Family Greetings cards

This thread has reminded me that I have 3-4 shoe boxes full of old greetings cards from over the years. I also have a similar amount of old photographs...... We're now in our mid-60s and with both sons living permanently outside the UK better get a move on and get rid of them [besides emptying the loft!

Sadly, I am a hoarder too! I have cards from my 21st Birthday (I'm 72) and have kept cards from people long deceased, such as my own grandmother, and my late husband. Yes. I really must throw them away, as the relatives remaining in my family don't even remember most of the people who sent these cards. I'm the eldest, and I have a sister who is fourteen years younger than me. My granddaughter never met my parents, Aunts, Uncles etc. all of whom are "gone before", as indeed is her own father.

My late dad almost always left the card writing to my mum. Going through mountains of old cards at my mum's recently I found a birthday card he had sent to me, so a rare find! Also came across a Christmas card my lovely gran had sent to me in the 1970s - the decade she passed away. So both very special cards and will never be thrown away by me but will be destined for the bin one day. I've taken to scanning the greeting cards I want to 'keep'.

I showed my visiting 32-year son a Mother's day "card" he made on a folded paper when he was in high school. The protestation (against being "monitored") and the faith in parental loving intention came through on the paper that made us both laugh and moved. I am glad I kept this card to show him the joy child brings. Hint, hint,,, get married and enjoy what Ihave ! Other than this I totally agree that cards should be recycled,

No. I enjoy the children and the grandchildren now but dont save cards etc from the past. Live in the moment!

I have a lot of Valentine's cards sent by my father (died 1989) to my mother (died 2015 aged 97). She had kept them so,long, I can't bring myself to bin them.
I also 'inherited', still in its original box, the 'lucky horseshoe' thing she carried on her wedding day in 1939.

I'm not generally a hoarder at all - we've chucked loads of stuff in the past few years - but these are things dds will have to bin one day.

If you have a scanner, why don't you scan them and store on your computer? It takes time, but think of all that drawer space you save.

I keep a few special ones but I bin 95% of them. I’m largely lacking in sentimental attachment, I can’t decide if it’s a good or a bad thing!

I keep immediate family cards, the rest I make into postcards to use for competitions I enter.

Me too SirChenjin I don't have sentimental attachment to cards either. It's nice to receive them for the occasion then time for them to go.

I have boxes full, and get one of them down from the loft every now and then for a bit of nostalgia (and a little mixed-emotions cry), but this thread has really made me think and I'm going to talk to my children about this and ask them what they'd like me to do. Thanks girls.

I bin about 99% of my cards. These days Mr B and I don't bother sending cards to each other, just a hug and a kiss. Means much more.

dannierae I m with you all the way the card means as.much or more than the present I have the last card my dad wrote me which was exactly 2 weeks before he died he got my daughter to buy it He was so very ill but his beautiful handwriting was still as good as ever it’s on my bedroom wall and brings tears to my eyes now just thinking if it
I have kept all the cards from my children and a few that have been made from special friends
I make all my Christmas cards and a few friends have told me they always keep mine

I too always keep special cards and have boxes and boxes full of them, taking space up I know, but I cannot part with them, there is something very special about them, having been chosen specially for us. I do look at them from time to time and they bring pleasure. You never know, your family might look at them and realise how much they meant to you and will bring back memories. Go with your gut instinct and don't worry about what will become of them, just enjoy them and keep them if you want them.

