Today, Curt is working on his closet. He loves to buy white socks, undershirts, underwear and workout clothes especially. He buys in bulk and often. Why do you need 100 pairs of white socks (sadly, this is not an exaggerated number)? So today, we are using the Fly Lady timer and he is going through them: tossing what is old and worn out and then putting 10 pairs of each type back in the drawer. The excess will go on the top shelf of the closet to be put in the rotation as the other stuff wears out. Old undershirts make great rags so we will be set in that area as well. We don't own any dressers and I really don't want to buy any so we are trying to fit everything in the closet. I went through my clothes before I left Egypt and got rid of more before I left Erie. He got rid of a lot before we left Erie also, but it is more painful for him to do it. I am really proud of his efforts and ability to let the stuff go! We want to get his clothes done before he goes to Georgia so he knows exactly what he has. There are lots of his clothes in the Texas shipment that he needs to go through as well. Macon Goodwill is getting a major donation!
This solves the problem of having too many clothes and never having anything to wear. I really donated a lot of clothes in Egypt. Things I hadn't worn in years, things that never fit right: out! I still have items I could probably get rid of and I am working on that. The second part of this is making better purchases to begin with, just because it is on sale (or even clearance) does not mean it is a bargain if it doesn't fit right or you don't need it.
We also plan to start weekly menu planning to increase the quality and variety of food we eat, decrease preparation time and decrease waste. But, Baby Steps. We have to tackle this stuff first.
2 comments:
Becoming a SAHM has helped me with clothes - it was HARD not knowing exactly what we had. And the way the kids grow, I was always paranoid about stocking up on kids' stuff in particular. I shopped for groceries the same way - completely unorganized. Already, I have halved (seriously) our weekly grocery bill - without even trying. I keep track of what we have!
I have kids who hoard. Part of me says to let them. I want to let them have control of their rooms. It has always been my policy not to take anything from them - it goes in the trash or charity ONLY when they are ready to put it there. I have always kept a charity box in my closet. Nothing has to stay, until we pack it up to take out. Both have used it since they were tiny, 12-18mos. The trouble is so many people give them so much junk! We're guilty too. I guess I just have to resign myself to asking them to sort and decide on a more regular basis.
Being organized - setting things up so you can SEE what you have (shelves, labeled drawers and boxes, really helps. I don't duplicate as much now!
It wasn't 100 pairs of white socks but truth be told, it was easier than I thought it would be. And I am on a roll now. I might get rid of some of my running shirts from the mid ninties but my original UofM ID card Tee Shirt can not go!
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