How I get rid of stuff

I have been slowing going through all the rooms in the apartment and trying to get rid of things. We don't really have a lot that we don't use or love because we move so often. We've moved almost every year for the last 7 years that we've been together. Before that I was in college and moved every year to a new apartment for the school year. I've lived in 10 apartments in the last 12 years. That's a lot of moving and it makes me tired just thinking about it. When we moved from Seattle to Pittsburgh, we got rid of everything even our furniture. We were able to fit everything we owned including our pets into a 4 door sedan and a teeny tiny trailer.

I like to keep the amount of things we own to a minimum and my desire to own less seems to grow every year. I've also been working on buying things that last longer and using items until they're worn out. I donate a lot of the stuff we don't need because we didn't really use it that much and it still looks good.

My new plan of attack is to buy less stuff. I've started making list before I go to Target and not buying anything that isn't on the list. It's been challenging but I know I don't need any of that stuff and I'll probably be putting in the donate pile in a few months when we move again.

This is how I get rid of items:

Time flies

Well, we left Pittsburgh. It was a crazy last few days of packing and shrink wrapping all of our stuff. Bethany came over to help me load our uhaul truck and spend my last day in Pittsburgh with me. I don't know what I would have done without her. It was not of a fun day. I was feeling unsure about leaving Pennsylvania. I loved living within driving distance to my family and I finally felt like I knew how to get around that place. sort of.

 

Annie right before we left our old apartment. She was not sure about moving either. 

 The trip to Austin was kind of stressful. I think it was combo of being freaking tired from packing and having to drive in separate cars the whole way there. It was just me and the pet family. This picture is lucy cat snoozing in the front seat. There were definitely some cat fights over that coveted spot. 

Highlights of the roadtrip:

+ got to visit Rachel in her new apartment

+ listened to a lot of Joy the Baker

+ Philip being my navigation hero when the road was suddenly closed. in Tennessee. in the middle of the night.

+ finally finding a motel that allowed cats in Arkansas

+ crossing the Mississippi river at sunset

Deb and Bill were there to help us move in to the new apartment the moment we arrived. Being the awesome amazing friends that they are. We moved everything into the apartment in no time at all. Things seemed to be moving right along. Then we spent move time in our new place and it sucked. 

Not great.

So, we moved again. Not too far away to another much better apartment. It was a long few days but we did it. 

Finally things are starting to feel a little settled here. We're in the new apartment and all of our boxes are unpacked. We're starting to learn our way around our new neighborhood and explore Austin. I started my new job here and Philip is lining up interviews. I can't believe how much has changed already and it is only our third week here.

+ new adventures

+ gold glitter

+ strong coffee