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| Image from RiverTea |
Now that it is December, how are you feeling? Have you suddenly become overcome with panic like I did earlier on this week? I literally had trouble breathing for a day or so when I realised it was only a little more than three weeks until Christmas day. It felt like a tightness in my chest that made it difficult for me to take deep breaths.
Thankfully I feel much better now and am almost breathing
normally again (I can be so dramatic at times). On Tuesday I had a day at home
so I started by listing out everything I wanted to do up until the
weekend. I thought I’d take things week
by week.
We have an early Christmas dinner at our place this Saturday
night, so there was the house to clean and make look nice, a Christmas tree to
decorate and grocery shopping to plan. I
also had to pick up my Aunty from the airport and her flight was delayed (which
I found out about when I arrived at the airport). Since it was at least half an hour until it
even landed let alone get everyone through customs, I had the bright idea of doing
my grocery shopping at the supermarket right near the airport rather than the
one nearer to our house. I was very
proud of my canny time management!
Throughout that day and this week as I got my breathing back
to normal, I reminded myself that ‘there is no hurry’ (thank you Tonya Leigh) and
that my mindset preceded my experience, so I could choose to be calm and not
let my mind spin off into ‘I’ve got so much to do and I don’t even know where
to start’.
The rest of this week I’ve done more things on my list and I
think pretty much sorted my Christmas gift purchasing. It helps that I have simplified this list
quite a bit with family members that agree not to exchange gifts.
I’ve re-read my simple Christmas post from last December and
I am pleased to say I am doing all the things I suggested. And I feel tranquil and serene! Listing everything and then going through the
items one by one is the way to go. And
taking deep, soothing breaths.
100 Things
Following on from last week’s 100 Things tally, I have been decluttering
my wardrobe. I find it much easier to
let clothing go if it doesn’t leave the house immediately sometimes. Some things are straight to the donation box,
but others I find it less painful to move them to a different wardrobe for a
while before they move on. The items I
have removed from my wardrobe to their halfway house this week are:
47. and 48. Two
pairs of Diesel jeans that are now too big for me (it’s a combination of them
stretching and me getting smaller).
49. A light blue
leather jacket I bought in Italy in 2001, blazer style that I don’t wear
anymore. My husband says I should keep
it; I’m on the fence.
50. – 56. Seven
shirts that I am bored with. They are my
slight older ones and some feel too masculine.
I have other nicer, new ones so why not wear those all the time instead
of wearing the older ones.
57. A pair of black
cotton Country Road jean-pants that aren’t a great cut for me. Even when slimmer they cut me in half and I
end up with a stomach ache. No-one
should get a stomach ache from their clothing.
58. and 59. Two
magazines
60. A mattress
protector that is surplus to my needs. I
love using these - they are quilted and have elastic on the corners. They add extra loft to your bed between your
mattress and bottom sheet, and the thing I love most about them is that you can
put them through the wash regularly. I had
one too many and they are puffy to store so I donated my least favourite (one
on and one off are all I need, and one more for the guest bed).
Dear Fiona, I decluttered our down comforter which was not keeping us warm anymore. It lasted about 10 years so I don't feel too bad about it. I bought a new one and got rid of the old, rather than hang on to it.
ReplyDeleteThere is a cross body bag I'm trying to replace (I've finally realized cross body's are not flattering on me, just like Princess Diana once said), so I've been searching for months now for a shoulder bag, but just can't find the perfect one in the price range I want to spend on it. I may just have to settle on something because currently I have only one handbag.
100 Things Update:
ReplyDelete33-51. 18 knives and 1 fork that sit in a drawer unused; all hand-me-downs
52-55. 4 bed pillows that I just replaced. It's advised to replace them every few years and it was time, as one even had a ripped seam. One in, one out. I have storage space for a couple for company, but decided against it.
