Tag: clear clutter

Out With The Old, In With The New… In The Kitchen!

Are “get fit”, “eat healthier” or “lose weight” goals of yours for 2017?  And those have been really easy to accomplish, right?

Or…not?

We have good intentions, of course, but perhaps we’ve hit some bumps on the road to getting healthier!  We can succeed when our kitchen works with us towards our goals!

Here’s a tip:  A cluttered kitchen leads us to unhealthy habits.  Conversely, cleaning up your kitchen helps you create and keep healthy habits.  And I have data to back these statements up, click here for more info:

So, out with the old and in with the new!

Out With The Old:

  • Clear your counters.  Give yourself space to prepare healthy food.
  • As you clear the kitchen, pull out the rogue holiday items you find, and put them away with your holiday decor in the attic or basement.
  • Clear the Cabinets:
    • Clear the holiday snacks out of the cabinets. It’s been over a month, let them go!
    • Save money and free up space: Don’t shop!  Use what you have on hand this week!
    • Check Expiration dates.  Toss the really old stuff, and add the close-to-expiring items to your menu.
    • Check open items for staleness (is that a word?), and toss the gross stuff.
  • Clear out the fridge – again, checking expiration dates and investigating all those mysterious plastic containers.  Same for the freezer.  Add found items to your menu this week, to use up what you have on hand!
  • Clean out your utensil drawers – take everything out, wipe out the drawer and let it dry, then put the items back in the drawer, after editing of course! Purge old or broken items, and duplicates.

In With The New:

  • Re-populate the cabinets and fridge with healthy food items.
  • If you must buy snacks and things, for the other people in your house who ARE NOT trying to eat healthier, limit the variety and location to a single bin or shelf, and populate the rest of the kitchen with healthier options.
  • Healthy Habits:
    • Meal Prep is one of the best habits you can create for eating healthier.  Pack healthy lunches for the week, leave them in the fridge, and then grab and go when you head out in the morning!
    • Meal prep success relies on storage containers. Which leads us to …Plastic Containers.  Oh boy.  Pull them out.  Match up the bottoms and tops.  Toss the broken, stained or lonely/ unmatched containers.
    • Drink more water! Corral your reusable water bottles, pare them down to your favorite 3 or 4 (I once found 37 in a kitchen.)  Store those water bottles where they are convenient and likely to be used!  And take one with you every day!
    • Save time, money and calories this year, and take your own coffee with you!  Store those go-mugs and coffee where they are convenient, too!
    • If your healthy habits include smoothies, put all your smoothie equipment in a basket next to  or near your blender.  Do the same with any of your smoothie ingredients, like a fruit basket in the fridge, or a bin in the cabinet above the blender.
    • Bring out the healthy foods, store them front and center.  Make healthy eating convenient!

Spend some time in your kitchen this week,

clear the clutter that is holding you back, and

make your kitchen work for you!

 

To:

Receive more ideas and suggestions like these;
Book time with me in person or virtually;
Arrange a presentation for your upcoming event; or
Discover the benefits of Organizational Coaching;

Please contact me.

Call / text 708.790.1940
Online at  http://peaceofmindpo.com
www.Facebook.com/MColleenKlimczakCPO
Via Twitter, @ColleenCPO

 

My Client Asked Me If I Was Falling Apart

In conversation with a client last week as we organized, I mentioned that I was having my wedding ring, my favorite leather backpack and a loved black jacket all repaired at local businesses.

She asked, with humor, “Does this mean you are falling apart?!”

Not the response I expected!  I explained that all of those steps are actually a coming together, a positive process, and we then chatted about the importance of maintenance and being a responsible consumer.

For me, a big part of Being Organized means establishing and maintaining systems and items that work for you. Every system and item requires maintenance. And maintenance requires resources, of time, money and energy.

