And so begins the saga-

I have about a year to clear away many years of "clutter" consisting of antiques, other peoples collectables, (a whole lot of white ardalt porcelain) vintage and antique clothing ( I mean really vintage and antique, not 90's stuff), vintage and antique french and german bed linens, vintage tablecloths from the 50's antique barkcloth yardage, and the like, so I can sell my house.
The thing is is that my house is an absolute disaster! My ex husband died suddenly about 9 weeks ago, and much of his less desirable stuff came to me. These are items that have no intrinsic value, such as old and outdated medical books, even beach towels and his collection of dvd's and cd's, but my kids want to keep them. I know it is kind of too soon to ask them to part with this stuff, but its everywhere! I have an old pair of scuba diving flippers sitting on my dining room table as I write this, along with about a gagillion pieces of paper from his house. I just found a check for thousands of dollars buried in the paper rubble that came here that he got by mistake from a refund on MY home owners policy. The garage is filled to the brim with the regular garage stuff, and now with a fairly nice sofa that was in my sons bedroom at his dads, a solid cherry round pedestal table and chairs, a mattress and box spring, and a mahogany queen size sleigh bed that needs repairs. It's not perfect, but it is nice.
So I need strength! I need to find a way to tackle all this stuff with a clear head and a clear eye, but its really hard. My stuff has started to "own me" instead of the other way around. So much of me wants to just call someone and donate this stuff. Still, I keep holding on to the idea that the money I could get from this could help my youngest get some college, which would be very good for him, but I'm probably dreaming. I'm sure that its not worth what I think it is. So here I am, feeling like I need to contact Clean House, or that show about hoarders! Any suggestions are so appreciated, I promise not to do a "yes, but" thing to anyone who replies...
I dont think I'm quite computer savvy enough for ebay for the other stuff- the ardalt and linens, and wondered if anyone here has used an estate buyer? Most of these items came from family members who passed. I live in a gated community that does not allow garage sales, which really puts a damper on my being able to go that rout! I have other things too- like a very unusual and expensive chandelier for example. If anyone here has had to contend with this, or something like this I sure could use your advice! To be honest, I think I might need psychiatric intervention if I dont begin to get a handle on this...