Out With The Old, In With The New

When I was heading to Austin to start college, I loaded up my Mustang and my mom’s Suburban with everything I’d need. Sheets, clothes, Texas decor… you know, the important stuff. I didn’t need any furniture because I was moving into a dorm that had all built-ins. The desk was stuck in the corner. The bed pulled out from the wall and had drawers underneath. There was a separate dresser built in next to the bed. It was tiny but they managed to shove the “must haves” in half of a room. Probably because my dorm was designed by a man who designs prisons. Complete with cinder block walls and cold tile floors. True story, I wouldn’t joke about something like that.

Sophomore year I moved to an apartment. I shared a four bedroom with 2 other girls… which meant we had a spare bedroom. I packed my mom’s Suburban to the brim. I brought a spare bed, all of my scrapbooking goods, more clothes, kitchen stuff, and anything I thought I could possibly want.

My junior year I moved to a different apartment. The same stuff came with me, plus some. I stayed there my senior year which just meant that all of my stuff had time to mate and multiply during it’s time in the apartment.

Then I got married and bought a house… and guess what came with me? Crap. Lots of crap. And you know what happens when you buy a house? People give you their old crap. We have LOTS of crap in this house. And now we are having a baby so we are bringing more crap into Hurst Castle. (Although it’s much cuter, newer, and nicer crap. Perhaps we should just call it “stuff.”)

We’ve got a wonderfully soft and cozy glider.

We’ve got a crib and a dresser/changing table. They are huge.

You know that red and blue plastic ball you had as a kid with holes in different shapes? And then you had those yellow shapes that you fit in the holes? You can’t fit the star in the rectangle hole, and you can’t fit the square in the circle hole. It just doesn’t work. And then you have to pull the ball apart awkwardly to get the yellow shapes back out? Do you see where I’m going here? You can’t fit a glider in an occupied corner. You can’t fit a crib on a desk. It just doesn’t work.

In order to make room for these, we are cleaning out other areas of our house. We just sold our old (new) dining room table. We found a home for our computer desk. We are currently seeking homes for a dresser and an old vacuum. And now I have this compulsive need to find more stuff for Craigslist. I have a feeling I’ll be adding an item or two each night.

I never realized that selling my crap for cheap on the internet would be so addicting! You must be proud of me. You’re probably thinking that I’m a very smart girl to get rid of these items and that I’m really going to enjoy the empty spaces and the spare cash. Well, thank you. I am sort of smart. But the empty spaces are being filled with baby stuff, remember? And the spare cash? What do you suppose we are doing with that?

Something necessary, right? Like a college fund for Jansen. Or savings for a second car because ours is about to go to Car Heaven. Nope, not so much. We are saving for that amazing recliner I told you about last week. We told ourselves we’d only buy it if we didn’t have to pull any money out of our account to get it. Which means that I have a goal. Goals are good. Goals are good and crap is bad. But recliners are wonderful. And I’m all about making my house wonderful. For Jansen… of course.