blue tape

So here's what I did this morning: I put bits of blue painter's tape on all my clean clothes. (And they're nearly all clean.)

Why?

I have entirely too many clothes. Seriously. I have six grey cardigans. Six. Sure, they range in shades of grey. Some are cotton. Some are cashmere. Some are long-sleeved and at least one is short-. But do I really need six? Hmm..maybe I actually do.

But that's just the example. I also have too many other cardigans, tee-shirts [Some have been infected with toxic sweat (I would link you to that post about the toxicity of sweat in Russia, but the search blog feature has stopped working on my blog. Why?) and I forget which ones until I put them on...and then for some insane reason I wash them! Why do I not just throw. them. out.? I will. really.] and various clothes that I rarely wear.

There are also clothes that don't fit. Not many that I've hung on to, but a few. Because, you know what? I was right to doubt (scoff, laugh hysterically at, generally berate the faster metabolisms of...) everyone who said the adoption weight would "just fall off when I had a little one home to chase around".

Um, no. I'm so tired, that I've got a Coca-Cola drip set up from awakening to quiet time. (Not really, but I'm drinking too much of it and/or tea. I'm not enough of a grown-up to like coffee.) Sugar, sugar, sugar. Better than @sp@rt@me, but certainly the lesser of two evils. And, we do much more sitting than running around both on the floor--doing puzzles, playing games, dressing Baby--and at the table--coloring, painting, playing with clay.

And I wasn't walking the 2+ miles daily to get to and from school, because we weren't in school. Of course we went for walks. But, nearby walks are all in our polluted, damp, dark city. So, we weren't walking every day. Now we're in school...but we drive. It's too much for little legs to do round-trip. Maybe in the spring. And there's not much life after school. That's all we do--school, recover, repeat.

But I *like* those clothes that don't fit. I like the way I looked then, even if I didn't realize it at the time. So even though I'm much bigger now, I'm not ready to give them up. But I know I should.

So--the tape. I thought if I was scientific about it, if there were empirical data, it might make it easier to part with some things. Every time I wear something, I'll take off the tape. (I really hope I remember to take the tape off. Elsewise I'll look mighty foolish.) Then, after a period of time as yet undetermined (Six weeks, maybe? But what about the springy-stuff? Spring comes at the end of May. That's more than six weeks. Hence, the "undetermined".), I'll bite the bullet and donate the still-taped clothing.

So, that's my little moment of productivity today. Oh--and I started to add tucks to the hem of Lexi's coming-home dress (which was even too short for my taste when we came home) so she can wear it longer. But. That is one looooooong hem (as in, it's a very full dress) and I need to make more. Bleh.

I was a very productive girl! Of course, I didn't get in as many games of Memory as I usually do. I'm off to take care of that now.

And my poor, pitiful little friend who's been puny all day has just developed a fever. We have one more week off school...I hope we're healthy.