update November 18, 2015

With health issues it has been a struggle along with unexpected repairs that needed done around the house and rent house...not to mention birthdays and holidays and seems like every weekend kids want someone to spend the night sometimes two kids to spend the night...ugh...by the end of it all I am really run down as is with my health but we have been putting out 2 steps forward progress with dwindling down the hoard and of course adding to it with one step back but over all I think we are improving. It has always been a challenge to do anything with a toddler running around...but like I said we are working hard and getting places but still taking steps back along the way...very slow process this de-hoarding is...but long as there are steps going forward...I hope that we will catch up and dwindle it down enough to manageable and then never accumulate such a massive hoard ever again....yeah right...ok more reasonable agreement would be to bring in 1 thing 2 things have to go out...and there has to have a immediate need for said item to come in not a project down the line. I have decided to start making the building block blankets I make and asked some friends for any old yarn they weren't using to get me started then sell the ones I make from those and buy supplies to build more and more and make that my income....to help out around here...
I have taken up a game I really enjoy but I don't understand why I am not getting credit for recruiting people I recruited several people one I know is already required level in game play for me to get credit but I didn't get credit...just disheartening for me...I was counting on getting the badge and now I am dwindled down on my invites and there is no way for me to invite anyone else and get credit...so I guess I won't be getting that badge...oh well the rest of the game is great it gets me out of the house and meeting up with new people and socializing it has been a much needed thing added to my life. My husband also found a movie lover club to attend rare big screen showings of movies he never got to enjoy on the big screen so we are both doing our own things that we enjoy and that is good.
Anyways talk to you later.
hope you all are doing better with your hoards than we are...
Sincerely,
Rabeka Jo D

Update 08-29-2014

Well, we are moving within the month of Sept (we hope)...so far we have made multiple trips to the thrift stores dropping donations off down sizing along the way, and I've been getting rid of things long since forgotten that I had intentions of doing something with some day that never came in the 3 years of living here so...yep time to say goodbye.
Its hard believe me...and I've even thought if I start it now then I'd have to keep it to finish it...but no I refrained and got rid of it instead...are you proud of me? I know I'm proud of myself.

I plan to keep this attitude I haven't touched it in three years it has to go...hopefully my sentimental items aren't too many this go round...my memory is failing me and I'm seeing that as a blessing...the things I have no use for that's sentimental I will take pictures of and donate...and eventually print them and put in an album someday...anyway...just wanted to give you a report...

Hope to blog more often soon...
Talk to you later,
Sincerely,
Rabeka Jo

Progress 10-01-2013

Well been slow moving but still making some progress...life kinda puts things on the back burner for us at times...but today I dropped off a car booster seat and a handful of clothes we no longer need and have thrown away (yes threw in the trash) broken toys! Huge step for us! I know to the normal person that seems silly they are broken so no use to anyone but our thoughts about the broken is maybe someone could fix it and it wouldn't fill up the landfill...donating these broken things though the people going through them probably throw them away anyway and that has been easier for someone else to make that call for us...but we actually did it! Yes there was anxiety involved...but we lived...you can live through it too! Just bite the bullet and say no one has time to fix said object heck we never had time to...so just toss it. 

Anyway, comment your progress on your hoard below I am proud of you all for whatever it is you accomplished in getting rid of or refusing to purchase or pick up from the curb or trash dumpster...you are strong and can over come this and have a clutter free life someday! Yes it's slow moving, time consuming, and easier to just put things off...but you and I both know it has to be done, and we know anyone else who does it for us will just make us angry so we have to just buckle down and do it ourselves. Anxiety induced by our own actions sure beats anxiety that's induced by someone else's actions that also cause anger and hurt and insult to us...so you need to face it and overcome it on your own...and you can do it! Just keep at it! I'm proud of you!

Talk to you later!

