the first step on the road to recovery

 I've heard the first step on the road to recovery is admitting you have a problem.

These are the buckets I pulled out of the garage that were easy to get to.  I pulled empty buckets from the shed and dumped cardboard boxes that were in the garage and filled these buckets in about an hour today before I melted in the heat.  I'm hoping to get my son to help me move them into the shed.  My nice clean, empty shed will be full in no time.  You see, this didn't even make a clean spot in the garage.  It's a 3 car garage and you couldn't park a motorcycle in there.

Hello, my name is Marilyn and I'm a Fabriholic.

 I'm really going to get a handle on the fabric I have.  I can't say that I've been in denial, because I know I have a lot and use a lot, but maybe I didn't realize just how much I have.  These are the bags that are going to my friend who uses all the weird stuff that I'm given.  You know the polyester and silk and rayon and heavy stuff that is great for making bags and clothes, but not for making quilts.  She makes dog beds and costumes and all sorts of projects I just don't have time for.  She has about a zillion friends she shares it with too.  Nothing goes to waste around here.

 These buckets have mostly keepsakes in them.  Old toys from when the kids were little.  Wooden puzzles, trolls, plastic animals from way back when I was a kid even, hotwheels cars.

 Way back there are buckets of more fabric and yarn.

 More fabric and yarn and some kid books.

 Empty boxes I cleaned out that all had fabric in them.  A couple had brand new bags of stuffing.  Looks like I need to make some dog beds for the shelter.  Just wish there were more hours in the day!

 Christmas decorations I haven't been able to get to for a couple of years because there's too much stuff in front of it.  That's going to change over the next couple of weeks.  Legos and barbies.

 This is the biggest pile of stuff that bothers me the most.  My snowpeople family :) that makes me happy guards the pile.

 I'm set for batting for a while, but it's on top of the pile and makes it difficult to get to everything that needs sorting.  19 rolls of batting will need to find a different home while the sorting continues.  I just used up a roll of 50 yards so one of those rolls will be coming in the house.  I do go through it rather quickly.

 The shelves my son and I built this year are serving me well.  But, the boxes of stuff need sorting and purging.  I just don't know how all this stuff keeps accumulating.  Lots of legos and even more fabric here and on the other side of this shelf.  It would be so nice to have all of the fabric in one location so when I need something I know right where to go.  I found a bucket with kits cut and ready to sew.  Those came out and will be passed on at the next quilt day on Sunday.  Hopefully they will come back finished soon and be ready to hand out as a finished quilt.  They are rag quilts all packaged up as a quilt with matching colors and everything.  Not sure how they ended up in a bucket in the garage, but that's what happens when you get overwhelmed with too much stuff sometimes.

and finally a look from the inside garage door at the buckets of yarn and fabric.  Not so much yarn anymore.  There once was a time when I was given lots and lots of yarn.  I had about 10 times as much as now and slowly I've worked through it and had lots of volunteers help me make it into afghans for kids.  I know that will happen with the fabric too.

I hope you celebrate with me when it all gets organized or I go insane :)  One of these times, my organizational efforts has to work!