The Forth Bridge

I have just carried a bag full of unwanted toys out to the boot of my car. My mother in law has a friend of a friend who runs a charity shop, so whenever I have a clear out I take anything which doesn’t deserve to be thrown in a bin to her, and she passes it on. I managed to discard a fair amount of toys this month, in preparation for the deluge which inevitably floods in when either of my boys has a birthday. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very grateful to all of the family and friends for remembering their birthdays and sending presents and well wishes, but all the new toys can sometimes put a bit of a strain on the seams of my home when it comes to finding places for the new toys to live! Luckily, the boys have a definite preference for smaller toys such as Doctor Who or Ben10 figures at the moment, which are infinitely easier to house than large trucks or other such toys. And the aforementioned friends and family are also very understanding on the whole and thoughtful as to the limitations of our property when buying gifts.

I do need to carry on with my clearing out efforts, as despite my recent exercise there is still more stuff in this flat than there is cupboard space to house it. Next on the list to be shuffled through are the boys’ clothes. I’m sure it is many months since I last went through their wardrobe, and given the rate at which they’ve been growing, there must be any number of items of clothing which I can now get rid of.

I went through our video collection recently, and gave away a bag full of videos. Also, as I see offers on DVDs I am trying to replace (slowly) some more of the videos, just in order to make more space. If I replaced all the “Friends” videos alone, I would save a good couple of shelves. I did try to give away some books, but I was very unsuccessful. I don’t know what it is about books, but I find them very hard to part from. I get this from my mother. She has many more books than me, but then she has had longer to accumulate! I will be getting rid of some of my books (not too many) soon, but only because they are duplicates of ones also owned by my mother, and as she now only lives a couple of miles down the road it seems silly for us to have the same titles.

I gave this post the title of “The Forth Bridge” because, whenever I think of clearing things out of this house, the job seems never ending, like the story of the never-ending repainting of the Forth Bridge. By the time I’ve sorted through the clothes, toys and videos, it’s time to do the paperwork, books and kitchen cupboards. Once they’re done, the wardrobes are full to bursting again with clothes which no longer fit the boys, and their toy box is in need of thinning out once more. And on, and on. If only there was an end to the job. If only it could be finished, but there we are. I must remind myself how lucky we are to own such posessions that we have a surplus at all. And the alternative to having the toys and clothes to sort out would be to not have my boys, and life would be very dull and dreary without them. I’m not really moaning, more stating the facts of my life! So don’t take this as a whinge or rant post, but as a reflection on my life and the cyclical nature of a housewife’s day to day job.