1. Sort
Clothes - starting with the closet is the first thing for me. I try to pare down my son's wardrobe at the end of each season, since he usually starts to grow out of things by then. As we near the end of summer, separate any clothes he/she will not be able to wear next year. Keep a pile of shorts and short sleeves they may be able to wear in the next few warm weeks or month (these should be the favorites).
Make sure you include the diaper bag or daycare stash. I usually have extra clothes in strategic locations and need to make sure they still fit.
Re-evaluate the long pants and shirts to confirm they still fit, as we move into cooler weather. Double check that you have enough coordinating outfits.
Donate, sell or store (if you have younger children that may need them) anything that does not fit. This is the ideal time to trade in winter coats and holiday attire (including costumes) to used children/consignment shops.
Toys - pull out all the toys and books. Evaluate if they are still age appropriate. Depending on your child's age, involve them in the process to decide what items to give away or sell.
Closet misc - I have used the upper shelves in my son's closet for storage of toys and books that he is not ready for yet. There is also a handful of baby items that I had not purged yet. Sort through it all and confirm what you want to keep for the future.
Changing table - I still have diapering to do, so I need to sort my changing table and make sure I have not cluttered it with items (such as old creams) that I no longer use.
2. Scrub
Think spring cleaning. Get your kids involved to give them ownership of their space.
Remember, everything should be pulled out of the room (except furniture) so you can get drawers and shelves clean.
3. Set
Clothes - separate the clothes by season. Put the summer clothes (that they will fit in next year) in a bin for storage.
Some people organize by color. I usually organize by school clothes and play clothes.
Toys- I have seen several other blog posts about rotating toys and games. I have also noticed that my son gets overwhelmed when he has too many toys out at once. So pack 3-4 boxes with a mix of toys, games and stuffed animals. Rotate one box out every week, to keep the choices interesting. You can even use the boxes as a toy box to put toys away daily.
I have also tried this technique with seasonal decorations and activities. Every 3 months I bring out a fresh box of decorations and seasonal books and pack away the old. It gives the house a new feel to have changing decorations. Why wait until Christmas?
I have seen several ideas for corraling Stuffed animals, besides just a toy box. Hanging nets seem to work well, positioned at child height. On Pinterest they have several ideas for "cages" that kids can pull stuffed animals out between slats, so they can reach the bottom and top of the pile.
Future items -box up with a dated label
4. Standardize
Clothes - I have not started it (my son does not care about picking out his clothes yet), but I love those days of the week organizers for clothes. It allows the children to be involved in outfit selection, but helps minimize the arguments in the morning getting dressed. At least that is what I assume. I will let you know when I get a pickier dresser.
Start a household rule that something needs to go out when something new comes in. This could be clothes, shoes, toys or stuffed animals. This forces everyone to think about if a new item is worth getting rid of an old.
5. Sustain
Maintenance of the kids room is really a daily task. Kids should be involved in cleaning their rooms regularly.
At least quarterly, you should work with your child to evaluate clothes and toys to see if there is anything they have grown out of or do not use anymore. This process sometimes entices them to use old toys again, so they may rediscover something.
Any other ideas?
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