I thought I was the only one with a mountain of old cards and sentiments
All were in my drawers and wardrobes until a few months ago in bags and decided to box them all up and got one of my sons to put them in the loft. I doubt I will ever see them again. Reminiscing the good ole days mad me sad.
I have two birthday cards from mum and dad from when I was about 8 years old. Birthday cards and Christmas cards going back to the early 70's but just from my immediate family and children. Valentines cards from my ex husband from 1971 onward. Notes on scraps of paper that he sent me. Wedding cards and the ribbons from our wedding cake. Children's birth cards, the clothes they wore when we bought them home from hospital. Wristbands. Daughters first pink dummy. Even the tin of talc I had to put on the belly button cord when I came home.
Pictures, cards and pottery they made at infants and junior school.
School reports of mine and children's and yes, even a few of their first teeth that fell out and supposedly went to the tooth fairy. Each in a little white paper bag and named.
Newspapers of when Elvis, John Lennon, Michael Jackson and Princess Diana died.
Anyone remember having to learn to play a recorder in senior school but buy your own. Mine's in the loft in the box and I've written my name and the year 1966. Can you imagine what my family and neighbours went through
There's a teddy bear that belongs to my sister from 1960. She doesn't want it but I can't throw it away. The complete set of Enid Blyton 'Famous Five' books. I've got as she doesn't want them either. I can't let them go as our mum personalised them.
I dare say there's Uncle Tom Cobley and all among that lot and there it will stay. I'm sure my daughter will want some of it to keep but the lads would bin it.
P.S, this years cards so far are in a carrier bag in a drawer. .

I've got cards from my 2 sons and my grandchildren, for the last 10 years. Eldest son always writes such lovely words in his. I probably ought to get rid of some, but don't like to. I was 60 in April, but I'll certainly keep all those.

sharon103
Your post made me smile.
I too have my first and only recorder which is in 2 parts. I never did get the hang of playing it. Still got my old threadbare teddy (Rupert) and a tiny glove belonging to one of my sons.
I don't think men are nearly as sentimental as we mums are.
Their 'rubbish' is our treasure.

Thank you GabriellaG54
Yes I did learn to play tunes on it. We all had to.
So glad that music lessons were abolished by the time my three children went to senior school. If they had had to play a recorder I'd have told them to take it and toot toot down the park.

Yep, i'm a hoarder of special cards. I've got every birthday, Christmas and mother's day card my son and daughter have ever given me (now 33 and 30) Could never throw the early handmade ones away or indeed those they've chosen over the years. And its getting even more difficult now my little granddaughters have started making Grandy's cards.

I only keep the ones that I find appealing/special or that have an interesting message in them. I have saved lots of letters from the past and it is neat to take time to read some of them; I mean they go back to the days before email! Typed with a typewriter or handwritten Especially the envelopes with stamps are neat to see. I'm not sure yet what I can do with them, but it seems a shame to throw meaningful correspondence away.

I have a large storage box - my 'memory box' with some of the DC's and DGC's cards and treasures which they made for me over the years, some special cards but I have thrown a lot out recently.

I suggested to DH that we keep ours to each other and re-send them every Christmas.

I suppose you could make a scrapbook of the nicest or most special ones.

Other than a very few, very special cards from very special people the answer is no one. As another hoarder I really struggle with this but having had to sort through mountains of my parents stuff I know the answer. Start sorting and discarding now. Stern words to self on this matter!!!

The other stuff that no one, not even your children are or will ever be the slightest bit interested in are the thousands of holiday photos and travel movies you may have accumulated. Other people's old holiday snaps are just not interesting to anyone else. You were there, they weren't. With the relatively rare exceptions of photos that are of historical interest or photos with very particular or very loved people in them they are now just rubbish.

And what to do with the hundreds of miles/kms of unlabelled reels of parents holiday/travel home movies- she asks herself, followed by weary sighs!!!!

I have the beautiful, lacy shawl that my darling mum made for my daughter - her first grandchild. All three of my children wore it their Christenings and next January my precious grandson is going to wear it to his

I have 56 years of greetings cards in boxes, they are in the attic which I am unable to reach and nobody else fit enough to scale a ladder, never mind.

One daughter makes her own and the other daughter, who is very artistic and often sends a small painting or sketch. I tend to want to keep those. When they sort thought my things after I've gone at least they'll know I appreciated their efforts - and then they'll bin them! I'm getting rid of loads of other things - old letters etc. so they won't have too much to do!