My parents keep sending me boxes of my childhood crap.

[Anonymous]

Next time you go to their house, throw it all away. It is unfair of you to ask them to do the throwing away.

[Anonymous]

Posts like this and some of the responses make me reflect on whether I’m raising ungrateful kids. I don’t think so, but it’s something to be mindful of.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How much of a nuisance could this really be...seriously...take the high road and just throw them out yourself when you receive it.

I love that OP just left all this junk with her parents, and them respectfully returning it is a “nuisance.” She’s not the one taking the high road here, whether she says something or not.

Do them a favor and THANK THEM for housing your crap, and let them know that you don’t want it back. Bonus points for offering to actually do the work of disposing of it when you next visit them.

Look. I know some kids move out, leaving loads of unsorted junk for their parents to deal with. That was not me. I left a stripped bed when I moved out. I have no idea how they came to retain all of this. Every time I’m shocked, because it’s stuff I hadn’t seen for years well before I left. Honestly, now that I think about it in the context of this thread, I wonder if they were hiding it from me because they knew I would have tossed it all in the dumpster.

[Anonymous]

The next time you go visit your parents, go through your room and any other things that they have kept. Clean up and throw out anything that was yours that you do not want. Get some boxes from the supermarket and dump things, then take them to a dumpster so that they don't even have to haul it to the curb. If there are things that are reuseable (old clothes, old toys, etc) take them to the Goodwill and donate them. Turn your old room into a guest room by taking anything that wouldn't be used by a visitor out.

You should have done after you graduated college and did not plan to move home. It is your responsibility to clean up your old things and trash or donate as appropriate. Your parents shouldn't have to do this. And while you say you don't want anything, one of these days you'll run across an old book or an old photograph or memory that you want to keep. Even if it is 1% of the total or only 2 items out of a roomful. It is your job to clean your old things up, not theirs.

If you think people are just picking on you, you can look through old posts. There was a post about a woman who used to share an apartment with her sister and then moved out (she got married) and never cleaned out her stuff. Her sister was angry that after 2 years, the woman's things were still there. The sister packed up the woman's things and the woman got mad. Everyone told her she should have gone over and packed up her stuff long ago, and so should you. You are about 15 years overdue, so make up for that by going to visit your parents as soon as convenient and taking care of this.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/789541.page

[Anonymous]

Take care of your old stuff. End of story.

Literally just do it. Be very thankful that they are initiating this process now, instead of you left with this on top of everything else after they are gone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The next time you go visit your parents, go through your room and any other things that they have kept. Clean up and throw out anything that was yours that you do not want. Get some boxes from the supermarket and dump things, then take them to a dumpster so that they don't even have to haul it to the curb. If there are things that are reuseable (old clothes, old toys, etc) take them to the Goodwill and donate them. Turn your old room into a guest room by taking anything that wouldn't be used by a visitor out.

You should have done after you graduated college and did not plan to move home. It is your responsibility to clean up your old things and trash or donate as appropriate. Your parents shouldn't have to do this. And while you say you don't want anything, one of these days you'll run across an old book or an old photograph or memory that you want to keep. Even if it is 1% of the total or only 2 items out of a roomful. It is your job to clean your old things up, not theirs.

If you think people are just picking on you, you can look through old posts. There was a post about a woman who used to share an apartment with her sister and then moved out (she got married) and never cleaned out her stuff. Her sister was angry that after 2 years, the woman's things were still there. The sister packed up the woman's things and the woman got mad. Everyone told her she should have gone over and packed up her stuff long ago, and so should you. You are about 15 years overdue, so make up for that by going to visit your parents as soon as convenient and taking care of this.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/789541.page

Did you read anything in this thread! I do not have a “room” in their homes. There is no closet or room or pile of my things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The next time you go visit your parents, go through your room and any other things that they have kept. Clean up and throw out anything that was yours that you do not want. Get some boxes from the supermarket and dump things, then take them to a dumpster so that they don't even have to haul it to the curb. If there are things that are reuseable (old clothes, old toys, etc) take them to the Goodwill and donate them. Turn your old room into a guest room by taking anything that wouldn't be used by a visitor out.

