Still storing your children's 'stuff?'

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.

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.

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...

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.

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 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

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!

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....

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.

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

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?

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 had to laugh at GadaboutGran saying things reproduce!!! There does seem to be a tendency for it all to advance into the room from the corners! And of course we will all be writing our books one-day -JUST DO IT .

We have so much in the loft, but last summer DDs and DGD got all the bin bags of cuddly toys out - nearly covered the lounge floor. Sorted and kept some, others have been redistributed or sent to charity shops etc. Still lots of other toys to be sorted.....not to mention clothes, DH's uni notes (He's 66!) and massive collection of football programmes. When DHs parents died he was really looking forward to going into their loft and finding his old games and toys, he was so upset to find nothing there, apart from a box of love letters of theirs - which are now in our loft!

Oh yes! Now aged 36 and 33, DD is just moving to a much bigger house though and I'm hoping to let her have her wedding dress, various bridesmaid dresses and her uni stuff back although no doubt with two small children the new house will fill up very soon. DS has a 1 bed flat and only moved out last year so am happy to store his belongings for longer. We will be downsizing in the next few years so everything will have to be gone by then.

My son didn't move out from home until he was 42, I still have a cupboard half full of his books. I did tell him about it and he said ' why, what do you want the space for?' I will start charging him storage space charges soon. Apricity I totally agree with you, he is a grownup and responsible for his own stuff, it's convincing him of the fact that's difficult.

I've got rid of most of it bar some university books and old dvds, but the latter may go to charity, they are in the spare bedroom which looks a lot clearer than it did. I kept a lot of my childrens' childhood books which are now coming in useful for our grandchildren, talking of which their toys etc. have replaced what we got rid of . Seems it never ends!

I've kept a small memories box for each DC and the best of their toys - which have now come out again to be played with. But everything else was passed to them in dribs and drabs when they called round to be kept or thrown as they choose.

Now though when we call round to see them, things which we 'lent' to them when they set up house are being passed back. Tit for tat!

We have stuff belonging to both of our children, now in their 30s and some of my Dil's things too. Also my Bil's stuff from his mum's house, which was sold when she died. He is in a residential home.

We do still have stuff that belongs to our sons in the loft but that does not annoy me . What does annoy me is the stuff from bil that was stored at mils until she died and ended up in our house because bil lives abroad. He comes over occasionally and I remind him but it falls on deaf ears . He did once have the cheek to tell me to put all the football magazines on eBay but not as a job lot , all singly . I told him politely to get lost.

This is close to my heart! After a disastrous break up[ with his ex, my son turned up with practically everything he owned. He had already stored childhood stuff in the loft previously - special things! This is now accompanied by years of adult 'hoarding' of various books, clothes etc so that the loft is full, so is the garage up to the roof. He has now moved on to a house share - no room for his life's collection! Frustrated!!!

Also very close to my heart. We are downsizing and two of our children live in Australia. Our loft has had a massive clear out as we have been here 30 years. DD went to Australia for 6 months and has been there 6years with no intention of returning. We have just cleared through boxes and boxes of miscellaneous 'stuff'. We made many, many trips to the tip and Pickfords collected the remainder today to ship to her in Sydney. I only hope she does moan that we have disposed of anything precious to her. It is very hard to make that decision for someone else but she has refused to do it herself so there is no alternative. Feeling very sad but also relieved that it has gone ... at last!

My loft contains the childhood of two of my three children. My youngest daughter's husband has OCD so they are never going to be collected. My eldest son seems to think he has a fortune stored up there in 1980's football programs. I've never come across them and if I had I would have started charging him for storage!

DS1 went through as much as possible when he left for the US. I said he could leave a few boxes of stuff, but he wasn't to then come back and throw the contents away after we had stored it for six or seven years. I recently went through the boxes and condensed them a bit - I am sure there is loads there that he will not want to keep when he gets back - broken toys, broken glasses in children's sizes, bits of computer kit that are really really out of date.

DS2 is a thrower-away and just chucked everything into the dustbin, leaving a few clothes which he uses when he comes to visit. He does bring books back sometimes, which get integrated into our bookshelves. I often discover kitchen equipment and things at his flat that he must have "borrowed" from me.

DS3 hasn't really left home yet - still at uni - and his room is full of junk. Quite a lot of it isn't even his. I have pushed it over in a corner so that when he or one of his brothers needs the room they can sleep in there, but it is all very dusty. I would love to put it all in cartons and then plonk him down with the entire contents to deal with it all. But he never stays long enough.

They seem to think we shall be here for ever offering free storage. But I can't say anything because we're just as bad ourselves!

I have what is known as 'The Room of Doom'. As well as having to use it as a study it is half filled with cardboard boxes and plastic storage crates belonging to my six aged between 43 and 26. My youngest has just moved yet again however this time to try to encourage a clear out of 'The Room of Doom' she has hired a small storage unit locally. This requires a small outlay monthly on her part but she feels this is making her more independent. She is hoping this will encourage the older ones to clear their stuff. I have also horrified certain of them by giving the grandchildren to play with what are considered 'collectibles' they could ebay. My reply is tough they were just TOYS when I bought them. Can you imagine a 43 year old whinging because his 2 year old nephew is playing with a 'Stormtrooper' and 'Chewbakker'(?), apparently this is sacrilege!!!!