Cleaning Out My Closet

PHOTOS: Happy Father's Day 2011

Him a gift, but as I was cleaning out a closet in my house yesterday, I discovered what I wanted to "give" him.

While I was digging around, I found some old school photos. Upon my discovery, cleaning immediately stopped and reminiscing began.

Those two hours of reminiscing brought back a flood of memories -- all happy.

With a million responsibilities to tend to these days, past memories get buried under the weight of "to-do" lists. But with the quick glance at a photo, all of those memories flood right back to the surface.

It immediately dawned on me that my father deserved to see these photos and reminisce as well, especially since his life has hit a rough patch -- though I know he'll persevere as he always does.

As I looked through my dusty photos, I again realized how lucky am I to have him in my life.

At times, I feel out of place and like people don't quite understand my personality or sense of humor. But if you put me, my father and my older brother in a room together, it becomes crystal clear where I came from and who I take after.

My father is my best friend. He gets me.

I'm not "weird" to him because we're pretty much the same person. We have the same oddball sense of humor, and we can talk for hours about... the wind.

I could truly could write a novel, but I really need to finish cleaning that closet. So, instead of a novel, I'll end my story by asking my dad -- and my readers -- to check out a few of the old school photos I found yesterday.

Once again, happy Father's Day to all dads out there!

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Cleaning Out My Closet Giveaway! - Bluebirds and Butterflies

Many of you know that my husband and I downsized from a very large home a little over a year ago.  We love our new "forever cottage" which is about 2400 square feet...plenty of room for my husband and I... but a downsize from our last home.  When you downsize, you sometimes give up a little closet space.  At my last home, my husband and I both had very large walk-in closets.   In our current home, my husband and I are now sharing one walk-in closet together.   I cannot say it is a fair division for my sweet husband.   Like most couples sharing a closet, I have 3/4 of the closet and he has l/4.   Being the sweet man he is, he understands I LOVE clothes and never complains.   But, even so.....my clothes are becoming very tight in my closet!   I take very good care of my clothes and tend to not get rid of them as frequently as some people do.  I try to keep my closet organized but am finding it more difficult in the new closet.  So, after looking at  my closet for a couple of weeks and thinking, "I REALLY need to clean this out"....... I have decided to take action.  This morning, I pulled out every single pair of pants (not including my jeans which are in a drawer) and decided to take a couple of hours or so and try them ALL on.   I decided to take an honest UNEMOTIONAL look at my pants in the full length mirror and say...."Okay, yes, they look like brand new....you paid X number of dollars for them (all bought at upscale shops) but are you wearing them as much as you thought you would---or---do they still look fabulous on you?"   Everyone's weight shifts from year to year and, even though you may be the same size, pants can fit differently from one year to the next. As I stood there at my mirror with each pair of pants on, I knew if this was going to work for me I had to be honest.  I was brought to mind the Oprah show a few years ago where Oprah went through every single item in her closet.   Some of her clothing was super expensive.  It was hard for Oprah to part with some of her favorite pieces....  I remember her saying, "But, it is so pretty and I wore it to a special event in my life!"  Part of the reason we hang onto some of our clothes is because we are emotionally attached to them.   I can totally relate to this!   I tend to save clothing that was worn to certain events in my life.   This is where tough love comes in.... and where you have to be totally honest with yourself.  You have to ask the hard question, "Yes, it does still look pretty good!  Yes, you wore it to a dinner party that you will always remember.....BUT....when was the last time you wore it?  How many times are you going to pass over this item when selecting a pair of brown or black slacks? (I tend to have SEVERAL neutral colored pants.)  Would you wear it today if you had the opportunity?"   Knowing my closet is smaller and would be much more organized with a little less in it, today I began my process of removing a few items that I do not wear as much as I should.   I took all my pants out and started the process of trying them on and doing a slow turn in front of the mirror.  I had to put on three hats....clothing adoring defendant, tough jury and last word judge!   I presented my case in front of the mirror and delivered the verdict on each piece.  Nothing put aside can go back into the closet.  I put aside several pair of pants....some of them barely worn.   While removing the hanger and gently folding each pair up, I thought about Ree Drummond who has one of my favorite blogs, "The Pioneer Woman."   She has a category on her blog called "Cleaning my Closet" and sometimes does a "give away" on an item of clothing that is very gently worn by her and is something totally cute!   It occurred to me that I might select a few like brand  new pieces that I love and follow Ree's lead on my own blog. So, I am adding a new category to Bluebirds and Butterflies called "Cleaning Out My Closet," and I am going to be periodically selecting a like new item that is still in style and offer it up on my blog as a give away.   I will make photos of the item and post it under this category.   I will photograph the tag and list the size.   In order to give readers a fair opportunity to view the item....I will not select a winner for three calendar days.  On the 4th day, I will post the winner's name on my blog.  The winner can find my email address on the right sidebar of my blog and send me their mailing address.   I will then package the item and mail it to the winner.   The winner will be randomly selected by comment number. The pattern on them and the style give them a casual dressy look.   I wore the pants with black open toe heels.   The pants look great with a black knit top or a nice white dressy shirt.   I also have worn it with a black thin turtle neck sweater in the fall.   I have also worn these pants with a periwinkle colored knit scooped neck top.    Lots of choices with these pants.... The pants have just a slight touch of lycra with them so they travel well.  I LOVE these pants and hate to part with them but I have lost just a touch of weight in preparation for my Mother of the Groom dress fitting and they are just a touch to large for me to wear now.   I know whoever wins them will love them as much as I do!   All you have to do to win is just leave a comment to me on this blog posting telling me where you would wear these pants and what type of top you would wear with them.   (If you don't have something coming up that you could wear these pants to, be creative.  It could be a place that you are hoping to go to! :)    I so love clothes, and have always been into fashion. I love black, red, torquoise, white, and coral since I'm a brunette. I even designed my wedding dress, and my talented mother made it for me. Nel will be wearing my veil when she gets married. I love all your boots. I'm not much of a shoe person, but I love feminine blouses and classy earrings. I so loved this post. I can look at the clothes in your closet all day. Thank you so much for the comments! Yes, I thought Ree had a good idea, too.... This is nothing more than I do with my sister or a girlfriend. I recently gave a few things to a friend of mine and she passed on an adorable blue and white shirt that I loved and fit me great! I will be wearing it on my sailboat---possibly even this weekend! And, in today's economy, it just makes sense! Plus, it is fun to do! I have entered Ree's drawings several times...I haven't been lucky enough to win but will certainly keep trying! No problem on the black---everyone has their colors---I will be posting some other things in the future periodically. I hope you have a fabulous day!

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Cleaning out my closet

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