Clutter. The bane of my existence. I often feel like I spend most of my time shuttling “stuff” from one area to another in my house. What qualifies as “stuff?” Drawings, paintings, spare socks, library books, stuffed animals, party favors, team uniforms, and don’t get me started on shoes. My back stairs serve as a dumping ground for the family’s belongings that I don’t know what to do with or I need transported to bedrooms, laundry, the play room, etc. Current inventory of my back stairs: one flashlight, 4 books (3 kids’, one of mine), one pair girls’ flats, three baby scrapbooks and envelopes of photos, 2 work project manuals of my husband’s, a pile of bills, 2 notebooks of my kids’, and a pile of old homework and pictures from my son’s backpack. Actually this isn’t the worst my stairs have looked. And I pick up these stairs every day or so - not kidding.
The biggest problem I have is what to do with my kids’ “stuff” that falls in the miscellaneous category - goody bags from parties, old drawings, old craft projects, a broken yo yo, and the like. The minute I throw something away, one of the kids will happen to catch a glimpse of it in the trash and fish the item out as it suddenly transforms into their most prized possession. A friend of mine, fellow mother of small children, has something she calls a “silly box” for each of her children, which is a small shoe box size-ish box they each have and they can keep anything they want in it, as long as it fits in the box. Once the box starts to overflow (a top needs to comfortably fit on the box), they need to weed it out. Her kids had fun decorating their silly boxes and are clear that any items that mom would usually throw out - i.e., old play dough sculptures, gumball machine plastic figurines, second tier paintings from school, a rock, etc. - have a home in the silly box, as long as there is room.
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The silly box idea reminds me of another good tip from a mom friend of mine. We were talking the other day about how much time we spend in the car (another blog topic altogether) and how to keep kids from getting antsy - which often turns into fighting - after they have been sitting too long. She has what she calls a “bag of fun” for each child in her car that she stocks with a rotating supply of coloring supplies, books and small toys like puzzles. She doesn’t buy anything new, she pulls items form her house, but the bags of fun have to stay in the car, all items have to be put away before exiting the car (so the car stays tidy) and she rotates items as needed - when all play has been exhausted.
Any good organization tips to share when it comes to your family’s “stuff?”
11.03.09 @ 7:45 pm
As a way to organize my preschooler’s papers from school, I have a 2″ 3-ring binder filled with empty paper protectors. We display the papers on the fridge and then when he is done studying the letter of the week, his papers go directly from the fridge to the binder. Now there is room on the fridge for the new papers and he has an ABC book that he made. He feels I value his work and he knows that he can be an “author.” The biggest bonus is that I only have to move the papers once. Plus, it is an instant scrapbook!
One way that I entertain my 2 year old in the car is that he is responsible for putting toys in a soft sided lunch box. It is small, lightweight and he love carrying it to the car. Plus it has a zipper that has taught him how to zip and unzip. He always changes what toys he wants but he cannot select toys that are too big for the car or at a dinner table because they don’t fit in the lunch box. Ahh, one less battle…
11.03.09 @ 7:48 pm
If you seriously want to stop the clutter and the useless stuff quit buying things that you really don’t need, minimalize! Children really don’t need all the things we feel they need or all the things they want. Our biggest example is clothes. My three kids seems to get too many clothes from grandparents etc. My two girls really do not need 10 pairs of pants. Keep clothes neutral colors and rely on a staple, black pants and jeans. They can mix and match a lot with basics.
11.04.09 @ 2:47 pm
The old rule of getting rid of an item before you purchase a new one is the best idea. If the kids want a new toy ask them which one they want to donate. If I want a new handbag I have to sell one I have on ebay or give it away first. It keeps things from getting out of control. If you think about it you always go back to your favorite few tops and jeans, pants etc. so why have so many hanging around taking up space.
11.11.09 @ 3:03 pm
Hi… when we first moved into our house we each had an extra drawer in the kitchen, we have a huge island so one drawer went to bills, one went Mom, one to Dad, one to our son. We quickly out grew our drawers. We typically come into the house through the garage which take you into the laundry then the kitchen so I bought 3 matching baskets, each with the removable liners (Mom’s Pink, Dad’s Blue, Son’s Green) So we didn’t get them confused. And anything you have that doesn’t always get out away ie.. keys, sunglasses, wallet go into the baskets, that way you never need to find your keys when it is time to leave! It’s all in your basket, these are lined up on the washer and dryer. Once the baskets get full it’s your responsibility to clean your own baskets and find homes for things if you want to keep it, or toss it. It makes mornings go a lot easier. Lunch boxes and everything are in your basket, grab it and go! Now I realize most people have more than 3 family members but you can buy the basket covers in any color of the rainbow, just need to find a place to keep them, on the steps or on a nice shelf by the door you most frequently use!