Christmas Paraphanalia

[eoewan]

This might seem like an odd post to most of you, for that I do apologize.

I've been purging my belongings. What I haven't gone near yet is all my Christmas stuff. And after almost 40 years there is a lot. Every year for 30 years my husband has bought me Christmas ornaments. How did you all purge those items and was there anything you kept that is Christmas related? Is this stuff you sold or just gave away?

I have ornaments my kids made that would be put out every year. I'm struggling with what to do with these items. The kid made stuff is quite old and tattered. They aren't important to anyone but me.

I know that in the great scheme of things it is just 'stuff'. It does tie me down. However, to me it also represents the years that have past. I'm truly at a loss of how to purge all of it.

Any suggestions or thoughts would be most appreciated.

 

[Queen]

Is it possible to have your kids hold a box for you, until you're ready to part with things?

Another option... give the kid ones back to your kids. My mom and dad gave me back the stuff I made for them when they hit the road. I love having the goofy paper mache ornament I made for them in the 2nd grade.

 

[moorejames]

Is it possible to have your kids hold a box for you, until you're ready to part with things?

Another option... give the kid ones back to your kids.  My mom and dad gave me back the stuff I made for them when they hit the road.  I love having the goofy paper mache ornament I made for them in the 2nd grade.

I let my Ex, parents and kids keep anything they were sentimental about, and then the rest either got left at the old house or put out on the curb. In the end, I didn't end up keeping anything. And I'm fine with that... I didn't miss a thing last Christmas.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Doesn't seem odd to me.  It's always a good time to get rid of stuff.

This is what I did with my Christmas stuff:

• Stuff that was just stuff I gave to a thrift store.
• Stuff that had family connections I offered to family members.  If nobody wanted it, it was photographed and given away.  Some of these pictures I use on Christmas cards to family.
• Stuff that had a personal connection was the most difficult.  Most of those were photographed and given to family or friends.  Photographs are used as rotating wallpaper during the Christmas season.  The few things that I have not yet been able to part with are stored.  I have found that I am willing to get rid of some of these after they have been left in a box untouched for a while.

I have found that I have to go through personal stuff 3, 4, or 5+ times to part with it.  If it was easy you wouldn't have to ask.

 -- Spiff

 

[eoewan]

Thank you for answering. Christmas 'stuff' is the most difficult to part with. I'll definitely use suggestions that were offered.

Would it be too odd to keep a couple of ornaments to hang from the ceiling as I travel? Or is this just too weird?

 

[Queen]

Would it be too odd to keep a couple of ornaments to hang from the ceiling as I travel? Or is this just too weird?

Well, most traditional folks would think van dwelling is pretty weird in general... so, I'm thinking if you want to hang ornaments in your rig you go right ahead and do it.

 

[Gunny]

The hardest things for me to get rid of, or try to, were the knick-knack my kids had made me over the years. Material stuff was easy, hell, I can always buy another TV or whatever but the handmade Christmas Ornaments I still have. I have them stashed at a friends house in his garage. Along with the cards and other refrigerator art they made.

 

[ArtW]

eowan, it's not even close to weird, it's a cool idea
after all, your van is YOUR space, and should reflect you

 

[TrainChaser]

YOU do with them what YOU want to do. What anyone else would do is immaterial. Purging EVERYTHING is not a necessity. People who don't have much of value (sentimental or financial) find it easy to dump everything. I have stuff that I can't replace easily, even if I had the money to do so.

Maybe go through the stuff and pick out what is likely important to you, and ask the kids, other family, or a friend to hold it for you.

And contrary to how many people here think, it is not illegal to rent a small storage unit. It gives you time to get used to the new situation (and to see if it really works for you); and once you've slowed down, you can think about it more. You don't have to do everything immediately.

Mahatma Ghandi: "There is more to life than increasing its speed."

 

[MrNoodly]

Perhaps the same thing that would happen to all your sentimental stuff if you were to die. Pass it on to your kids and let them decide what to do with it.

 

[eoewan]

Funny thing is that I'm not a knick-knack type of person at all. Hate them actually. My only vice is my Christmas stuff. I think I will have an ebay sale with most of the ornaments since they are quite valuable.

 

[eoewan]

I'll definitely be returning the stuff the kids made for me back to them. Now that they have children of their own I'm sure they'd like it. The one I will keep is a toilet paper tissue angel that is barely holding on to itself. Every year I've packed it oh so carefully. It's my tree topper. I've already purged all my photos and divvied them up between the kids. I'll do that for everything. Kids will get dibs on stuff first before, garage sale, ebay, and goodwill.

 

[Queen]

I thought of one more I'll always keep, the first Christmas my wife and I spent together in 1990, we were broke and had a goofy looking Charlie Brown tree with no topper. We'd splurged on a pizza so I cut out a star from the cardboard lid and we covered it with foil... still use it every year so it's a keeper.

