ity bity living space big junk collector

[crazyhouse]

I have to vent about this because some days it drives me nuts! I love my husband to death but I am running out of room along with my sanity. We have 2 kids and live in a 2 bedroom mobil home (796 sq ft) This was easy until we had our second boy 11 mths ago. My husband collects video games, yugioh cards, paint ball stuff, movies, and comic books. I've tried asking him to go thru and pick one thing, didn't work. My 5 year old has a ton of toys because my husband is always asking "can we get this for him" I have 2.5 kids my husband is the .5 He is a lot of fun and I love him for that. We have plans to move into a bigger mobil home in about a year but with the way he buys stuff I don't want to have to do it in 3 mths. He is very impulsive, and he is ADHD innattentive so at any given point in time everything is left all over the show. Any good advice

[misty]

Could you get him to keep his stuff in the bedroom? That way the rest of the house could be kept neat & organized.

My daughter is ADD inattentive & I know how you feel. Every day I have a pile of her debris that I've collected from throughout the house that needs taken back to her room. It drives ME nuts too!

I keep a large basket & just keep putting her stuff in it & then make her take it up. Its not a perfect system, but it does help keep the main living areas organized.

[charliegirl]

I've never lived in a trailer but my mother and grandmother do. Gram is one of those people who refuses to throw anything out so I can sympathize.

Can you put shelves up close to the ceiling and run them pretty much around the entire trailer? It sounds like most of what he has would fit on a high shelf. That would keep it away from the kids (which I bet isn't easy right now) and still be accessible to him.

I'd suggest a storage shed but it doesn't sound like the things he has would hold up very good in one. A lot of things might also fit in those shallow storage boxes they make for storing things under beds.

[John]

Here's another idea we did when our kids were just young sprouts. Have him pick [or jsut do it yourself] a variety of ''toys'' that your husband is interested in this week. Then put the rest ''away'' out of sight [as much as possible']. Then every five days or two weeks or whatever it turns out to be, do the same thing again. Take the current ''toys'' and box 'em up, and bring out another set . . . and so on and so on ~

[jj]

O.K. I just notice John posted basically what I was going to say. Do you have a storage shed? If so, I'd take half of your kids toys and put them away in boxes. Toss broken toys. Kids don't need all the toys they have and I doubt they'd ever miss them. Then six months down the road you could switch out some of the toys so they'd seem like new again. Only store those that your son won't outgrow. Those with dead batteries...well if you really have no intention of getting new batteries then I'd just give them to Goodwill.

If you don't have a storage shed then I'd start sorting through the toys your kids have and just keep their favorites. The ones you see them playing with most and give the rest away. And if you think your 5 year old will have a fit then just take one or two at a time (when he isn't looking) and put them in a box in your car trunk until you get enough to take to Goodwill. If one or two dissappear here and there he may never notice. LOL

As for your hubby...If he is set on keeping everything he has then the only suggestion I have is to start stacking everything in boxes and go up to the ceiling with them to keep your floor space as clear as you can. What is used on a seasonal basis goes at the bottom. You could velcro or staple a curtain around the boxes so it isn't such an eyesore.

I think in such a small space you have to look at every conceivable place as storage. Under the sofa, under the bed as Charliegirl suggested. Also if you can find anything strong enough to raise the beds in your house up, you can put much bigger boxes under the bed. (Bricks would work. My sister has to keep her bed on a slant so she has two strong ceramic plant pots turned upsidedown to lift the bed up. You'd just need to do for all four legs).

Last but not least you may have to threaten your beloved husband. Tell him if he leaves anything out for more than a couple days you are going to "take care of it". Hee hee, I leave it up to you if you want to threaten it will go in the trash or if you will threaten you will put it away and it may not end up in the order he wants, etc..

I'm sure these are probably things you are already doing but thought I'd mention them anyway.

[puzzled]

You can buy the bed raiser things at target I think and I think I saw them at walmart too they were less than $20, I believe closer to $9 or $10...I bought some for Chase's bed and then I slid those rubbermaid drawers under for him to keep all of his crafty stuff in...it was taking over the room, and everything was getting shoved under the bed, so this takes care of 2 birds with one stone....he has storage, and with the drawers there, he can't shove more things under the bed!! Keeps the cats out of his ribbons and strings too, gotta have those to do crafts....

[crazyhouse]

OK I have 2 storage sheds they are full yard equip, toys we have swapped out, outdoor toy, tools, halloween decor, and clothes. Under my house we store Christmas stuff 9 large bins I think the bed idea is good but I need ideas on how to stop him from being such a collector! Like no honey we don't need that is just not cutting the mustard anymore. I also forgot action figures these are kept in a foot locker. We made a video shelf it takes up a corner by my hallway and he would like to extend it for more!!! With Jake we bought a bed that had storage under it and he has a toy box as well. I keep a lot of his stuff in those places as well. His impulsive buying is overwhelming me because everywhere I go there's stuff. We are masters of storage but we lack in the orginizations department. By the time I clean up his games or cards or kids I don't have the energy to clean the house.

[jj]

Honestly, you need to flat out tell him you are going to start giving things away to goodwill and you will continue to do so if he keeps buying things.

I think you are going to have to lay down the law and it may cause some hard feelings but sheesh. It can't go on as it is. I know I for one would give him one more chance to get rid of stuff and tell him if he doesn't weed out what he wants then you'll do it for him.

I don't think it can be any more Ms. Nice Gal.

[charliegirl]

I think I would be telling him that if we have so much money he can buy all those toys (and even the little stuff adds up), to forget the trailer, we should start looking for a house that is large enough to hold all of you and his stuff comfortably.

I realize he works hard and should be able to have some things he enjoys, but you work just as hard and deserve to not have to spend even more time trying to figure out where to put all that stuff.

Would it help to just explain to him that the extra time you spend trying to keep a nice home because of all that stuff, could be time spent enjoying being with him and the kids?

[crazyhouse]

I feel like the time I do get to spend with him(not much) I just want to make him happy. We have a great marriage we don't argue very much he is very supportive of my flaws and he doesn't abuse me in anyway shape or form. Everyone I know loves him to death my own mother gloats over him more than me. Sometimes I feel I'm the one at fault for having this situation because I give in or because I don't work full time for us to afford a house or even because I can't focus enough to be able to keep up after him and the kids like the happy homemaker. I am off for the next few weeks from my job and I have hardly gotten anything accomplished like gutting the paperwork for taxes or cleaning down cabinets and reorginising the kitchen. I guess I am kind of depressed a little which happens every Jan and Feb. He is so supportive thru anything, I hate to be mean. The guy works 60 to 70 hours a week (which is going to change soon) I wish it could be simple.