What's a wife to do when a blankie interferes with her marriage? Nicole Malubay has soldiered on for years accepting her drill sergeant husband Steven's need to keep his childhood blankie. Now that they have a son however, she thinks it's time he give it up. "At first I thought it was cute," she says, "but now we have a 2-year-old son, and that's cute too, and can't our son replace the blankie?"

While Steven thinks of the blankie as a critical part of his childhood, clutter expert Peter Walsh explains: "There are two types of clutter in homes," Peter says, "the 'I might need it one-day' clutter, and memory clutter." Steven's blankie is the latter. "When Steven looks at the blanket, he doesn't see it as an object," Peter says. "It evokes something when he looks at it."

Our softy sergeant agrees: "The blanket evokes memories of love and family. The blanket was a labor of love that underwent several incarnations by various family members. I want to honor that." Though Peter is a big proponent of letting go of clutter, he suggests a more palatable alternative when it comes to Steven's memory clutter, suggesting Steven hang it in the house as decor in a place that also works for his wife. "You have to realize that the love and affection the blankie reminds you of is now encapsulated in the person you married," Peter concludes.

To read more about Peter Walsh's "clutter psychology" click here for an excerpt from his book, It's All Too Much: An Easy Plan for Living a Richer Life with Less Stuff.