch of this game has been a challenge but also proof positive that if I look at our stuff with a critical eye I find many, many things I do not use, want, or need. So much of what I have chosen to keep over the years is more like a habit where I have told myself that because I own it I should keep it. But looking at things with that mindset makes no sense because if it's not used or needed or wanted, WHY keep it? Sometimes my mind plays tricks as I think about a particular item and that it had cost a lot of money or that someday "maybe I'll use it" but the reality is that whatever money I spent on an item is already spent and if I hang on to something for that "someday I might use it" I just accumulate a lot of stuff and a lot of guilt. I feel much better letting it go to be used by someone who may truly value it and put it to good use. 

So, here are days 21 -31.....

Day 21: 9 glass bowls (more wedding decor), 11 rolls of ribbon, and a metal reindeer. (I kept the smaller one from the set. 

This one was just too big for my liking.)

 Day 22: 1 pair of slippers, 3 pairs of flip flops, 1 pair of old sneakers (hanging on to them why??), a pair of shoe inserts I have never worn, 5 games (Trouble, Battleship, Twister, Taboo, and Toss Up), 1 giant container of dominoes (gray box), 1 almost empty bottle of Mod Podge, 1 empty box, 1 bottle of expired over the counter meds, 1 bag of clear stones, 1 bag of LOTS of dice, 3 card holders, and 2 plastic notebook pockets that are ripped.

Day 23: 1 phone book, 1 Dave Ramsey CD, 7 books, 13 magazines (6 of which sold on eBay for $61.01!!) and some pink plastic hearts.

 



Day 24: 24 pieces of our old entertainment center that was too big and bulky. 

Day 25: 7 Books (4 in Spanish), 2 CDs, 1 Air horn, 1 dish scrubber that doesn't work right, 1 bottle of old nail polish, 4 expired meds, 2 eye masks, 1 elbow strap (I had 2), 1 wrist brace, 1 pill container, 
1 hair scrunchie, and 3 blank books.  

Day 26: 4 slings from days gone by, 1 pan that drips rusty water all over when it's washed because of the rolled edge it has, 1 small bag no longer used, 3 supports for wrists and knees, 1 bottle of expired meds, 1 deodorant stick that doesn't smell good, unused small hair clips, 1 medium sized unused hair clip, 1 calligraphy pen tip, 6 old cell phones, 2 cell phone cases, 1 pair of frustrating nail clippers, 1 old eye shadow applicator, 1 old pair of glasses, 1 eye shadow with the colors I liked used up.

 

Day 27:1 Tupperware bowl, 1 juicer, 1 fat separator, 1 old faucet that got replaced, 1 Christmas card that was stick on the bulletin board, a few tacks and magnets, a note pad, 1 pen, 1 straggler flower, 1 mesh, grippy thingy, 1 face powder I don't use, 1 lipstick color I don't like, 1 make up concealer that makes me look orange, 1 picture frame , 2 pairs of socks, 7 pairs of fuzzy socks, 2 bowls, 1 night gown, and a wooden storage container.   

Day 28: 1 container and 27 spools and/or pieces of ribbon

 

Day 29: 20 CDs, 2 orange empty storage boxes, 1 CD that 
has games to play (we kept the family favorite game of Vampire cards that came with it!), and 6 books. 

Day 30: 28 books, magazines, and pamphlets, 1 tote bag, and a folder of old papers. 

Day 31: 31 CDs!

So there it is....496 items gone from our home in the course of a month! It is an awesome feeling to lighten up like we have and it has give us desires to continue even if I don't continue to document with pictures what we let go of.

Tim had some fun with a sequin pillow we have where he would put the number of items we needed to get rid of each day!

Truth be known, I don't really love the sequin pillow. I got it for Abigail for Christmas thinking she would like it but she didn't so it just ended up on our bed by default. It goes with nothing but it is fun to smooth the sequins from green to black and back again and it's been great for the Minimalism Game! I predict that after another round of the Minimalism Game it will get lovingly donated. :) 

Minimalism Game Day 11-20

My fun continues as I peek into cupboards and drawers for things that I don't need and don't want, for things that I thought I would use (I had good intentions!) but for whatever reasons they are just taking up space now. 

Day 11: 2 medium sized plastic bowls with lids, 2 smaller plastic containers with lids, 3 glass jars with lids, 2 lid-less glass jars, 

a tall plastic container, and a plastic shaker container.

 Day 12: A white wire orgainzer shelf, 2 small glass bowls, 2 small Pyrex containers with lids, a light blue plastic container with an upper section (I had 2 of these and kept 1), 3 small plastic condiment containers, a meat thermometer (have a battery operated one I like better), and a meat fork from our electric knife set that gave up the ghost.  

Day 13: A pie plate (I have 2 others), The Five Love Languages book (good book but we've read it and it can be passed on now), a toast stamp, 7 cookie cutters, a lone lid to a container I no longer own, a baggie with corn cob holders in it (we have another set that we like better), and a red plastic something that I don't even remember what it was! :D

Day 14: An unused notebook, a mini clipboard, an insulated cup, an almost empty bottle of rubber cement, a bag with a piping bag and tips for cake decorating (which I haven't done in probably 10 years or more), 

a calendar from 2016 (Why???) 4 pairs of scissors, 3 packs of various 

unused labels, and some wire twist ties.

