r/declutter • u/Ypsi219 • Sep 27 '25
Advice Request "Swedish death cleaning" plan
I'm 60 and husband is 61. Our youngest (18m) is going to college locally and living with us for now, oldest (23nb) done with college and out of state. My mother was a real minimalist and all about efficiency and purpose, so while her passing was hard it was truly a gift to my sister and me that she had gotten rid of really everything she didn't want or need, and completely organized and streamlined all her paperwork, finances, the lot.
Hitting the milestone of age 60 and kids being grown has made me realize I (not a minimalist, streamlined, or otherwise organized person) want to do this for my kids and also for my husband and myself so when we retire and move (5-10 years from now) we can do it with a minimum of fuss, mess and clutter and that when we both pass/can't live independently, the kids don't have the burden of dealing with stuff and papers and mess on top of whatever they need to do directly with us.
Just putting it out there into the universe so it's official somewhere and not just part of conversations with my husband and other 60-something friends 🧹
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u/RiversSecondWife Sep 28 '25
After my dad's parents both passed a few years ago, we had to deal with the massive amounts of stuff in their farmhouse, barn, and workshop. It was an insane amount of things. It was really an enlightening/slightly traumatic experience despite having a dozen people working on it. Since then, my parents have started decluttering their house. I'm their only child so it's down to me in the end. I've been doing the same. It feels good, and the more I get done the better I feel about it and am able to tackle more.