{My House Mondays} Here's the skinny on de-cluttering.

Let's be real, mkay? I have a lot of stuff. I like my stuff, but occasionally I have to purge it. So here's the skinny on my de-cluttering method. It's scientific if you think about it, or not...

About twice a year I get my Martha Stewart on and I deep clean my house. In the past I have decluttered by either shipping stuff to the thrift store or chucking it in the garbage can. This system has failed me because I end up keeping things that I will never use/wear again.

Sooo, I changed my de-cluttering system. Now, when I do my semi-annual purge I have five boxes handy: a consignment sale box, re-spunkify box, friends n' family box, thrift store box, last chance box, and a big, big garbage box. I have found that by having more options I am now able to get rid of a lot more stuff.

Here's my method....

Consignment Sale: In our community we have a semi-annual consignment sale. When I am de-cluttering I usually put items in this box that I want to get rid of, but only if I can make some of my money back. This box usually has new or slightly used clothes (baby clothes and high quality adult clothing), furniture, appliances, toys, holiday decorations, and sporting equipment.

Re-Spunkify: This box is full of shirts, towels, blankets, and sheets. It's basically all the stuff that I know I am going to cut up and make into different things, it's overflowering...

Family n' Friends: If I don't think an item will sale in the consignment sale, but I know someone in my family can use it, I will then put that item in the friend n' family box. This box usually has clothes, toys, books, blankets, linens, and toys.

DI (Thrift Store): My thrift store box is usually full of things that I know I won't be able to sale or are of no interest to my family. This box is  full of random dishes, old bedding, clothes that no wants, and a lot of random crap treassures.

Last Chance: The last chance box stays in my basement year around. If I have an item that I just can't part with then I put it in this box. If during the following year I pull out and use it then I will keep it. However, if it never leaves the box by the time the a year rolls around then I get rid of it.  If I didn't use it in the past year, the best bet is that I probably won't use it ever again.

Garbage: Some things just have to be chucked folks. seriously. dolls missing eyes, oven mitts with holes, puzzles missing pieces, clothes with pit stains, really these things need to just go. Nothing is more frustrating then buying a puzzle at a thrift store only to find out it is missing five pieces. flip.

Trust me this system is tried and proven by a true hoarder, that would be Hunk....

Okay, I lied, I am the Hoarder. Here is a brief glimpse of my consigment sale pile (I had to take it out of the box crate to sort it).

Now, I guess it is time I do  declutter/deep clean  my desk, any takers on helping me?

I'm hookin' you up with the downlow at Spunky Junky this week...

*Don't forget to leave a comment to win $15 in store credit from ShicShoppe!

*The Spunky Junky Linky Party is still going on until Tuesday night so make sure to link up all those great projects!

*Head on over to One Month to Win It to vote for your favorite "wear green" project! I made it through first week, thanks to ALL your awesomely cool votes! You guys rock!

:)

Who doesn't love a good freebie?

Today is your lucky day my friend. Canvas People have brought back their screamin' promotion (again)!

Right now you can get an 8x10 wrapped canvas for FA-REE!

You lucky dogs.

I got my canvas(es) during their last promotion. I upgraded to an 11x11 print and  I loved it so much that I ended up getting two more. I am a total sucker for a steal. I ended up saving over $180 bones! boom cha a la ka. FYI you will end up paying shipping, but it is totally worth it because wrapped canvases are the new rage, didn't you hear?

The details on each canvas are amazing. You totally don't want to miss out on this deal so visit their awesome store today!

{Feature Friday} and linky party numero tres

Another great Feature Friday Linky Party last week. For those of you that didn't get the memo, from now on I am going to feature my favorite projects the following week during the Linky Party. end of memo.

 Here are a few of the projects that caught my attention!

Living Grace Mason jar soap dispenser love it! I totally want to do this now!

Little Guess Family Turquoise Chair Revamp. really. This chicka holds the key to my heart..I love turquoise!

Blissful Meandering Dahlia Flower. I almost died when I saw this flower. So stinkin' cute! I want to make one, two, ten......

Natsprat pink dresser and awesome nursery. I need a girl..now! Will someone have a baby for me?.....awkward....

Twenty Something Ikea Frame Shadow box. I have so many keys laying around. What an awesome idea and who doesn't love a project that gives you an excuse to go to Ikea....my excuse would have to be good considering the magical land of Swed Furniture is 400 miles away.

Great Job chickas! Make sure to grab a button

<a href="http://www.spunkyjunky.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="Spunky Junky" src="http://i1177.photobucket.com/albums/x349/spunkyjunky/featuredon.jpg" /></a>

Here are the rules for the linky party

*Link to a specific post, not your homepage, or a giveaway.

*Post something that you have done in the last month

*Check out one other lovely and give them some sugar! Everyone loves comments and compliments.

*Grab my button and put it somewhere on your blog!

*Come back next week to see the featured projects!

{that's us thursday} depriving oneself is no fun....

