8 Weeks to a Decluttered Home, week 5

I'm picking up speed here... trying to complete the entire 8 week challenge while it still counts as "summer" (aka, before Labor Day, I guess).  I wouldn't be able to do it without the help of Hubby.  He takes all my piles to Good Will when I don't have the energy to try to sell them or give them away to someone more specific.  I really only worry about the breakable stuff... I've seen what the back of our Goodwill looks like.  And I'm not convinced anything breakable actually makes it out of there.

Here's the next 5 challenges (technically):

Challenge #21- Clothing- Kids closet(s)- Day 1 - See #19 about why I get today off!  Woohoo!

Challenge #22- Clothing- Kids closet(s)- Day 2 - See #19 about why I get today off!  Woohoo!

Challenge #23- Clothing- Master bedroom closet - I cheated a bit with this one... I actually did most of this work a few weeks back when I was weeding through maternity clothes.  Some got re-sold, some got given back to the person from whom I borrowed them, and some are in a box for the next "maybe baby."  I definitely pitched 10 items or more from the closet at that time.  But this time around, I pitch out a few button down shirts with stained pits, a few scarves that I'll never wear (not the warm ones, the decorative ones), and a couple dressier tank tops.  On Ben's side, we pitched out several button downs that don't fit well.  Forgot to take a picture of the pile before Ben took it down the street to the Clothing drop box.  Ah well.

Challenge #24- Clothing- Master bedroom dresser(s) - again, maternity clean out happened a few weeks back.  But many of the items in the drawers stayed, actually.  I'm still wearing maternity tshirts, especially on lazy days/days off.  But this time around, I had a couple pairs of undies that should be tossed (don't worry, I won't show you any pics of my holey old underwear).  And Ben's drawers dropped several pairs of boxers (replaced with new) and a couple pairs of shorts.

Challenge #25- Bathroom #1. - a turquoise towel set that I owned YEARS ago (2 bath towels, a hand towel, a washcloth), 2 green towels that were hand-me-downs from somewhere, a pink bath towel, a striped beach towel, 3 christmas hand towels, a stack of 10 little tea-towel things that we got when we got married and have decided not to use, a bottle of gel from 2006 (probably not gonna use that any more).

8 Weeks to a Less Cluttered Home, Week 4

I guess that just reading my lists of crud I'm throwing out is probably getting boring for some of you.  But I hope that it can be an inspiration, instead, about being minimalist.  Remember, if I expect to keep Baby O's life minimal, consisting only of the few things I think she needs, then I need to model that for her.  In addition, as she begins to be more mobile, I'll really appreciate knowing that the only things I have in the house are things that I really intentionally kept.  That way when I grouse about not being totally baby-proofed, it's my own darn fault... and my recent fault too!

Here's the next 5 challenges:

Challenge #16: Magazines and newspapers - This is another area where Ben and I don't really need decluttering too much.  We do get a few magazine subscriptions, but I tend to read and then recycle within the week that it arrives at the house.  We don't get any newspapers.  We do get a TON (at least in my opinion) of other media mail items like catalogs.  But similar to the magazines, we don't keep a huge stack of them... we tend to read/review, save one if necessary, but pitch most within the week.

Challenge #17: Decorative items in living areas - Ben says "if anything, we're too sparsely decorated."  I'd agree on our walls.  We painted last year and then didn't ever really decorate much outside of the kitchen.  But I did find 3 things to get rid of... two little boxes that were sitting on my dresser that I don't need any more.  And a framed photo from our bathroom that I'm bored with.  Three is better than nothing, right?

Challenge #18- Furniture - This is PERFECT timing for us!  We've been talking (and this project encouraged a bit more conversation) and are making several furniture changes.  When I saw "furniture" on the challenge list, I never thought I'd have a lot.  But I do!  They include:

- We have 2 full sized box springs to throw out... mattress will be close behind. (This will be the subject of a future post, once done)

- Ben fixed the broken kitchen chair.  

