You know, I have never been more thankful of my great relationship with my mother than now as we volley for spots for all of our belongings. It seems so quaint and simple. The first words, "Let's move in together!" Then you stop and think. I have stuff. Brett has stuff. We have stuff together. The boys have their own stuff. We have furniture and dishes and linens. Mom has all that stuff too. Plus, she has family heirlooms; 30+ years of adult, family and marriage accumulation; a husband who was a pack rat (to put it mildly) and 3000+ sq. ft. of furnishings. Our new house is only 2300 sq. ft. What are we going to do with all the stuff? So, the negotiations begin, because for every one thing you agree on there is at least one thing that must be purged. And "at least" is a very loose estimation.
Between our two families we have six couches. SIX! We do not need six couches. This is agreed. But where Brett and I steer pretty modern with our couch styles, Mom is decidedly traditional. OK, let's table the couches and talk about our 3 dining room tables. One can be painted with a more weather hearty finish and put on the three season porch. We can use Mom's round dining table in the dining room by purchasing two more chairs, and our IKEA table will go on Craigslist. There. That's some progress.
Since we're in the dining/kitchen, let's talk about dishes. We have 3 sets of china + another 3 sets of everyday dishes. (Clearly this is a family illness.) OK, Brett and I can sell one set of china and donate our other set of everyday stuff. Most of it came from a garage sales anyway. We keep Grandma Sauer's china from Germany and Mom's wedding dishes. In fact, we can paint the wardrobe that currently houses Mom's TV the same color as the cabinets in the kitchen, add some shelves, and VOILA! a china cabinet! Look at us go.
Room by room we work our way through the sea of stuff, and after each discussion, I run home and add more to the Goodwill pile. Being faced with your accumulation is a sobering thing. I refuse to move anything that we will not use. I refuse to store things "just in case". And especially since we will be moving ourselves in a rental truck. If it's not necessary... it's going to someone else. Craigslist is my new best friend. In fact, if you or someone you know needs something. I may have it. CHEAP! ha!
It feels good to purge the excess, and it is exciting to be surrounded by things from my childhood again – things that will now be decorated with my family's stuff and accented by my family's artwork. It is also thrilling to know that my mom is an integral part of that family again and not just a voice on the other end of the line – that her stuff can mingle with my stuff and Brett's stuff and the boys' stuff and it will all just become our stuff.
Do you want to talk about the couches now? Um, no.
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