Compared to February 2015 it doesn't look like I've done much this month! But I started the month busily reading more about Beatrix Potter so I could draw this map and write a new post for this month's entry for A Year with Beatrix Potter & Friends. . . .
On the 8th the Take Joy Society members got together to make Scherenschnitte Valentines's at Cindy's. . . .
We had to cancel our playdate with Olivia the next day because it snowed. . . .
But we were able to go the day after. . . .
Our youngest son came home for a visit on the 13th. It snowed again on the 15th so we had to postpone our anniversary (47th) lunch. . . .
The weather finally cooperated and we went to this new-to-us French cafe in town. . . .
I had the French dip. The salad had a delicious smattering of candied walnuts on top. Ken had vegetable soup and the Crepe du Jour which had scallops and mushrooms in it. . . .
We had another playdate with Olivia later in the day so her parents could go on the hospital tour where Olivia's little brother will be born . . . .
On the 19th THE BOOK I'd ordered from the library finally arrived. The book I was hoping would spark some energy into my need to declutter my house: Marie Kondo's SPARK JOY
This is what I've been doing since the 20th: gathering all the things that no longer bring me joy so that I can give them to someone else. It's amazing what one can accumulate by living in the same house (with an attic and a basement) for 34 years. My kids will all be stopping in this coming weekend to take what they want. Then I'll have my friends over. Once that is done, I will give each item another chance.....if I can no longer think of a good use for it or if doesn't bring me joy, it's out of here. . . .
And the thing is, I'm not done. I will spend two more days this week going through another storage area in my basement. I plan to do a post about this book over on Take Joy Society once I finish the "tidying up" as the author calls it. But if you don't want to wait till then (it might be another month or two), I suggest you reserve your copy at your library (you'll probably find every copy checked out). I knew I wanted to declutter so I got her second book, "Spark Joy" because she goes into more detail on how to organize what you keep. If you're not sure this is something you want to do, I suggest you start with the first book, "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up." I'm in the process of reading it now.
I managed to drag myself from my tidying-up project to have another playdate with Olivia--I was that into it. Once you get started you really don't want to stop! But after three full days of going through all my belongings I needed a break. In the first photo Ken and Olivia are playing "airplane." She loves to fly. She's gotten really good at building with her Legos.
After another three days of going through my stuff the 60 degree weather pulled me outside to do some tidying up in my flower beds. . . .
We could very well have a snowstorm in March, but my daffodils have survived an early uncovering in the past. With the snow cover gone I had to do SOMETHING! Now I need to wash my windows.
.•*¨`*•. ☆ .•*¨`*•
Take Joy!
Happy Anniversary, to you and your husband, Cathy. Forty-seven years is a reason to celebrate! Your French restaurant looks like a great place to enjoy. Olivia is looking more mature in these photos. How exciting she is going to have a baby brother! My daughter used Marie Kundo's method to declutter her home. It looks like you are doing a great job there! I have some daffodils that are budding now. I'm ready for Spring and today is a great teaser! ♥
ReplyDeleteThank you Martha Ellen. Today was another great day, but now I see there is a chance of snow this Thursday evening into Friday!
DeleteHi Cathy, February still looks a busy month, just reading your post! The snow looks beautiful even if it did disrupt some of your plans! It must have taken lots of time to also identify the items that bring you joy. I read Marie's previous book and I found it very inspiring. It is such a good way of relooking at things within your home. Sarah x
ReplyDeleteBecause I have SO much stored away I could not take the time to hold each piece and see if I felt Joy. Instead I looked at it and decided based on whether I could still use it or was I just saving it for just in case. Once I finish this go round I'll no doubt go back through things and decide what brings me Joy. Just clearing out my storage area has been like a burden lifted for me. Plus I found things I COULD use that I'd forgotten about! ☺︎
DeleteBelated Anniversary wishes, 47 years is certainly worth celebrating, albeit delayed your meal sounds delicious. The joy of children, they really do make me smile and another one on the way, such a delight! Hope all goes well. I had a de-clutter last year and did a car boot sale, we had such fun and made some money in the process.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mama's Mercantile. ☺︎ Congratulations on your new grandson! I've had garage sales, as we call them, in the past and considered it this time, but am eager to get the stuff out of my house so may not wait until the garage sale season starts (usually in May).