- We're looking for a new, smaller kitchen table.  But won't throw our current one until we replace it.  But we're close!!!

- I have an extra exersaucer type furniture item that I JUST posted on craigslist and I think a woman is gonna come get it from me later this week! 

- We're officially getting rid of the crib!  We've been cosleeping and love it.  We have a small bassinet that we use occasionally.  And when Baby O outgrows the bassinet as a part time sleeping space, Ben agrees with me that we can do a Montessori nursery!!!  (That means crib mattress directly on the floor.  This will be the subject of a future post, once we have it done)

- We trashed the icky metal rack that's been in the Bathroom since we moved in and we both hate.

Challenge #19- Clothing- Kids dresser(s)- Day 1 - Due to how fast Baby O is growing right now, this is actually a near constant project for me these days.  I always keep a brown paper grocery bag in her room which has clothes that she's grown out of.  Once the bag is full, I post it on craigslist and another local JP site to try to sell it.  I currently have a full bag of about 30 items that are in the 3 month size that I'm trying to get rid of.  But I don't think anyone is doing online shopping a ton right now, 'cause it's August and everyone's on vacation.  I promised Ben that if I can't sell this bag's worth by 9/15, I'll donate it somewhere instead.

Challenge #20- Clothing- Kids dresser(s)- Day 2 OR organize/clean your freezer - I used this as freezer time.  Mostly I needed to organize how I'm storing my breast milk in the long-term storage freezer.  I have it all in a bag, but over time it's gotten a little sloppy.  So it was nice to spend a few minutes straightening up.  I also keep a list on my fridge in the kitchen about what is stored in the deep freeze, so that I know what I've got when I'm trying to decide what to eat for dinner.  So I updated that.

8 weeks to a less cluttered home, week 3

Here we go again!!!

Challenge #11: Children's books- Day 2. - See my comment in the last post about why I'm not doing kids books decluttering right now. But the originator of this challenge suggested that if I don't need to do kids books, I use this day to clean out your purse or diaper bag. - a heart key chain, 4 cloth nursing pads, and several business cards and receipts. I don't really count those paper items as stuff gotten rid of... and this is no where near 10 items. But hey, every little bit counts, right?

Challenge #12: Adult Books, day 1 - 4 motherhood books, 3 coffee table books, 2 other random books, and 7 text books from my days as a pediatric SLP which are far too outdated to do anything with.

Challenge #13: Adult Books day 2 OR Fridge cleaning or organization - I used this time to focus on my fridge, threw out a few bad veggies and double checked the expiration dates on all of my fridge door items like dressing and sauces. Not exciting. Nothing worth taking a picture of...

Challenge #14: Medicine Cabinet - oy! This has been on my to-do list for quite some time. My sweep included: 3 colognes, 2 containers of mini hair spray, a couple of pony tail holders, a couple of free sample tubes of random stuff we don't use, a lip gloss, some expired no-doze (where did we get that?!?!?), 2 tweezers, and a roll of skin tape.

Challenge #15: Children's art work, certificates, special notes or cards, etc - woohoo!  Day off!  Not applicable for me yet!!!  But it does remind me that I need to start working on my Baby O scrap book.  Maybe I'll make that the next project after I finish this declutter...

Okay... some my piles for this week are depressingly small.  But as I walked past my desk area (see week 2) while doing Adult books, I found a set of decorative shelves that I bought with wedding money and never put anywhere.  Guess I didn't really want them after all. :-)

Which brings the grand total for week three to be::::::: -->

Bumbo Schmumbo

**NOTE: I'm not a lawyer.  I'm not a doctor.  I'm not a safety specialist.  This post is my opinion as a mom and there are probably many flaws with it.  I don't doubt that at all.  Debate is welcome, but only if polite. :-)


So for any of you who aren't moms, you might not even know what a bumbo is.  Let me show you:

I picked the blue one for my picture because that's what we have... a hand-me-down blue one that I think originally belonged to my friend, K.B. and her 3 little ones.  It got passed off to K.A. and her baby and now it lives at our house!