Last week, I

  • Picked up my favorite black jacket with a repaired liner from Park Cleaners in Evergreen Park;
  • Picked up my leather backpack from the local shoe repair shop, Fernandos, in Evergreen Park, and it looks new!  I knew the other customers that day, too, all dropping off cold weather shoes and boots for repair before winter sets in;
  • Picked up my wedding ring from Coren Jewelers in Evergreen Park, with the prongs tightened and looking sooo shiny; and
  • Shipped off Tumi suitcases for repair for a client.  Expensive bags, yes, but their maintenance and repair policies are amazing.

Taking care of our favorites helps us out in a number of ways:

  • Save money:  Buying high quality items once and maintaining them is cheaper than buying and rebuying many cheap items.  And identifying and taking care of Favorites keeps us from buying more stuff and making more clutter.
  • Save Space: A small collection of favorites takes up a lot less space than a large collection of un-used and un-loved items.
  • Save Time:  with less clutter to have to sort through, you will find what you’re looking for quickly.  And you’ll spend less time, overall, maintaining “stuff”.
  • Clear Clutter:  Clear spaces with just your favorite items in view gives our minds and eyes a break!

Suggestions – Here’s How!

  • Know What You Have.
  • Know what your favorites are (You may be thinking “But, Coll: they’re all my favorites!”  No, not everything is a favorite, you are not a toddler.).
  • Know how to take care of your favorites, and what the product warranty entails.  And when in doubt about how to, say, clean a crystal vase (a client question a couple of weeeks ago), Google it  (denture tablets, by the way)!
  • Use your favorites!  There is nothing sadder than cabinets and boxes of beautiful and treasured items that never see the light of day!
  • Buy things once, then spend time and money and energy taking care of them. Less is more.
  • Research major purchases for value.  Be willing to invest a little more $$ for higher quality stuff.
  • When making major purchases, make sure to register the item with the manufacturer, to activate the warranty, but also to receive recall information, promotional specials, etc.
  • Support Local (keep the green in evergreen!) Look for local repair opportunities, and if you are unsure what local business to use, ask your friends / family / neighbors for a referral.

Maintain your favorites.  Take care of them, and they will stay your favorites for a long time!

To:

Receive more ideas and suggestions like these;
Book time with me in person or virtually;
Arrange a presentation for your upcoming event; or
Discover the benefits of Organizational Coaching;

Please contact me.

Call / text 708.790.1940
Online at  http://peaceofmindpo.com
www.Facebook.com/MColleenKlimczakCPO
Via Twitter, @ColleenCPO

15 Minutes and $30. Chrome Shelves – 5 Solutions!

Chrome storage shelf unit, how do I love thee?  Let me count the ways!  Chrome storage / shelf units are:

  • Sturdy (we’re talking – able to hold hundreds of pounds);1170bb44-bd15-4b8a-a37f-a79d6fc1b4dd_400
  • Aesthetically pleasing (they look nice);
  • Water and weather proof (ideal for garage and outdoor use);
  • Good for ventilation, with the open spacing;
  • Easily dis-assembled and re-assembled, if necessary, for ease in moving from home to home; and
  • Adjustable and flexible, coming in a wide range of sizes with feet that can be adjusted for uneven floors (like my sloping laundry room floor) or wheels to be added.

Over the years, I have assembled dozens of shelving units like these for clients and myself.  These sets are inexpensive, utilitarian and attractive, and can be set up in no time at all.

What organizational challenges or underutilized spaces could use a Chrome Shelving cure?

My personal favorite, a storage unit as a printer stand on the counter extension next to my desk (30″ H x 24″ W).

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Here, we use the shelves to hold luggage and extra bedding in a summer cottage bedroom
(30″ H x 36″ W).

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The shelves are great for adding storage to awkward areas, like the small space between my wash tub and wall in my laundry room, or shown here as storage in an empty corner of a bathroom in need of a linen closet  (30″ H x 36″ W).

