We are in!

What a mess.... we are "in" the new house, but one delay after another has us still as squatters in the backyard.

Kitchen (but there is the BBQ and a hose outside)

Working complete bathroom (today the toilets go in, so we will have one bathroom that is 100% usable! ONE DOWN, TWO TO GO!)

Floors (the worst part because we can't really use the house until the floors happen. We HAD a couple pallets of bamboo strand, it was supposed to be installed last Monday, but it was defective in the clic part. THEN we had some maple, but they sent 2 different manufactureres that weren't compatable. As I type this a third attempt is being delivered.... if this doesn't work, I will be at my wit's end. On the bright side, finally as of this morning we have vinyl in the washrooms, and the cork in the bedrooms went down fast and easy.Moving the beds into the house was a real treat. Yay for floors!)

Window trim and baseboards (no foreseeable timeline for the finishing work.... oh well)

As for decluttering, I have been living as an extreme minimalist since the 25th.

Outside kitchen... kind of fun for the summer, I have to admit. In fact, I am tempted to cook like this every summer. A couple boxes of vital kitchen stuff, BBQ, microwave, kettle, hose and fridge. Hey, that' pretty civilized really!

Clothing is still the stuff in the suitcases that I packed the day before we moved. Like travelling, it's a hand-wash-then-hang situation until the washer and dryer get hooked up.

OH WAIT! Now the 20 year old hot water tank is leaking! Surprise! I guess that is another thing to add to the list.

Books. Sorry, they are all packed.

TV. Nope, it's not plugged in, I think it's in the garage, but not totally sure. Strangely, I'm not missing it thanks to the laptop and internet connection.

This experience has been valuable for identifying the difference between a want and a need.

Not quite the plan, but not bad either

I have been decluttering in a way I didn't expect. One of the big sheds out in the new backyard was crammed FULL of boxes that didn't belong to us. That is an 8x10x6 foot storage shed!

While the painters were slaving away inside the house, I made it my job to clear out that shed.

It seems the person who filled the shed had a crafting "problem". It looks like she may have been in the Christmas craft fair circuit because she had bins and bins of new, still-in-the-package notions and beeds and glittery things and glue guns/sticks.... many pounds of them! Since I have no desire to start up these hobbies, I got to emptying the bins into sturdy boxes to take to charity. Along with many boxes of books and clothing and other season craft supplies, I took THREE truck loads of donations to charity!

There is also a box full of family photos that I will be delivering to the seller's realtor.

Unfortunately there is at least 3 full-sized garbage cans of undonatable trash too.... I feel bad about the ruined books most of all.

What did I get for my efforts?

a very nice large lead crystal vase.
12 (now empty) gigantic heavy duty totes (they will come in handy for the move)
some of the cuter craft supplies for my neices (limited to one box)
some good quality christmas items that I actually like
2 evening dresses that are going to be fun as halloween costumes
a pair of cowboy boots that are AWESOME, unique and fit great
a pair of dress shoes that have a special something-something and fit great.
a big bag of rags for the garage

I could have kept more stuff that had potential... but I wanted to be brutal and I was!

Now the shed is ready to be used as a transtion space for my family's belongings while we wait for our house to be done. After that, it will be my oldest boy's workshop!

Goal #21 More stuff that I can let go

I just realized something!
This house that we are moving to (being one level) will need less of the supplies that our current multi-level house does!
For 13 years I have required nail clippers, a brush, scissors, hammer, screwdrivers, tape, and miscellanous other hardware and personal grooming supplies on each floor. Sheer laziness on my part but effective at preventing procrastination by having these things on-hand.
How liberating it will be to only have ONE place for these things!

Goal #21 Let go of redundant items

I will need to go through the junk drawers and baskets to gather the handy tools together and choose only the BEST to take with me to the new house.

It's REALLY happening!

We have SOLD the house!

Now we have exactly 24 days to pack up and move out.

LET THE CRITCAL PURGING BEGIN!!!!!

I am determined NOT to move anything that won't fit in the new place.

I vow to NOT bring anything I have outgrown literally or figuritively.

I will NOT to move anything that I do not find useful or beautiful.

(the other family members may have a different plan, but I will lead by example here)