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The kids have all left home to attend college or to start their own families. You and your spouse are now faced with maintaining a big house with a lot of empty space. Maybe it's time to downsize your living space and move into a smaller home, condo or apartment. By finding an affordable self storage facility nearby, you can keep many of those personal items that you're not ready to part with but not clutter up your new home.

Family Photos

For many families, photos and home videos can fill many boxes. Organize them so they are easy to find after you've boxed them up. Mark the boxes with the dates and events relevant to the materials. Store them on shelving in your storage unit off of the floor. If you're concerned about temperature and humidity affecting your photos, rent a temperature-controlled unit to keep them pristine.

Kids' School Papers and Art Projects

Get together all of the school papers and records that you have kept and box them up for storage. Depending on the amount of material you've kept, you may start a box or two for each child. Some materials such as paintings or crayon drawings can stick to other papers. Place a blank piece of non-acidic paper between such items to preserve them.

You may also have a variety of clay figures, hand prints and painted plates done by your children in school. Wrap these in foam or bubble wrap and put a label on each one clearly stating what it is. These can be placed in boxes to put in storage without additional packing material if they are not being moved a long distance.

Clothing

You may have kept some of your children's clothes with the thought of passing them down to the grandchildren. Buy a few of the vacuum storage bags that remove all of the air out of the bag once packed full. Mark these clearly so you'll know what's inside and stack them up on shelves in storage. The clothes will last for a long time in these bags, or at least until the first grandkids are on their way.

Toys and Hobby Supplies

Whether you're saving these for the grandkids or nostalgia, they are usually more durable than the art projects. Wrap them in paper and label them carefully so you don't have to unwrap a number of items to find the right toy. Remember to take the batteries out of any electronic toys so they don't leak and ruin the toy while in storage.

The benefit to using a storage locker is that you can still save those treasured items as you move to a smaller space. Take your time packing the items and label everything so you can find things easily. Find an affordable self storage facility nearby and you'll never be far from your family memories.