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Ok, so these larger shelves cost more than $29.99 + tax, but they still were a snap to assemble, and a really great storage solution.  These two photos are taken of 6′ tall chrome shelving units, with the optional wheels added so we can maneuver the units.  One of my clients has 4 of these 6′ x 4′ units on wheels in her garage, and we can move them around based on need and convenience.  The photo on the left shows area rug and off-season houseware storage.  The photo on the right shows my own garage, with the shelves waiting for donation and recycling items that come and go from my clients.

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So, what organizational challenge can you solve with this simple solution this week?  Give it a try!

A Monster Standing Between Me and My Coffee.

Some mornings, I am greeted with a terrifying sight.
 

coffeeYou see, sometimes we (and I include myself in this “we”) will snack / cook / make popcorn in an evening, and not clean up the kitchen before going to bed.  The next morning, I head to the kitchen only to find a big mess between me and my first cup of coffee.

Ahhhhh!!!

On a recent weekday morning, I spent 10 minutes setting my kitchen back to rights after some last night snacking.  As I went through the usual list of tasks, I realized I could share this organized process!  Especially considering that this phenomenon may happen other times of the day, too, like when I rush home from a client to get dinner started before a busy evening only to find stuff on EVERY COUNTER and no room to cook.
 

(I just read a Real Simple article over the weekend, that likened this trashed kitchen phenomenon to “the refrigerator exploding”, or “the monkey house at the Bronx Zoo”.  It was a great article, click here to read the whole thing: http://www.realsimple.com/home-organizing/organizing/how-to-live-with-messy-person)
So here is what you need to clean up your kitchen in a flash!
  • A system;
  • An empty dishwasher;
  • A dish pan (to corral your dirty dishes);
  • A sink dish drain (no counter clutter!); and
  • cleaning spray and a paper towel or cleaning cloth.
dish pandish drainmicrofiber clothspray bottles
 
Here is the system
  • Pick a counter to start, and move around the room:
  • (30 seconds) Start with the easy: toss the trash, close the cabinets, put away the toaster or popcorn maker (for example);
  • (30 seconds) Put away food (we’re good about putting perishable stuff away right away);
  • (60 seconds) Load the dishes into the dish pan, and wipe down the counters with the cleaning spray;
  • (2 minutes) Empty the in-sink dish drain and put away the dishes;
  • (2 minutes) Empty the dishwasher if it’s clean;
  • (60 seconds) Load the dirty dishes into the dishwasher; and
  • (Optional – 60 more seconds) Run the garbage disposal, and then fill a dishpan full of hot soapy water and set any pans and non-dishwasherable items to soak.

Now, your kitchen is cleaned, or at least clean enough to start that first cup of coffee, assemble breakfast and pack lunches, or get dinner on the table!

Six and a Half Pounds

6 and a half pounds.
That’s how much the average handbag weighs.  And that doesn’t include a lap top.
6.5 pounds look like:
  • A Mr. Coffee 12-cup Coffeemaker;  bag
  • 6 1/2 bottles of water;
  • A pair of men’s size 10 hiking boots;
  • A two liter bottle of soda (from answers.com);
  • 67 hershey bars;
  • 520 pencils;
  • 1170 pennies; or
  • a 5 pound bag of sugar and a pound of butter.
And we’re schlepping that around on our shoulder every day.  (Fellas, don’t think I am not talking to you today.  I see those messenger bags you haul around, and the bulging wallet with receipts, store cards and ancient business cards but no actual cash.)

I saw a woman walking to her car today with 4 – count them 4! – bags on her shoulder.  She still looked confident and awesome doing it, too.  If I had to guess, she had a bag for the gym, a healthy lunch, a great handbag and a tote for work.  She was doing it all, and doing it well, but she could make her load lighter, in every way!

I’m suggesting that we all carry around a lot more than we need, and our joints and backs and shoulders often pay the price.  My challenge to you this week is to lighten your load, and clear the clutter out of your bags!

