How many clothes do your kids REALLY need?...and random updates

Been a while! I'm still here and still kickin'...maybe a little kickin' AND screamin'. It's that time again...time to pack and move! We've been bagging clothes and toys to donate and selling off stuff that we don't need or can't move or just don't want to move. It's crazy to think we just removed TWENTY TWO bags of clothes from our house and still have enough for everyone. I'm very thankful that other homeschooling mamas were able to benefit from our excess! It was mostly all from when we fell upon extra hard times and someone gave to us. So 'twas such a pleasure to pass it forward.

So, what DID we actually keep?

BookWorm being the girl got to keep a little more because she needs some dresses and cutsie stuff for church and girl time and the like.
Pants: Every child kept 5-7 each and if they had them, I tried to keep a variety and not all just jeans or athletic or khaki cargos.
Shirts: We chose 2 shirts per pair of pants for each child. The youngers are the ones that had pants in a variety of colors for the most part so it was a matching game. They now have at least two shirts that will match each pair. If they had a few pairs of jeans, each pair got 2 shirts. After choosing those that I wanted them to keep, I did let them each choose a favorite shirt they just couldn't live without and maybe I can make sure they never are seen in public with it.
Pajamas: Our girl and 2yo boy are the only two that got to keep any pajamas. We went down to just a few sets though. The middle two, the boys that are 5 and 8 went to undershirts and boxers only. Takes up much less room and there's not near the mess when they go searching for pj's!

Socks and underwear: We downsized majorly here...we got rid or any socks that were so similar, yet different because we all know what a pain that is to match. And the kids really have a hard time helping with that. And I really don't like rushing out the door trying to put socks on a kid to find they aren't matches. I don't like un-matching because that means I have two lone socks downstairs without mates! We got rid of holey undies and those that are too small or in abundance. The two boys share the same ones. (ewwwww, right? But who wants to try to separate boy underwear that are the same size for two different kids that really don't care?!) The amount we kept was about a week's worth each and had to fit in the container we keep underwear in. We chunked a bunch of socks and replaced them with new ones of one kind that is easy to match! WiggleWorm is two and doesn't wear underwear yet and we got him some socks for his bin. WiggleWorm girl gave up a bunch of her socks that were just cutesy but didn't match anything and all her holey or mate-less ones...which pretty much meant she had none left. So she got new matching socks as well. 

Here's a pic of the "family closet" when we were first moving in and setting it up. You can see the bins on top of the rack and a fraction of the clothing that we had up at this point. No, those bins to the right did NOT stay that nice and pretty. (that's holding each child's shorts/pants on the left and pajamas on the right..and everyone's grew taller by about 2 more feet not long after this) 

We also went through our own clothes and downsized a lot...old stuff, stuff that's stained, not worn in a year or more, out of style (not that I'm the stylish type, but some stuff's just gotta go), etc, etc. I now have like...5 tops I can wear. I've let go of the nursing bras, shirts that no longer fit right since I, uhhh....since I don't nurse anymore...hint hint. Hubby gave up his clothes from slimmer days, and I gave up mine from thicker days following all these post-pregnancy days and those from thinner pre-pregnancy days. I might be little, but my hips will never be the same after these last two babies! ;) We thinned out the socks and underclothes and swimwear. Being that we are moving from NW Arkansas to Central Florida, our wardrobe will differ quite a bit anyway. So I'm excited to slowly pick up a few nice warm weather things to hang in my closet. 

Our move is a mere 3 weeks away! February 15 is our last day of having this rental home in our name. We are very thankful for the very considerate and understanding landlord we have. I really need to be closer to doctors, family, help, and "town" in general. We are so out in the boonies, and when BookWorm broke her toes very badly last week, it took us over an hour to get to the ER! I have to show you her toes...oh my. What a sight! Don't look if you have a weak stomach...I'm so serious. I'll make it a small and less graphic picture. 

Now, health-wise (this will be like a dry science lesson...LOL...kinda)...I had my brain MRI which was all clear. I hear that doesn't rule out MS on its own just like it won't diagnose MS on its own either. But, the doc is almost certain it's Lupus. I'm out of this "flare" or whatever it was for the most part, but obviously still not myself. I'm on half a dozen meds and my Graves Disease (autoimmune hyperthyroidism) is under control now, so we can start pinpointing the rest and doing all these tests. It's obvious there is nervous system involvement and there's a long "maybe" list. Some often come together, like Lupus (SLE) and Raynaud's, both of which I have symptoms. Raynaud's is usually secondary to Lupus, and just another joy of having Lupus. It leaves you with icy cold hands, feet, and often ears and nose as well. It can actually be severe and dangerous, but my icy limbs are merely aggravating and uncomfortable, and sometimes slightly painful as very cold hands can be. Then we have something called CNS Lupus which as you can see, involves the Central Nervous System. We also have an ANS and a PNS...my original heart issues were thought to be from a form of dysautonomia, so that makes me wonder if my Autonomic Nervous System is affected by Lupus and I have symptoms from PNS as well, the Peripheral Nervous System. All together, it has the "slang" title of "Lupus Sclerosis" but formally is known as NP-Lupus and  basically means my nervous systems and brain are affected by lupus, most likely from the inflammation. So far, I'm on none of those nasty Lupus treatments (did you know it's treated with strong sterioids, chemo drugs, antimalarials, and more nasties??) and am being treated for the thyroid, insomnia, heart, and fatigue/fibromyalgia (oh yeah, doctor thinks I have fibro caused by the lupus too) Are we having fun yet? (We would be if you could see me when I take my ambien, or at least if you got to read my status updates I don't remember posting!) I'll be seeking out specialists once we're moved. We will be near some pretty awesome hospitals and advanced health care. Very thankful for that, and the fact I'll have so much family around that is willing to help out with my kids!

Feels good to post again...finally! Been too long! Next I"ll post about what we're doing for school in the midst of packing up, moving, and spending a couple months at Nana's.