“The Giveaway Spree”

One of the most enjoyable parts of getting rid of stuff was to give things away to family, friends, and neighbors.

We had clothes and toys that the kids would likely outgrow by next year, so it made sense to pass them on to someone who could use them now. Our daughter gave away her roller blades, Heely’s and Tom Shoes. The boys were handing out balls, scooters and Nerf Guns like party favors. Even the larger appliances like our fridge and washer/dryer were handed over to dear friends.  I handpicked a few things like wall-hangings and knick-knacks that I wanted to give to specific people. Whenever someone came to visit this last month, they would leave our home “heavy laden” with arms full of stuff.

There were just a couple other things, though, that I just wasn’t quite ready to completely part with or sell yet, and so those were a little trickier to deal with. Things like the piano my parents gave me when I was 9, or the unique square kitchen table with drawers that have held our kids’ treasures and school memories. Not to mention my stacks and stacks of books that I’ve bought over the years from homeschooling.

We could have easily rented a storage unit and kept them there. But when I really started thinking about it, I decided that maybe someone else could use the item for a year instead. It became a win-win situation for all involved.

So, one morning last week we could be seen rolling our piano down the street on a dolly over to a neighbor friend’s home whose son also takes lessons from our wonderful piano teacher. He’ll get to pound on some real keys in addition to his electric keyboard. We took our kitchen table over to some hospitable homeschool friends who will continue making memories with it. Another neighbor inherited my son’s whole bedroom set of fine furniture for a year. A friend has our favorite comfy LazyBoy recliner. And as for all of my books. Well, I have to say that that was the hardest for some reason. I’m kinda picky about keeping a book in excellent condition. But somehow, I was able to come to a point of even letting that expectation go. Another sweet homeschool friend volunteered to hold onto my large shelf with all the books for the year! (except, of course the ones we are currently using)

Our friends joke and say that they feel like Dalrymple’s now with our fridge and table and winter jackets in their home and mentioned how funny it will be to all show up places knowing that they are wearing/using things we once wore/used. For me, it makes me smile and feel just a little more connected to them while apart. I guess that’s the beauty of giving gifts – the receiver gets to remember the person who gave it each time they use it. And I get the joy of knowing that it was valued by another after myself.