It seemed such a good idea at the time

[Summermeadowflowers]

I have a boy and a girl born at opposite times of the year, so thought I could sell some things at the NCT nearly new sale. Signed up as a seller and it’s just awful. Washing everything, sorting it and organising it took weeks, the dining room table has vanished and I need more labels and DH has gone into a meeting (printer is there) and by the time he’s out DD will have woken up. I think I’m just going to have to pull out but such a waste and still drowning in stuff. I wish I’d just left it in bags hiding in the cupboard

Just sell it on vinted. List it a bit at a time. Far less stress.

I don’t use it but no, it’s going to have to stay here until the kids are in their twenties. I am so annoyed with myself.

Just shove what you’ve already sorted into bags. Everything else that’s clean can be put into age piles with one size label on the top of each pile so you know what you’re selling. Price what you’ve got just to get rid of it. Have a bin bag of clothes and label it as ‘mixed aged boys clothes - £5 the lot’. Nobody is going to care that they need washing if they’ve got a bargain.

You don’t have to get rid of it all in one go but when you come home with cash tomorrow you’ll be so pleased you did.

They want it done a particular way and DH will be hours in this meeting. I’m on the verge of just shoving it in the garage. And DD has woken up, had about 45 mins sleep all day, sigh.

Vinted is really easy. For baby clothes it's probably best to bundle up, eg 6 baby grows for £10 or whatever. You get this amount and the buyer pays more to cover postage.

For sold items you just drop off at local shops and parcel lockers so check where you'd be dropping it off and set the accepted postage options if necessary.

I really don’t want to give myself more work - thanks even getting out to post it is just a job I don’t need. I just wish I hadn’t started as now it’s such an unbelievable mess.

God, just put in on carrier bag bundles and sell on Facebook Marketplace.

Like "Boys 3-6 months" "Girls 4-5 years" or "Party dresses - various"

And when no one buys them …?

The annoying thing is it’s half done and also you pay £11 for a sellers place so that’s wasted. Small amount I know but just annoyed with myself and frustrated with DH and DD. I wish DD would sleep and I wish DH didn’t work from fucking home!

or...even easier - give them all to a charity shop / Womens shelter /Baby bank.

It will be the same if no-one buys them the NCT sale, surely?

Just chuck them in the charity shop. A lot easier.

I know about the existence of charity shops, and bins and whatever else. At the moment, I’m feeling very angry with myself and going to the charity shop isn’t going to change that.

Why don'y you just take the stuff you have prepared to the NCT sale (be prepared to not make a lot of money) and take the rest to a charity shop.

Or as said above - Vinted. It is so easy and I've made over £1,000 in the last year.

Is there something else going on op? You sound disproportionately overwhelmed. Why are you angry at yourself?

Because I am not posting for advice with what to do about the stuff. I’m posting because I’m so annoyed with myself and thought someone might say ‘hey don’t worry! I’ve done that sort of thing too.’ I will probably just put it in the garage, it’s on the dining table and seems to be screaming to me that I am utterly incompetent and can’t do anything right. With me?

Because it shouldn’t be this big a task I guess @cocksstrideintheevening . Obviously it isn’t just that. The house is a complete state, I am a complete state, I didn’t even have clean clothes for DS this morning. Just having a self pitying moment.

They might want it done a particular way, but are they really going to throw you out because your stall doesn’t come up to scratch? There’s not enough room to move in those places, nobody will notice. Just put out the bits you’ve organised before it opens, wait till the doors open then whip the rest of it out from bin bags.

Don’t beat yourself up. There are always moments like this with small DC. I promise it gets easier when they’re bigger and can help with such tasks (although mine wander off bored halfway through being useful usually). I am willing to bet that every parent has had moments like this. I know I did. Maybe not about an NCT sale but something like it (I remember DH rescuing me by making a midnight birthday cake for DS1 when mine had died and I couldn’t think let alone try again!).

Do you actually want advice or are you just enjoying being a martyr?

Loving every minute. No, I don’t want advice, thanks. I’ll sit here and have a cry to myself. Sorry - shouldn’t have posted. It was meant to be a semi lighthearted thread about things we’ve done that seemed such a good idea and we then regretted but I’m not in a good place and these replies have upset me quite a bit - I’ll hide the thread I think. Thanks all. Really not being a martyr, just very tired and feeling as I’ve said useless and incompetent.

Thanks @DelurkingAJ sorry I missed that! I think that reply is how I envisioned the thread going - sorry!

Surely you didn't put things away dirty? Why does it all need washing again?

You might not have clean clothes for her, but you’ve kept her alive and with all four limbs, so sounds pretty successful to me. And all you need is a pasta lunch, a poonami and a bit of sick and boom, you’re out of clean clothes.

And it’s about priorities. So you didn’t manage to get organised on time for a baby jumble sale. So what? That doesn’t define you! It’s probably trying to get that done that has distracted you from the other stuff you normally do. Fuck it off, everything in a bin bag, your DH can shove it all in the loft when he’s finished work and you can have another go when you’ve got more time. You’re not an octopus. 💐

Don’t be angry with yourself!

Can you make yourself a cup of tea and breath for 5 mins.

These jobs are always a nightmare. Just take it as a learning point. If there’s really no way of getting it to NCT, just get shot of it by any means necessary. Do not put it back in the cupboard, that will only make you even more angry with yourself in a couple years when you need that space.

Been there done that. It's such a faff. Sorry - nothing but sympathy here!

I think it’s just how your post was worded

It came across as being about getting shot of the gear, rather than how the fuck did I get here.

Seriously don’t be angry with yourself. It’s frustrating but it’s just a learning point - these jobs are massive and often not worth it.