Anyway, tt's this round, plastic-y foam chair that is intended for wee ones.  It's about the right size to put your 3-6 month old child in.  It's perfect for the age range where the kid has some head control, but not yet trunk control.  Thus, they can "sit upright" because the chair wedges them into the right position and gives awesome trunk and leg support.  It's actually quite a tight squeeze-- I know many kids that "grow out of it" before they get awesome head control because their chubby little thighs just won't squish down into those tight leg holes.

You can buy a little tray to go on top of it, which I was stoked to do with some of my baby shower money.  The tray, in my opinion (see note above) sorta locks the kiddo in even further than the tightness of the chair.  And it provides a great surface for toys and beginning finger foods if you're kiddo is small enough to fit inside when she's eating finger foods.

I recommended this chair a lot when I was working in an outpatient feeding therapy program at a hospital for children.  It's a great tool for families!

However, this month, a "recall" has come out for the bumbo.  Recall, you ask?  Why is it recalled?  Is there lead in the paint?  Does it spontaneously combust?  What could be so wrong with this chair that they put out a recall on the 4 million units sold in the USA?  As it turns out, kids fall out of it.

WHAT?  YOU MEAN SQUIRMY KIDS WHO DON'T YET HAVE TRUNK CONTROL CAN FALL IF YOU TRY TO SIT THEM UPRIGHT AND THEN DON'T KEEP A HAND ON THEM?????  I'M SHOCKED!

But yes, if you read the recall, it turns out that "at least 50" kids have somehow extracted themselves from a Bumbo chair... while being used on a raised surface (e.g., likely kitchen table).  An additional 34 evidently squirmed out of the chair while on the floor.  So Bumbo is now giving away millions of little seat belts for free so that they're no longer legally responsible for our collective American stupidity.

Now I applaud Bumbo for doing something about the complaints.  I mean, that shows good business.  But more than likely, millions of little seat belts are probably cheaper than the few law suits that they might have to tackle.  So maybe it's just good C-Y-Aing rather than good business.

But I took a look at my bumbo... which remind you, is at least 3 years old, might be 8 years old dependent on when K.B. purchased it... while I was writing this post.  And it has a big warning label on the back side that says "never use on a raised surface.  never use as a car seat or bath seat.  designed for floor level use only.  never leave your baby unattended as the seat is not designed to be totally restrictive and may not prevent release of your baby in the event of vigorous movement."  

And don't get me wrong, if my baby cracked her skull open, I'd be looking for some other skulls to crack open too.  But seriously, people?  You put your 4 month old upright in a chair without a seat belt and then probably thought that you could walk away without keeping a hand on them?  You probably put that chair on a raised surface and didn't superglue it down?  And then you blamed the COMPANY for making an unsafe chair?  I'm sorry, I don't think the bumbo is defective.  I think you might be.

and p.s., the recall says there are 4 million units sold... and 50+34 complaints.  Someone do the math on that!  Sheesh.

8 Weeks to a Less Cluttered Home, week 2

So... needless to say, you probably noticed the delay in posting "week two" of this activity.  I actually only JUST FINALLY got the goods from week one to the goodwill drop off earlier this week!  I guess the return to work significantly slowed me down.  But I'm finally back on track and continuing on with week 2 now.  If you need the link to the original idea, you can find it here: 8 Weeks to a Less Cluttered Home. 

I'll also say, before I start my list and add my picture, that just about 12 months ago Ben and I did a significant overhaul on our living room.  We were very unhappy with it for the first year that he/we lived here.  So we decided if we were resigning our lease, we were going to spend the time and money to make the livingroom a place we wanted to be.  At that time, we literally emptied the entire contents of the living room into our spare bedroom (now nursery).  We repainted and only put things back into the living room that we actually wanted.  So I'm unsure how successful I'll be at coming up with the recommended 10 items on each day.

