Finishing Up The Garage Declutter

 

Everything I have or will be bringing into my house needs to have a home because without that it just becomes stuff.  That includes the garage too.  Without a place to store our items we end up with clutter and chaos making it more difficult to do what we like to do.  We struggle to find what we need when we take on a project.  We can’t keep an inventory of what we actually have on hand so we end up buying more we didn't need.  Working in this way and living in chaos adds stress and anxiety to our daily lives.  My goal is to always work to improve my quality of life.  Regularly cleaning, maintaining and organizing my home is one of those ways I can improve my quality of life.  I want to enjoy going out to the garage, not dread it.

 

When my BFF was here during my staycation we were able to make a good dent in decluttering my garage. I got rid of a bunch of stuff I definitely did not need like a ton of cardboard boxes I had been saving just in case I needed “a good box”.  There may have been an eyeroll from someone.  I filled up my recycling wheelie bin and set it at the curb for collection.  After it was emptied I ended up filling it up a second time.  I gathered up all of the donations I had collected and got that pile dropped off at the thrift store.  I also dropped off the glass recycling.

 

Getting better

I later went out there to clean and reorganize the shelves I had decluttered.  I like to have like items with like, that is what makes the most sense to me when I am organizing.  When I was finished I was thrilled to see some open spaces.  Things were no longer jam packed.  When I have too much stuff and not enough room to store it I tend to get frustrated because I knock things off the shelves when I’m moving stuff around to get to what I need.  I had eliminated the potential for this to be a problem anymore.  Yippee!

 

Love this!  So much nicer! 😀

I ended up moving that green extension cord

A week later I made it back out there to work on the other side where I have a set of shelves that hold all of my supplies for my vehicles, the yard and garden, the house as well as all of my power tools.  After decluttering and clearing the shelves I wiped them down and then put everything back on placing like items together.  All of my supplies for taking care of my vehicles are on one shelf.  The yard and garden supplies and bug sprays now sit together on another.

 

I decided to eliminate the big bin I kept my power tools in because it had become too heavy and was getting difficult to get on and off the shelf.  Instead I emptied it out finding five worn out blades for my reciprocal saw at the bottom.  I have no idea why I saved those.  After tossing those out I placed the tools on the shelf next to my miter saw so I now have them all on one shelf and easy to access.

 

The vacuum cleaner now has a place to live on the bottom shelf.  The power washer sits next to it and on the wall right next to the shelf I installed a bracket to hold the wand and hose for the power washer.  Bungi cords become a tangled mess so I hung them up on the side of the shelf so that won’t happen anymore.  My step stool has a home when it is folded and not in use.  It now sits in between the shelf unit and the deep freezer.

 

Everything has a home

The front corner where I hang my yard tools was nice, but it could be nicer.  With a little rearranging and a few more brackets I was able to better organize them so it is much easier to access them without knocking others around or off onto the floor.  No one needs to get hit in the head with a shovel.  Well, maybe someone does, but it isn't me.  Anyway, everything has a home there too.  

 

After a break to hydrate and have a bite to eat I went back out to the garage to attack the top shelf where, yes I hate to admit it, I had more empty cardboard boxes.  For the third time I filled the recycle wheelie bin with broken down boxes.  The shelf is now empty except for one box filled with the empty flats I keep my empty canning jars in.  I’m good with that.

 

Before

Wow!

And with that my garage is officially done.  Moving forward I am going to really work hard to keep things neat, clean and tidy and not allow it to become a dumping ground out there or a place to hoard things I don’t need.  In fact, I’m hoping as time goes on to declutter more items and embrace the open spaces I create in the process.

 

REAL Food Recipe - Cilantro Lime Salad Dressing

 

Recently I had purchased a bottle of cilantro lime salad dressing at Trader Joes.  It was pretty tasty, I will admit.  The ingredients were too bad, however not as clean as I would’ve like so I decided to make my own version of this dressing and see if I could replicate it.  As it turned out I think I actually like my version better. 

Cilantro Lime Salad Dressing 

¼ cup lime juice

¼ cup avocado or olive oil

1 handful cilantro, leaves & stems

½ cup sour cream

1 Tbs. honey

Garlic powder, to taste 

Put all ingredients into a blender and pulse until smooth.  Taste and adjust any seasonings to your liking.  Store in an airtight container with lid in the refrigerator.

 

I only used a dash of the garlic powder and the rest of the ingredients as listed.  It was delicious over a bed of greens with grape tomatoes, avocado slices, sunflower seeds and some sliced rotisserie chicken breast over the top.  A perfect summer dinner salad!

