We all know the beginning of January marks a brand new year in which many resolutions are attempted. Some are met with great success and others seem to fail quickly.
For me, this time of year also reflects the sudden urge to clean…like the whole the house. I feel the need to open every drawer, closet door and kitchen cabinet in my home. I get the cleaning bug for some de-cluttering and reorganization. Especially since the holidays have come and gone, our entire basement has been consumed with toys. Not only did Santa swing by with his bundle, I have a very large family and every single one of them bought gifts for my children which they happen to do every year.
Every single year.
You can imagine how quickly the toy shop has engulfed every corner and space in my home. Coincidently, I received an email from author Lea Schneider who inquired about my interest in checking out her book Growing-Up Organized. Not only is she a working mother of 3, she’s a professional organizer so of course I wanted to gain some perspective and add some more tips to my de-cluttering and reorganization mission!
Her book is a hands-on guide where she provides practical application especially for busy moms. She even explains how to get your children involved in the process. There is a plethora of knowledge and advice throughout this book from a time management perspective all the way to understanding why we have clutter in the first place. She also suggests how we can implement change by including worksheets, goal setting tasks, planning materials and other resources in the book to get you started. Her website Organize Right Now is also a great place to begin the organization mission. After reading Chapter 7: Staying Tidy, I was totally inspired to begin my own clean-up mission.
After taking a good look at our basement, I grabbed my 4 year-old son with a plan. We talked about the fact that he has so many toys that he’s out-grown. He’s either too big for them or he just doesn’t play with them any longer. And since they are not a good fit for his baby sister, there really is no need to keep them. As we were discussing this toy drive, my son began to show interest and was ready to take on this clean-up challenge with me. Although he clearly expressed his need for being the person in charge of choosing the toys that would be donated (under my supervision of course), after some real heart-to-heart talking, he got it.
He really got it.
He liked the idea that another child who doesn’t have as many toys as him would have fun playing with them. I saw his eyes light up when he realized he would be doing something good. This quickly became much more than just a simple clean-up effort. My son was actually taking note that he was part of a process that would pass a little joy onto another child and I could tell this made him proud.
And so it began. He started cleaning up his stacks of books and games…
And then he moved toward the buckets and shelves…to three other areas in our basement where he made piles of toys to donate.
When we were finished, we had three full garbage bags of toys ready to get into the hands of other children (and my basement never looked better)!
I can’t believe my madness for keeping a clean and clutter-free home turned into a real teachable moment for my son.
So thank you Lea Schneider, for giving me the motivation to jump-start some organization in my home and involving my 4 year-old in the process. This experience has led to something much bigger, something my son will remember for years to come.
Funny how shutting down the holidays instantly brings on the cleaning bug. Christmas had dumped a new crop of toys on us as well. We couldn’t even walk in Kane’s room without almost breaking or spraining a body part! Monday I became a psychotic purge-o-matic and went through all his toys and clothes and cleaned house.
He is still too little to understand (or even notice for that matter) going through his things and donating what he no longer plays with. Our house has virtually no storage so I try to keep up on this every couple of months. I am hoping that maybe if he gets used to this early on it will just become part of his routine to “move on” and donate his toys when he gets tired of them.
I love the idea of freecycle!
.-= Shari Paul´s last blog .. =-.
Looks like a fun learning experience.
.-= Bobbi Janay ´s last blog ..Love =-.
That’s awesome! He actually looks like he is having fun doing it too, which is pretty amazing.
.-= Kiran´s last blog ..Blog Swap Thursday – Limited Edition =-.
Wow a great learning experienc and tons of work got done!!
.-= gayle´s last blog ..2010 =-.
PERFECT!! Making it fun and worthwhile will stick with him. Good job mama!! Why don’t you both come over to my house – I could give him so many teachable moments – you’d really thank me! ha ha
.-= The imPerfect Housewife´s last blog ..Mom’s got a snow day! =-.