DeleteThe Life Changing Magic of Tiding Up is definitely a must read! I found clothes and books to be the easiest part! Other things, family things, packed away...a little harder to deal with! And photos, another whole story! As a scrapbooker, tossing pictures is not easy, although I admit to having many duplicates!! So I still have drawers full of pictures in the guest rooms!! Someday, after retirement I will be able to turn my attention to scrapbooking once more.
ReplyDeleteI bought 12 tomato plants over the weekend and my assorted lettuce seeds are coming from Seeds of Change sometime this week. I am so ready!! Still a little early for herbs. We have had such a mild winter I am really worried about a last hard frost or snow! It has snowed in April before! And it is dry. Not nearly enough rain, but I am plunging ahead....stepping out in faith. It has been quite a few years since I have gardened and I am looking forward to it.
My wild clematis is not up yet, the Carolina Jessemine has little yellow buds and the Agarita is in full bloom all over the countryside. The sweetest smell in the world and great bee food!
Enjoy your tidying up....it really is a good feeling and I need to do more of it!
Chris W
Hi Chris. I skipped ahead to do miscellany because my kids will all be here this weekend to pick out what they want. I still have "paper" to do and Spring/Summer clothes that I decided to do when I do the seasonal switch. Now I see in her first book she has a chapter that says I shouldn't have seasonal storage! My closet is way too small to support this idea. As for photographs....I can see myself putting that one off for a few months. But it has gotten me to thinking about how to proceed with accumulating photographs in the first place. I've kept photo scrapbook albums for 36 years. I don't think my kids will have room for them in their houses when I'm gone. I'm thinking I may digitize the pages and put them all on CDs--but that in itself will be a huge project.
DeleteSending you happy anniversary wishes. It was fun to see all the lovely photos of Olivia. She is growing up and is so precious. I admire your patience in getting your home organized. Looks like you have done a great job. The snow photos are so pretty. We've had warm temps here in South California. Wishing you all the best, Pat xx
ReplyDeleteThanks, Pat. I'm not at all patient! I'm chomping at the bit to get back to it whenever I've had to stop for a day or two. Now that I've wrapped my mind around it, I want to get done!
DeleteI love how you call your time with Olivia "playmates." I had an all day one yesterday with our youngest. Such fun and it was a spring day so we went outside. I think I need to get this book out of the library. It seems often when i get rid of something I regret it later, but then life goes on once I pause for the regret, so I should focus on that. You are inspiring!
ReplyDeleteha ha, I meant to say play dates. Can't trust the computer editing. :-)
DeleteDotsie 😊I figured it was a "typo". We not only have to contend with our own typos, now we have to contend with spell check's typos! But playmate works, too, because that's what Olivia is to me. I loved this age with my boys when we still had similar interests. I'm hoping Olivia will not be a tomboy so I'll have a playmate for years to come.
DeleteHi Dotsie! Just got back from this week's playdate with Olivia. She can answer questions now and I can understand half her words--her mommy translates the rest. We had a gorgeous day here, too, and were outside for part of the time. I think you will enjoy "tidying up" (she emphasizes that we are keeping things rather than getting rid of things--we're just letting the stuff go that because we don't want it any longer). I can see where my mindset will totally change by the time I finish. She says she's never had anyone "rebound". You'll never have to tidy up again because you'll just automatically keep things tidy day by day.
ReplyDeleteI don't think my comments are going through under my WP account so will try again under Google as this is obviously what they want.
ReplyDeleteI always enjoy your retrospect. Congratulations on your anniversary, and I always enjoy seeing what others get to eat, and reading menus.
