Deciding what to keep and what to throw

[Pollyanna]

And yeah, don't ask permission; that's the way to crazy-town.

Yes this....I don't think that is a road you want to get on..

Love saving those items for grandkids

[Thirteen]

I have a trunk load of stuff for the local shelter that I am literally hiding under a blanket, to smuggle out of the house for tomorrow.

DH likes to donate and help, but only what he deems okay. We have so many things we don't even use -- I can't ask for permission, because he'll just tell me why we need it.


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[BonBon]

Honestly, I'm ruthless. I get rid of everything. I did quiver at the thought of giving away the girls' NICU quilts (the ones they drape over the incubators) but they were just sitting in a closet. Better that they get used and loved by someone else than rot.

Is the dumpster there yet, or are you filling up the garage in anticipation? I'm excited for you. It's fun clearing stuff out!

[SoonerTexan]

1. My childhood dollhouse. It is broken and has sat at the top of the girls' closet for their entire childhoods. My dad built the bottom level, so I cling to it for that reason alone. It was mine. I loved it. I played with my dollhouse in some form or the other up until high school. I was holding onto it for my daughters but because it's broken, they never got to play with it. My childhood is over. They aren't using it. Toss or keep?

Could this be fixed? Depending on what it is/what shape it is in, this actually could be really cool to save for a grandchild. Or you honestly might get some decent money putting it on craigslist. People dig vintage stuff

2. My backpack and books from the 3rd grade. I went to the german elementary school and had a real leather bag and books from the school as well as the notebooks that I wrote in in my own little 3rd grade hand. The leather bag was partially chewed by my beagle 30 years ago. It is degrading and falling apart inside and out. The books all smell musty. But that was my special year. Keep or toss?

Toss

3. German christmas pyramids that I bought when I was living in Germany. Not the best quality and broken/needing to be glued. With that collection, old dollar store nutcrackers. It was all I could afford during my exchange year. They remind me of that wonderful time in my life...but they are sitting in a rubbermaid bin in the garage and aren't nice enough to display.

Umm...I kind of want them. I dig Christmas. Sadly I probably don't have the space either.

1. Rubbermaid container full of wooden train track/train (saving for grandkids)
2. Rubbermaid container full of Little People (saving for grandkids)
3. Rubbermaid container full of bits and pieces of playmobil (saving for grandkids)

You better not toss these! At the very least sell them. People WILL pay $$ for these. I'm on a swap and shop site for my town on Facebook and these would go in an instant.

Also, my mom did save all the high quality toys for her grandkids and they actually are getting a lot of use right now.

I know, I'm not much of a help. But I actually do purge often and I think some of this stuff is worth keeping or even selling.

[Pollyanna]

How about making a shadow box with items from 2 & 3? That could be really fun and you'd get to really enjoy seeing those special items on the wall.

Note: I think folks are too quick to toss stuff. Our lives are a beautiful history and some of these items tell our story. I think it's important for the next generation to see those things.

[ladymoreta]

I'm in the take pictures and throw away camp for the first set you mentioned unless you could get #1 and #3 repaired. I would go through the rubbermaids of toys and be ruthless about keeping only the special ones and/or complete sets. When your kids start having babies, you will be able to replace the non-special easily at yard sales, consignment sales, or Craigslist.

[PrincessFiona]

I'll never get rid of the junk. Yesterday, Alex and Thomas removed the entire old bedroom set from his room, cleaned the room, and set up an air mattress. Then when I went to sleep, they ran to Walmart and bought a cheap/crappy entertainment center For Alex's video game stuff. It is already broken from the crap job they did screwing it together. It's awful. It's garbage.

Basically, when I brought this up and made a reference to the fact that we had a dumpster out front exactly for shit like that, I was accused of being critical.

Really. They couldn't just wait a few weeks until he got a new bedroom set? DH said he'd "throw it away" then.

I'm so exhausted from junk and clutter. Get it the hell out of my house.

Where is the bus?

Kris

[MrsK]

Ugh! I hate that. I'd rather go without and spend years looking for just the perfect thing that makes my heart happy than buy cheap furniture.

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[ladymoreta]

I'd be ticked, too. Goodness knows we've had our years of living with cheap/broken furniture, but when you're purging it all from your house, that's NOT the time to buy more! Make sure it's gone before you return the dumpster!

[PrincessFiona]

Box filled with old letters friends had sent me dating back to middle school and also old award certificates dating back to elementary school.

Toss?

I'm never going to read the letters.

[PrincessFiona]

I think I'm asking for encouragement/permission to let go.

[MrsK]

Let it go

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[Sheherezade]

I'd get rid of the dollhouse and the Christmas stuff, but keep the backpack. This is based on my own inheritance of junk from a few generations back. We have a leather satchel from my great grandparent that my daughter loves. It holds up to time. We have some old (1900s) toys, but I'm not as interested or attached. Ditto old Christmas ornaments...we have thrown away most of those since they don't "go" with my own Christmas vision. Somehow that's too personal. We did keep a hand carved nativity set from a great grandfather.

I'd keep all the grand kid toys as well. If the next generation doesn't want them, sell them then.


Angie

[Sheherezade]

I have a box of letters that will go with me to,a nursing home...but that's me. I'm more about old letters than old pictures. If you won't read them again, toss them.


Angie

[ladymoreta]

If it were me, I'd be more likely to keep the letters than any of the other things you'd mentioned, but maybe take them out of envelopes and put them into a binder? Or toss them if you really aren't attached. It's fine!