In the ongoing effort to combat the clutter of a home blessed with two roving, active children and two over-scheduled adults, I’ve learned to roll up my sleeves in order to keep my sanity. I figure if the goal of family life is a real relationship, then the objectives are clear: make space, clear obstacles and invite input.
I’m a big fan of following the basic rules of home organization because I’ve seen it work. And I love to see cluttered homes become what they were designed to be – organized interiors. Homes are spaces where people can express themselves creatively, take risks and be encouraged along the way, connect on a deeper level with the people they love and begin to live out their dreams. The home can be all of this, and home organization can help make it happen.
1. Make space: Less is more. When it comes to making space for great family projects to happen, the first rule of home organization is less is more. The less stuff you have to care for, clean, put away, mend or recycle – the better! The less time you have to spend de-cluttering, the more time you have to actually play with those great toys or read those books stuffed on the bookshelf. This goes for adult’s toys and projects too. Old or young, if someone enters a clean space, they feel more motivated to get to work (or play or create). But, if they enter a cluttered space, they’re likely to sit down and close their eyes in hopes that it will all go away. Creative energy (that we all need to tackle projects) is not the same as cleaning energy (which only takes us so far, and requires a different part of our brain). So, whether it’s getting out the art supplies or building a garden bench, space matters. For all those great projects, remember: less is more.
Practically speaking, when paring down (I call it “purging”), if you’re worried about making wrong choices about what to cut out of your family’s life, store objects in the garage for six months and see if anyone misses them. If you’re still uncertain, take photos before recycling anything. Memories can be saved for years!
The less choices children (especially) have to make, about which set of paints or drawing books or dress-up clothes to use, the better. Pare down the choices, and satisfaction increases. It’s been proven with buffet-line surveys, grocery-aisle overload studies and with consumer statistics. It boils down to this: there is a tipping point. At some point, the array of choices we’re faced with becomes overwhelming, or at least unsatisfying.
Turns out, people do not thrive with more choice. They cope. They manage. They select – and then spend a considerable amount of time wondering if they made the right choice. So, whether it’s the garage collection of spare bits of lumber or a closet stuffed with jackets or the toy chest overflowing with outgrown items, clean it out with the confidence that less is more. And then enjoy that renewed sense of space to create and experiment, to work and to play. You didn’t add anything to make it happen. You simply took something (the excess) away! Good job!
2.Remove the obstacles: Everything has a place. The second rule of home organization is that everything has a place to store. This is about removing the obstacles to everyone taking responsibility for their own stuff. It’s very hard to take risks, try new things and venture out to explore the world if you can’t find what you’re looking for. Usually there is someone to blame for what is temporarily “lost”. And this sours the effect of embracing new experiences together.
If everything has a home, and everyone knows where that home is, things won’t end up on the floor, in the wrong room, outside or under the bed way at the back of the wall. Things won’t go astray – and your family will learn the wonderful skill of organizing by category.
For families with children, it’s a good idea to keep the categories loose. My daughter has three open baskets in her six-year-old room. One is for the catch all “small toys”; another one holds all her “horsie and dolly stuff”; and the third one (the largest by far) is for “beloved stuffies”. Oh yeah, and then there’s the Lego bucket and the craft cart-all. But really, that’s it. Pretty simple. She knows exactly what goes in each basket and can sit in the middle of her orange and pink rug and literally organize her room by tossing items in the general direction of the right basket. It works!
Of course, it works best if hooks and baskets are within a child’s reach; closed containers are labeled with pictures or words; children (and spouses) are shown where things go (sometimes with monthly reminders); and miscellaneous baskets are positioned around the house – under the table by the front entrance, in the kitchen and even in the bathroom so trips to put things back aren’t too far away. Hint: shelves are the hardest thing to keep clean, open-top containers work best.
Once everything has a place, it’s possible for things to be put back in their place; makes it handy when heading out the door for a paddle or a bike ride. Nothing to search for. Or having new friends over. No big clean job. Or when you want to scrapbook those photos, you know where they are. Amazing!
3.Invite input: Make chores daily. The last general rule of home organization is to make simple maintenance a daily chore. While admitting some days I feel like a human vacuum cleaner, stooping to pick up wooden swords, scattered Lego bits, pencil crayons, sparkly change purses and sun hats, I try and spread the workload. If the first two rules of ‘less is more’ and ‘everything has a place to store’ are followed, then there’s no problem. A five-minute clean sweep of the house is all it takes at the end of the day to put things in order. But, if rule numbers one and two go by the wayside, so does my sanity. I can only handle so much clutter.
As a busy mom of two, I do not expect perfection. And, I agree that ‘good enough’ is the new acceptable housekeeping standard. But if my house is not tidy, I do not feel good sitting down to read a book or talk over the day with my hubby or call a friend or even sit down to enjoy my supper. Relationship suffers or at least stays at the surface level. But, if I can see the carpet, I’m okay. I feel peaceful. I feel things are taken care of. I feel confident and approachable. Sooooo... things happen!
I take the time to maintain a clutter-free zone by making the pick-up habit a daily one. I don’t walk past bathing suits and brightly-colored beach towels snaking out of the closet in the hall. I stop. I pick them up and put them where they’re stored: a gym bag. I do not fold the suits, or re-wash the towels. A clean floor is all I seek. Everyone in the house knows the minimum standard: a clean floor. Or else. For me, it’s a pretty basic building block of a good relationship. (Really.)
These three rules, Less is More (take the time to de-clutter and cut down on choice); Everything has a Place to Store (provide accessible spaces throughout the house); and Make Maintenance a Daily Chore (clean carpets for all), spread out between all family members are easy to follow, easy to understand and easy to live with. And what active family couldn’t use a little more peace in that personal sanctuary we call home?
Dayna is working as a writer, poet and home school mom of two on beautiful Vancouver Island. She recently moved to Victoria from Alberta, where she worked as an award-winning community reporter in Banff and as an Editorial Assistant for Where Calgary magazine. When not word-smithing, she can be found lakeside with a book in hand, or on the bike trails with her family.
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