Day 21: 4 tea light candles

Why did I throw these away? Because I do not use candles much. If I do, they are the kind already in a glass container and when it is done you throw the whole thing away. It is too much hassle to mess with them for me. Why do I have these? A friend needed a couple, bought a whole stinkin bag, took what she needed and left the rest. (like 2 years ago) Where did I find these? On top of my fridge next to the smashed play food. I will be living lighter soon enough; one thing a day! (my poor husband, I think he would like it if I did 5 things a day) I will get there. Thanks bub for being so patient.

Day 20: straps to the diaper bag

So I slammed the door shut on the diaper bag and it broke the clip off the side of the bag. If you know anything about diaper bags, you know that there is the big shoulder strap and then there are the 2 straps that you can pull out of side pockets and make it clip on to the handle bar of the stroller. Well, when I slammed the door, it broke off the clip making the side straps useless and bulky. I am getting better, I only kept these useless straps on for 2 months. Gone now and looking for the next item.

Day 19: a smashed cardboard piece of play food

One of my LMNOP kids crushed a little carton of play food orange juice. I kept it because I was going to tape it back together. I knew it was a bad idea, thus me never getting around to doing it. So it has been sitting on top of my fridge since January. Man I need help!

Day 18: Chocolate

I bought chocolate over year ago when PD was in Kenya so I could make chocolate covered strawberries for a potluck I was hosting at my house. Well, it is time again for another potluck since he is going out of town again and as I was rummaging through my top cabinet, there it was. Well, I think it is best to start fresh. I do not know if it is still good and even if the packaging says its good, you do not know how the aging changes the consistency or how well the chocolate will stick to the strawberry and I surely do not want to find out 30 minutes before guests start arriving at our house. Goodbye old chocolate!

Day 17: Candy form the candy jar

So I thought a candy jar would be nice. If you know me, you know that we do not eat a lot of candy in our house, so it is kinda funny that we would have one. I guess because I never had one growing up, I have always wanted it. Wait till my girls get older, we will have a gum ball machine, a real fancy one. Anyways, the candy I threw away...I actually didn't throw it away. One of my kiddos from church was over and asked for some fundip. I had to give her fair warning. I had the brilliant idea of putting ALL the candy in the jar, chocolate, straight up sugar and then mint flavored. Well, we have the 3hour mints. They ruined the whole jar. The Chocolate taste like mint and the straight up sugar kind taste like mint. She wanted fundip but I told her it was gonna taste like blue raspberry 3hr mint fundip. Apparently that does not matter to an 8 year old, SO I dumped all the candy on her. Well except of course for the mints, because they still taste like mint.

Day 16: Dollar Store CLR cleaner

Calcium, Lime and Rust...my football! Didn't work. Stored it in my linen closet for months and months. Now the inside of my toilet got a nice clean (maybe) and then down it went.

Day 15: An almost full bottle of Prenatal Vitamins

I of course have no need for prenatal vitamins right now. The bottle I am talking of is a fancy prenatal vitamin I bought when I was out of town and left my regulars at home. These are nasty. They are organic or something and do not have the regular coating that eliminate the smell. These smell like straight up pee. I am going to offer it to a pregnant chick I know. If she passes, they on to the trash they go. I cannot donate it to a pregnancy center because it is already open.

Day 14: A cutting board

So I have these flimsy cutting boards that are great for slicing something up and then when you want to put it in the pot, you can pick it up and then curl the sides in and slide the chopped food into the pot. Well, any cook that has been in my kitchen HATES them and always complains because it slips and slides on the counter. Well, I have 4 of these. Today as I was slicing an apple on one, I noticed one of the corners had melted in the dishwasher. Now I have 3.

Day 13: Amoxicillin

Lyds had an ear infection back in March. She took all 10 doses but we still had some left in the bottle. I didn't throw it away; don't know why. So now I will throw it away and I have extra space in the door of my fridge for another salad dressing or something else or maybe nothing.

Day 12: 8 gallon-sized cans of old paint

When we moved in this house over 2 years ago, Dustin did all the painting, in all the rooms. When we purchased the paint, we also purchased these little silver pint sized paint cans to store the left over paint. So in my laundry room, I have stored the 1/2 used gallon size and the empty, waiting to be used pint size cans. Well, Dustin decided to paint the basement and was going through our old supplies and opened the old paint up to see what was inside and to pour it into the small ones. Some of it had dried up because we didn't conserve it 2 years ago. We were able to salvage most of the paint and now in my shelf, I only have the small pints that are nice and neat looking and the old dirty, paint covered gallon ones are out the door! That gave me a lot of space in the laundry room! Thanks Bub.

