Declutter Relief

Since I was more excited to get custard at Culvers and drive around admiring houses that we may some day own than post, I'll go through my day yesterday and what I have planned for today. I was successful yesterday in completing all three of the tasks that I made goals of this week. The bed was made in the morning and I even added a blanket that we got as a wedding gift to it! As I used something in the kitchen yesterday it got put away, cleaned, or put in the dishwasher immediately and made sure to wipe up any messes. I also successfully got ready. Okay, it wasn't in the morning that I got ready because I may or may not have taken a nap at 9:00 in the morning but at least I did it! Right?

After the two hour nap, I did actually feel a bit guilty that I had wasted away the morning. So, I got right to what I needed to do: find garage sale items. I'd been thinking over the past two days that we could either sell some things or give them to Goodwill, as we have been getting new and improved stuff as wedding gifts. Yay for Fiestaware! I called Mom and she said that the city wide garage sales are in a week and a half and our family friend would be so kind as to let us add to her sale. I was giddy with the excitement of going through all of our things and being able to get rid of things we don't have any use for anymore. Being the list-maker that I am, and slightly still tired from the nap, I first made a list of items that I knew could go on the sale, should talk to Jesse about, and should sort through. All of our 'big ticket' items I knew I had better clear through the hubby first. Gladly, he agreed to all of them, but is still a bit skeptical as to who would buy TV that doesn't have it's own remote (we decided to sell it with the satellite remote that is programed to it and doesn't have a satellite it belongs to). But, I said it is a garage sale and people don't expect brand new things and are looking for great deals. If we said $2 for it, I'm sure we would have plenty of takers! Which reminds me, I have no idea what I am doing when it comes to pricing stuff for a garage sale! I obviously want it low enough to sell since we want to be rid of it, but don't want to give it away! Anyways, my afternoon was spent going through my jewelry and hair accessory drawers and all of my clothes. If felt so good taking all of the things I don't use anymore out of their drawers and in the sell pile! Now my jewelry and hair drawers slide shut with ease, rather than having to be shoved shut because they are overflowing with junk. I weeded out my clothes pretty well, too. I am putting a few things on there that if they don't sell I do want to keep. They are pieces that I don't wear that often so I can replace them with clothes I would wear more often. But, if I don't sell them, they will be coming back home rather than to Goodwill. I even was able to get Jesse to go through all of his clothes. However, he actually wears pretty much everything he owns. I can't tell you how good it feels to know we are getting rid of so many things we don't need. I feel like a weight has been lifted off of me. It is amazing! We are also planning on going home this weekend to go through the piles of things we have at our parents' houses. We probably have enough stuff to fill up a whole other apartment! Obviously we are able to live without them and not miss them too much since we have been for the past 4 months. But I'm sure many of those things also have sentimental value and the 'what if I start playing video games again' thought stuck to them. Only time will tell. Here's to hoping for a great sale next weekend!

Another awesome thing about going home this weekend is that I won't have to cook! I do enjoy making food for us, but I'm not the best at coming up with new recipes for us and when I do, they are usually failures. So, we are kind of in a rut of the same 15 meals. I'm working on improving that though. I will be making Honey-Mustard Turkey Breasts tonight. I hope they turn out well! And, if I have time this afternoon and am feeling extra crafty, I may even try making some homemade honey mustard.

It is 8:00 and I've already made good progress on my tasks. The bed was made within 15 minutes of being out of it and the kitchen was cleaned after making the morning coffee and Jesse's lunch for work. I had the best feeling this morning walking to our kitchen area. I got there and it was completely clean! It felt so good not having the counters dirty and dishes piled up in the sink. It really was a relief. I don't have to look at the crap today and think "Ulg, I need to clean." It is so great! I definitely will keep cleaning the kitchen after using anything in it. Right now it is pretty darn easy, and essential, since we have approximately 3 feet of counter space! I'm also going to carry this through into the bathroom. Everyday doing a quick pick up and wipe up of it. It will feel so much better not having dusty drawers and splattered sink and mirror. It takes only a few minutes to do these things and if you do them right away, they don't pile up on you. Because, once they start piling up on you and feeling like a huge mess, the more you will dread doing them, which really makes you grumbley.

What's on my list of things to do today? As soon as I post this, I plan on getting straight into the bathroom and taking a long warm shower.

Scratch that. I most likely will check up on some blogs that I love first. These blogs inspire me to keep things simple, organize, clean, and meal plan. I'm quite the regular at and . Love them! I'll also make sure to check a couple of friends personal blogs to see if they have updated. They inspire me to cook, cook things that are good for you, set goals, and enjoy life. These girls really do enjoy their lives and seem to find something fun and great out of everything! I hope they know that they inspire me.

Back to my plans for the day. I desperately need to finish our thank you notes from the wedding. I'm only requiring Jesse to write two and if I can get the rest done today, I can make him write the two tonight and get them sent off! That will be a great relief. I'll just have to remind myself how good it will feel to have it checked off my list. I also had written down to take a few things back to Target today. However, I am now remembering that I am having car issues. The remote unlock isn't working, so I have to use a key to unlock, when I use the key to unlock my car alarm goes off for approx 5 minutes. How embarrassing! And how lovely is it that my horn that rarely works started working during the alarm? Flashing lights and horn honking. I don't really want to have to deal with that in public again. So, I'm sure there will be other things around the apartment I can find myself to do today.

I think I will simply stick to the goal of getting the thank you notes done. I have found that it is better to make a small goal list for myself. If I make a huge list, there is no way I'm going to get it done today. Then I feel like a failure when not even half of the tasks are crossed off. That makes the list seem so mean and daunting, which in turn makes me want to ignore it and watch HGTV all day. Creating a small realistic list is so much better. I am able to get most if not all of the list taken care of and feel great for accomplishing it! I feel even better and almost have a high when I finish the list and move on to other things that aren't on the list! Ah, the little things in life!