Squatch and I are off to the races this year.

Our family word for 2023 is INTENTIONAL, and we are really taking it to heart. We are checking in with each other DAILY on our current project: organizing the basement and getting rid of stuff. Each day we get a little bit more done, and Squatch is now up at 0730 each morning (thanks to me having Little Man go in to wake him up) and getting a head start on everything.

Last week, we had spent the weekend going through boxes and moving things around along one wall in the basement. We ended up with two big boxes of just garbage, and 5…Yes, FIVE boxes full of items to donate.

Yeah, yeah, yeah…I know…I should have posted everything for sale on Craigslist. But it’s the middle of January in Northwest Wisconsin. It’s cold, and snowy, and the last thing I want to deal with is setting up times and a place to meet someone to sell them something from the back of the Expedition. So, instead, we filled the cargo area, third row seats down, of The Dreadnaught, and hauled everything to Goodwill. The guy at the donation door couldn’t believe everything we were getting rid of. He had to take two trips to fit everything into the carts they have. As we drove away, Squatch looked at me and said “Wow…I feel lighter already!” And then we went to Menards and promptly bought a 6 foot long workbench and a new O-Cedar mop. (I am SUCH an old lady. I’ve had my eye on this mop for a while, and we have a ton of Menards gift cards and rebates, so…Yeah…rebates paid for the bench and mop).

This past weekend, we spent Saturday building the workbench. Well, Squatch did the majority of the work. I helped out a bit, sitting on the floor and doing the “low work.” Little Man helped out using the rubber mallet to ensure the pieces were stuck together correctly. Bug hung out in his old car seat and pooped his pants. It was lovely. And we got the new workbench built! It is quite pretty, but not as sturdy as we would like. The mass-produced steel is kinda flimsy. Don’t get me wrong…the thing weights about 150lbs. But the steel isn’t the strongest. That being said, it looks awesome, and on Sunday, we moved it against the wall by our washer and dryer (after reorganizing and moving the scrap wood that had been there for the better part of year).

Sunday, in addition to moving the workbench, Squatch marked off his “Man Cave,” with two pirate flags I had bought him for his past two birthdays. Little Man decided that he also had a “Kid Cave” in the basement, and I am not allowed in either cave. I have to stay in the “Mommy Cave” upstairs in the kitchen. Joke’s on him…I enjoy my “Mommy Cave.”

This upcoming weekend, Squatch will head back to Menards with more rebates (we have A LOT of them) to pick up some more of those black shelving units. I think 4 will do, and we will finish organizing everything onto shelves. We’ve still a ton of cleaning and first aid supplies that need to be settled, as well as everything on the crappily built wooden shelves. Once those are taken down, we can better organize our basement “prepper pantry” as well as the rest of our things that we want to keep on storing in the basement (little kid clothes, extra kitchen items, holiday decorations, etc.).

For me, I’ve really gotten back into the swing of things with Nicole Sauce’s #My3Things. At some point last year, I started my own #MugShot trend, where I take a picture of my mug of tea and share it first thing in the mornings with the LFTN group. I’ve now tied it in to #My3Things, and include that list along with the picture, and it is shared in a few different places on the alt socials (Telegram, MeWe, and Freesteading). I’ve gotten several other people to start sharing their mugs and lists of 3 things, and it’s now a fun thing in the mornings to see which mugs people are using, as well as what their 3 things are for the day.

This is my way of being INTENTIONAL with my time. Yes, I’ve had some days where one of the 3 things has been spread out over several days, and that is ok. Some things are big jobs (like the basement organization project), and only a portion of it is complete each day. I also have another full box of donation items this week that will be taken to Goodwill when Squatch makes his Menards run Saturday.

We were actually talking this morning, as he was going through a box that had been earmarked to either burn or shred, about how we have built up this great momentum of clearing things out and organizing. Squatch said that it’s gotten really easy to let go of things, because for the first time in his life, he’s allowed to actually make that decision to keep or toss something, and it isn’t questioned. So often, there is some false sentimentality placed onto an item, and it’s that feeling that keeps us from selling, donating, or tossing the item. His mother never let him get rid of anything…and the barn at her home shows that…for fear that he would want it later.