Olivia is a real little cherub and her hair takes my breath with all those golden curls.
There was an interesting segment on Woman's Hour {BBC Radio 4} the other day with discussion between Kirstie Allsop and Cate Olson over the KonMarie method. I have to agree with them that maybe it is a cultural thing but her methods {which to our interpretation is tantamount to a cull and could leave many regretting their choices in the future} just do not work for us.
Here's to March roaring in like a lion in Wales so hopefully Spring is nearby now! ~~~Deb
Thank you, Deborah. You're right about needing to use your Google account to comment. I've had another reader e-mail me because she couldn't comment on one of my other web journals. I love Olivia's hair, too. Mine was like that when I was her age so I know it won't last. 😞 The KonMarie Method is definitely only for those who want to change their lifestyle. She starts by having you define the lifestyle you want. It really is all about figuring yourself out and learning how to change your thinking so you can achieve your desired lifestyle. I'm using a modified version right now to go through my many storage areas because that's the part of my life I want to change--not to store things for "just in case." At my age I pretty much know now what my interests are--for instance, I'm going to give away any quilting supplies because I know I'm not ever going to do that now. If you follow her method by starting with clothes, you'll learn how to choose what to keep so that you don't have any regrets.
DeleteI have read the book some months back, and I've passed it on {as it was passed to me also unwanted by its previous owner} as I don't like her method. Even if I did, I do not have the floor space to safely empty all my clothes in one big pile! I am nibbling away, little and often, and achieving what works for me.
DeleteDeborah, I did not follow her instructions exactly, especially when it came to going through my books! Taking everything off the shelf from all the rooms I have books, would have been quite overwhelming and totally impractical. All I could think is that they must not collect books in Japan like we do here. But I've tried to follow the spirit of her method and have found it really working for me--so far. I still have papers and mementos to tackle, which is a whole 'nother matter!
DeleteHappy 47th Anniversary, Cathy and Ken! That's wonderful! Most people these days seem to have trouble putting in 47 weeks.You two have done something so well and for so long - something others find difficult to do for even a short time. Be proud!! How nice to have a local French bistro too! That crepe looks luscious, and crepes are really "in" now too. Healthy as well. Since when does THAT happen? Congrats on your upcoming baby grandson too! That's great, they're having a boy. One of each now. Are any names getting batted around yet? And do you think Olivia has any clue about what it means that there's a new baby on the way? She's pretty little still. I was just a little younger than her when my first sib came along, and my Mom said I basically like him fine - no jealousy or regression that she remembered. She did say I used to "pet" the baby but I'm guessing that's because I was used to petting our dog Duchess. And was makng a connection - LOL! Very cute photos [duh] of Olivia. She's really losing her baby face, isn't she? Becoming a [darling] little girl. Is she into books? I could definitely imagine her reading before she goes to school.
ReplyDeleteYes, Olivia is very aware that her mommy has a baby on the way. I can see her being jealous for attention, but also wanting to help out in ways she won't be old enough to. She will sit for a while to read a book, but one is about all she's interested in at a time.
DeleteCathy, I bet you feel like your house has lost 50 pounds after doing the "clean up"> A great Idea to just give the stuff away. Whenever we clean out the barn,we find a lot of stuff we just don't need,but it is not junk. We haul it out to our driveway and put up a sign: FREE STUFF! I can't believe how fast it disappears! I mean, people will actually take away old lawnmowers and washing machines that are broken.( I make sure to mark them as non-working). Well, glad to see you took a paper-cutting class, it is a wonderful art-form.
ReplyDeleteThe stuff is still in the basement, so I won't feel lighter until it's out of the house. I think I won't feel like my house is decluttered until I deal with the laundry room storage area. I was going to do it today, but I just wasn't in the right frame of mind. I ironed in there instead and tackled some other things there that needed doing. That room is my catch-all room and it looks like it!
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