Help!!! Need advice... Badly

[neener130]

I need help!!! I have so much stuff to get rid of. Some of it junk, some of it good. The problem is it’s taking me so long to sort through everything that it’s becoming overwhelming. I don’t have anyone to help me. My husband would throw out our wedding album if I didn’t watch everything he touched. My kids won’t let anything go. My other problem is I feel bad when my kids get a gift and are done with it or don’t play with it I can’t just throw it out. I feel bad that someone has paid good money for it and it’s wasteful. So the stuff is piling up. My kids are 11 and 9 but I still have baby toys. I keep thinking I’ll have a garage sale but then I have to clean everything before I have one and that never happens so the stuff just sits there. Does anyone else find themselves in this predicament? Did you get out?? Does anyone have advice what to do? I’m just stuck!

[motherofmolly]

first take a deep breath....inhale and exhale...

you need to take this one step at a time...

as far as you kids toys, clean their room when they are gone (at school or at a friends house etc)....if you feel that you dont want to throw it out because it is of value, then donate it. my dd and i go thru items twice a year and she gives them to girls that need the toys as they dont have any...freecycle is great. or donate them to a local community center or ask your childrens school if they would have use for it or know some of the kids that would....

as far as the rest of the house, take it slowly....take a box and go thru it...make a pile for donate, trash and garage sale. do it one box or pile at a time.

i went thru my junk drawers. had lots of stuff in them. i would pick 10 items a week i didnt need in there and would trash it. straight in the garbage can it would go....in a month my drawers were cleaner and i could close them with ease...

think of one thing "have i used this in the last year" or "will i use it in the coming year"....

good luck...remember dont dive head first if it is too much...take it slowly and bask in your accomplishments (ie wow this stairway is so nice and clean i did a great job, or it is soo nice to be able to use my shelves in my garage, or wow, the kids room sure is clean)

[leqet]

Have you ever tried Flylady.com? She has a program for uncluttering one day and one room at a time. Now, to be perfectly honest with you, her program didn't work for me but that's because I'm not a packrat with anything except the stockpile (and I also can't stand to wear shoes ever, lol). But I have heard rave reviews from my friends who have gotten their lives in better order. She has what she calls a 27-fling boogie, where you take a trash bag, set a timer and get rid of 27 items before the timer goes off. If you did this everyday or even once a week I can see how it would make an impact over time.

[JocelyneM]

Originally Posted by neener130 I need help!!! I have so much stuff to get rid of. Some of it junk, some of it good. The problem is it’s taking me so long to sort through everything that it’s becoming overwhelming. I don’t have anyone to help me. My husband would throw out our wedding album if I didn’t watch everything he touched. My kids won’t let anything go. My other problem is I feel bad when my kids get a gift and are done with it or don’t play with it I can’t just throw it out. I feel bad that someone has paid good money for it and it’s wasteful. So the stuff is piling up. My kids are 11 and 9 but I still have baby toys. I keep thinking I’ll have a garage sale but then I have to clean everything before I have one and that never happens so the stuff just sits there. Does anyone else find themselves in this predicament? Did you get out?? Does anyone have advice what to do? I’m just stuck!

Are You in my house or even my mind girl friend !!!
Other than that some stuff is cleaned !! My kids are 2-5 yrs old
I Will be having a garage sale or in our house SELL everything!!

[manders13]

Want help? I needed help to. Holding onto stuff that should have went ages ago;



WATCH THE SHOW HOARDERS!

That will make you clean faster then a jack rabbit!

[JocelyneM]

Originally Posted by manders13 Want help? I needed help to. Holding onto stuff that should have went ages ago; WATCH THE SHOW HOARDERS! That will make you clean faster then a jack rabbit!

I do it just makes me say:
"I'm not that bad I WANT to let go of MY stuff!!"
I just don't get around to doing a sale !!
WE or I need the $ So I stop waiting for DH to give Me $ !!!

[neener130]

I do watch the show Horders!! My living space isn't that bad but my basement/garage/shed is!! I'm 40 and just recently threw out my notebooks from high school! It WAS fun to read all the stuff my friends and I wrote on the covers!! I also have the NEED to go through all the pockets and folders and ..... I think I'm a little OCD!!

[Shy2481]

When i feel like this i throw everything in the car and take it to goodwill unless it is trash. I just get overwhelmed and don't have time to try to sell it or whatever. Sometimes i give it away on freecycle but then i get tired of people telling me they are going to come when they don't. so mostly i goodwill it.

[artsykindofmom]

Get someone you can trust to help you.My kids had so much stuff and I was always picking up it was easy to let someone bag it up then after it was all done ,I really didnt miss it and the kids didnt even know it was gone less toys to pick up.

[NIGHTB1022]

Well, if it's all decent stuff, even if some junk is included, consider getting ahold of an auctioneer in your area. I know the ones in our area, even if we don't have their minimum total, will come and box it all up and take it and then run it with another auction so it can get sold.

Most auctioneers pull a pretty decent buck, and you have to give them a cut of it, but it is better than sitting on it or throwing it away.

I've done this a couple times when I was moving and downsizing and I actually did pretty good with it, better than you can usually do at a garage sale.