I have to admit....I don't usually like Christmas! I know....how can a Christian not like Christmas?
Well the truth is, as a momma of 6 kiddos I already have to much "stuff" stuffed into my house!
I stress about what has to come out of the living room to make way for the tree. Some days I feel like I'm just stirring the "stuff" around. Then were to put ALL the gifts the kids receive. (even if we give a few things X it by 6 and it can be a lot! Decorating......hummm?
Where's the cheesecake? I think I'll have a bath! Is it almost bed time? lol grin :)
Our house is not very big, but that does not matter. I believe one should live the life that God has blest them with, not one that starts when they have the bigger house or the larger pantry, laundry room etc.
Having to much clutter and stuff can weigh a person down!Clothes,DVDs, books, toys,home school stuff, dishes, Tupperware.....this list goes on.
So much of it not being used.....just sitting there as a comfort I guess. Or at least that what the Hope is.
Only my HOPE needs to be in the Lord. HE will bring me just what, I need when I need it!
I don't even use my Tupperware as nice as it is. Foil over a glass bowl works just fine.
Saving this or that for a life I will someday live "if only"....
God has really spoken to my heart lately.....He wants me to live the life "I have" not the "only if life", because I may not be here tomorrow. None of us knows how long we have.
In the end....in my final moments of life, all that will matter to me is the relationship I had with God of course...but also my husband and kiddos.
Now, my house does not look like those on the show Hoarders, but that does not really matter.
My stuff is weighing me down just the same!
I have had a near death experience 2x after the birth of my 5th child back in Spring of 2005.I was a changed person after that....or at least for a while. Then, the day to day sets back in and well you know! Remember what happened after 911? Everyone started going back to church,showing a bit of patriotism and all. Now most folks have forgotten and gone back to the day to day grind.
As a family we have decided to pray before we purge.
Asking GOD to guide our hearts and hands. Placing things in the giveaway bag that will bless others.
Let our STUFF be someone else's answer....someone else's "only if".
An answer to their prayer and in a way answering my prayer.
So this year I am starting to look forward to Christmas (my mom is flying out that's a bonus).
My house IS becoming a refection of the true me. Its still a work in progress, but a step in the right direction.
Less is More......
And no, I did not just move it all to the garage! hee hee.
My neighbor said, a big family like ours needs 2 sheds. I told her no we didn't.
We just need to give the STUFF away not store it.
My neighbor said, a big family like ours needs 2 sheds. I told her no we didn't.
We just need to give the STUFF away not store it.
I will hopefully be brave enough to show some of the before pictures as I go along, not just the afters.
I do get shy about the before photos....people (many) come by my blog and yet only a few comment just once in a while. I blog for me and my family not for others but comments are nice to have. I know what my befores look like, so I just might only post the afters!?
Funny thing that happened after church last weekend:
A group was selling some Fair Trade items as a fund raiser....a good cause.
Baskets, trinkets etc.
I told the lady....I already have to much stuff! I don't need another thing.
She kindly suggested that during Lent (that's in Feb.) some folks get rid of one item a day and by the end they have gotten rid of 40 things!
I just chuckled and said, "IF you only knew"!
I have done the get rid of stuff during Lent thing, only with getting rid of one BAG a day, not one item!
So far in the last week I have gotten rid of 8 large bags of stuff!
I just added my post to a
Simple LivingThursday (meme) over here .
You can join in or stop over to see how others are
Living Simply.......consuming less and producing more!
So many topics fit: Gardening, raising animals, cooking from scratch, real food, natural cleaners, sewing, recycling, thrifting, a mindset of simplicity, saving a buck…
So far in the last week I have gotten rid of 8 large bags of stuff!
I just added my post to a
You can join in or stop over to see how others are
Living Simply.......consuming less and producing more!
So many topics fit: Gardening, raising animals, cooking from scratch, real food, natural cleaners, sewing, recycling, thrifting, a mindset of simplicity, saving a buck…
Peace and Love,
Georgiann
The Lord has finally helped me let go of my tubs and tubs of children's clothes. But, if I may ask...what do you do with "mementos" I used to have one small box of yearbooks, but it has grown to 2 tubs full of albums and unsorted pictures, two boxes of yearbooks, a tub of scrapbooking supplies that I may or may not ever use, and videotapes of babies and dance recitals... Do you have a rule or method?
ReplyDeleteonce or twice a year i try to go through my kids clothes and toys and give away what they don't want or need anymore.. plus i end up throwing away toys and clothes that are too worn out and old to use... i just went through my 4 kids' clothes the other day and have two garbage bags ready to bring to the salvation army... alot of the clothes were hand-me-downs from my kids' (my sisters kids) cousins and have been worn through several children (literally!) so were ready to go!
ReplyDeletegood for you for tackling that stressful job of going through and getting rid of things!
I know exactly what you are talking about Georgiann! I have recently had a huge declutter - room by room, cupboard by cupboard.
ReplyDeleteMy Christmas tree has just gone up - it is a big tree that is the right proportion for my big house but this year as much as I love to decorate I have decided not to go OTT. I will concentrate my efforts in the room where we do most of our living - the family/dining room where we eat dinner. I will decorate my new old woodfired stove with fresh greenery and candles - something I can do as it is summer here!
Simplifying the gifts too - we have lots of birthdays just before Christmas. I went into the toy store recently looking for my girls' gifts and there was hardly anything I could see that they really needed. They don't need plastic kitchens or pretend plastic food! I ended up buying them each a beautiful dressed baby doll from a garage sale - the dolls had been kept by an old couple and were immaculate. Of course I saved a lot of money so was able to buy them each a new pretty dress which they did need for church.
And when it comes to saving momentoes - I am very strict - I don't keep every card/photo/ baby outfit just the ones I absolutely love.
I totally understand! It is so hard to get rid of perfectly good things! WE have a three gift per person limit... and a stocking. That wouldn't be too bad, but then you add in the Grandparents, Aunts & Uncles, Cousins... Ugh! It is never ending! Good job cleaning out... it isn't an easy job!
ReplyDeleteGeorgiann,
ReplyDeleteAh yes, I hear ya!! I have paper clutter, homeschool clutter, storage clothes clutter (but I'm letting go since we haven't had any more children in a while), and craft/sewing project clutter. The worst is the craft/sewing project clutter. I scrapbook, cross stitch, plastic canvas, sew, macrame', and everything else in between!! I have TONS of old clothes that I've saved for scrap projects--which I use quite often.
I was doing lots of eBay selling with our old stuff but it's soooooo... time consuming and I felt like I needed to start giving it away to people who need it--so I've been donating as I declutter. That's helped a lot.
After Christmas I'm going to go through the whole house and start getting merciless!! Sigh. Why is collecting so easy and purging so hard???? ;-)
I'm afraid of all the stuff that comes with Christmas too. We had the fair trade thing at our church today. We just bought some chocolate for gifts. =p
ReplyDeleteI'm proud of you...you are so special and I think you are way too hard on yourself, because you simply inspire me to know end and almost always cheer my day up when I visit your blog. I think you are a dear and if anyone needed anything you'd share the coat off of your back! So there..clutter or not...who doesn't (didn't in my case) have plenty of clutter when the kiddos were little? hugs!
ReplyDelete