Box one contains:
3 paper hand puppets
1 sock puppet
a bookmark
an old cloth book
3 random articles of clothing
the box itself (which had previously been used to hold puppets)
= 10 items to throw in the trash
10 kids' clothing items
= donation to charity
As I sort through clothes, I realize how many clothes my kids have! It's embarrassing. The funny thing is, that we have actually purchased very little of the clothes my kids own. Most of them were either bought by grandparents, etc. and given as birthday or Christmas gifts, OR they are hand-me-downs from friends and family. I don't know if everyone has this experience, but I think because my hubby and I have had our kids a little later in life, and most of our friends have children older than ours and are done having kids, that we get more things kicked our way. Maybe it is other people's way of purging, and they appease their guilt about throwing things out by giving them to us instead??
However, I have found that while it does save us a lot of money (which we appreciate), that I can afford to be more particular about what hand-me-downs I keep. I think I should accept all hand-me-downs with a smile on my face and a grateful heart. But items that are incomplete (like pajama bottoms, but not a matching top), or clothes that have stains or are worn out, I think I can pass along. Or, if it is an item that I already have multiples of (for some reason my daughter inherited about 13 fleece footed pajamas in the 18 month size! I'm not exaggerating...) then I can gratefully accept them, but pass them on. Again, I feel guilty for doing this, but it really would save my sanity and the space in my house if I could just practice this. I could apply the same principle for clothes that are really not my style or taste, but that would sound really uppity, wouldn't it?
Why do I feel guilty getting rid of things that people give me?? Can I still be appreciative but picky too?
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