This year, I set an ambitious goal for our family- donate or recycle 2,017 items from our home. It sounds crazy, but it isn't as crazy as you think. The average American home has 300,000 objects in it, so giving up 2,017 isn't even 1%. We are taking on this challenge for a number of reasons-

-A cluttered house wastes so much time. I have two small children, and everything in my house needs to be worth the time I am going to spend picking it up off the floor. Less stuff= less to clean= more time to spend actually playing or making or writing this blog.

-Too much stuff keeps us from even knowing what we have. Have you ever bought something at the store only to find you already had it at home? Me too. And that is waste.

- Someone else can use it. We have stuff sitting in wait for us to need it or want it again, but someone else can use that blanket/ coat/ book; now. And if we give it to them, we can do so much good. If they can't afford it, we can help. If they could but get it used instead, we are keeping something out of a landfill. I love that.

- I believe in a re-use culture. Our generation can be the first in quite a while to really appreciate reuse. Part of that is being willing to buy things used. The other part is to keep putting things we aren't using back out for other people to use.

143! 

So, at this rate it may not look like we are going to make it, but we have a huge load of stuff going to Goodwill this week that is going to put a big chunk into our numbers. We still gave away a lot of stuff since we talked last. 

Our biggest handoff was baby stuff. My dad and his wife are expecting babies (yes, plural) later this year, so the Baby Bear's clothes and other infant goods are all headed their way. Our plan is to keep 10 or so pieces from every size and hand the rest off. Since he has only gotten one of two things brand new, this means at least 4 baby boys will get use out of this pile of baby clothes. 

Call me crazy, but I find that really exciting. First of all, how many kids wear their own nephews' clothes as hand me downs? It basically makes no sense in the best way. But what I am most proud of is that we are cutting down on waste by sharing what we have. These kids will need so much, and just like my boys were blessed with handmedowns as most of their wardrobe, we can help bless these babies with warm clothes and a cleaner world. 

The best thing we can all be doing is sharing what we have and getting our own things used, because one time use is a fool's game, and paying more than a dollar or two for baby clothes is a waste of money. 

I am maybe the most sentimental person who ever lived, so giving the onesie he wore that one time away actually does make me feel sad. But I also take a lot of pictures, so it isn't like those moments are necessarily missing. I just keep reminding myself that my kids won't care, so keeping every little thing just doesn't make sense. 

So, anyway, a whole bunch of clothes, a few binkies, and two Solly wraps (I love them so), and we handed off 60 items. And that is only the stuff our 5 month old is finished using. By the next visit, we will have another 60 items to hand off. By the end of 2017, we could have over a hundred baby things out of the house. 

We might have another baby, but years from now, and our stuff could be used so many times before we would get back to it. So glad they can be put to use now!

How is everyone else doing? Getting rid of lots of stuff? My goal is 700 by the end of March, so we are going to step it up soon.