 

My Tireless Retirement – Week 170

 

Hello, hello!  June has finished itself up and it is now July.  Our year is already half over and looking back at my journal and dayplanner I am quite pleased with all that I’ve been able to do and accomplish this year.  I’ve done some really big things this year so far and not to boast, but I’m rather proud of myself.  Needless to say, I am feeling super charged to take on the latter half of 2025!

 

I got a few things done 😁

Unbeknownst to all of you I challenged myself to take on at least one practical project a day in the month of June, one useful project to improve my quality of life.  While it certainly did that I was surprised by how much these projects also impacted my mental health in a very positive way.  I walked away from the month of June feeling absolutely AMAZING!  I decided to continue my useful projects in the month of July as well however, I’m going to take on fewer projects, perhaps not every day and go at a much more leisurely pace.  I’m not all that good at the leisurely pace part, but I thought I’d give it a try.  We shall see how well that works out for me.

 

Nailed it!

When I did my home reset I had printed off a fresh copy of my housekeeping checklist and re-cleaned.  After six weeks I had accomplished what I normally now spread out over a six month period of time.  Plus, I did all of the additional projects and a TON of decluttering.  I made four trips to two different thrift stores to drop off donations during the month of June.  June was definitely my best and most productive month so far this year.

 

I cannot tell you enough just how much I enjoy opening my cupboards and cabinets in the kitchen and seeing those lovely and cheerful shelf liners.  It is so nice to see some open spaces in my cupboards and drawers, less jam packed.  What a joy it is to cook, bake and put away my dishes.  Who knew such a simple little thing like making those shelf liners and doing some more decluttering could make such a difference?

 

Refreshed & clean

As the month was coming to a close one of the things I wanted to accomplish this year was to give my entry way a freshen up.  Since the last time it was painted there were some dings and gouges from clarinet and violin cases heading out the door not to mention my own special touches when I moved furniture out during my first big declutter a couple years ago.  A touch of kitty activity as well.  I spackled the imperfections and then gave it a good coat of paint.  It was a bit sad to cover up some of that history, but now those memories are safely entombed for all eternity.

 

Before with a little bit of spackle work

After!  Nice!

Also on the never ending “to-do” list to complete was to repaint the wainscot in the upstairs bathroom.  I had already repaired a bit of wall damage some time ago and all it needed was a fresh coat.  I had planned to paint it before my house guests arrived, but ran out of time.  It is done and now as I sit on the potty I am no longer reminded I have an unfinished project patiently waiting for my attention.

 

I made this table matte

and a candle matte using some of the leftover pieces

I made it back into the sewing room to finish up the hanging dish towels I had stitched together.  I made myself a table matte as a nice treat to myself for all the hard work I had completed.  Everything I used to make it came from my sewing stash so I did not need to purchase anything new.  I like to make these mattes in various holiday themes to decorate my dining room table.  This new one is very patriotic and will remain on my table until I decorate for Fall.

 

"You should do something about this deck!"

The deck in the backyard has also been patiently waiting for me to give it a refresh.  I started off by power washing the entire deck and letting it dry for twenty four hours.  Over the course of a few days I sanded the entire deck and the steps.  I worked on it early in the morning while it was still cool and in the shade.  I used up some sandpaper I had that had been hanging around in the garage for ages.  I was hopeful it would be enough to get the job done, but ran out and had to go buy more.  Shoot!

 

"About time you got started on this!"

Power washed and ready for sanding.

On the way home from work on Monday I stopped in at Home Depot and picked up another package of sandpaper.  A heatwave hit us so I had to put this project on hold because it was way too hot to safely work outside, but I will get it done now that the temperatures have gone back down and then you will see pictures of the newly refreshed deck.  In the meantime have a great week!

 

4th Of July!

 

July Pantry Challenge! And Possibly August!

 

It’s that time again!  In the past few months I’ve stumbled upon a lot of great deals at the supermarkets and Costco allowing me to fill up both of my freezers, my pantry and my LTFS.  Now it is time to eat some of that wonderful stuff I have on hand.  I can’t think of a better way to really focus on what I have rather than buying more stuff and I want to make sure I stay on my set grocery budget this year so a pantry challenge it is!

 

I’ll be pulling food from my kitchen and garage freezers while I concentrate on using up anything that might have been sitting in there for awhile or otherwise could go to waste.  I’ll keep tabs too on anything that might be aging in the pantry or on the LTFS shelves.  After all, there is no point in stocking up on a good bargain if you allow it to go to waste.

 

My plan as far as shopping goes is to only buy fresh produce and dairy items and replace only the pantry items I run low or out of.  Even if I see a really good bargain on meat I’m going to have to pass on it because my deep freezer is full to capacity so I have no room to add anything else.  I also want to clear out the kitchen freezer so I can have the space back on the bottom section for meal prepping.  Right now it has been catching the overflow from the deep freezer, which is not its intended purpose.

