Oreo Big Stuff

What to do with a whole day off? The trick is not to overthink it. Sometimes you make it out to the lake and sometimes just back into bed. No matter, it is never wasted.
I managed to make a mess of a room even messier and then we got down to business. Months ago the boys had shuffled rooms without any help. At the time I thought good, as long as everyone is happy and they can do it themselves, go for it. But the easy way isn't ever the best way.
As we began trying to find homes for things we first had to uncover the layers of things! I quickly began cursing myself for having ignored these bedroom disasters for so long. Where did it all come from? A corner of candy cane paper still clung to a sealed Lego kit, a backpack spewing last day of school remains, empty 2 lt soda bottles, half used loaves of clay, broken Nerf gun darts, boxes full of boxes of trash, science kits, pottery wheels (yes plural), Hot Wheels cars and tracks, puzzles, books, art kits, silly string, clothes, dirty clothes, out grown clothes, colored markers, colored pencils, construction paper, Lego men, stuffed animals, aquarium paraphernalia, an old office multi-line phone,  dressy clothes, play clothes, clothes with holes.  All of this and the most common phrase out of their mouths........."There's nothing to do, I'm bored." Hence, no more stuff. Please don't buy them anymore stuff. No toys, no clothes, no things. We filled boxes and bags with clothes, books, toys intermingled with actual trash. I had never done that before-I actually threw toys away. I was so fed up with the heat of the afternoon sun that streamed into the upstairs bedroom, and the lack of space to maneuver. We hauled crap out to the curb. We disassembled a large desk and the infamous little girl toddler bed and lined them up next to the street.

The boys don't play in their rooms. They hang out with friends, they ride bikes, they jump on the trampoline, they play games on their tablets, our phones, they play on the Xbox, they paint and sketch and make food to eat, they do not play with toys.

Toys are what we mistakenly give children because we feel we have to. The stuff becomes a trap of sorts. If they are young enough the trap is as I already mentioned, physically in their way of real play. As we grow older the trap can become more emotional we can feel obligated to the gifter. Stuff really doesn't make us feel any better, happier, more blessed. Personally, I hate stuff. I had forgotten how trapped it can make me feel. How much time I spent on my holiday weekend sifting through, making places for, rearranging, wiping off, picking up, carrying downstairs, marking, washing, and sorting STUFF!

It felt so good to get rid of so much and I will keep going. But I will also have to make a statement to change this cycle. I will have to tell grandma we don't want anymore stuff. Gift cards please.