Adventures in Yard Sales - Part One

Despite reading alot about how to have a yard sale, we have never actually done it.  Talked about it...but never did it.  Most of what I read said it is better to have several smaller ones over the course of years, than saving it all up and having a huge one ever 10 years.  Mostly so you can sell stuff while there is still some interest in fad type items.

Oh well...we are having a huge one with a decade worth of crap treasures waiting for a new home.

This yard sale has several concurrent objectives:

• Clean out Attic (see Personal goals 2011)
• Make money (see Financial goals 2011)
• Entertain you guys.

First, let's survey the damage.  The following are pictures from my attic (sorry they are a little dark, and not that great), before we started.  *sigh*  Believe it or not, it was organized chaos.  Like was grouped with like.  And we have cleaned and organized it before, just never was successful in getting rid of alot.  I Craigslisted some stuff, and sold clothes over the years, but this is where we are at, in June 2011.

Looking down the length of the attic

Far end of attic

Christmas stuff

One side

Dormer Area

Other Side

It is somewhat appalling how much stuff we have.  Granted, it was collected over time, but seriously.....some of this is absurd.  For example, we have like 20 sets of sheets.  I think my mom bought them for us over time.  Unless we are running a hotel, we don't need this many.  Most of them I don't even like.  So I washed and folded them, and if they can go to another home....great.

I also found binders from 2006 when the kids were in preschool.  I kept every daily "schedule" of what they did....all in order, in a binder, sorted into tabs by month.  OK....do I really need to know that they fingerpainted on 2/16 and had carrot sticks for snack?  NO.  Those were pitched.  I kept the boxes of all the art and such to go through later and streamline.  No time right now for that, but I have the boxes together waiting for me (it isn't like I was selling that stuff....unless....maybe my kids are Ar-TEESTS, and I can sell it for thousands!!!)

Our first pass at emptying the attic went well.  Our playroom now looks like the attic barfed all over it, but we needed somewhere to put it.  There was only one item that G-man and I had to discuss getting rid of vs. keeping.  That was Bossy's bouncy chair.  I said get rid of it, but with tears running down my face.  I was trying to be practical.  But there are so many memories with that chair.  In the end, we kept the cover (for his memory box) and pitched the frame.

I can't wait to show you what the attic looks like now!!!  But alas, you will have to wait.  I know you are as excited as I am.