Here’s how:

  • Clear off a counter, or your dining table.  Dump the contents of your handbag / back back / messenger bag / gym bag out completely.
  • Now, tackle this project just like any other organizing project (per Julie Morgenstern), with our usual 5 step process:
  1. Sort: Sort the contents by category.  Receipts, dirty tissues, cosmetics, pens / pencils / paper clips / notebooks, novels, ear buds, money including 7.50 in loose change, unopened and opened mail, work papers… well, you get the picture.
  2. Purge: Now that you can see what you have, purge the clutter that can go.  Toss the trash, file or shred the mail and receipts, keep a few pencils and one notebook, put the change in a jar for later and get rid of any other clutter.
  3. Assign a Home:  Once you have established what stuff you need to carry with you, determine how you can store it better.  In my bag, I have: a first aid kit / cosmetics bag (yes, a first aid kit because I am a terrible klutz); my wallet which has a wrist strap and I can carry solo with my cards, receipts, cash and change; a few pens and index cards, sunglasses, some lotion and antibacterial hand cleaner; and an envelope with store coupons for when I run my errands.  The whole thing weighs a couple pounds.
  4. Containerize: A handbag or back pack is a container itself, but we do better with sub categories in smaller containers in our bags.  Try a pencil case (just like in school), a cosmetic bag or small bag for personal items, or an envelope for receipts.
  5. Equalize: A fancy word for Maintenance.  Once you have cleared bag clutter, keep it from coming back!
    1. Bigger bags versus Smaller Bags:  I’ve used this logic at times – instead of two or three bags, why don’t I just use one really big bag to carry everything?  Well, of course the problem with that is that we end up carrying around everything all the time in one really heavy bag, instead of just what we need! So Go for the SMALLER BAG!
    2. Receipts are a challenge: provide temporary storage, and a process for getting them out of your handbag and on to their final destination.
    3. Clean out your bag regularly (I have to admit, I use waiting-for-kids-at-practice time to clean out my bag if it needs cleaning).
    4. Unpack your extra bag.  I don’t always carry a tote, but when I do, I empty it out every day and put today’s business away.  If I need the tote again tomorrow, I will only put in it the business I need for the day.
So, carve out 20 minutes this week and lighten your load in all sorts of ways!

If You Have To Ask if a Shirt Is Ugly, It Probably Is.

I have a creamy yellow sweater… well, I had it until a week ago. But it had to go.

Here’s the thing. I look terrible in yellow.  And I KNOW this.  And yet, the sweater remained, for more years than it deserved.  I didn’t want to give it away – it was warm, well made and expensive.  I have fallen in and out of love with this sweater for years, saving it again this year to wear with a belt.

Recently, optimism won out again, and the yellow sweater made it out of the closet and on to my body on a particularly chilly evening for an event at school.  And photos were taken.  And posted on the school PR page.  And I STILL looked terrible in the sweater.  Yikes.

Friends, listen to your intuition.  If an item is beautiful, but not beautiful on you, it needs to go away.

The yellow sweater is gone, gone, gone.  It can bless someone else now.

Spring-like temperatures are here, and this week is National Clean out Your Closet Week AND National Clutter Awareness Week.  These factors motivated me to start switching my clothes out for the season and to purge some items.

Yesterday, as I got dressed for a presentation, I held a shirt in my hand, and heard myself say out loud “I just can’t decide if its ugly or not”.  Guess what?  If I can’t decide if its ugly or not, I will NEVER wear it.  So remaining undecided is not really an option.  If there is even a slight concern that a clothing item might be ugly, I am never going to choose it over another not-ugly item.

If you can’t decide if an item is ugly or not, it probably IS ugly.   If you have a doubt about an item, or if you pick it up and look at it with that crinkle in your forehead as you try to figure out when you would ever wear it… You Are Never Going to Wear It. Let it go.

Wrong color, wrong cut, bad pattern, baggy or unflattering?  Just let it go.

