Still storing your children's 'stuff?'

We got home from holiday once, to find we'd had a burglary in reverse.....kids had come in, and added to their stuff in the loft!
They'll have to sort it once we're gone...

I forget where I heard it - and this is a digression - but one family had a long running joke of receiving and re-gifting the 'Jan Leeming Book Of Glamour' year on year at Christmas ... That made me laugh and laugh for so many reasons.
I wonder how many different ways I could disguise a pile of DVDs / Cds?

That is such a cracking idea by Mr Imperfect - I am sooo tempted! Very funny.

Yes, I kept some of the toys, including a Fisher Price school which was a present to dd1 when she was one - now 40! - and some My Little Ponies, among others. They all come out when Gdcs are here - I'm glad I kept them. Also still have a lot of their books, inc. Ladybirds for very little ones. All enjoying a revival now.

Yes, and just because I can't bear to get rid of things. They were delighted to find I'd kept their original Micro Machines, Sylvanian Families, Transformers, Duplo etc to keep the DGS amused. Not as yet thrilled about the massive comic and annual collection, but might be if some of it proves to be worth anything. Even I don't know why I'm keeping all the Uni files they said I should just chuck out, or the gliding crib bought in the first flush of nannahood that's been used all of three times....

I don't have stuff from when they were children but I seem to have stuff since they had children. My daughter has a new baby and her friends have given her car loads of baby clothes. This has been stored at my house as my daughter has no room. We've sorted it into age groups so as baby grows the bags will be sent home. I also have a bedroom full of toys for when the grandchildren come to visit. One day my house will get cleared!

I am another who had to threaten the tip when I downsized. My attic was full of my two sons' belongings and they had both left home a long time ago

DS2 has every issue published of 'The World At War' magazine series and yes, guess what, they're in our loft together with his Star Wars Figures and countless other items! We hoarded loads for DD and handed it all over to her when her and her husband moved into their house only to find a few weeks later she was sending it all to the tip!! We quickly retrieved Cindy, Barbie and all their accessories (!) which was the right move as our 4 granddaughters loved playing with them and did so for many years !!

I had already done a pretty good job of purging and boxing by the time my youngest graduated from college, got his first real job and moved to his own place. For some unknown reason, he kept 'forgetting' to take his boxes. My husband ended up putting them (2 boxes) in the trunk (boot) of his car when he wasn't looking!

All the memorabilia is gone now and been replaced with new ones. My eldest daughter's wedding gown was boxed professionally and since they were in the middle of moving across country, she left it with me. They've been married 19 years and the box is still in my guest room closet. Grandchildren always leave behind toys, shoes, clothes etc. They are promptly returned only to be replaced with more of the same.

I don't count old toys & clothes (Clothkits) that GC use or significant memorabilia. I don't mind storing stuff they will use but don't want to be a rubbish bin. Son always reluctant to sort his stuff so I took small amounts regularly to his bachelor flat & distributed it - he probably never noticed. He is married now & lives abroad when he came over by car, I had the final bags ready to go. He looked through, said "Don't you want to keep these? ,in offended tone (I'd already sorted a few for me). He did sort them but then I couldn't throw some discarded things away. With my late daughter's things, I have a rule - if it triggers tears or other memory, I keep, if not discard. Over the years attachments lessen except for really important things. We also had late parents' stuff, some integrated, some bits still to sort, many bags have been recycled, chucked etc and we always seem to be doing this. Does what's left reproduce??
If we downsize we'll be dratic, if not boot will be on other foot for kids. DS is an ace chucker, driven by his wife, which means he has no room for extras - 3 storey house plus basement & garage. I love him dearly, especially when he says our house is too full if stuff. Of course there's all my old files & books but that doesn't count as I might write my book one day...

Mine are 46 & 40 both have much larger houses than ours.
We have Boxes full of university stuff in the loft, electric piano in one bedroom (that he still plays when he visits, he has a piano in his own home).
Loads of Games, Books, Lego, Meccano, Star Wars and Dungeon and Dragons stuff.
When I mention it they will some times take a bit (last time they took all the Dandy & Beano Annuals and comic libraries). The Lego gets taken when the grandchildren build something and I say would you like to take that home.
May put some on Ebay.

My granddaughter spent most of yesterday playing with a Fisher Price village that had been second hand even when my lot were small. They never wanted to visit my mum because there was nothing to do there but were happy to visit their fathers parents as they had a few of his old toys. Problem is, because of that I kept absolutely everything. I love seeing the grandchildren playing with toys that belonged to their parents; we always take 'Daddy's' Fisher Price binoculars on walks.

Seems to be a common problem. My house & garage are stuffed with DS & DS bits and bobs. DD just says take them to a charity shop! I am a bit of a hoarder - 6GCs have had fun playing with Mum & Dad's old toys so they are doubly sentimental pieces

Glad I kept some toys - duplo, lego and garden toys - they come in very handy for Grandchildren.

We had two lofts (one over a double garage) full of 'stuff' belonging to the 'grown up and moved away' children ; they wanted these things kept...but not in their lofts! When we downsized they both found it very difficult to part with items but the local charity shop took several car loads. It was wonderful to be free of it all - although I did keep two or three things for the GC.