We’ve been in the Little Red House for about a year and a half now, and we have boxes that we haven’t even opened. Most of what we found in those boxes we donated. Some things we kept, because they are family heirlooms, or for when the boys are older. And that’s ok. But holding on to something because “the kids might want it when they’re older” or “I may make an angel food cake, so I need to keep the pan” is not smart. I LOVE to bake. It is stress relieving for me. And guess what…I got rid of most of my cake pans and baking supplies. I have my bundt pan (which I use most of the time), 2 9-inch round cake pans, 3 different sized loaf pans, a 6-muffin tin, and multiple 9×13 pans (they are so dang easy to use and convenient for casseroles and such). Everything else I tossed. And it was such a relief to see them stay in the box.

Will I miss the ghost or pumpkin-shaped pan this Hallowe’en? Possibly. Could I just make my Hallowe’en brownies in the usual 9×13 or even 9×9 pan? Yes. Could I use 9-inch round cake pan to bake my brownies and then decorate them to look like a pumpkin? Also yes. Those novelty pans are just that…novelty. Except for the lamb cake mold. THAT is a keeper. I make a lamb cake every year for Easter, and I have Gramma’s pan at my parent’s house, and a back-up one that I ordered last year in my basement.

But, I digress…The more we got rid of, the easier it got. Squatch told me this morning that he would love to be able to cut back on his closet. “OK, we can go capsule, we can just cut back to 1 week of work wear, 1 week of at-home wear. Whatever works for you,” I told him. I’ve been paring back my wardrobe for a while now. I always tend to end up in some kind of “uniform,” for lack of a better term. When I was working as a paralegal, I wore jeggings and a tunic every day – I had multiple colours of each. Now, I wear jeggings or jeans, a Duluth No-Yank Tank, and a Duluth flannel each day. I’m slowly slimming down in size, thanks to eating carnivore AND breastfeeding, so as clothes get too big for me, they go into the donate pile. I actually had to order a new flannel last week (there was a flash sale on them!) because all of mine are XLs and they are just swimming on me, so I picked up a large, which is just a little big.

But the reduction in wardrobe has been HUGE for me. I also keep Little Man’s wardrobe (and as a result, Bug’s) small. I do laundry twice a week – Monday and Friday. We will re-wear items a few times unless they get dirty/stained/sweaty before I wash them. But the smaller load size cuts down on drying time, and it takes up less space in the closet/dresser. And every 6 months, I look to see what I haven’t worn, and it gets donated.

Now…I did not do this last year, because I was pregnant. I’m not like most pregnant women, though, putting on a ton of weight…I ended up not gaining anything while pregnant with Bug. But what I did, instead of “I haven’t worn this all season,” was I took anything that was an XL or larger and threw it into the donation box. Any pants that were larger than a 14 got tossed into the box, too. Hell…even some of the 14s got donated, too, because not every brand/style is the same. If they were loose and baggy, they went away. And it was such a relief.

The other thing we did away with? I know…at this point you’re probably wondering if we have anything left in our house, because we are just clearing everything out. We still have stuff, don’t you worry. But…January 11th, Squatch unplugged the tv in the living room and brought it to the basement…where it sits on the floor in the unused kitchenette. My parents are impressed that we did it. MIL thinks we have robbed Little Man and Bug of the joy of being kids (the woman can’t stand to have the tv in her house turned off).

What we have done, is improve our relationships. Little Man doesn’t have the tantrums of the past (except for tonight, when I let him watch a YT video of Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage). We’re looking at our project list and GETTING SHIT DONE. We slow down our eating at the table and then have meaningful conversations over a meal. Our family word for 2023 is INTENTIONAL…not having the tv as a distraction has forced us to be more INTENTIONAL with our time – what we do with each other, what projects we choose to work on, etc. LIttle Man and I have spent A LOT of time reading books. We’ve picked up several Berenstein Bear books (ironically, “Too Much TV” arrived in the post today!) and he is wanting to work on his writing and do school stuff. I am forcing myself to put down the damn phone and stop scrolling through Discord, MeWe, Telegram, and YT. We are all much more level-headed, too.

So, when I say it feels like a weight has been lifted off our shoulders as we near the end of this first month of 2023, I really mean it. Between getting it all done and having meaningful conversations and intentional time with each other, I can’t wait to see where the rest of the year takes us.