Hello Friends, welcome to another {that's us thursday}!

For those of you new to my lil' blog, Thursdays are when you get to learn a bit more about Hunk, Punk, and myself. Yep, you get to be a part of the embarrassing, breathtaking, tear-jerking, horrific details of our lives.

Enjoy {and if you are new, "WELCOME!"--don't be scared I don't bite} buahahaha.

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Well, Lent started yesterday. Even though I am not Catholic I am still a sucker for any excuse for self-improvement.  I have learned that whenever I jump on the self-improvement bandwagon I am always depriving myself of something--food, tv, pop, fast food, internet, shopping, shoes, chocolate. yeah, I deprive myself of all the good stuff.

{check it: kara's party ideas}

fact: deprivation is not my thing...especially when it comes to candy

I usually last five days and then I give in. I hang my head in shame. So I have decided that I am going to change Lent this year (can I do that...)?

Instead of depriving myself this year I am going to inspire myself.
FYI: the message above should automatically qualify me as a Hallmark Card writer...just sayin'

My inspiration: For the next 39 days I am going to run. every. single. day. 

{Source}

Many, many moons ago I use to be an avid runner. Running was like a  free therapist. I solved my own problems, figured out the answers to my hardest questions, came to terms with bad break ups, and found confidence in myself--all through running. I ran so much that I was even planning on being a collegiate athlete, then somewhere along the way I stopped running...and stopped having boyfriends (haha).  My passion soon turned into college, Hunk, our home, work, and Punk. I love how my life has changed over the last decade, however, I don't love how my body has changed.

So, friends....

NO MORE EXCUSES. I have to do it. no joke. my pants are getting tight and I can't keep using the excuse of post pregnancy fat anymore. Running and I our going to rekindle our passion for each other. ohhhh! ahhhh!

Thanks for letting me rant today. What are your goals for Lent this year? I would love to hear!

This lovely post is brought to you by my newest sponsor, ShicShoppe. Check em out! And don't forget to enter this week's giveaway.

ShicShoppe Review and GIVEAWAY!

Before Punk was born I had this glorified vision of parenthood. I felt that in order to be a the best parent I had to have the best of everything. I mean how silly would it be to bring a baby into this world and not have the top of the line bottles? hmmm, silly right?  So I made sure I had the best...

crib

stroller

carseat

clothes

diaper bag

blankets

nursing cover

bottles

 crib sheets

burp rags

toys

nursing pillow

...you name it...I (still) have it..

And you know what I have found out. What I thought was best for Punk turned out to not be the most practical. The best clothes seemed to stiff, the best crib sheets turned out to be from Target, and the best  nursing pillow was soon replaced with whatever pillow I could find in the middle of the night.

While many of "best" baby products have been replaced the one thing that hasn't changed is my diaper bag. I love my diaper bag. When Punk was born...which happened 10 weeks early, we were not prepared. No stroller, no carseat, no clothes, no baby shower, no prenatal classes--nothing. In order to gain some sort of control during this scary situation I went out and bought the diaper bag....because, hey, I was a MOM even though I didn't get to take my baby home for three months. I used my bag to carry new clothes to the hospital, transfer breast milk, and  stow away a few hospital diapers every now and then....

My diaper bag has become an integral part of my daily wardrobe. It has turned into my camera bag, purse, refrigerator, and safe haven for Punk's favorite toys.

So when ShicShoppe approached me about reviewing a bag I knew it was time to retire my trusty companion for something more hip (and less dirty).

 

I LOVE my new bag. Isn't it so bold and colorful?

This bag can hold everything. I'm tellin' ya folks, I have a lot of stuff to carry around and this baby holds it all.

Really.

Want to know what I fit into this bag? Well I'll tell ya.

wallet. dayplanner. diapers. wipee case. Punk's shoes. bottle. book. lotion. four lip glosses. phone. ipod. hydrocortizone cream. gum. goat (toy). bottle. camera. yogurt snacks. fruit jerky. glasses. keys. Punk's phone. 

Phew.  

One of the best features of this purse is the straps.  When I pulled it out of the package I couldn't believe how it's large size could fit into such a small box. Because the arm straps can be tied together it makes the bag easy to fold and pack into small spaces.

Ladies, I am talkin' to you! This purse would be perfect for vacations because you could shove it into the corner of your luggage and you would then have an extra bag for your trip!

awesome, eh?

So how would you like to win a $15 dollars worth of store credit to ShicShoppe?

This giveaway is now closed

Mandatory:

Be a follower of Spunky Junky (1 entry)

Visit the ShicShoppe etsy shop and tell me which product you like most (1 entry)

Optional:

Like ShicShoppe facebook page (1 entry)

Become a follower of the ShicShoppe blog (1 entry)

Buy anything from ShicShoppe (5 EXTRA entries)

Right now SJ readers can also save 15% off your entire order at the ShicShoppe Etsy Shop with the promocode: SPUNKY15

Good Luck! This giveaway with end Wednesday March 16th!