We all tend to have too much in our closet, as opposed to not enough.  So it is typically safe to err on the side of caution.  You deserve clothes that you don’t have to question.

Inarticulate Growls of Frustration About… Clutter!

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It’s amazing, and a little appalling, that some days I find myself uttering inarticulate growls of frustration.  It happens regularly when I stand in my family room.  I growl at my wonderful and amazing family members (and myself).
Why?
The pile of discarded shoes I trip over in the middle of the floor ..9 inches from the shoe rack.
The blanket folded (yes), but left… On top of the trunk where it actually belongs.
Coats heaped on the shelf… Right beneath the coat rack.  (Sigh).
Today’s discarded clothes leaning against the laundry hamper.  On the outside.
My recent favorite?  The wet and snowy shoes NEXT TO the doormat.
Let me admit – some days I am part of the problem.  Last week, we all came home from an outing and instead  of waiting for everyone to get out of my way so that I could hang my coat on the hook, I dropped it on a chair to hang up later.
Luckily for my family, I understand why these close-but-not-quite efforts happen, and I also try to not yell too loudly because I may have to yell at myself, too.
But we don’t have to live with clutter, or grumble at ourselves or others, if we can keep these following tips in mind:
It is amazing what 10 seconds can do.  Seems small, right?  But it takes just 10 seconds to
  • hang up our coat, put our keys on the hook where we’ll find them when we need them, and tuck our shoes out the of way;
  • put the tools away in the tool box instead of leaving them out where they may get lost or forgotten;
  • put my cell phone on the charger instead of just on my desk;
  • put today’s mail in my in-box instead of in another heap on some different surface where it will get ignored and gather dust.
Create a habit of setting things right once or twice a day, and this goes for both our professional and personal lives.    Check your work space at the beginning and end of your work day, and put stuff AWAY to clear that mental clutter or to prepare of the next day.  At home, try to take a sweep around the house before bed, or maybe in the morning AND in the evening, to put rogue items where they belong.  And this is not a solo affair – get others to put their stuff away, too – the afore mentioned coats and shoes and stuff all get hung up.
Be on the look out for regular system breakdowns.  If you or co-workers or family members always struggle with a regular task, take a closer look.  Sometimes we just don’t like  or want to complete a task, but it also may be too complicated / hard / confusing for us or others.  We may need to change or re-assign the task to get it done.  I was recently in an office where filing tasks were never getting completed because the file cabinet was physically blocked by a dead printer graveyard.  The filing tasks would NEVER be completed until we removed and recycled those printers.
Few spaces are ever completely stuff-free, and that’s ok.  Know what Done, or at least Done-Enough looks like, and once you’re there, move on to something else.
Remember, every moment can be an opportunity to do better.  We can growl or grumble. We can judge others and ourselves harshly for not completing tasks or leaving a mess or getting distracted, or… We can take a deep breath and do better.  Even just a little better.   We can put things away, clear the mental and actual clutter, and move on to something else.
Have a great week.

The Super Special Secret to Organizing Success (Ok, it’s not a secret)

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starting-line-running-trackYou’re busy.   You’ve got a home and life, work or volunteering or family, or any combination of those.  I would guess that you’re not sitting around, doing nothing.  Our days are filled.

But we know we want to make a change.   We want to get more organized, get a better grip on our home or finances or work life or time.  We want to make a change.  We NEED to make a change.

But that feels scary.  We know we have to carve out time, space and energy to do something different, something extra, to make progress.  We have to get a little uncomfortable, push ourselves a bit.  But where?  How?  If I’m going to get uncomfortable and push myself, I want to KNOW it’s right, KNOW that I’m doing the exactly right thing.

And there, friend, is the rub.  We need to do SOMETHING, but we may never know that we are doing the exactly right thing.   But here are strategies to start your Whole-Life or Just-One-Little-Corner-Organizing Project. Multiple strategies, because different strategies work on different days or with different projects.

