Three days of being a slug created a monster in me!

I had a little itty bitty teensy weensy female surgery on Friday morning and took complete advantage of the fact that I had permission to rest. I rested on and off all of Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I am a firm believer that you can truly never have enough naps...but three days of taking it easy (well, I rested between loads of laundry, throwing away four garbage bags full of stuff...can you say "hoarder"?) took a toll on me. Tonight, the monster came out! I attacked my pantry with gusto. Man...I wish I had taken a before picture. Not for your eyes, I would be far too embarrassed for that! I threw away more stuff and have a stack of Pampered Chef  cookbooks, a few pieces of stoneware, a mini micro cooker and a cutting board ready to sell or give away.  I felt so empowered that I peered around, quietly stalking my next victim. A hunter hunting her prey. I feel a bit like Bella in Breaking Dawn during her first hunt as a newborn vampire. Crouching slowly and deliberately I pounced on the cabinets under my sink.  It didn't even have a chance. I swiped it so skillfully that it didn't even see me coming. Hmph, I am that good.   I completely reworked that space into serious shape.  Here is the thing, after reading some more of It's All Too Much by my good pal PW (Pete Walsh...yes, we have moved on to initials, don't be jealous...it's all good) I realized that for some reason I have everything that I don't need or use right within my reach. The things I use daily or weekly are way up high.  Seriously? Seriously.  So I switched things around and although it sounds easy...it's not.  But rewarding? Ahhhhh!

"It's All Too Much!"

I am reading the book, "It's All Too Much" by Peter Walsh.  I think he rocks. Seriously.  Although I am a "Bag Lady" due to my Thirty-One business, I truly am a "bag lady" by nature. I don't completely understand the spell I am under and have been for as long as I can remember...to hold on to everything. For years...I have created piles and then moved those piles around from here to there. Frankly, I don't know what to do with them. I know the reasons I hung onto that darned stuff. Like, the cute knapkins that were at a Halloween party last year, I snagged a couple of fresh ones to put into Liv's scrapbook. The same scrapbook that I have not yet worked on and she is going on 5 years old. Yes.  Seriously. 

Or how about the ticket stubb to the Preds game?  Or the numerous cards from my sweet and precious Moo Moo (mommy).  And...programs, magazine articles, recipes, notes for my journal, pictures, and more, much much more. 

I took Pete's advice, yes, we are on a first name basis. Don't be jealous, you would not want the baggage it takes to be on a first name basis with him.

I attacked a corner of my bedroom. This particular corner has three levels of stuff.

• On the bottom is a crate holding frames and pictures to be put into those frames to be put on the walls. I do believe there are baby pictures of Liv in there. 
• On top of that is a clear plastic bin with shoes. Don't know why they are in the bin. Don't even know if they are mine.
• Then on top of that layer sits two bins of school paperwork. Liv is still in Pre-school but I have managed to hang on to every single piece of paper that her precious little girl hands have touched.  Included in these papers are notes from the teacher, from the school, copies of signed field trip forms with copies of the checks I wrote to pay for those field trips.

Petey says to keep a couple of special pieces and the rest must go.  I have been fighting this one area of clutter for a few years now. What kind of mom would I be to throw away papers that her sweet little brain thought about before she put her crayons to it?  Well...let me tell you what kind of mom does that. The kind that hangs on to everything and then witnesses her own special girl doing the same thing. She actually got upset with me for throwing away the packaging that her Jesse doll came in. Mmmmhmmmm.  That flashed through my head and then I proceeded to attack the bins. And, viola, I am down to just a few pieces of each year (Grandma Joanies for a year, then Preschool #1 for a year and now Preschool #2)

Many corners still to go. But this one corner in my room looks good. A bit liberating actually.   Of course, I still have two layers to go for that corner, but one little step at a time. Thanks P.  Love, Me.