 

Another area for me to work on is the frozen produce bin in the deep freezer as some of that is from last summer.  I’m not going to need to do as much canning this year as I did last year because the LTFS shelves are still well stocked and I’ve been using quite a bit of those jars this year so far.  It has been super handy having my own home canned soups and meats on the shelf to make a quick meal for myself, especially if I’m having a fun filled day working on projects or crafting.

 

So this is my plan for my July pantry challenge and to be perfectly honest I’m thinking it will likely extend on into August as well.  I’ve been very blessed to have been able to stock up quite a bit in the first five months of 2025, especially given the small grocery budget I work off of each month.  Watch for my post at the end of the month to see how I do.

 

 

Asian Inspired Summer Chicken Salad

 

This particular salad tends to be a frequent go-to for me, especially in the summertime when the temperatures start to heat up and no one wants to be in the kitchen.  It is full of delicious flavors using a homemade salad dressing and comes together supper fast and easy.

 

When I make this salad I either use a bag of pre shredded cabbage slaw mix but more often than not I simply shred my own cabbage and grate a carrot because it is fresher and much less expensive.  I also substitute the Kraft dressing with my own Asian Vinaigrette which I think tastes much better and is much healthier too.  Leftover rotisserie chicken works perfectly.  I’ve also added sliced green onion and radishes to the salad to make it even more delicious and colorful.

 

This is so good!

This salad holds up well so you can make it early and leave it in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat.  I use it as a potluck or picnic staple too.  I hope you give this one a try.

 

 

My Tireless Retirement – Week 169

 

Hello my friends!  It has been another busy and fun filled week in my tireless retired life.  Lately I have been feeling like a brand new person.  Things have just been coming together in a way that is hard to explain, but because of it I am filled with more energy and enthusiasm than I’ve felt in a good long time.  My engine just wants to keep on chugging.

 

I only worked half the day on Friday because on Saturday I took a group of seniors to the fire station for a tour.  It was fun to see the inner workings of a fire station as well as the fact that fire fighters aren’t hard to look at.  If you are going to work on a Saturday it needs to be worth it.  On Tuesday I took another fun group of senior ladies to play mini golf and then out to lunch.  We had a blast!

 

Before I left for work on Saturday I started my next project which was to dust/clean and reorganize my LTFS shelves to make sure I have all the older dated items up front to use first and the newer items behind them toward the back.  I used some of my canning jar flats to contain and organize items.  While I was at it I took a quick inventory to determine what I might be running low on.  I’m happy to report I am very well stocked.  I am running a bit low on my homemade salsa, but other than that I’m in great shape.  I have two bottles of Pace picante sauce from Costco so at this time I have no plans to make more salsa.

 

Neat, tidy & organized

This week I went through the last of mine and my children’s childhood toys, made some tough decisions (for me), and loaded up two boxes of donations.  I realized I don’t need to hang on to nearly as much of this stuff as I have been and it has been taking up a ton of space in the downstairs bedroom as well as the guest room.  My girls have said they don’t want these things and I know I was hanging onto them for sentimental reasons, but I was finally ready to let them go and now that it is done I actually do feel better about it.  What now remains is the stuff that means the most to us (me, mostly).  The goal for me now is to get it all whittled down to just one box per child and I’m nearly there.

 

I harvested the rhubarb

A bumper crop this year ready for the freezer

During my staycation the BFF and I tackled the garage and made a big dent in what needed to be done out there.  This past week I was able to get back in there and make another huge dent in things, going through more stuff, purging what I don’t need, filling up the trash and recycling wheelie bins and cleaning.  I am so pleased with what I’ve been able to accomplish so far.  I also spent some more time in the downstairs bedroom and found more items I was willing to part with.  Then it was back upstairs to tackle the closet in the guest room where I was able to find even more things to let go of like games I’d been saving and a bunch of extra pillows I definitely do not need.  Boy did that clear out some shelf space!

 

This was a huge load to donate

Along with all of the purging I did I also shredded another pile of sensitive information paperwork that is no longer needed by anyone.  I find shredding papers rather cathartic.  I emptied the shredder and filled up a plastic grocery bag.  Very satisfying.  Loading up the car with all of the boxes and bags ready to drop off at the thrift store (I almost had to fold down the back seats!) was rather satisfying as well.  Driving away from the donation center with an empty car felt even better.

 

I also want to share with you the neatest thing that happened to me this past week.  One of you lovely readers saw me at work and said hello.  Hi Mo!  It was so nice to meet you and thank you so much for all your kind words.  You really made my heart happy that morning and I truly appreciate it.  She was so sweet.

 

Should I declutter this?  Silly girl, I think not!

And with that another tireless week in my retired life came to an end and another one has begun.  I hope you all had a wonderful week as well.  Let me know in the comments what has been keeping you busy lately.