My son (40) who moved out at 18, has his own drawers here, including a metal office file (for his paperwork) still has most of his post sent here and all his parcels.
The garage has a convertible BMW in it, only taken out in good weather and shelves of tools and other stuff.
He has his own business so often turns up at lunchtime and raids the fridge.
He and his wife park in their drive and they have converted their garage into a Games Room for him and his boy.
After saying that, love him calling round all the time and he does all my little jobs for me.

We moved house 10 years ago to make our three remaining children leave home downsize, making a point of not giving them their "own" room when they visit. When DS1 stayed for some months we actually put him in the not so nice basement rather than one of the bedrooms.
Sounds mean? Well perhaps, but the youngest was 21 and they all have their own homes now - we just don't want them to start leaving stuff here all over again. There are toys for the GC, but all of the children's boxes and clutter went with them or has been delivered to them.
My DIL does leave a sponge bag of childrens' toiletries and toothbrushes, but if anything else is left I parcel it up and send it (second class!) to their home addresses.

No way. Long since disposed of. Gave them every opportunity to retrieve treasured items, set a deadline, then what remained went to charity shops or to the dump. No room in our increasingly over-stocked home with all our own stuff.

When my son and family were moving abroad, I got the stored toys down from the loft and got his sister and him to choose what they wanted, I kept some in Granny's toybox, the rest to charity shops.

No stuff stored at ours: I have ensured what is there's and they want has gone with them on there lives forward. I did find bits and pieces over the years in various odd places which I have given back to them when we see them. They know me too well. I am not a hoarder. If it isn't being used it's the tip charity or sell. I am a minimalist. Fortunately so are they. Thet aren't into keeping stuff they no longer have use for.

Now I wish I could say the same for my husband [sighs] We have lived in this house for 15 years. I have always known he likes to keep stuff. Ridiculous stuff, empty boxes and so on years after the thing has broken. Most of it I have got rid of eventually.

We are in the throes of moving bedrooms into the main master in the house. Now all of our four bar one have fled the nest we are reclaiming the biggest bedroom.

Oh my days! Gutting his side of the inbuilt overhead wardrobes has been an experience I never want to go through again nor will in the new bedroom. Ten large dustbin size bags later full of flattened cardboard, old broken equipment like headphones, leads etc (which will go to the scrapman) etc. well you can imagine, later and I was exhausted needed a shower and so on.

We found things he moaned one of the boys must have taken, things that he had forgotten he had.

10 boxes of stuff ended up as 2 boxes in the end. Need I say anymore. He was rather shamed about it though. He did know it was bad but chose to ignore it. I do love him to bits though I thought I would add he is a good man

I also said to him he would be a candidate for Obessive Compulsive Cleaners on British tv which is the U.S version of Hoarders if he lived alone

YES! I thought we might be the only ones!! Occasionally there's a sort out but there's one large cupboard that's still full and another that just has a couple of large items in it. Luckily we don't need the space - yet! - though DH's 'collections' are gradually increasing. We have toys and bookes from their childhood which have come in really handy with the GC I must say.

Very large house that's full of stuff!.
Books. Posters, clothes, Uni papers x2. LPs. tapes.
Boxes of stuff DH brought home from his office when he retired 7 years ago. Cellar full. Walk in cupboards x3 full.
Wardrobes overflowing with clothes I keep on meaning to take to the charity shops.
Room full of half empty paint tins and a garden room full of junk.
It keeps me awake at night thinking about it. We talk and talk about dealing with it but we never seem to actually do anything about it.

My DH is now checking out the local 'man with a van' so maybe, fingers crossed?

If they have a loft or garage then give them an ultimatum - sort it by the end of the year or it goes to the dump, charity or ebay. Personal things like school reports and other childhood mementoes I box up and label with their name on and they can do what they want with them after I'm gone but at least it will be altogether to look through.

Still storing some stuff for mid-40's children, but the 3 grandchildren do enjoy heading to our attic rooms and raiding for things. DS and DD goes with them sometimes to reminisce, taking bits and pieces home but telling me I can get rid of other things.

I have not parted with their childhood books as these began to be read soon after DGD was born (now 10). A pile of Biggles and Mary Poppins went home last weekend with DS to read to his little son. Despite being out of date, Mallory Towers and the like are still popular! Waiting for DGD to get onto the Chalet School stories.

Re their old soft toys - we had masses of these, some still in their rooms but a lot in bin bags in the loft. I've never been able to bring myself to throw such things away.

However, a couple of years ago we sorted the well-loved from the rest, and found that Battersea Dogs' home would welcome them, as long as they weren't filled with polystyrene. Dh took a stack up to them. They probably won't last long, but I've known a few dogs who like carrying furry soft toys around and having one or two in their basket.

Visiting friends had a lovely flat coat retriever - on his first visit to our house he charged upstairs and came back with a very battered old teddy off grown up dd's bed - she'd had it since she was one day old. Dd was afraid he'd chew it up, but he never had - he just liked carrying them around.