Settling back in

I have had a great time these past few weeks, shopping and collecting necessary things, getting rid of extra items all along. But now it's time to settle back in and focus more on the pount ~ de-cluttering my house and my life. Plus, I am going to Ireland in 59 days, so I need to focus again on saving spending money.

This was a great weekend. Well, part of it; I did have to work through Saturday. It's March Madness, though, so basketball has taken over much of my life. More on that in a bit.

I have had time to select a few choice things to donate and give away.

For Thursday and Friday, I have the pillow shams that match the comforter I no longer have. and a hair color stained bathroom rug that I haven't used in a long time. I'm actually not sure ahy I have held on to them, but they are going now.


Saturday was a great day. Well, once work ended it was great. My Dan came in and he and I had a double date with my parents for Celtic Thunder. It was crazy and loud and funny and packed with teeny-bopper girls who screamed (remember the Beatles and Elvis? Like that), but it was a great show and it was wonderful to spend the time all together. So, for Saturday, I have a wonderful coat that I just don;t wear any more. I have been thinking about giving it away for a while now, and it's time.

It's washable suede and lined with some kind of fake fur. Very luxurious and soft and rich-looking, and I wore it a lot for several years. Now it's time to let someone else enjoy it.

I may regret this one (first time I've felt that way), but if someone enjoys it as much as I have, it will be worth it.

Today was a kind of lazy day. My Dan and I planned more of our Ireland trip. The tickets and vouchers came in and we selected our top 3 B&Bs for each stop. We watched SU win the second round game ~ WooHoo!!! And just bummed around for the day. So it seems apropos to give away a t-shirt for today.

I actually gave it to Mom last night. It's in perfect shape; it's just shorter than I like my t-shirts.

Okay, confession time. I have another t-shirt that I need to give away (also went to Mom last night).

Isn't it cute? It's also a bit too short for me. And I had an extra thing to give away because I did make one purchase this week. I bought the SU Marathon Men shirt. I just couldn't resist; it's a once in a lifetime thing. I can't take a pic as I am wearing it right now. :) So click here and you can see it.

Go SU!!!!!!!!!

Must stop shopping....

I had another shopping spree this weekend. The stuff I got is all pretty boring, and most of it is practical. A lot of it is even helping me to organize and economize.

Let's see, I bought: 2 rubbermaid tubs, 1 plastic storage chest with drawers (for craft stuff), an extension cord, an adapter for the car so I can plug my iPod and cell phone in a the same time, a little organizer for coupons, a set of solar lights for the yard and a set of cushions for the kitchen chairs. That's 8 things. Plus I have Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday (today) to account for. A total of 12 things. So, here we go....

I'll start by saying that I have a multitude of tote bags. I'm willing to part with these three for now. This one is from the Book of the Month Club.

This one is from a library vendor, JanWay.

And this one is from a NYLA annual conference.


Next we have this collection of hangers that I never use. Note the funky tops. They all came with 2 piece clothing sets, and I was so sure I'd use them. Nope.


These are ponchos. Four of them; a blue one, a cream one, a purple one and a black one. I used to wear them all the time. Not any more.


My old motorcycle helmet.


And finally, three never used stuffed friends that are being donated to the local women's shelter for any kids that may be there. It's a scary world, and a stuffed friend can make it seem a little softer. I know; I still have the one that was given to me after my fire.


That's it. Twelve things out the door. Now I am going to stop shopping for a while!

Go SU!!!!!!!!

Sweaters, shoes and suitcases

This was a fairly uneventful week. Well, except for the late nights watching the 'Cuse win in OT at the Garden all week. Go SU!!

I have 4 days (plus a purchase) to select things for. I have started going through my winter clothes in prep for putting them away and getting the spring stuff out. So I have three sweaters, a pair of shoes (yes, shoes) and a suitcase.

First the sweaters:
A red one that is very cropped.


A purple striped turtleneck that I haven't worn is a few years.


And a fuzzy baby blue one (enough said, I think).


