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Is this Karma or what? Going through stuff in the freezer - have dinners for Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday. Exactly. Thursday I pack the rest of the kitchen.
Also, I'm packing up my kitchen stuff, except for the really old, crummy stuff, which we will use until the day we leave, then make one last donation to Gooodwill............
now that the reality is hitting me, we're leaving our home of 11 years! I thought this would be our "forever" home, but it was not to be. Once again, I pack my life up in boxes and sally forth!
I hear you. This was supposed to be our last move till our son graduates. Not going to happen. I won't spend another year unemployed here. I am not into another bad winter.
Went through my closet...again. I'm slowly letting go of pieces I keep "just in case", or just because they're "nice". I'll keep doing it until I actually pack. I need to do this in the kitchen too.
Hi, new to this thread and will probably be a long-standing 'member' of this thread seeing as im not actually moving for atleast a few years but i would like to be organised in the run up, so when we do move i actually know what is staying/going/charity/bin etc and i can spend my last few days in the UK visiting family and friends with my kids
Yesterday i sorted out my bedroom cabinets and wardrobe. Got a sack full of clothes for charity and a carrier bag of rubbish Feeling better already.
Might have a look at the books i have and sell the ones i dont want anymore. Same for DVDs i think.
Today I came up with a system. I found some old ribbon. I tie a color for a category on each bag---green is Goodwill, red is trash, blue is garage sale, etc. You get the idea. Also, I made a promise to myself to dispose of the days catch every day. don't leave it sitting there or you start getting things mixed up, regardless of how much you try to organize it. Dump the trash in the dumpster, put the donation items in the trunk of my car for a Goodwill run, and I have a designated spot in my garage for that garage sale that will probably never happen.
Today I came up with a system. I found some old ribbon. I tie a color for a category on each bag---green is Goodwill, red is trash, blue is garage sale, etc. You get the idea. Also, I made a promise to myself to dispose of the days catch every day. don't leave it sitting there or you start getting things mixed up, regardless of how much you try to organize it. Dump the trash in the dumpster, put the donation items in the trunk of my car for a Goodwill run, and I have a designated spot in my garage for that garage sale that will probably never happen.
Ok, I thought I'd start this thread so we can all inspire each other while keeping track of our accomplishments.
I do stuff every day, but it gets discouraging.
I understand getting discouraged! In the three years I've lived in Houston, I've moved four times, and I've come to realize that starting early is the best thing you can do when it comes to packing and preparing. Keeping a checklist helps.
Moving can be fun though since it gives you a chance to re-evaluate how you live and what's important to you! It's all about simplification. Get rid of junk! Free your life!
Anyway, I'll be moving again, this time from Houston, Texas to the Cleveland, Ohio area. I'll be driving my car, and I hope for good weather. I've done the drive before (from New Jersey to Texas) and I loved it. The only difference this time is that I'm bringing a cat with me!
My advice for first-time long distance drivers is don't risk it - if you start feeling sleepy, pull over at the next motel and rest.
This weekend is my last weekend in Houston! I've been packing hard and I'm looking forward to swimming in the pool and taking it easy. Tis the benefit of starting early!
We were uip until 3 am sorting stuff, this is more work than I anticipated!
Our "system"
most of the living room is cleared out, so we use it as a staging area, label and price things there
Then take to garage, try to set up for display
the sale is Fri & Sat, I was going to start at 9 am, then realized most garage sales advertised around here will start at 6-7 am, so best start earlier, otherwise people will have spent all their money by the time I open
Also, just realized why people start garage sales so early---to avoid the heat of the day! Here in Central Texas its unbearably hot by 10-11 am, might as well close up by then! The sweat was rolling off us last night at 1 am working in the garage!
I keep finding more and more items to sell. I hope I'm pricing them right, low enough to sell. My main goal is to get rid of the junk, not to make a financial killing. I keep telling myself there's an implied value in every item sold in that I don't have to pay to move it. I wis I could figure out some sort of formula that would give me some idea what that item would cost top ship. Also, we've signed a lease for our new house. I keep thinking aout our nice, new, pristine house, I don't want to trash it out like this one!
Got more boxes from Costco, dd sorted many of her stuffed animals and books, took those to Goodwill, I couldn't bear to see strangers pawing through her precious toys, even though she doesn't want them now, they have memories for me. Also, we kept and boxed up 3 large boxes of stuffed animals.
Arranged a Salvation Army pickup next Tuesday, that's the soonest they can come, tp pick up whatever doesn't sell.
Today, the kids help me make signs then post them around the neighborhood. We can't post signs on posts, fences, etc, so what other people do is tape it on a box and weigh it down with rocks. We might even make red arrows to display with ballons, but we're cutting into our profits. Also have displayed on Craigs list.
It will just be me and the kids, dh is out of town. DD doesn't want to help, she says she's "too embarassd" so she will stay inside. Well, ds will be my only helper, I told him he can keep 100% of the proceeds for providing the help, he's shrewd, a good salesman, knows how to manage money, change, keep an eye on things, so we won't get ripped off.
He's hoping to earn enough to buy a new bike, we told him we'd cap out the difference. Getting rid of the stuff is profit enough for me..
Instead of putting price tags on every item, I'm batching things, all books 25 cents, tools in bins, range from 50 cents, $1, $2.
What do yu think we should price doorknobs for? Wehn we moved into this house, we replaced all doorknobs with handles, easier for my bad hands. We have about 30 doorknobs, all new, bright brass color. I was going to price them $1 each? Ds thinks I'm pricing them too low, what do you think? Or the whole box $25
What do yu think we should price doorknobs for? Wehn we moved into this house, we replaced all doorknobs with handles, easier for my bad hands. We have about 30 doorknobs, all new, bright brass color. I was going to price them $1 each? Ds thinks I'm pricing them too low, what do you think? Or the whole box $25
If you're unsure about how to price something, I think looking up the item on eBay or Craigslist is a good ballpark figure. Have you considered selling your more expensive items on eBay? The internet brings in more customers than locals so you might get better deals. You might just write "Negotiable" on items you really aren't sure about. Haggling can be fun!
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I thought this would be our "forever" home, but it was not to be. Once again, I pack my life up in boxes and sally forth!
but i would like to be organised in the run up, so when we do move i actually know what is staying/going/charity/bin etc and i can spend my last few days in the UK visiting family and friends with my kids 
Feeling better already.
Catnapper
