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So Long Christmas

January 18th, 2014

I finally took down the Christmas tree yesterday. We figured we’d leave it up as long as it was still fresh. I noticed a few dropped needles, so we decided it was time.
So Long Christmas 2
So Long Christmas 1
This year I decided to minimize my Christmas things and only keep the things that have been used the past few years. This is pretty much it for my Christmas decor, it fits in two small boxes.  One strand of big white lights, about 25 etched glass bulbs, a few tiny glass teardrops and a metal star. There is one other box of extra Christmas lights that I save for the extra bulbs and in case I decide to put lights up outside some year. There are also 3 small nativity sets that are in a different box. The remaining 4 totes of Christmas things are all going into the giveaway pile.
So Long Christmas 3
It’s very liberating to get rid of so many things.  This year, I’m hoping to slowly weed through all the extra stuff we have accumulated.  I’ll be painting the indoor rooms, and as I move from room to room I’m planning on being ruthless about paring down to only the things I need or love.

Do you have any goals to minimize this year?

10 Comments to “So Long Christmas”
  1. Kathie on January 18, 2014 at 7:24 am

    We strive to live simply and minimally too- when we moved to our current location, all of our possessions had been pared down to fit into a 6 foot truck- with a lot of space leftover. Even with 3 kids, we still don’t own much: our wardrobes are sparse, many drawers and shelves are empty. The only clutter comes from the kids’ toys (only 2 bins) and the one bookcase. I am tickled pink to see you have as many CHRISTmas decorations as I do! I used to be one who decorated fully every holiday season but then realized the stuff- which only comes out once a year- was creating clutter, disorder and ugh.
    Thank you for sharing! It is true you can still have the CHRISTmas spirit without all of the stuff :-)

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  2. daisy on January 18, 2014 at 8:35 am

    I love to purge, you’re right, it is freeing. And just think of the folks who will appreciate what you are giving away. It’s a win-win, for sure. Less is definitely more!

    Reply to daisy's comment

  3. whit on January 18, 2014 at 9:23 am

    I started at Halloween. Condensed three boxes down to two, and got rid of all the outdoor decor save my pumpkin lantern made from barn wood. Now it begins with Christmas and then I am hoping to move onto my moving boxes. If it hasn’t come in the house for two years, then I probably don’t need it.

    Going through the seeds while we are on a mini vacation right now too.

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  4. Adelina Anderson on January 18, 2014 at 9:31 am

    I cleared out a lot of holiday ornaments and lights right after we put up the tree. Realized how good that felt, I cleaned out my laundry room closet and my master bedroom closet. Next up is my glass molds – if I haven’t used them in a couple of years, I am going to get rid of them.

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  5. Sierra N Hampl on January 18, 2014 at 10:35 am

    We hardly have any Christmas decorations. I’m terrible at decorating and everything is so expensive so I just don’t even try. We put up a tree every year but I’m always happy to take it down! Our house isn’t very big, so I really don’t enjoy having a tree taking up space. We are planning to have a big garage sale in the Spring so we can clean out the rest of the baby stuff and anything else that has been with us for the past nine years that we don’t need anymore!

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  6. judym on January 18, 2014 at 11:38 am

    We’ve been paring down a little at a time for a few years. A lot of things have accumulated in this place. I had already decided to give away a lot of Christmas stuff this year and was pleased to see I’m not the only one. I’ve been going through the house collecting items to get rid of. It’ isn’t easy when you have a hubs who doesn’t readily let go but he’s getting the idea. It will be so nice to have only essentials and the things you love most around us.

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  7. DebbieB on January 18, 2014 at 1:02 pm

    I need to do this! We are packrats extraordinaire, and I have probably 6 large boxes in the attic of Christmas stuff, but only one box really gets used. The other stuff is saved because of nostalgia, and I haven’t seen it in years. And lots of it ISN’T nostalgic, it was given to me by students (former teacher, so I received LOTS of ornaments and doodads, and many are duplicates) and could be lovingly but firmly donated.

    Please keep banging that “SIMPLIFY!” drum, Susy – it’s so helpful to people like me drowning in clutter!

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  8. laura on January 18, 2014 at 1:02 pm

    I’m going to try to minimize everything. I have a lot of stuff. I’m not really a hoarder but I tend to keep things that really should be tossed. (I think I get it from my paternal grandfather who probably was a hoarder.)

    Having my house up for sale makes it a requirement to get rid of stuff so that I can move easily.
    blessings
    ~*~

    Reply to laura's comment

  9. Marcia on January 18, 2014 at 3:22 pm

    Almost two years into living in the new house and I still have un packed boxes. I should get rid of them since I don’t seem to need whatever is in them.

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  10. KimH on January 18, 2014 at 4:53 pm

    Every year I focus on something.. some more than others..
    I moved into an already full house & combined some of mine with his.. and then when his mom passed away, we brought in some of hers too.. Not huge amounts but more than we need.

    This year I went thru some Christmas stuff and was able to pull out 2 large totes of stuff to donate.. One had come from my past workplace and all were Christmas gifts/decorations given to me from my coworkers. I dont have room or space for them here. Either my kids can have them or they’re going into the donate box.

    I think the items I need to go thru & pare down heavily are my books. I have entirely too many, most I’ve read & probably wont read again.. The last 5 or 6 years I’ve been borrowing heavily from the library but prior to that, I was an Amazon book junkie.. I probably bought 4 books last year and in years gone by, I’d buy 4 per week from Amazon.

    We still have way too much stuff in this house.. but its way better than it used to be! :)

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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