 

[VanGrrl57]

I thought of one more I'll always keep, the first Christmas my wife and I spent together in 1990, we were broke and had a goofy looking Charlie Brown tree with no topper.  We'd splurged on a pizza so I cut out a star from the cardboard lid and we covered it with foil... still use it every year so it's a keeper.

Yeah, I can relate. My son, who will be 35 in September, drew a Santa Claus on a piece of cardboard when he was 5 and I STILL have it. LOL! I can't bring myself to part with it. 

VanGrrl57

 

[Madpeep]

My family has been exchanging ornaments instead of gifting presents for that last 6 years or so. The rich relatives buy expensive ornaments, the couples with kids attach child photos to paper/plastic, and some handcraft their own. It's been a great tradition. Several of my relatives (me too!) are leading....."alternate" lifestyles. So the gifting of presents was becoming too impractical. Many resorted to cash or gift cards. Christmas wasn't as much fun. The ornament exchange changed that and is a lot of fun.

Anyway, I have too many ornaments for a van. I plan on taking pictures of them and leaving them with relatives. I may want them later in life. Also, if another relative's ornament breaks, I have a replacement I'm not using that they can have. At Christmas time I can get some photos printed at cvs/Walgreens/etc and make a 2D "photo tree" to get into the holiday spirit.

 

[Cheli]

You have been given some great ideas here already, do what works best for you.  I love the idea of taking pictures and using them as a rotating screen saver during the holidays.  And no, it's not weird if you want to hang some in your van......it's your home so you do whatever you want.  

As I have been having a hard time parting with things as well (not just Christmas stuff) my sister recommended I take pictures of everything, then I will always have that item, just in picture format.  We as humans tend to attach memories to things, but remember you will always have that memory and getting rid of things doesn't mean you are getting rid of that memory.  

Just piece of advice though about giving things back to your children.  Please, please, please make sure they actually want it back, no matter what it is, and that they aren't just accepting it because they think that's what you want.  Be open to giving it to them but let them know they can take it only if they want it.  I only say this because children tend to take things from parents because they feel guilty if they don't, thinking the parent will be hurt if they don't.  I have been victim of this many times and have things that I didn't want but didn't want to hurt feelings.  My boyfriends mother just did this to me back in April.  They were moving out of there house of 40 years and at one point she asked me if I wanted an item, before I could even say "no thank you" she said "it would really mean a lot to me if you had it".  So I took it and now it's just one more thing I have to get rid of.

Just my experience, but just keep that in mind.

Good luck in the process, it's not an easy one.

 

[eoewan]

Madpeep, love the idea of a picture tree. Christmas spirit with no space used.

Queen and Vangrrl57, those are very treasured items. Like you, there are items that just can't be gotten rid of. When my husband was in the Armed Forces I wrote him a letter a day. He kept all of them. We are talking about hundreds of letters all numbered so he when he received them he could read them in order. It was fascinating reading them to give a snippet of daily life when the kids were little. However, I finally had him throw them out as they were just space takers.

Cheli, my kids have no problem saying no to me. lol Last move and downsizing I did I offered items up, most were taken while others went to Goodwill. There is no guilt inducing here. I kind of look at it from a different perspective. When we die, do I want my kids to have to go through all of our 'stuff'? Or, can I make it easier on them and keep 'stuff' to a minimum? Having to clean my mother's house, who was a hoarder of 'stuff', after she died really brought everything into perspective. What she treasured was what we thought was junk. I don't want to do that to my kids.

Today's purge is the kitchen dishware. Do we really need umpteenth number of cups? Paring it down to just our fave cup each. Eventually we will have to exchange our fave ceramic mug for a travel type but for now I love coffee in a ceramic mug.

 

[Gunny]

A very small Christmas Tree from a dollar store and a few inexpensive bulbs and a couple of the family ornaments. Tree is cheap, gets thrown away but has served it's purpose. Big and fancy is someone else's style, small and intimate is better. 

Missed most of my kids Christmas's due to my occupation, can never make them up but won't miss another and the "art" they made for the tree is a constant reminder.. at least to me.

Getting sentimental in my old age. Rob   

 

[Gary68]

for a few years now i take some lights and form a tree on the wall hang some bulbs and ornaments on it and call it good,and people dig it,the only thing missing is the smell of a tree

hanging a few of your kids ornaments in your rig would be great

 

[Queen]

Gunny, my dad missed most of our Christmases until I was about nine years old. Said the hardest part of four tours in Viet Nam was Christmas, he'd sit in his hooch and read the letters about us that mom sent, look at the pictures, and cry like a little boy.