Day 11: A half used bottle of knock off brand Febreeze

There is a bottle of 1/2 used knock off brand Febreeze that we got from the dollar store. The reason why it is only 1/2 used, is because it just isn't that great. The smell is pleasant, it just doesn't last. The reason I decided to toss this one today is the bottle it is in is skinny at the top but very wide at the bottom. The base is double the size of a normal bottle...taking up valuable real estate in my linen closet. Right now, the shelves are overwhelming. There will be lots of products I will be dumping soon....bought....tried....didn't work....and stored in linen closet because I can't throw it away. Its all about to change.

Oh and my environmental friends, here is something I found in an article regarding the disposal of household chemicals....Most household wastes are safe, can be disposed of safely and most are intended to go down the drain in normal use. The best way to dispose of most household chemical products is to use as much of the product as possible. If some remains, dilute with wa- ter and flush down the drain. Household chemical products should NOT be mixed, so do not put more than one product down the drain at a time.

So, down the toilet it will go.

Day 10: A faded black hand me down tank top

Someone, bless their heart, gave me a faded black hand me down tank top. Not knowing how to say no thank you, I willingly took it, hung it in my closet and have kept it there for years. This was pre-the house we are living in now, which means I packed it in a box and moved it into this house. I never wear it because it doesn't make me feel super. It makes me think, why did I take someone else's junk. They obviously reached a point in their mind where they decided it was no longer good enough for them. Why in the world would it be ok for me? Do they think less of me? Regardless of why it was given, now it is time to say goodbye to it and hello to 3/4 cm more space in my closet (my guess at the width of a hanger)!

I will be weeding out more clothes, why hold on to something that makes you feel less than super?

Day 9: A book and 6 puzzles

WHO IN THE WORLD created the hard back books that have jigsaw puzzles as pages....just a little FYI, it doesn't work!!! The moment you turn the page, the pieces once holding together your hard work, fall all over the floor. The pieces end up strewn about your whole house! Good bye book, good bye to the majority of the pieces, I am sure I will find the missing ones eventually!

Day 8: 7 baby binkis

Today is a small toss but it still is a toss. One thing we bought Lydia new and didn't force a hand-me-down was her binkis. She has outgrown the newborn - 6 month size. If and WHEN we have baby number 3 we will buy her her own as well. I did keep one as my little keepsake but am very happy to go ahead and toss the others. Why hold on to them, I mean seriously, they were taking up valuable real estate in my junk drawer.

Day 7: A bottle of hair conditioner

Not just any bottle of conditioner, today I threw away a bottle of conditioner that must be over 2 years old AND has been in my shower the whole time. (again, using AB as my time marker, I know she was still sleeping in her crib). It was during Dustin's first trip to Kenya. I decided to surprise him and get my hair cut short and my colored. The haircut was ok and the color wasn't exciting (what did surprise him was the amount of money that came out of our account that day).

Anyways, you know how the stylist always preaches agains whatever product you are currently using and how you should buy their product? Well, they got me. I bought the shampoo. Got home, tried it 3 days and it was cr*p. I then went to Sally's and bought a generic fancy shampoo instead. I didn't need conditioner because my hair was short and it always tends to get my hair a little oily. Anyways, there was this sale at Sally's that made the shampoo cheaper if you bought a conditioner too. It didn't make sense to me, I just wanted the shampoo, but taking advantage of the sale, I bought both. And as you can guess, I never used it. I have cleaned around it for 2 years. Every morning when I shower and see it, I think of 2 things, how tight I made our budget that pay period by getting a not so great cut and not running it by Dustin first and I think of how I wasn't strong enough to tell the chick cutting my hair, I do not want to buy her product!

I am a stronger person today than I was then. I do not need to be reminded of that day any more. Good buy 2 year old conditioner that has taken up space in my shower and taunted me.

Day 6: A sports water bottle

AB missed out on one of her friend's birthday parties at an indoor sports facilities back in February. The mom of the birthday boy was great to bring her a party favor, a sports water bottle filled with little goodies like candy, a little popper, a yo-yo, etc. I gave it to AB one night when we were at the bowling alley watching Poppy bowl. It was a welcomed activity and a nice break from her usual crayons and paper or watching a movie on the iPhone. She generously shared the candy, she played with the yo-yo and popped the little popper. At the end of the night, we went home, went to bed and woke up the next AM. She hasn't once mentioned that she would like the bottle it all came in. Does she even know what a sport water bottle is? Does the bottle fit nicely in my cabinet with all of my other nicely stacked glasses? Want to know where I found it? You will never guess....it was in the sock drawer next to the broken sun glasses. Now you are probably beginning to understand why I really need to throw one thing away a day, huh? Hello extra space in a sock drawer. Hang in there I will free you up soon enough. Give me a couple more days!

Day 5: 4 pair of broken kiddos sunglasses

One of AB's grandmothers gave her a party favor pack of heart sunglasses. It was very thoughtful. There of course was enough for AB to play with and share with her LMNOP friends as they were playing dress up. One of my more rough clients who is no longer with us, found pleasure in over extending the glasses and watching the pieces pop apart. It was of course just to get a reaction out of her and a reaction he sure did get. (by the way, he is no longer a client)

So I held on to these for a number of reasons. Number 1 it came from a grandmother, which makes anything more special. Number 2 it was "stolen" from her by a not so pleasant little boy that I subjected AB to by having him as a client in my daycare. Number 3 I was sure I could repair it for her since I felt so guilty.