Challenge #6: Kitchen other (anything left untouched in the kitchen) - crock pot cook book, 3 pink vases, a red vase, a purple vase, a clear square vase, 2 round lightbulbs, a pack of ping pong balls, a wall outlet cover.
Challenge #7: Kitchen cook books and recipes - hm... I did cook books the day prior when I was doing "other."  So I used this day to clean out the cabinets under our fish tank.  It's technically in the livingroom, but all of the items stored there are extensions of our kitchen supplies.  Turns out I was hoarding WAY more vases than I realized.  I got rid of: 2 square vases, a round vase, 4 taller clear vases, a mismatched plate, a wicker basket, a silver flower pot, a set of 4 glass coasters, and a tall clear jar with holly print on it.
Challenge #8: Videos, DVDs, and CDs - We paired down a lot of this stuff about a year ago, so I was surpised that I could still get rid of: 16 writable CDs, a Nooma dvd, a fake fireplace dvd, a small CD/DVD case and a large handful of CDs that I won't list separately because it's embarrassing to realize what I used to listen to!!!
Challenge #9: Desk or work area - This area has truly gotten out of control over the last 12 months.  We never really "finished" the organization last summer.  So it's always a bit of a mess.  One of those "organized messes" that only we know where to find things?  I got rid of: a wooden box, a pack of markers, some stickers, a check book cover, a scientific calculator, a container of tiny erasers, two containers of hand sanitizer, an old phone, some tiny locks with keys, a couple of random keys that we don't know what they go to, a huge sharpie, and a key chain light from NU.
Challenge #10: Children's books (Day 1) - eh.  I'm not really willing to touch these right now.  The ones I have are either a) from my own childhood and have already been paired down to my favorites or b) new/hand me down gifts for Olivia.  As the daughter and granddaughter of a librarian, i'm impressed that I have less than 3 feet of bookshelf space with kids books on it.  And I'll call that "decluttered enough" thankyouverymuch!

So all in all, my week 2 loot looks like this:

5 things I didn't expect about the "4th Trimester"

So there's two varying opinions about "the fourth trimester," otherwise known as the first 3 months of your baby's life.  It's called the 4th trimester because, in a lot of ways, your baby is still just sorta continuing exactly what he/she was doing in the womb - getting rest, getting nutrition, and growing.  Thank the Lord, however, that He allows us to actually deliver after 9 months instead of 12.  I don't think I could have handled 3 more months of Baby O inside me, nor could my pelvis have survived her birth at her current size!

Anyway, the two opinions are:
a) Stay home.  Rest.  Get to know your baby and yourselves as parents.  Take it easy.  Don't have a lot of visitors.
b) Go out.  Strap the baby on in a carrier and take her with you.  Pretend nothing's changed.  She doesn't have a schedule anyway and she'll sleep wherever you are.

Overall, while Ben and I did some of column A, we mostly did column B.  We went to church when baby O was only 5 days old.  We have gone out to restaurants, taken the train/bus, had friends over weekly for community group, and even gone on a weekend trip to Indiana in a 4 seater plane!  While I thought I was prepared for the "4th trimester," there are a few things I didn't expect...

1) How quickly my husband became a father.  Sure, I knew Ben would be a great dad.  I knew he'd love Baby O, think she was adorable, and even learn to change diapers.  I just didn't expect him to become a father instantly.  I won't even say "over night," cause it didn't take a full 24 hours.  On day 1 of her life, he was putting her needs first, changing diapers, and swaddling her like a champ... seriously, as if he'd been doing it his whole life!  I continue to be amazed by the ease with which he's taken on this new role and how little teaching he requires.  I'm truly blessed.

2) Wetness.  Everywhere.  Sure... babies are wet.  They have wet diapers, they spit up... but during the 4th trimester, it was not baby O who was such a mess.  She was little and predictable.  My wetness was outstanding.  This may be too much information for some of you who know me personally, but I sweat differently than I used to.  I leaked before, during and after breast feeding sessions.  My pelvic floor muscles weren't yet back to normal and I could have unpredictable accidents anywhere and everywhere... without notice.  I thought I'd be chasing after O and her messes, but I could barely keep up with my own!  So mothers-to-be, consider yourselves warned!