Sincerely,

Rabeka Jo 

9-22-2013 update

We are still working on getting rid of stuff and have dropped off a lot of clothes and odds and ends at the Goodwill and D.A.V. (Disabled American Veteran thrift shop) and occasionally the YWCA treasure chest when we are on that side of town (which is rarely these days sorry). Anyway, the coming back into the home has slowed but hasn't stopped, but I am proud of my husband and his refraining from stopping at garage sales and not buying tons just bits and pieces here and there and actually sticking to what we need vs. what will come in handy someday or was too good of a deal to pass up. Which is a HUGE step for him and I am so very proud of him.

We still have a long way to go in our hoard and hopefully we will get things rolling and get rid of all excess stuff so hopefully someday soon we can move to a bigger home and rent and sell all our homes rentals included, and just focus on cleaning and decluttering and living and not so much repairs that keep tying up our funds and not allow us to be on a budget because its so unpredictable on the repairs we have to pay for every month. Anyway. Big steps going on, very proud, still have much to do. Thank you for your encouraging words (if you please would post them I could use some encouragement thanks). The reason why I don't post so often is because I don't think anyone cares and no one wants to read this...if you gave me feedback on what you want from me I would love to humor you and get you what you are looking for in such a subject blog. Thanks your comments will help me help you believe me!

Anyway, talk to you all later.
Sincerely,
Rabeka Jo
p.s. How are you doing with your hoarding? comment your progress or even confess your slip ups...I am here to encourage you as well as you to encourage me so lets get this party started and encourage each other! alright?! Thanks!

Progress Feb 4, 2013

I just turned all my clothes hangers backwards and organized by type of shirts (ie. Music related, fun, dressy, sexy etc.) Did johns too...the deal is the next week or so I will be putting clothes on backwards hanging hangers to make sure all clothes in play get put backwards then I start putting then forward again in four months what hasn't been turned the right way around and I can safely say I don't wear those shirts very often and can get rid of them....tip I read somewhere....I also got rid of a Walmart sized bag of clothes I know I won't wear or haven't worn or don't like wearing...etc....I also ironed on patches on jacks Jeans and sewed on one and ironed one to experiment to see if they last longer if sewed and ironed on....we shall see...now I'm taking a break...may end up down for the count because I'm hurting pretty bad right now...baby stepping my downsize and getting chaos under control...go me! My husband has been going through and getting rid of stuff...I'm very proud of him the house is improving more and more....I will keep you posted...share your comments below about your progress and if you found this helpful...good luck in getting rid of your clutter....blessings to you and your pursuit of happiness...

Update 05-21-2012

Ok so I gathered all the papers in the house and divided them into school related and then OTHER...whatever else there is because if I did what I wanted and sorted by type like junk mail or coupons or whatever so it would have stopped me dead in my tracks because I would get hung up on perfection...and yeah couldn't do that to myself...but did the piles so its not so over whelming for my husband...so this gave me an idea...I am going to sort the house out by kind of clutter and yeah haven't started yet but thats the plan so we can see how much of the same thing we have...because I know there is a bunch of the same or similar things...anyways....thats the game plan though...