You should have done after you graduated college and did not plan to move home. It is your responsibility to clean up your old things and trash or donate as appropriate. Your parents shouldn't have to do this. And while you say you don't want anything, one of these days you'll run across an old book or an old photograph or memory that you want to keep. Even if it is 1% of the total or only 2 items out of a roomful. It is your job to clean your old things up, not theirs.

If you think people are just picking on you, you can look through old posts. There was a post about a woman who used to share an apartment with her sister and then moved out (she got married) and never cleaned out her stuff. Her sister was angry that after 2 years, the woman's things were still there. The sister packed up the woman's things and the woman got mad. Everyone told her she should have gone over and packed up her stuff long ago, and so should you. You are about 15 years overdue, so make up for that by going to visit your parents as soon as convenient and taking care of this.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/789541.page

Did you read anything in this thread! I do not have a “room” in their homes. There is no closet or room or pile of my things.

Then where is the stuff you are complaining about coming from? Either there is stuff, in which case, go dispose of it. Or there isn't stuff, in which case there is nothing for you to complain about because there is nothing for them to bring you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The next time you go visit your parents, go through your room and any other things that they have kept. Clean up and throw out anything that was yours that you do not want. Get some boxes from the supermarket and dump things, then take them to a dumpster so that they don't even have to haul it to the curb. If there are things that are reuseable (old clothes, old toys, etc) take them to the Goodwill and donate them. Turn your old room into a guest room by taking anything that wouldn't be used by a visitor out.

You should have done after you graduated college and did not plan to move home. It is your responsibility to clean up your old things and trash or donate as appropriate. Your parents shouldn't have to do this. And while you say you don't want anything, one of these days you'll run across an old book or an old photograph or memory that you want to keep. Even if it is 1% of the total or only 2 items out of a roomful. It is your job to clean your old things up, not theirs.

If you think people are just picking on you, you can look through old posts. There was a post about a woman who used to share an apartment with her sister and then moved out (she got married) and never cleaned out her stuff. Her sister was angry that after 2 years, the woman's things were still there. The sister packed up the woman's things and the woman got mad. Everyone told her she should have gone over and packed up her stuff long ago, and so should you. You are about 15 years overdue, so make up for that by going to visit your parents as soon as convenient and taking care of this.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/789541.page

Did you read anything in this thread! I do not have a “room” in their homes. There is no closet or room or pile of my things.

Then where is the stuff you are complaining about coming from? Either there is stuff, in which case, go dispose of it. Or there isn't stuff, in which case there is nothing for you to complain about because there is nothing for them to bring you.

I do not know where these things are coming from but I most certainly did not leave boxes of elementary school barrettes in my bedroom or closet.

And maybe that’s the answer. They decided, for whatever reason, to squirrel these things away. If they are ready to divest, I am happy to let them go on their behalf.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Throw it out after they ship it to you. No need to say anything to them.

+1

And then be thankful they're clearing it out NOW rather then after they die, and you have to go through a pile of stuff

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Uhhh… It's your stuff, you are an adult. Why should your parents be storing this for you in the first place? They send it to you; you deal with it as you see fit.

This.

I swear people on this site find any little thing to complain about. Especially when it comes to parents or in-laws.

[Anonymous]

"Hey mom/dad - thanks for sending me the latest box of [crap]. Larla was actually not interested in any of it, so we ended up getting rid of it. If you find more stuff you want to send, feel free to take a pic before you send it and if it's something I want then I'll pay for the postage."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The best way to handle it is to visit their houses and clear out all your stuff. Why does a grown woman have stuff at her parents' houses anyway and why do you think it's on them to clear out your junk?

When I moved out after college I threw away everything I had stored there. These are things they apparently were storing themselves.

Sure, OP.

[Anonymous]

I can hardly wait to start shipping boxes of junk to my DC once they settle down!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can hardly wait to start shipping boxes of junk to my DC once they settle down!

Are you serious

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The best way to handle it is to visit their houses and clear out all your stuff. Why does a grown woman have stuff at her parents' houses anyway and why do you think it's on them to clear out your junk?

When I moved out after college I threw away everything I had stored there. These are things they apparently were storing themselves.

Sure, OP.

As I said in my OP, I have a reputation for being pretty brutal about disposing of “sentimental” stuff. I would never leave things around just because.