Where the Heck Did It All Come from and What the Heck Do I Do with It?

Regarding "wedding china" -- keep it and start using it more often. Holidays, yes, but unless it's a super-fancy pattern with tons of gold and silver on it, why not use it Sundays or even other times? I hate the thought of stuff that is just bought because it's expected at wedding time and then never used. If it's not dishwasher safe you still can use pieces of it -- use one of the platters for food when you have folks over. Use the coffee cups in the morning. It brightens meals and means you are not wasting these lovely things. Better to use them and break a few over time than never to use them and never to see them because they are locked away and gathering dust.

You can put the vinegar etc. bottles in the yard sale and throw them out if they don't sell. Some folks love 'em though I agree they are just dust catchers. I might put a sign on them along the lines of "Decoration only -- not for consumption" because I would not want someone coming back to me saying they got sick from those things. I always question whether they are properly sealed to be food-safe anyway.

I'd sort the yard sale stuff into boxes just for the yard sale but maybe ensure those boxes have tops so your son doesn't walk past and suddenly get upset because he sees something familliar in a box that's near the door!

Put all that crystal and oils and decorations in the sale. Keep your china and use it for Christmas and Thanksgiving dinners.

At 5 your son will be able to give up some toys that he does not want. There may be some toys that need to "disappear" when he is not around. Those I would just stick in a donation bag and bring to Goodwill. Otherwise, you may have a problem at the yard sale.

I have lots of plastic bins and for organizing. I put stuff for rummage in some and stuff to keep in some and then label. Then place them separately. For the sale you can just pull out the bins and price then put out on day of sale.

ETA - Craigslist and Ebay are great but I just put out 1/4 of our stuff - basically giving it away at all 1.00 or less and made over 400.00. That is not a waste of time imo :)

1. take photos and put them on craigslist, ebay or something like that. Sell some, give some away...whatever you can do. I would make the garage my organization center. (I love parking in there but since the weather is turning nice it won't be too bad to part in the driveway)

2. Again Craigslist...
3. I don't know if you can really use them...but I would love to find out. If you can maybe donate them to the food pantry or something or the womens shelter.

Sort stuff by value. Put the more expensive stuff on eBay or Craig's List - if it sells you'll get the money sooner, although you will be responsible for shipping. Some local merchants often are "power sellers" and will handle all that for you, but they do get 1/3 of the price. (Look for an eBay sign in the window - in our town, 2 of the merchants are a barber and a video store, so it has nothing to do with the primary business they are in.) Consignment stores take it, but you have to wait until they sell it to get your money, and that can be a year. Still, either way, the stuff is out of your house. The only thing you need to deal with is, what happens if they don't sell it? Then you have to get it back.

The less expensive stuff can go to a yard sale (a whole lot of work but immediate money) or a charitable organization (tax deduction). Put the fruit/oil bottles in there. Halfway through the sale, if they aren't moving, put them on a "free stuff" table and at least they will be gone. Put all the yard sale stuff in one section of the garage or basement, then haul it all out on the day of the sale. If your neighbors are interested in a multi-family yard sale, you can advertise as such and get a lot more traffic & sales. There are collectors who will come early and scoop up the more valuable stuff but they expect a deal and will haggle over price.

Wedding china - a lot of people don't use it when they have small kids, but think about it for holidays or large gatherings. Especially if you have a full set. Otherwise, if it was just something you registered for because everyone's was doing it or if you don't have a complete set (and if you are sure you won't miss it 10 years down the road), put it on eBay and let someone else complete their collection.

The toys are tough - it's hard for a young child to predict what he's gonna want. You're going to have to make executive decisions here. If it's small and takes up no space, pack it. If it's large and expensive to move, part with it now and buy new age-appropriate stuff after the move.

I have always made my son PART of the process. He gets three piles, Keep - Maybe - Sell. The keeps are things he MUST HAVE like his pillow pets! The Maybes are things he is not sure about like his Thomas Trains (getting past this phase) and Sell are his "baby toys" that is IS too old for or toys he just does not like anymore. Then the Maybe pile gets divided in two EQUALLY for every one thing that goes into KEEP one goes into SELL this way at least half is cleared out and he has helped!

As for organizing it make boxes/bins with price ranges -
.50 box
1.00 box
1-5 box
5-10 box etc. I like to organize a yard sale by price so people do not waste time looking at things over the budget. Many yard salers I know have a specific amt they are willing to spend for the day and spend at each sale. Do not be opposed to hagglers - they tend to move "stuff" out of a sale if you both do this correctly :)

As for the Wedding Gifts, go online to see if anyone is "looking" for that item - some people break theirs and want to try to replace it with both the crystal and china set - I also agree to keep the china and USE it. The vinegar/oil bottles are for decoration only so clean them up and sell sell sell!

You should be able to find a consignment store! Richardson isn't that far from Dallas. I can't give you a specific place, not living in your area, but I know from visiting relatives that there are shops all over. Start googling and making phone calls; your dishes aren't antiques, but an antique shop may give you a suggestion about what place to contact. However, think about whether you'd like to get out all these things, crystal included, and *use* them once you're moved. It's sad when pretty things are not used because they might get broken, so they end up... forever unused.

I'm thinking yard sale for the bottles, too. I don't think they have any monetary value.

Talk to your boy about choosing the things he loves the best and letting the others go to children whose parents can't buy them toys at a store. Maybe he could sell them himself, and either keep the money or give it to a children's charity.

Just thoughts.

It's amazing how much stuff builds up after a while, lol.

I would have your son go through his toys and pick which ones he doesn't want. I do this at least once a year with my daughter or my entire house would be filled with her toys. I let her keep her favorites, even the baby toys (she is 5 too).

The china and crystal becomes valuable over time so that is something to consider also. I would check the current value of each piece (or set) before selling.

I am not sure either about the herb/vinegar bottles, are they filled with oil? You could sell them at a yard sale as decorative items.

Good Luck.

replacements.com will buy your china, but i prefer to sell it on ebay(wrapped very well) and keep the cash. I actually found a buyer from NY who paid me full price because in NY it is $50 more.

I think that things like china and crystal stuff is for using when you have family dinners on holidays. I keep ours put up and it is such a treat for the kids to get it out and set the table. It adds a whole new deminsion to the experience. We also dress a little nicer when we fix it all us. It is often one of those things that will brighten up dreary weather too.

I use some of my crystal stuff from my wedding gifts on the mantle, the piano top, the breakfast bar, etc...I have some colored marbles in the over the mantle, it adds a bunch of color that is not real defined. The colors show through the cuts and looks all cool. The one on the breakfast bar holds all the ink pens and pencils. The one on the piano is just there and has some pretty artificial flowers in it. It again is just a pop of color.

I think my fil uses those bottles of oils for cooking but maybe you could find out for sure if it's for human consumption by reading about that particular brand.

You might have luck listing on Craigs list... Good luck, A.