I went to rake the leaves outside my house and found the broken rake and that's all I had and after doing half a wall worth I decided I was going to find the other one...so I went into our cluttered garage to find it and found three strollers I been meaning to get rid of so I dug those out (which was unburrying a handle that looked like the rake so there was motive behind my madness) I dragged them all out and took pictures to send to a friend I thought may want it...but she didn't so I decided to spray them down with shout stain lifter and then power spray it with the hose...the stains didn't come out but oh well...then my neighbor came over and asked about my garden which got me going to start to pull the grass out of it...and she said she would come back with her mom and help but never came back so I got a little done on that then remembered the task at hand...well long story short the handle wasn't to the rake and I had to use the broken one and drag all the leaves away from the house then shovel it will a snow shovel because I didn't know where the shovel was and to prevent myself from getting sucked into any other sidetracks I just grabbed what was out in plain sight....so yeah it worked and got the job at hand done and I weelburrowed the debris to the compost pile we got going...so I got it done just had a few sidetracks which is why I am a SHE as flylady explains (Sidetrack Home Executive) See where I get the hoarding executive ha ha...so not only do I sidetrack but yes I have a handle on my hoarding tendencies I have refrained from buying anything...I will walk around with stuff in my cart for a while then go and put it back after reasoning in my head...will you really seriously ever use it? and would you use it more than just today? and another one thats good to keep me from buying stuff no matter how good of a deal it is...is WHERE WILL I PUT IT? that one really makes me put everything back and that is that and I didn't cave into the urge to buy such a great deal...so...my suggestion and actually high recommendation is when you are at the store and you are impulsively buying because of a great buy...ask yourself those questions for a while walking around the store with the items in your cart...and really rationalize and put emphasis on the where you will put it...if that doesn't detour you from buying stuff...there are counselors out there that can seriously help you overcome this addiction/disorder...

Anyways, notice I am working outside now instead of inside? Well my husband wants to clean the house before we put a bun in the oven to have a baby in May or June we need to put the bun in the oven in Aug....so yeah gotta step it up into high gear and get through all this junk and get the house ready for baby before the bun can even get into the oven...so yeah...really want to...but very much discouraged...my husband stopped at a garage sale and brought home MORE STUFF!!!! stuff we couldn't live without...so yeah...very discouraging...we are trying to get rid of stuff and he is bringing home stuff quicker than I am shoving it out the door...so feel my wheels spinning and not getting anywhere...so today I put one of the three strollers on ebay which is only running one week for local pickup only...so if your interested and you live elsewhere than Wichita KS then your going to have to travel here to get it...and it would be whole lots cheaper than shipping and handling trust me...anyways...I don't think it will sale because I am so honest and yeah spared them the disappointment when they received it because of the stains but I seriously think they would come out if you put them through the wash...anyways thats all in the details or description whatever....so thats one step closer to getting rid of strollers we no longer will be needing because I bought a new one at the thrift shop awhile back....so yeah that was back when I was weak in my thought control methods...so yeah...I am better have my slip ups every now and then but haven't in a very long ...anyways...I am recovering now to teach my husband the same methods to help keep him from buying so much stuff...fingers crossed!
Anyway talk to you later.
Sincerely,
Rabeka Jo

This weeks attempts

Well I been sorting papers into two piles one related to school (including: drawings, art, teachers notes, menus, etc.) and the other is "other papers" which is anything BUT school/kid related...so I got not too tall of piles going as to not overwhelm but seems my hoarder doesn't want to go through them yet...ok so kinda at a stand still because if I keep adding to it, they will just become overwhelming and nothing will ever come of it...so may try a different approach...may sort it even farther down into art, writing, reading, report cards/progress reports, and teacher notes/menus...see if that's less overwhelming assuming that's the problem...
Anyways, been setting the timer so not to get burned out and just picking one item to gather (papers)...throughout the house...next will be toys and sort those by type again, just to show how many of each kind we actually have and show we can afford to let a few go because we still will have plenty...
After the toys are under control again, I will be tackling my hobby stuff and send my husband to his hobbies and tools and such...I am tempted to help him with his and sort by type and with tools sizes and show him how many of the same he has and hope he can part with some...and same with my crafts really contemplate if I really will ever pick them back up or actually sit down and learn on a few of them...and get rid of them if need be.
Anyways, it's of course a slow process as usually it is since the house didn't get this way over night it surely won't get better that fast either...so I'm taking my baby steps and decluttering (well at least trying to) I had a few things I thought could go away but he told me where to put them instead...at least they have a home now...just wish it wasn't in our home...oh well...I'm giving him the power over what goes and stays and I am not really sure if that's what he really wants so I'm going to ask him and see what he wants from me since it seems he is annoyed and discouraged for whatever reason. You know get on the same page.
Anyway ttyl,
Sincerely,
Rabeka Jo