Community Chat

[kitcat51]

No thanks...I'm here, I'm important so I'll keep what matters to me.

[BoopOMatic]

It's the times we live in. People move from place to place and don't want to have to schlep a bunch of stuff with them.

[gidgetgh]

I have significantly downsized over the last several years.  Significantly.

I sold China sets and some Waterford crystal to Replacements.com. I live in Atlanta and my husband and I schlepped up to NC, where they are located, twice.  I did well with them. 

I also sold Waterford of mine, my sister and our mom's on Facebook yard sales. It all sold, and it was a lot of it, very quickly.

I took sterling flatware to a local jeweler and sold it for scrap.  Replacements would not take it as it was monogrammed.

Tons of stuff went to Goodwill or I had hauled off by 800-got-junk.

I have been to Goodwill countless times.

I have just a small amount of actual pictures left, compared to some people.  My family will be able to trash them in less than 5 seconds. They are all together, except for what is framed.

I have a small table that belonged to my great grandparents.  Very small.  I took pictures of it some years back and emailed them to the twins on Antiques Roadshow and they wrote back and told me what I had and its approximate worth.  I have pictures of all those kind of things and it is all in a 3 ring binder.  When my nephews were at our old house just before I moved I showed them the small table and said "take your time with this one before you hurl it into a dumpster". It dates back to the early 1800's and it is really pretty and, again, very small.  

No one wants collectibles. Heck, I don't want the things listed on the OP's list let alone my sisters kids.  I have my teddy bear that I got when I was 3.  He is going to be cremated with me.

[Jo1313]

My kids wouldn't want #'s 3 and 9..They would pick through the rest.

DIL asked and I gave her Grandma's fine china service for 12..but not the silver flatware.

When they ask for something I give it to them before they change their mind!!

Whatever they don't want will end up in a BIG dumpster..maybe 2 dumpsters!

[Mz iMac]

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@Sooner wrote:

I'd say to anyone please don't load your kids up with a lot of things like pictures and scrapbooks.  

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@Sooner  I already solved that problem......

A few years ago, one of my sons made this comment to me, "You're retired, why not scan our photo albums & email to us?"

That night, I stopped at the liquor store, grabbed a few boxes.  The next day, I got each of my childrens photo albums, packed them in the boxes I got from the liquor store put a note in each one, went to the P.O. & mailed each child their photo albums.

The notes read, "Do what you want w/the albums.  They're yours now."

To the one that made the "scanning comment," I wrote, "You have more time than I on this earth than I do to scann all these photos.  I will not waste it by scanning my retirement away.  In view of this, YOU can scan to your hearts content.  Then YOU can email the scanned photos to all your brothers & sister."

[chrystaltree]

That list sounds about right.  One of the worst things a parent can do is die and dump all the stuff they accumulated over a lifetime on their kids.  They force them to deal with that on top of their grief.  They that that stuff means something.  My mom moved from her 9 room home into s one bedroom apartment and that was a blessing because she had to get rid of stuff.  She even bought all new modern furniture to go with her modern apartment.  She did keep some true antiques and family heirlooms and gave those things to us shortly before she died.   My niece took photo albums and digitalized them so we all have them.  We donated her clothes and the household stuff to charity.  We gave her livingroom set to a maintenance man who asked if he could buy it.  We didn't want money for it.   Some stuff we just tossed out.  My friend had to spend weeks cleaning out her mother's house and arguing with her siblings about who should get what.  The fights damaged their relationship.  I'm only 62 but my plan is to do as my mom did and over time, give my daughters and nieces the things I want them to have.  The things that matter.

[Trailrun23]

At Thanksgiving one year, while we were all together, my mother passed around a notebook and asked each person to write down one thing of hers they would like to have when she was no longer with us. She included children and grands, and some of her younger siblings. After the book went around once, she asked everyone to add another item if it had not been added by someone else. It was amazing to see what everyone wrote. So many small things that meant something special or reminded them of my mother. It was very helpful after she passed away a few years later. I had the job of giving the things to those who had written down what they wanted. Many tears when I presented them with things they had asked for, like a cookbook,  a photograph, a small footstool my dad had made in wood shop, and an afghan her mother had crocheted for her when she was a little girl. my mother did not have fine jewelry or expensive cars and huge sums of cash to leave her family, but I feel like she left all of us something very special and meaningful. I think of her every time I see the old cookie jar she kept filled with homemade oatmeal cookies....even when we were adults and coming home to visit.

[Trailrun23]

One of my DD said she wanted to scan all of my old photos...she is very sentimental and I handed her the box and said to get after it. I can't believe how much better they look and now I don't have to be afraid to even pick up some that were so old they were fragile. She also put date and names on them...DH and I went through tons of old pics and decided if we had no idea who was in the photo, where or when it was taken, it was thrown away. No regrets.

[Trailrun23]

Oh, yes, the Boyd's Bears are included in the collectibles. My mother adored hers. I have given them to the grands and they play with them. When they outgrow them, we will donate them. I know she would be pleased to know they love playing with them.

[drizzellla]

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Sad to think so many nice things I aquired through the years will be considered trash once I am gone.