With six months to go before we go to Europe, I'm downsizing more than ever. It's freaking me out a bit, how much there is to do, so sometimes it's good to start with the little things, like the Tupperware drawer, wondering why it is I suddenly have three measuring jugs? Especially when I rarely measure anything - it's a real mystery.

It's been very satisfying to go through cupboards I thought were minimalised, but weren't. I have a tendency to buy in bulk, thinking it saves money (which it often does) but I've also realised I shouldn't do that with specialty flours, as I end up not using them all. Hemp flour muffins, anyone? I've reminded myself firmly that it's much better to cycle up to Wholefoods and get exactly how much I need for a recipe, reducing the need to store it at all. This revelation has left me with a lot of jars and Tupperware containers which I've put on Facebook marketplace for free, and are already on the front deck waiting for a woman to pick them up.

There's also some things that I haven't used in absolute years, like a bamboo steamer (what if I actually get around to making Tibetan momos?) and an apple corer (which I don't use, instead opting to chop down the core in four neat slices). If I'm really going as minimal as possible, I need to make some harder decisions.

My beautiful apocathery cupboard also needs to be sorted. A lot of these herbs won't keep for another year, so I either need to make something out of them like add them to soups or make salves, or put them in the compost. The jars will go in big plastic tubs and up in the loft or in the bus to be stored.

It's a good opportunity to ask myself whether I've collected these herbs to have them, or because I really need them.

I really don't want to put everything in storage just because I'll need it when I get back. I know full well that if it's not there, I probably won't even notice it.

Jamie really wants to get a container to store our stuff in but I don't think we'll need it. I'm pretty good at organising space and I think if we close off part of an open stable shed and put a padlock on it, we'll be able to fit all his tools in there, no problem. The bus in the garden will also fit a ton of plastic tubs which can have things that aren't heat sensitive, like jars, kitchen stuff, books, and clothes.

Though it's six months away, I'm constantly thinking that whatever I buy now, has to be useful for the trip, from t-shirts to trainers, scarves to toiletries. I think we'll have to send a big bag ahead with wetsuits and so on, but that'll be worth it when we're there. Anything else we can buy when we are over there (England has shops too).

It's amazing how minimalising is a constant process. How can I possibly have got rid of so much stuff this year and I'm still getting rid of stuff?