Is anyone missing their grocery list?

Because it isn't mine!

It's Season 2 of Child Hoarders on the East Coast

I told him to go eat some lunch,
then Tavey & I got busy quick while he was gone.

We found 52 of these little pencils!

We stopped counting rocks at 70 and pieces of just plain garbage has to be in the hundreds!
I am not being sarcastic, it is garbage, like a strangers grocery list, candy wrappers, popped balloon pieces, sticker backs and BROKEN ANYTHINGS.
Now there is a big difference between a filthy dirty room with garbage all over, and garbage that is kept in boxes and bins and behind things.

We heard him coming and quickly closed our lawn sized garbage bag that was half full.
 (Keep in mind we do this quarterly)
He stood in the doorway and I quickly sensed his nervousness. Half of it was wondering what was already gone and the other half was not wanting to help with what looked like a tornado at that point.
I handed him a bunch of old coins that I found in one of his "spots" and told him to put them back in my can where he got them from, and while he was doing that he could look at all the other ones.
 That kept him busy for an hour and we really cleared some junk out of there.
The bag was full!
 I don't know where it all comes from, especially since we do this regularly now.
I will say that I felt a sense of weight lifted from him when he came back in there.
Almost as if he was saying "This feels so much better"
But I know it will only be a matter of time before I am wondering where the wood disappeared to on his dresser underneath the little boxes and tins and things.
And then I will be pulling out stuff that is shoved behind his bed, in his closet and any other place he can find to store stuff.

So why does it bother me?
Hmmm....
1. I have some OCD tendencies myself and cannot stand it!
2. I have a very small house, his room is the smallest and there is no room for, well garbage!
3. I fear or I should say I know that this is not just "being a boy and collecting rocks kind of thing"
4. I owe it to his future wife to try and get this under control.

Now, in the same breath and I have said it before:
I love how this kid loves so many things and finds beauty in what you and I do not.  Pieces of paper, leaves and rocks, all have memories attached to them.
We just have to try and start narrowing down 75 rocks to one or two I think.
Until then the rest are in the driveway : )
I love this kid so much! The biggest reason is because he loves me so much!
And if he never changes, that's just ok too!
I will just keep cleaning his room when he is 40 : )
Now if he starts collecting cats, bats, birds, rats, snakes, bugs or candy corn, then all bets are off...

"An anxious heart weighs a man down,
but a kind word cheers him up."
Proverbs 12:25