Friday, February 6, 2009
Filled with Thoughts - Friday
I have a lot on my mind today... Things are changing around here for the good but how to make through these changes is what I am struggling with... Today I made my family's version of Mexican Layer Dip... I have the recipe on Tasty Thursday (will write that soon)... I de-cluttered my sewing area which is related to my struggles... How does one down-size? It is obvious... Painfully so... We have too much 'stuff'... Yet it is hard to part with 'things' because it cost money which most of you know we have very little of... So, we feel we must keep these items because we did use what money we had to buy them... The price of things only seems to go up as we progress into the future... So, buy now why the price is still low... ::smirk:: I don't know... This is just really hard... As a parent we all want our children to have so many things yet we don't want them be selfish or be ungrateful with what they have... How do we find balance? What do they 'truly' need? I feel we haven't been good stewards of the wealth we have been provided which in part is our fault for falling into the whole commercialism nonsense... We are all bombarded every day with all this 'you need this' or 'to be a good parent your child needs this'... After the fact you feel bad you spent all that money (you never can obtain what you paid for an item it automatically loses value), your child lost interest in the item quickly and here you are stuck with this thing you should never have bought in the first place... ::sigh:: I am truly at a loss as to the best course of action...
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4 comments:
This is a big struggle for many - my family included. I've donated many things to the church. I'll be sending an email to all moms groups soon about donations of books, toys & other items for the new childcare room. It's easier for me to donate there & easier for the kids, too. They know who will be playing with it and they know they'll be able to play with the toys. The added bonus is that they are sharing with friends!
I get depressed/angry when I see their toys spread around and not put away without my prompting (to me it says they don't care for their belongings). ARGHHHH! I could say a ton more on this subject and my struggle, but that's a subject for my own post!
sometimes I just decide that if we haven't used it inthe last months it is going out, with the exceptions of holiday items...and then I list them on freecycle!
One way to keep out the stuff is to limit the number of gifts at Christmas. Our children get three under the tree and something small in their stocking. Even at their birthday we buy a similar amount. The rest of the year we don't buy toys; about the only thing we might get is a bike if someone has outgrown theirs. And even with this method, there are times I think my kids have too much stuff
Even when relatives give the kids too many toys, I don't feel bad about giving some away. I want my children to value the people in their lives, not what they give them. Stuff can never replace relationships esp with God.
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