Plus, I have this lovely pair of green shoes. What was I thinking, you ask? I have no idea. They look like leprechaun shoes!

That catches me up to today. Now for the purchase I made.


I have always wanted a purple suitcase. And the other day, while I was in Marshall's, I saw this one:


Isn't it gorgeous?? And it's a Nine West bag!


Listed at Macy's for $280!! Well, I told myself no and left the store. (I did get a new set of sheets, and packed an old set away to donate, more about that later). That night I had a dream (I know, very cliche) that I was in an airport luggage pick up surrounded by black suitcases and couldn't find mine. Hey, it was a sign. I figured if it was still there... So, after work that day, I stopped by on my way home and bought it. I have a few trips coming up, so it is a practically necessary purchase. :)

And this is the one it is replacing:


It's not in terrible shape and is still usable. Just a little banged up:



Here's what I am going to do. I'm going to use the old suitcase to pack away any household goods and other items that are still useful; and when it's full, I'll donate it all to the local women's shelter. That's where the sheets will go, as well as some towels I have replaced and other goods and clothing.

That's it for today. I'll probably be back on Monday with more. Have a great weekend!

Shopping Spree (part 2), paying the piper....

And so the time has come to pay for the shopping in which I indulged this past weekend. At last count, I have 17 items to select to be discarded, including today. Here's what I've got:

Four belts. A black one, a wide brown, a silver southwestern one, and a sparkly silver one:


Four purses. A silver one, a blue one and two biker saddlebag style.




A "bitch" bracelet from my days on the back of a bike. Seriously, what was I thinking?


A little bitty pair of dolphin earrings.


A broken dragonfly necklace charm.


A broken necklace. I liked this one a lot. I have no idea how it got broken or where the missing parts are.


Two gold pins, in perfect working order, but they are gold. I'll find someone to give these to, I'm sure.


A broken thistle pin. This one isn't from my travels or anything, it was just a pretty pin that broke.


Ditto, this Irish horseshoe pin.


A southwest style necklace that I have rarely worn, and not at all in the past several years.


And, finally, a tiny hummingbird charm. Very pretty, but hummingbirds just aren't my thing.


This brings me to a grand total of 17 items, some to toss, some to gift, some to donate. I'm now caught up to today. Huzzah!

Shopping Spree (part 1)

I can't believe it's Tuesday already! I know I have some real catching up to do, but first I have a confession to make. I did something this weekend that I haven't done since this project began at the start of the year. I gave myself permission to shop. I went to Target and a few other stores (I even went to Amazon.com) and allowed myself to buy stuff. And you know what? It was really hard. *grin* I found myself making excuses to myself about why not to buy something. Forever it has been the other way, and now I have broken the habit of justifying purchases.

Now, don't get me wrong; I did shop a bit. Let's see, I got:

A new DVD to add to my musical collection. One of my favourites, too!


A CD at a concert (a night at the pub, actually, with live music) on Saturday night. Great night, great music, fantastic food and drink ( a bit too much of both of those...), and wondrous company! Poor Ould Goat rocks!


Two journals (one to take to Ireland in May, the other just because)


A water bottle for home and travel (to go with the new Brita filter pitcher, of course *grin*)


A neat travel mug for tea. It has a place to put the tea bag or loose tea, then you pop it down into the hot water and pop it back up when your tea is steeped. I just couldn't resist!


A new travel hair dryer and a new hair brush.




And finally, five (yes, that's right, five) new pretty t-shirts.



So, that's 13 things. Plus Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. A grand total of 17 items and I'll be caught up. Stay tuned for part two to see the discards.....

Catching up....

I guess it's time to catch up and get ready for another weekend. I have a real variety of items today (for Tuesday - Thursday).

I'm not sure how this one slipped past my notice when I went through my DVDs a few months ago (Yes, that's right, I actually went through and got rid of about 50 DVDs BEFORE I started this. What was I thinking??). Ah well, it's caught and it counts now, and it's going to my nephews. I was going to crop the pic, but Bailey wanted to say, "Hi," too.


