Beyond Downsizing: We Made it!
Wow! That was a lot! It was much more than we expected but we’ve made it to the other side. We’ve gone from our home of 27 years to this new lifestyle. There have been some challenges, learning opportunities and blessings. Moving is no easy feat. It was a lot easier 27 years ago, with a lot less stuff to move! 😊
There were some surprises. We didn’t realize we’d look at each item and then decide where it should go. Would we give it to a friend/family member, donate or trash it, take it to storage/apartment or sell it. My brain is tired from the process.
What’s awesome is that we’ve kept and brought with us our favorite things. Favorite wall-hangings. Favorite and most used kitchen items. Favorite towels and plants. Favorite family photos. The rest of our favorite items are in storage. When we purchase another home, they will come out to be used again. For now, I am loving our new space with a whole lot less stuff. Everything I look at is something that’s pleasing to my eyes. It brings me joy to look around to see only our favorite things.
I don’t know about you but for years I had so much stuff around our home. I didn’t pause to think about whether I appreciated items or not. Items had their place because they were always there. It never crossed my mind that I chose to live with this stuff. Anyone else relate?
We had so many items I was tired of looking at, and that didn’t bring me joy. We let go of those things for someone else to enjoy. We still have plenty but the items we’ve kept for the apartment and in storage are those we really want. This process has been freeing!
We lost count of the number of loads we took to donate and to the landfill. So many loads. It was helpful to get the items out of the house. It then created space to sort more stuff. Our garage became a staging area with a number of sorted piles, as well as a “free” pile, which I’ll explain more about shortly.
At the end, we were pressed for time. We were running like loon tunes right up to the night before closing, moving stuff out to empty the house. That night we took a full truckload to storage. We ran out of time to sort the garage. So, the garage is in our current basement. As we did with the rest of our stuff, once the dust settles, we will go through the same purging and deciding process about what to keep from the garage.
What’s the condition of our storage unit today? Well, it’s been interesting to watch it fill. When it was empty, we predicted to have an abundance of space. We’ve stacked boxes and bins as high as possible to fill the space from floor to the 12’ ceiling. The empty space keeps getting smaller and smaller and smaller. We may have to rethink what we’re keeping and get rid of more stuff. We still have to fit the furniture and belongings we now live with, remember all our favorite things! Kevin and I agree…If it doesn’t fit, we will not pay for another storage unit to hold our stuff. 😊
Back to the “free” pile. We had some laughs on this pack-it-up and move-it-out journey. Some items weren’t worth the time to sell, like a small ladder and wall-hangings, for example. We accumulated quite a pile in our garage of these good items to pass onto others. Everyone that came to our home took free stuff. For everyone involved, it became comical. You couldn’t leave us without taking some stuff. Some people took more than others.
In one instance, a sweet couple came and purchased our glass coffee table. We invited them to take from the free pile. They took so much stuff, loading their Highlander, the tailgate barely closed. Two days later, they returned and purchased our snowblower, and took more free items. Finally, this pile kept shrinking; what was left fit in my Toyota Camry for the Salvation Army.
We now live in less than half the space compared to what we had. We’ve had to get creative on how to organize small spaces, using baskets and bins to hold our belongings. My favorite space is in the kitchen…Look at that pantry! See all those shelves! They also line the space to the right of the door! It’s my favorite room in our apartment. Hahaha!
This process has been great preparation for us. As some of you know, we hope our next move will include further downsizing, into a fifth wheel camper. We are excited to see what God’s plans are for us as we plan to travel the USA. This apartment is a perfect stepping stone leading us to downsize into even smaller spaces.
At the closing we were able to talk with the young couple that purchased our home. What a blessing to have a conversation with them. So sweet and excited. They were so appreciative and thankful to us for selling our home to them. What a gift to hear those words. Even though we were ready, we left behind a place with many memories.
The new owners reminded Kevin and I of ourselves when we purchased the home. Twenty-seven years ago, we were them; we were so excited to make the purchase, just like them. Such pleasant memories flooded back to both of us. These two are about the same age we were. Now it’s their turn to create their own memories, with plans to raise their family, while enjoying such a beautiful place to live. We continue to have contact with them, and it’s great sharing from our experiences there.
Before we locked the doors for the last time, Kevin and I stood in the kitchen, prayed over the house and for this couple. It was a tearful moment but it helped us pass this home on to them. We thanked God for the blessings and the memories we experienced there, for Him seeing our family through both good times and bad. For them, we prayed that they grow closer to the Lord and each other while building their lives, that God be at their center. Praying for them helped us bring closure and to more easily pass the house to them. As we’ve had to practice releasing our stuff on this journey, the home was a culmination of closing one door/chapter and opening another. It’s a journey we’ve prayed about, prepared for, mourned over, as it’s a loss, but were ready to journey through, and beyond.
While driving past the house last week, Kevin and I both had the same reaction. We are thankful and blessed to have been there but we are also glad to be freed-up from the responsibilities that came with it. We’ve been homeowners since I was 23 years old and Kevin was 25! For now, we are enjoying paying rent to our landlord. We will definitely become homeowners again, God willing, but are settling into this new chapter/season feeling a bit lighter, for now.
We are excited to see what God has in store for us moving forward. He’s definitely been involved as I’ve shared in my first blog about downsizing. If you’d like to read it, click here.
As you can see below, the “Home Sweet Home” has come with us and will be hung in the fifth wheel too. As we adjust and settle into living in this smaller space, this is our current “Home Sweet Home”. Hanging this wooden plaque is a perfect reminder that our sweet home is where we are planted. And, we are thankful for and loving its new space!
Have my experiences resonated with you?
I’d love to hear your thoughts. Please do share in the comments below.
“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”