What a true blessing to have this teachable moment with your son and some organization to boot! I also get the same itch every year to organize!
.-= Lynn´s last blog ..Shining the Giveaway Spotlight =-.
Oh my goodness, I need to read this book. I have just started the de-cluttering in January mode and I could use all the help I can get. I love that you got your son involved. My daughter has a very hard time parting with her things and I am now much more encouraged that I can change that.
.-= Sherri @ Luv a Bargain´s last blog ..EA Active: $39.77 at Amazon =-.
Oh, he is so happy with his accomplishments. Yay!
ALso, on my way ti check out that website. LOL! I am working very hard on improving lots of things this year.
I find I spend all my time on one thing and let all the others fall to the way-side.
.-= Kelli @ 3 Boys and a Dog´s last blog ..Come On People, You Are Killing Trees! =-.
I know what you mean Kelli about starting one project…and then forget about the rest! LOL Hey, at least we are making an effort!
.-= Theta Mom´s last blog ..Organization Madness Turned Into a Teachable Moment =-.
well that worked out well! We have so much too, I recently passed a bunch of stuff to my brother and sister’s kids, so much of it is still in great shape, I’m glad they can get some use of it.
.-= Molly´s last blog ..Yet another Quest =-.
I did the exact same type of cleaning and organizing the week between Christmas and New Years… now everyone in the house has been sick for a week so I get to do all the cleaning all over again to sterilize the place!
I’ve missed ya in my blogging absence… I’m glad to be back!
.-= Paging Doctor Mommy´s last blog ..Christmas Traditions – Old & New =-.
That’s an awesome story! We used to do this with our kids every year, just before Christmas. We had the same sort of talk you had with your son about bringing some joy to children who don’t have as much, and of course, it also helped to make more room in case Santa was bringing a special new toy. ;o)
I have the same urge to declutter every January as well. Good luck to you and me both!
.-= Holly Bowne´s last blog ..How Can I Be the Parent of a Legal Adult? =-.
I’ve been wanting (and needing) to do something similar for quite some time. I need a swift kick in the arse! He is such a cutie and you must be so proud of him! (and thrilled with your “new” basement!)
.-= Erin´s last blog ..Awards and Why I Can’t Keep Up With Them Anymore =-.
I need to do this! Thanks for the motivation.
.-= Mimi´s last blog ..Early to Rise =-.
We just did this over the kids’ winter break and it was such a good feeling to get the house more organized and provide toys for children who aren’t as blessed.
.-= Helene´s last blog ..Interview with the experts – the 2010 edition about babies =-.
THANK YOU!
for supporting me in my struggle for achieving justice for my rights to my pictures. RESPECT!
.-= BLOGitse´s last blog ..Thank you! =-.
Thanks for the great post! We too are overwhelmed with toys, toys and more toys. I will be purchasing the book, hopefully I can read it before it gets lost in the shuffle!
Tanya
Nice! I nanny for 4 kids so I’m fully aware of how the toys multiply like bunnies when you’re not looking!
.-= Yaya´s last blog ..Orange You Glad It’s Saturday?! =-.
What a sweet thing for him to do!
I also go into a cleaning frenzy every January. I’m in the process of reorganizing all my closets! 😉
.-= Stefanie´s last blog ..It All Started With A Fight… =-.
That’s next on the list Stefanie! lol
.-= Theta Mom´s last blog ..Little Billies Review and Giveaway =-.
I love this!! What a great idea, and how great to gain that teachable moment– while cleaning!
.-= Ashley´s last blog ..Virtual GNO: I kicked my brother riding a motorcycle because Big Bird said to and he’s my leader. =-.
God grief he is adorable!
Hey hon, for some reason my google reader has not been updating your posts so I apologise for my absence! I tried un-following you and then re-following (like my made up words) so hopefully that will fix it!
Modern Mom, you know you are one of my favorites! 😉 Please let me know if that “fixes” it.
.-= Theta Mom´s last blog ..Little Billies Review and Giveaway =-.