Ok, it has been in our sock drawer for two months now. She hasn't asked for them. I am sure it was a 4 for a dollar pack. AND I am sure her grandmother got it on a discount and paid less than a dollar. I'm taking my sock drawer back! Good bye broken sunglasses. Good bye guilt that I feel when I see these. Hello to new memories when we play dress up!

Day 4: A pair of shoes

A super comfortable pair of shoes, I didn't may more than $20 for them and I am thinking it was actually closer to $10. I bought them 4 years ago (its easy to measure years cause you think Pre-AB or Post-AB). These were pre-AB. Any ways, I got them wet once and the black coloring bled to the tan part of the shoe, but I over looked that. Yesterday, I puled them out and thought, oh, I haven't worn these in a year. I got excited and slipped them on only to see the huge hole on the left shoe. I remembered then why I hadn't worn them. Why did I not throw them away a year ago when I first discovered the hole? Because I told myself I couldn't throw away such a comfortable pair of shoes. I will keep them for when I go outside in the back yard, or when I do yard work. I must be free of this "lie" in my head not letting me get rid of anything. I have to live lighter. So, good bye shoes...I have a feeling you are not the only pair I will be throwing away.

Day 3: A Nail Scrubber for the bath

I must say that already day 3 into the challenge, it is proving to be a bit harder than I first imagined. My linen closet has 5 shelves, I quickly scanned the shelves and it wasn't till I reached the last shelf till this item popped out at me. I have so many reasons to keep all of these things I "need". It can almost be described as a game of Jenga, the first few items are going to be easy but soon, I will need to give more thought and consider a strategy and do it with much thought...if I really am going to live lighter.

So, AB has this little brush used for scrubbing toe nails and fingernails, but it is starting to turn a dark brown and I am sure that can't be good. I could wash it in the dishwasher if I wanted to sterilize it I'm sure, but she never hardly used it and it is just one more thing for me to take out of the tub before I can take a shower. Goodbye nail scrubber thing or whatever your name is.

Day 2: Lip Gloss

Today, as I was looking for something to throw away, I came across a thing of lip gloss. It was given to me by an old boss for my birthday. He actually didn't get me the lip gloss but a gift card to the Body Shop. I found out that the only reason he got me the card was because he saw flowers on my desk. The flowers came from Dustin but he thought that they actually came from my other boss so he felt obligated to get it for me. Anyways, the lip gloss always had a bad taste and I didn't use it often. How long ago was this? February 2006. Not to mention the fact that my mom gave me 3 things of lip gloss for my birthday this past February. So there ya go! Good riddance.

Day 1: A baby blanket

I am throwing away a baby blanket today. It was given to me 4 years ago, right before AB was born. It is a padded quilt for the baby to lay on the ground. It is from another country and is beautiful. The only problem is that after I washed it, the lining separated and slid down and bunches up in a corner. That means it doesn't lay flat, it is impossible to fold and has not been used in forever. I didn't want to throw it away because it was a gift and because it was from another country. I don't even remember which country it was and I only saw the person who gave it to me once or twice after AB was born. So, today, I throw it away.

So here is where I am coming from...

I have a great life. A perfect family. I quit a stressful job, started my own business and get to stay home with my kids. I love my husband. He loves me. I love Jesus. He loves me. Why in the world do I struggle with feeling "choked" or overwhelmed or not knowing where the heck to start? I am far from a hoarder, I can get my house close to a magazine cover if you give me a 20 minute notice. But please do not look in our closets, or under my bed, or heaven forbid you look in my nightstand. Anyone who has ever been to my house knows about my sunroom.

WHY AM I LIVING THIS WAY? I am way to busy to be able to just make a Saturday off and just go for it so in my mind if I can't do it all at once, I won't do it at all. That makes sense....NOT. And I also feel that this clutter is keeping me from other tasks...like thank you notes from the girls for Christmas gifts. Well, now that it is April, I officially will not worry about that but then I feel guilty, more overwhelmed and like I cannot breathe.

So here is my goal:

I am going to throw one thing away a day and write about it on this blog. If I share why I was holding on to it or what was going on in my mind, maybe it can free me up a little and also inspire someone else while I am at it. I KNOW I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE IN THE WORLD LIKE THIS!!!

Imagine my life after 90 days, 180 days, or wow can you imagine my linen closet after I throw away 365 things. We all could live with a lot less, some of you just don't know it yet.

For all of my environmental friends, I will take proper measures with chemicals and such.

For all of you who think I am wasteful, if I feel there is true value in it, I will put it on my curb with a FREE sign.

For those of you who think I shouldn't throw anything away, maybe you shouldn't read this blog.