And so we prepare.

One of the things I have had very much in my thoughts on moving is that we have a lot of stuff. Don't get big or grand ideas- we don't have an inordinate about of belongings, but we definitely have enough to make me hyperventilate when I think about having to pack, move, unpack, and find permanent locations for those items in a probably-much-smaller-than-we-currently-have living establishment. That was one of the reasons behind my decision to do No Buy 2012: to make sure that I use what I have and don't add to our already plentiful pile of possessions.

For the past few weeks, I've been trying to be intentional about a) not buying anything that's not strictly necessary (house-related items, cute things, stuff-just-because-I-have-BBB gift cards- and-coupons) and b) sorting through our belongings and culling out what we don't use or have multiples of. It's sort of an overwhelming task, so I'm trying to get started now and try my hand and not being stressed when it comes time to pack it all up.

Here's my list, of sorts:

1. Gather up and deliver the bags of items to be donated to the youth group garage sale, as well as the J Crib garage sale. (I actually have four bags ready to go---they're just hanging out in the back of my car right now.)

2. Finish packing up (as in boxing up) the remainder of our winter clothes. Tape and label. (I started this process for my clothes a few weeks ago.)

3. Sort through and evaluate items in our closets: bedroom, office, guestroom, coat closet, and game closet. We're blessed with a lot of closets! (I need to get this done preferably before the aforementioned garage sales.

4. Sort through all of our magazines and determine which to keep and which to donate.

5. Finish up the pile of in-progress crafts and projects so that those items will be completed (and thereby consolidated/excess stuff thrown away) before moving.

6. Go through the storage boxes that have been under the beds all year and literally haven't been gone through once. I think this says a few things: a) we don't need that stuff b) we don't know what to do with it or c) there are treasures in there that I will kick myself for not discovering before now.

There's waaaay more that will need to be tackled, but this is my "master list" for the time being. I am hereby setting a goal of accomplishing one of these tasks within the next week. Someone hold me to it, please!