Day 15: 3 water bottles, a pair of water shoes, a bag of rocks for the fish tank, a fish bowl, 2 baskets, a sifter, a bag of blue & white stones, an old pair of my sneakers, a packet of whatever keeps flowers fresh (?), pencils that all have nubs for erasers :(, a battery operated fan necklace, and a tiny tube and tips for decorating tiny cupcakes.

 Day 16: 5 baby bibs, 3 baby bottles, and a bottle brush from when Mackson was here; 2 more bunches of wedding flowers, a white stem of flowers, 
a rose boutineer, another bag of faux flower petals, 
and 2 glass decorative bowls used as wedding decor.

Day 17: A blanket that I made years ago that no one uses because it doesn't keep them warm ("It has holes in it!" They aren't wrong! That's the way it is with the granny square.) A plastic shoe box with no lid, a cardboard tube with a HUGE picture inside of Abigail's volleyball team (we took a picture of the picture to keep!), 9 little candy bars that nobody likes, a dog leash (we had 2 exactly the same), a stain pen that fills in scratches on furniture (we don't have anything that color anymore), a striped pen I hate feel of how 
it writes, and a sturdy cardboard box that has been in the 
garage for a long time with no purpose. :)

Day 18: A plastic box that no longer holds the ends spare contact lens cases it once did, a Christmas pick, 2 silver and 2 red strands of beads for a Christmas tree, a star shaped cookie cutter, a make up case, 2 spoons and a brush that came with my Instant Pot that I don't use and never will, 2 make up brushes, a mini (useless) whisk, a hair clip, 2 phone holders, and a fabric key chain.

Day 19: A roll of red crepe paper, a ribbon polka dot banner, a roll wrapping paper, a metal container, what's left of a package of jumbo craft sticks, an *old* Lexington Diagnostic  Center bag, white plastic basket, some cotton yarn, 2 bags of balloons, 3 packages of scrapbooking stickers, a package of pretty gift tags, a hair clip, some colorful twine, and 3 paper globe decorations (that are folded up in this picture).

Day 20: 7 birthday hats, 12 rolls of various crepe paper rolls, 

and 2 shiny silver hanging decorations.

Wow, 20 days down and 11 more to go! 

This feels great to be shedding so many unused items and passing them on to those who might find value in them. Sometimes it's hard to let go of things that you know that you paid good money for because it feels wasteful. But, what IS wasteful is to hang on to things for that reason only when others can benefit from them. I am finding more and more value in letting go and living with less. 

She Said Yes....

Daniel asked and Abigail said yes!

 

Before Daniel asked Abigail he called to ask permission to marry our daughter. As parents we very much appreciated the opportunity to give our blessing to their marriage. Not that they "needed" our approval or permission but it says to us that he respects us and even more importantly, our daughter. 

Welcome to the family, Daniel!  

Minimalist Game Days 1-10

Minimalism seems to be all the rage these days. I am quite smitten with it myself and always looking for things I can pare down to make my life less full of "things". 

Honestly, this isn't a new journey for me. I have been paring down little by little since the summer of 2010. One would think that I should be done by now! Here's the thing....paring down what isn't wanted or needed is an on going process and so here I am nearly 8 years later continuing getting rid of more. Over the course of that time I have seen what I choose to keep differently. It's been inch by inch, step by step. What felt like "enough" paring down no longer feels like enough and I desire to eliminate more. Life moves on, hobbies change, people grow, desires are refined, priorities are clearer, and changes come. 

To make the process a bit more fun I decided that I would play the "Minimalism Game" which is simply beginning at the start of a new month you get rid of items that correspond with the number of the day. So on March 1st I get rid of 1 item, on March 2nd I get rid of 2 items and on it goes to the end of the month when I will have gotten rid of 496 items! No question it will get harder and harder as I go but I am up for the challenge!

Here are my first 10 days:

Day 1: A tire gauge that has been hanging around since Christmas. 

(Who knew there were different sizes of tire gauges....not me.) :(  

 Day 2: Left over Valentine's I gave kids at school

Day 3: Pins we got from the VFW when Annah was receiving her 

"Voice of Democracy" award.

Day 4: A book I have never really used, another leftover 

Valentine, a pencil bag shaped like a sneaker, 

and an insulated cup I got as a gift but don't use. 

Day 5: Two stacks of tulle (orange and purple), a bag of purple faux 

rose petals, a bouquet holder, and a bag of confetti sequinned 

hearts (all wedding supplies that have hung on 

to for nearly 10 years...why???) :/ 

Day 6: More wedding supplies...

Day 7: One last bunch of white wedding flowers, a packet of info from my ENT on hearing aids that I am not ready to do, 2 packets of expired 

brown gravy from the pantry, a cinnamon broom that has 

lost it's scent, a small wooden sign that says Welcome Winter, 

(too small for my liking) and what's left in an expired box of sinus meds. 

Day 8: I guess I could have counted these individually but they were in bunches already.....8 bunches of flowers from wedding decor. 

Day 9: 3 Christmas tins, 4 old magazines that I hung on to thinking I would reference for future Christmas crafting but never looked at again, a partial box of fake snow used for crafting some years back, and a package of Christmas treat bags I thought I would use but haven't.  

 Day 10: A bag of fiber fill, another bag of fake snow, 3 rolls of ribbon never used, a length of wired Christmas ribbon, an empty gift box, a plastic organizer box, a Christmas flower pick, and a glass bottle 

that I thought I wanted to re-purpose but couldn't get the stubborn 

label off of even after soaking for hours. 

So there it is, the first 10 days! I am excited for the next 10 days to see what more I can clear out! :)