Purging memory boxes?

[Anonymous]

Will my child want this stuff?

Moving and organizing. We have a large plastic tubs filled with “memories” for each kid. I desperately WANT to condense. Will my kids care at all about seeing my baby shower cards? How about their 1st birthday cards, candle, and a sample of what the plates and napkins looked like? What about projects from 1st grade? Little random Onesie and baby outfits?

They are teens and we can spend tomorrow taking one good look at everything, fwiw. How do you decide what to keep when you can’t keep it all?

[Anonymous]

Everything goes in the trash. Honestly, what do you imagine they would do with the stuff you described?

[Anonymous]

Baby shower was for the mom, so get rid of all of that unless you want it.
For first birthday, I assume you have pictures of the event, that's all you need.
Likewise, you probably have pictures of them in the cute little outfits. Get rid of the actual outfit.
Projects from first grade? Keep one or two cute samples of their writing or drawing. Something flat that stores easily. Toss the rest.

[Anonymous]

Teens don't have a sense of history, so the decision is really on you, IMO. If they want to keep a few things and incorporate them into their possessions, fine. Otherwise, do with the items what you want.

[Anonymous]

My mother kept a similar box and expected me to take it with me as soon as I moved out! I didn’t have the space or desire for it, but I’m glad to have some of the things. I put my own DD into a couple of the outfits she saved (an Easter dress and a sweater) and that was cute for pictures.

She also saved things like cards, which were sent from people I couldn’t remember, and I can’t say I was interested in those at all. She saved so many inconsequential things from my babyhood (a personalized silver sippy cup, a plush dog with my birth details, a deflated balloon from my first trip to Disney) but nothing that I remembered. Since the box was there anyway, I WISH she had saved a couple more school projects, papers, favorite toys, from when I was a little older. Just a thought.

[Anonymous]

I just got this “box” (actually 2 separate boxes and a number of folders and envelopes) from my parents and ugh. I saved my old HS yearbooks and one each from ES and MS, a few old pictures, my HS diploma and a few awards, and that was it. I can’t believe my parents saved all that stuff since they actually moved twice since I graduated HS!

[Anonymous]

My parents saved a box of stuff, old projects and what not. It was fun to sort through and my DD enjoyed looking at it too. I am saving a box for her as well but right now all the papers are jumbled in a corner in the basement.

[Anonymous]

My kids just left for college, made their old outfits into a quilt from Project Repat. Nice memento from home.

[Anonymous]

I’m sentimental and liked my box. It had things like what my wallpaper border was- I had so many memories of looking at that border as a kid. My kids like my American girl dolls, dhs legos and brio trains, my kids all wore my baptism dress and my coming home outfit too (feltman brothers). We liked books they’d saved too that were our favorites (not chapter books).

Save things that were special to your kids but definitely not more than a box. I loved reading the letters my grandparents and great grandparents wrote to me when I was born. Some random card from a friend of my moms? Nope.

Oh and yeah they probably won’t want your box before they buy a house of their own. My parents tried to give me stuff at 22 and it was too soon. I didn’t care until I had my own kids in my 30s

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Baby shower was for the mom, so get rid of all of that unless you want it.
For first birthday, I assume you have pictures of the event, that's all you need.
Likewise, you probably have pictures of them in the cute little outfits. Get rid of the actual outfit.
Projects from first grade? Keep one or two cute samples of their writing or drawing. Something flat that stores easily. Toss the rest.

I agree with you about everything except the outfit. I liked being able to get a picture of my first baby in the same outfit I had worn. It's in shockingly good shape and could last for a third generation.

I did recently throw away a lot of things I had kept. Nobody cares about the first birthday banner or the notes from daycare. I even gave away a wooden toy that I had been keeping because it was such high quality... except none of my kids really even liked it.

[Anonymous]

I love having every thing they saved. It is fascinating to me to see. My brother doesn’t care. You can’t know what they will want and who they will be later. Personally I’d be deeply disappointed if my mother hadn’t saved anything. Also as a teen, I would not have cared at all.

[Anonymous]

Each kid gets ONE tub. No, they don't care what the plates and cups looked like at your baby shower. Keep their ONE best art project from first grade, or take a picture of it and throw it out.

[Anonymous]

I go through it periodically. It's surprising by how much that was important a while ago is not anymore! I've also photographed a lot and made Shutterfly books of things like artwork and projects. Much more compact and easier to enjoy!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:+ Will my kids care at all about seeing my baby shower cards? How about their 1st birthday cards, candle, and a sample of what the plates and napkins looked like?

No.

[Anonymous]

My mom recently gave me my box. It’s quite small but even still there’s a lot that I could care less about. Any cards from the baby shower or my early birthdays weren’t that interesting to me (and I’m a pretty sentimental person). Pictures are the most valuable things to me, especially pictures that include my parents when they were younger. I was glad she kept my baby blanket and a doll that I remember playing with. I was also glad she kept my stories/books from when I was older (elementary and middle). But to be honest I don’t really care about most of it. It makes me feel less guilty for not keeping a ton of stuff for my own kids.