Tanja, from Minimalist Packrat, wrote a great post today about kid's clutter. She was very kind to mention one of my tips for dealing with kid's clutter, and I was inspired to put it into action once again. While the girls were busy with something else, I clean out their toy food supply and got rid of multiples. I will hide them away until they either ask for them, or have completely forgotten about them.
Later in the afternoon, I decided to give the girl's a mini-mission and asked them to find 10 items they no longer wanted or needed. We did this after an extensive session of picking up their many, many toys. I'm always interested to see what they choose to let go of.
After a couple items my youngest daughter lost interest, but my oldest daughter was still going strong. I told her she had done a great job and could stop whenever she wanted, but she was really having fun.
Her final count was 25 things...
There are a couple items here I would choose to keep, but I want to respect her efforts so for now, all items have been removed. Thanks to Tanja for this inspiration. Please be sure to read her wonderful tips for dealing with kid's clutter!
Tanja's post was great. I love that you are giving your daughter's an opportunity to learn about decluttering at their own speed. I think it is amazing that your daughter is really getting the spirit of it and is not feeling forced into it.
ReplyDeleteHi Jill,
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful! Your daughter went above and beyond! Not just 10 things, but 25. :)
I think your tips really resonate with people. You have a gentle (but firm enough) approach with your girls that is truly inspiring!
Cheers,
Tanja
Tanks for your ides. I'm loving all the help. I have a question though. That's a problem that I run into sometimes- they choose to get rid of stuff you don't want them to. I think it's good to respect their efforts. You said the items have been removed. Does that mean you hid them for a while or actually got rid of it?
ReplyDeleteTanks for your ides. I'm loving all the help. I have a question though. That's a problem that I run into sometimes- they choose to get rid of stuff you don't want them to. I think it's good to respect their efforts. You said the items have been removed. Does that mean you hid them for a while or actually got rid of it?
ReplyDeleteI had to come back here to look at the photo to see what I ultimately did...I ended up getting rid of everything. There have been a few things in the past that they didn't want, but I kept - I just keep it with my own stuff.
DeleteI think it's time for one of these mini-missions again!