Do It, Don't Dust It!

November 22, 2023

When I got my first real job in my 20s and was enthralled with my newly-acquired purchasing power, I expressed my happiness by buying STUFF. This continued right through my girls' babyhood and toddlerhood (new people! new reasons to acquire STUFF!). But when I hit my mid-30s, I looked around and realized "Holy Cow! (it likely was not "Cow") We're drowning in STUFF!" So the only things I wanted to buy at that point were ways to organize and store the STUFF: boxes, shelves, and the like. All the time since my late 30s has been characterized by my desperately trying to get RID of stuff. It is amazing how much four seemingly-sensible people have collected that we just don't need anymore, if we ever did.

The holidays are a time when the rate at which people acquire STUFF speeds up exponentially. We want our kids to have a memorable holiday. But the fact is, STUFF doesn't make memories, EXPERIENCES do. Think back to your own childhood: How many of your toys can you remember? Only three stand out for me: A set of giant tinker toys that my sister and I used for building great forts, a dollhouse, and the tetherball set in our backyard. What really stands in my memory from childhood in New Jersey are the things we used to do: Visiting the Papermill Playhouse, the Turtleback Zoo, and the Jersey Shore.

So for this year's holidays, please consider giving the gift of memories in the form of memberships and season passes for the upcoming year, as well as tickets to local shows and experiences, and classes your kids have been craving. You'll be supporting your local community, and you'll be making memories that will last a lifetime. Check out our page of Memberships and Season Passes for local lists of places that offer them; it's the perfect page to help you create both your 2023 holiday gift list AND your 2024 bucket list. I promise you'll get great ideas... completely clutter-free.

—Deb