[QUOTE=maviskw;7009913][QUOTE=HouseDragon;7009231]
the whole point of most of this thread is how to make use of what you have without trashing it. At least I hope that's what most of us are getting out of the many ideas that have been posted.
Now for my own "Nightmare": We have a shipment of things that were in storage over twenty years while we were living abroad. They are now in a local storage unit and one of the things near the top of the 2015 Things To Do List is go through that stuff. A lot of it is stuff our then teenagers wanted to keep. Somehow I doubt they still want any of it back. OTOH, as old as some of that "stuff" is, some of it might now be considered "collectible" *LOL*
Kellen46, your story brought tears to my eyes. I love it when people make use of everything. I know it wasn't easy, but you made the best of it.
HouseDragon: Pleas don't get rid of those things until you ask your adult children. I had a record player when my children were small, and they played "The Little Red Wagon" every day, no, more than every day. And it didn't bother me. Now that record players are coming back, one of my sons found a picture of one and showed it to all of us. The kids then remembered the wagon song. Well, I knew I had a pile of old records in the upstairs closet. It didn't take long to find it, but then I had to find a player that would play 78's. The one I had was broken. A square dance caller had given me an old player of his that had variable speeds, from 16 to 78. That one worked.
The kids were here for Thanksgiving this year, and I put on that record. The looks on their faces was priceless. I have a photo of five of these now 50+ year-olds listening to it, and that photo will be a treasure forever. Another son was on the other side of the room and didn't get into the picture, and two more were not there. But the picture says it all.
I'd frame a copy of that special photo for each of my kids (all of them).
Yes, I plan on asking my kids if they want any of it back: I'll inventory as I unpack each box. Luckily one of our kids lives locally but he's not a "hoarder" like his mother so I expect there won't be much he'll want to keep.
There are lots of books which I'll gift to the grandkiddies over a period of time.
DD is even less of a "hoarder" so I expect she'll say no knowing what the postage would be from here.
What I am sure of is that it's going to be a very nostalgic adventure: time travel at its best! 