A post about stuff

We have 8 days until we close on our first home.

8 days to pack, declutter, and prep for the move to our new place.

In the past few weeks since we made our initial offer on the house, I've found myself scouring the websites of World Market, Pottery Barn, Target, Ikea, and Joss & Main for things to fill up our new home. It is so easy to get caught up in all of these things I think we need - a sectional couch for the living room, a new bedspread for the master bedroom, Pottery Barn drapes, a large bookshelf. In all honesty, we have all of these things already in one way or another, and we are not going to be "house poor" by any means. The new house is not really any bigger than our current rental, so we don't actually need anything. Yes, we will probably buy that sectional couch because we do actually want more seating in the living room. It would certainly serve a purpose. But we can live without it for a little while.

On the other hand, I find myself rummaging through all of our things and looking for things we can pitch or give away. Does this make any sense? Probably not.
I have gathered up clothes, shoes, purses, and coats that we do not use and I'm planning on taking those to Goodwill before we move. I do not want to cart around things that we do not need or use from one house to another, only to sit in a closet. Last week I read Hannah's post about making room to breathe, and it only fueled my inspiration to get rid of things. Stuff is just stuff, and I don't want it to be the focus of my life.

In the midst of being just a little bit disappointed that we could not afford to take advantage of the Columbus Day sales this past weekend (I'm looking at you, $400 Pottery Barn curtains), I came across these verses last night and they could not have had better timing:

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." -- Matthew 6:19-21

As I pack boxes, I'm really trying to evaluate how much is too much. What should we keep to use, and what should we give away to free us up from having to move and store it? I don't want our house to be sterile, but I don't want our things to be superfluous either. I want to get rid of the things we don't actually use, but I also want to be resourceful and use what we have as opposed to buying everything new. There is certainly balance in everything, and I am searching for that right now.

I am really looking forward to moving to our new home. I am excited about the neighborhood, the big open living room, and most importantly, the fact that it's ours to do with what we want. But I also know that this home is not going to make us happy. It's just a place to live. Michael and I will be the same people, live the same lives we do now, and have the same friends and family. The living we do will be inside of this home, yes, but it will have little to do with the stuff in it, and more to do with the people who fill up our home.

In any big life change, I think there's value in stepping back and looking at the big picture. It's easy to focus in on that one big thing that's happening, and lose perspective. I guess that's the point of writing this post - to realign my perspective and remember what's important. I will still continue to shop for furniture and decor ideas, and when we move in I will probably spend a lot of time rearranging and organizing our things. But I'm hoping that as I'm doing all of that, I will remember that those things aren't really all that important. I want to take time to put down the stuff so I can truly enjoy our home, even if it's not totally finished. I want to spend time with my husband and invite friends over and get to know our neighbors. That's where I truly want my heart to be.