Quiverfull families starting out?

[StormySar]

Those of you who trust your fertility to the Lord (and thus are open to the possibility of a large family) or those who are planning large families, what do you do with the baby/childrens clothing, toys, equipment, etc. that you will be using over and over again? We are keeping everything... But going on three kids, that's a lot of stuff so far and we currently live in a 2 bedroom apt. We will be moving probably this fall, but the "stuff" will keep accumulating (especially over holidays, birthdays, etc.). We do weed out things that we find we just don't use from one baby to the next. But, we'll likely be using the stuff we do find helpful over and over again (my kids are still wearing some of the clothing I wore as an baby, so I know if stored well they will stay in good condition).

What have you found to be the best course of action? Especially with the toys that are big, but worth keeping around?

I'm hoping when we move we can move into a house with a basement or attic and I can hopefully neatly organize everything according to gender and age!

[PeacefulSeams]

Have you thought of renting a small storage space until you do get a bigger place?

[Cloth4Colin]

I second the pp on the rented storage. You can usually cram a lot in one of those places and it would help you out until you move. As for what to keep/what to not...I would pair everything down as much as you could and consider what would be too hard to replace should you need it down the road.

I wouldn't call us quiverfull (yet?) - though I would be in a heartbeat! - but I'm keeping everything for right now. We try and live very simply, so we don't have a lot of excess, but I do feel that a lot of things we have are worth reusing and not having to buy again down the road.

If space really becomes an issue, I think you may realize just how little babies and small children really need. While we're living with my parents, we have everything we own in a 9x9 bedroom. It's forced us to think about what is a necessity for us and the children and what's not. I'd definitely keep all of the clothing - as kids have to have that - and then look at everything else in the fashion that I mentioned above.

Good luck with everything, mama!! HUGS!

[veganf]

We're not religious at all (atheists in fact), but we also want a large family...and all three boys so far arrived on their own schedules despite our "planning" their conceptions at a later date. We just LOVE having kids, so we'll likely be having quite a few more.
That said, I hear on the "stuff". I get hand-me-downs, eBay, and resale items mostly, and I have everything organized in Sterilite bins by age in the basement. I have rolling bins under their beds to rotate summer/winter clothing and to rotate toys.
But if we did need a little extra space, my SIL would help us out with storage at their place (they have 6 boys and recently renovated and enlarged their house). Do you have a friend or relative with extra basement/barn space? Or someone who needs baby gear in sizes you're not using now that you could swap with for a while? Otherwise it sounds like a small storage space would be the way to go for now.
I'm really trying to get more organized right now because with more groceries for the hungry growing boys, the toys toys toys (more than I'd like, but the relatives are always very generous), and the variety of clothing sizes, it's hard to fit in our less than 1,400 sq. ft. home.

[meowee]

We don't have a large family for religious reasons, but I've had this problem too. We have very little storage space in the house for clothes and toys. I do have several garbage bags of toys in the basement fromt imes I was decluttering. For clothes, I just stopped putting stuff in storage since there are four consecutive girls... something fits someone, almost all the time. I'm stuck on what to do with the baby clothes though...

I have made a rule that things with bad holes or stains get thrown away and not passed down to the next girl. My 5 y.o. daughter is brutal on clothes so my 3 y.0. and baby girl will probably get new stuff. I'm still hanging onto DS's clothes in case we ever have another boy.

[Leta]

I have pared down to the barest of bare essentials for the next baby. And I feel fine about the fact that we may have to buy some stuff for the next child. We were given a ton of stuff, so I felt that it was only right to pay it forward. Other stuff I sold on eBay, and I am reassured that I will be able to find comparable stuff at a comparable price should I need it.

I guess what I'm saying is, if you give with a generous spirit, you can trust in [God, karma, the universe, whatever] to provide you with what you need at a later time.

[AngelBee]

Honestly...with each child, I have moved further and further to just the "basics".

It depends too I think on what kind of hand me downs you are able to get, what gifts your children receive, what you can make, etc.