Awww, you'll be fine Fiona and good for you for making lists and picking up your Aunty and all that other stuff. We all get overwhelmed at times in today's busy world. I have a Master Entertaining Checklist on my blog that you might like, so you won't forget a thing for Christmas dinner. I made it up after years and years of entertaining others in our home off and on for varying sizes of "soirees." There's still time to look it over and make one of your own customized to you. :) It's on my Entertaining & Recipes page on my blog. Blessings for a beautiful Christmas, Princess Fiona. :)
ReplyDeleteMaking lists really helps. I have a notebook with Christmas lists and menus I refer to, and just do a little bit at a time.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm going to check out the post you mentioned from last year, and see if I can find a few ideas.
I am enjoying the holiday this year. I've had a few tough Christmases and am determined to feel the blessings of this one. Love the 100 things: how freeing that must feel!
ReplyDeleteWishing you all the best for your dinner party tonight. Once that is over, hopefully it will be smooth sailing through the rest of the holidays. I felt that tightness in my chest a few nights ago and realized I was getting a tad nuts rushing around. Reading your post helped me to slow down a bit and just enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteHi Fiona~
ReplyDeletethe holidays can be stressful. I know I haven't taken the time to properly plan out what gifts and things I need to buy for christmas and that makes me stop for a breath or two. or three. here's hoping I can bring some serenity into my holiday season!
Also, the 100 things challenge sounds relaxing. I may have to do that too. Going to that first post to see what that's all about! have a wonderful holiday dinner, Fiona!
~Lenna
http://lennajennie.wordpress.com
i love this fiona. relax, it is just Christmas. I have a tendency to get overwhelmed myself so this is a good reminder! x
ReplyDeleteMy husband brought the Christmas decorations boxes into the house and said "only put out the things you love." It was a huge relief to not have to put out every little thing people have given us over the years!
ReplyDeleteI'm up to 70 items. Various odds and ends that I didn't need were added to the list this week.
ReplyDeleteI was especially happy to find that a huge jar of buttons found a good home with a woman who operates a small sewing shop in the neighbourhood. Her eyes lit up when I asked her if she would like them. I was uneasy throwing them out -- it's nice to know they will be useful to her.
Alison
Anonymous, I love that you took Princess Diana's words to heart. I do exactly those sorts of things too! And she did have great style, so she knew what she was talking about.
ReplyDeleteMichelle, good for you plowing on. It must feel so good.
Kathryn, thank you for your kind offer. What a great idea.
Deborah, I like the idea of gathering your Christmas things in one notebook. Then you don't have to reinvent the wheel each year.
Jen, wishing you a peaceful Christmas this year. Deciding how you want to do something makes it so, don't you find?
Thank you Stephanie!
Lenna, don't you wish Christmas was really, really simple? We make things so complicated sometimes and I often think (know) it is driven by marketing people selling us stuff.
Janet, your place always looks so tranquil, I can't imagine you getting overwhelmed.
Prestigious School, your husband is a wise man, and I love your blog, such a great premise!
Alison, I could never throw something good away, so can feel your happiness at giving your big jar of buttons to someone that will get a lot of joy out of using them.
Many thanks for the gentle push to continue decluttering through December Fiona! I'm also grateful to you for alerting us all to the marvellous Marie Kondo and her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying. Thanks to you and Marie Kondo, here's a partial list of what I've been able to pass on or throw out over the past six months:
ReplyDelete80 books, 10 academic journals, 5 CDs
22 items of clothing, including--true confession!--a wool beanie from an early boyfriend's first trip to Europe in 1980, and a black linen jacket I bought to wear to a much-missed friend's funeral in 1995. Hard to believe almost twenty years has passed since then.
21 items of sleepwear, sportswear, and underwear.
3 shawls, 2 pairs shoes.
3 pairs earrings, 2 necklaces.
2 items of luggage.
Wishing you a very happy and clutter-free New Year!
Gaye, thank you for your comment. Congratulations on such a big decluttering haul - you've completed 100 Things all at once and I bet it feels amazing. Here's to a simple 2015!
ReplyDelete