If you’ve got kids, you’ve got too much stuff. Here’s how our listener Holly put it:
“With kids, there is truly no end to the influx of toys, keepsakes and clothes coming in, plus things they’ve outgrown that need to go out.
My three kids range in age from one to nine years old, and I struggle with what items to save for the baby to grow into. Do I really want to hold onto pajamas for him to grow into six years? The sentimentality of it all weighs on me, too.
The constant mental space this process consumes is definitely my biggest consistent downer as a mom.”
Fear not: we are here to help! In this episode we discuss

why it can be actually, physically painful to throw things away
why decorative baskets are actually the worst
why the giveaway and hand-me-down bins should be right in your kids’ closets
the unpronounceable but useful “RFASR” declutter formula
why sentimentality is in the eye of the beholder

Here’s links to the research and other writing on the topic that we discuss:
Leon Ho for Lifehack: A Declutter Formula To Help You Throw Stuff Away Without Regret
Gretchen Rubin: Use Up What You Have
Marjorie Ingall for Real Simple: Seven Steps to Dealing With Sentimental Clutter
Rachel Jones for Nourishing Minimalism: Do Minimalists Keep Hand-Me-Downs?
Lifehacker: How Clutter Affects Your Brain and What You Can Do About It
Kelly McGonigal for Psychology Today: Why It’s Hard to Let Go of Clutter
Jenny Blair for Yale Medicine Magazine: When viewing their own possessions, hoarders’ brains light up under fMRI
There’s only so many traced-hand Thanksgiving turkeys a mom really needs. But if your answer is “I kind of want ONE,” there’s no minimalist judging here. As long as you have a place to put it.
What are your stuff-managing strategies? Tell us in the comments!
Special thanks to this episode’s sponsors!
Here’s a great alternative to closets stuffed with hand-me-downs: Swap.com, the world’s largest online consignment and thrift store. With swap.com, you can save up to 90% off retail price on your favorite clothing brands for kids and grownups. They’ve also got toys, costumes, maternity clothes… all that stuff you definitely need for a while– but not forever. Check out swap.com and enter the discount code FRESH for 35% off select items in your first order. 
Green Chef, the first USDA-certified organic meal kit delivery service, includes everything you need to cook delicious, gourmet meals that you can feel good about. For $50 off your first box of Green Chef, go to greenchef.us/mother.
FlavaNaturals cocoa powder and chocolate bars are made from all-natural ingredients. Each serving contains 5 to 9 times the antioxidant-rich flavanols found in other dark chocolate.  But just as importantly, FlavaNaturals taste amazing!