Monday, October 24, 2011

Monday Minimalist: Moving

Moving seems to be the one time that most people become minimalist. I think it is easier to be heartless about getting rid of stuff when you're faced with a decision: Toss it or carry it? And not just carry it, but once you get there you have to unpack it again and find a place for it all!

Sasha in a boxPacked up and ready to go!
Sasha ~ August 2011

We tend to get rid of furniture during moves, too! Part of that is definitely because of all the downsizing we've done. We just have NOT had room for all of our furniture! With this move, we've gotten rid of the last couch piece. We're still trying to find room for the ottoman because we've honestly gotten more use out of it than any other piece of furniture. I'm a bit nervous, though, about the final weeks of pregnancy... I've slept on this old couch many times during pregnancy and with a restless newborn!

So I've been going through more and more nooks and crannies, trying to minimize before packing. My hope here was that this would save me time when I actually got around to packing. Of course, then there was also the need to leave enough time to take the stuff for donation.

I moved often as a kid, too. We moved at least once per year, sometimes more. So it was insane to me when I moved out of the house we had bought... I'd lived there for 10+ years! You accumulate a lot of crap in that amount of time! You forget you even have a lot of it, until you're trying to gather it. My situation was extra strange because there were 5 other people NOT moving.


While this won't work for everyone, here is my thought process when going through things: Will this item 1) fit and 2) serve us well when we live in a travel trailer? (I've explained this before when discussing shopping or turning down freebies.) You could just as easily change that out for "How much will I really use this item?" With a move, you can just ask yourself how long it has been since you used it or how often you've used it. I had stuff that I definitely thought was handy, but if I never use it... why have it?

Do you have any tips or tricks for moving?
Do you find it easier to minimize your junk when you're facing a move?
Or do you just pack it all up and haul it anyway?
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