Next I have this gorgeous candle.

Just look at the detail on the decoration:

Unfortunately, it's a scent that gives me a headache. I like the scent a lot, but have learned from past experience that it does not like me. So, I am going to give it to my Dan this weekend. I seem to recall he likes this scent ~ he can just burn it when I'm not there. :)

Next we have a cookbook that I have never used. Out it goes.


Well, that gets me through today. And just so I am all caught up before the weekend gets here, I'm adding one more for Friday. It's a small Christmas ornament, a snow globe. Cute, huh?

But my name is spelled wrong on it. *sigh*

Ta for now!

Goodbye glasses

A quick note today. I'm off to work soon (it's a late day) and have to run. Today I am bringing two pair of glasses to work with me. We have a recycling box for them ~ at least I think we still have that box.

These are old prescription glasses, one regular and one sunglasses.



The prescription is different on each and neither is the right one. So, out they go. Hopefully someone else can use them.

Another fine weekend

First, a bit of a catch up. I'm feeling chatty, so bear with me. This was a long and very good weekend. Relaxing, energizing, expensive and cathartic. It started on Friday with a good massage and a wondrous facial (thanks, Dad!!) at Matthew's Salon and Spa. I was pampered and beautified and stretched and soothed; honestly a morning of true bliss. This was followed by an afternoon with my heart-sister, Merlyn. We spent an hour or so at the Everson and then had a great munch and chat at Dominick's. Well, I had a munch, she had a slurp *grin* (she's fasting, broth was all she could indulge in). But we had a great chat and I am already looking forward to the next one.

Yesterday was a work day; a long, busy work day. It ended with my Dan coming in for a quick visit. Quick, but very expensive. Last night was for The Mummy Returns, The Scorpion King and homemade lasagna. Old favourites we could just snuggle and laugh with and not have to think too hard.

Today we took the plunge and booked a trip to Ireland for May (that's the expensive part). Three nights in Galway, four in Limerick. A week of travel, exploring and togetherness. Huzzah!! So, as we're now both pretty broke, we then relaxed, ate fresh fruit (Dan had more lasagna; I guess I did good) and watched The Barchester Chronicles. The whole mini-series on DVD. A young Alan Rickman at his best. I highly recommend it.

Okay, now that you're caught up, it's time to do the daily toss; well, the weekend toss, actually. I have Friday, Saturday and today to account for (I seem to run in 2 or 3 day stretches now). Plus, I got myself a Brita pitcher this weekend (what a difference!!), so I have an extra something to throw in to the mix. I think this will be the end of the hair stuff. I have finally reached the bottom of the basket (I'm keeping the basket *grin*).

Starting simple. Bobby pins (I wonder why they're called that? I'll have to research that sometime). I have thousands of them. Well, maybe not really thousands, but I have lots of them. So, I am tossing a bunch of them.


This is a pretty leather barrette with feathers that I used to wear a lot. It's not really my style any more, and I haven't worn it in a few years. (I'm throwing in the black hair wrap for biking as a bonus.)


I finally went through my claw clip collection and am tossing all of these. I kept 3 or 4 that I use a lot. The rest are going.


Ditto, the snap clip collection.


Last, but not least, this barrette. I have wanted to like it, but I just really don't.


That's it for this weekend. And that's it for February. March has worked its way in gently, so I am afraid we may be in for a rough late winter. On a positive note, I have been successful with this plan for 2 months, and with my healthy eating plan for a month. So, I guess it's time to start another plan. For March it's going to be movement. More stairs, less elevators. More walking, less sitting. More yoga, less tv. More movement, less lethargy.

I have decided this is the year that's for me; being a better me, a stronger me, a more peaceful me and a happier me. Hell, I turned 40 in the past year; I guess I've earned it. So each month I am going to add in another thing that will help me focus on me. And if it makes me a better me, I can be a better person for those in my life that matter. I won't bore you with the details of all the plans as they progress, but I'll keep you posted as the months roll along.