3) How well we would all sleep.  It's controversial, but Ben and I easily fell into the idea of co-sleeping.  He was convinced during pregnancy that O would never ever ever sleep in our bed.  So I quietly got a bassinet and agreed to talk about it later.  But on night 1 home from the hospital, in our groggy fatigue, co-sleeping is what made sense.  So we did it.  And it continued... sure, some nights she starts the night in the bassinet so that we have a bit of time and space to ourselves, but 100% of the time, she ends up in our bed.  And I have to say, I love it.  We all sleep REALLY well.  Ben sleeps, I sleep, O sleeps.  I can't believe how many times people make jokes about whether or not we're sleeping.  And the truth is, I can practically sleep through middle of the night feeds and we all sleep great, thank-you-very-much!

4) Limited Conversation. No one ever asks me about anything but parenthood.  Okay, I'll take it back, sometimes they ask about parenthood and working.  But it's as if I didn't exist more than 3 months ago, so any topic of conversation from before the last three months (aka, pre O) has disappeared from anyone's minds when I walk in a room.  And in some ways, I totally understand it.  And in others, I miss what life was about pre-baby.

5) How hard leaving O at daycare would be.  I've always thought that I'd go back to work after having kids.  It worked for my mom, it worked for my sister, it would work for me.  My career is important to me and I love my job.  Why wouldn't I go back?  But before the first week, I had the horrifying experience of my "Daycare Visit Day."  This is the day that I brought in O's sheets and clothes, diapers, health care documents, etc and got to meet the teachers, etc.  Almost instantly when the Daycare Director left us in the room with the teachers and the babies, I started to cry.  It was so weird, because cognitively, I got that it was a good thing.  But wow, my hormones were just not having it!  I only had 3 meltdowns in the first hour and a half visit (half of which I spent outside while O was inside with the teachers).  I say "only" 'cause I think that's actually pretty good! I figured it's better to embrace the emotions, tell myself that they're okay, own them, and move on.


Hey Moms, what were your surprises about those first 3 months of life?  

3 months old!!!

Baby O is officially 3 months old!  I should be writing down developmental milestones more frequently if I want to know for sure what is happening when... so forgive me if some of these things were included on my 2 month list.  But wow, she's changing so much!  She's a completely different little girl than she was a month or two ago.

Baby O smiles all the time, especially when you make funny faces at her.  Her vocalizations are really varied.  Sometimes she makes a little raspberry noise, other times high pitched squeals and other times low sweet giggles.  She loves looking at things.  Her world is really getting much wider-- since about 10 weeks, she looks at things completely across the room.  She looks at mobiles and things hanging from the ceiling.  And when she sees something new and unfamiliar, she stops everything and just stares!

In the last couple weeks, she's gotten really good with her hands (relatively).  She is opening her fist more often and when she does, she grabs for whatever she can reach.  Once it's in her hand, she puts it straight in her mouth!  I suppose that means I have to be careful what we put near her (Ben gave her a package of smarties... cute picture, but a bit scary).

She rolled over for the first time on 7/13/12!  She did it 3 times in a row.  Ben saw the first one and we both were there for the 2nd and 3rd.  I think she knew I'd want to prove it wasn't just a fluke.  All three times it was from stomach to back.  And then she promptly hasn't done it again... no matter how much I encourage her.  And in the last couple days, she's really hated tummy time at all, probably due to her little congested cold.

Ah, the cold.  Baby's first cold.  The dry cough started BEFORE daycare thank-you-very-much, but just after starting back to work on the 17th, she got a congested cough on the 18th.. and here we are a week later and it's still going.  *sigh*  The two things I've heard about colds are a) babies are supposed to get 5ish in the first year, so we're right on track AND b) if she gets all the germs now, she'll be super healthy and not miss a day of kindergarten.  So I suppose it's not the end of the world. :-)

Alright, you've done enough reading... you've earned your pictures...

With love, from Boston...