1.  Start with a clipboard.  Grab a clipboard, paper and pen, and walk around your house, noting all potential organizing projects, big or small, realistic or ridiculous.   I often start client sessions with this step; asking questions, opening every door, challenging my client to think about what their space will look like when it’s “organized”.  Don’t edit this list yet, and don’t get overwhelmed.  This is just the list.

2. Look at the complete list, and start to pare down and strategize how to get these projects done.  The list is a great place to start, as it will show some commonalities, like how “Shelves in linen closet”  and “container under the kitchen sink to hold cleaning supplies” can both be satisfied with a trip to Home Depot or Menards.

Now, getting down to business…

3. Start with the easiest project.  Some projects are pretty straightforward. Maybe your home office just needs better lighting and a good printer stand with paper storage.  Again, one quick trip to Office Max, or perhaps a walk around your home or office to see if you already own furniture or a lamp that would solve your problem.  Start with easy, if that gets you moving.  Or…

4. Start with the toughest project.  Paper?  That is a tough project.  Toy Room?  Yes, that could be scary, too. I know, decision making is difficult.  But delaying those tough decisions is what created clutter in the first place.  Get tough, maybe even a little angry, and get to it.  Or…

5.  Start with a small project.  The day after Christmas, I tidied a kitchen drawer while I waited for my tea pot to boil. I continued drawer by drawer by cabinet over the next few days,  in 5 or 10 minutes increments.  Every drawer and cabinet has been tidied and purged, in little pieces.  Small projects keep us motivated but not overwhelmed. Or…

6.  Start with a large project.   Bite off the BIG BITE, the BIG PROJECT that will reap really big rewards once it’s complete. For example:  Garage?  It’s estimated that over half of the garages in the US hold clutter instead of cars.  Garages are big projects, but spending a day or two of really big work and effort will pay off with parking your cars in the garage instead of clutter.  Yes, this is a big project, and sometimes we need BIG results.

Ok, friend, let me share a secret.  Each of these strategies started with “Start”.  Yes, just one simple word, “Start”.  There is not secret to organizing or getting things done.  Each of those words is an action word.  Progress requires Action, and Action requires a START! So, the determinant of your success is not which strategy you use, it’s just that you use one and START.

6 Tasks to Create Organizing Momentum This Week!

October in the Midwest is my favorite time of year.  We enjoy crisp air, blue skies and amazing colors.  But if you’ve lived here long enough, you realize the beauty of Fall is God’s way of softening the blow of Winter.    Cold weather will soon be upon us, and that means, among other things, a lot more time spent indoors.So use this week as a super-powered jump start to your organizing projects, and try one of these 6 Tasks to Create Organizing Momentum!
  1. Get your closet ready for colder weather, and finish (or start and finish!) your seasonal clothes swap.  Pull out your summer clothes to make room for your cold weather ones, and critically review the summer stuff, tossing or donating anything you don’t need, use or love.
  2. Winterize your landing / launch pad, too.  Swap out the baseball caps and sunscreen by the back door for hats and mittens. Again, review the summer stuff critically and toss / donate the stuff you don’t need, use or love.
  3. Pantry shopping:  This time of year feels like the time to stock up, but I challenge you to instead clean out the pantry, fridge and freezer for the next few weeks. Use up what you have before buying more. Use food before it expires, save money by not buying new food, clear cabinet clutter –  the ultimate de-clutter strategy for your kitchen!
  4. Prep your car(s) for winter. Pack a safety bag including but not limited to: a blanket, sweatshirt, extra phone car-charger, umbrella, gloves, non-perishable snacks and a bottle of water, tissues, wipes and hand lotion, and snow scraper.
  5. Call and make appointments with your service people this week.  Call the handyman, the furnace guy or the carpet cleaners, and get on the schedule now before their schedules fill up with the holidays.
  6. Drop off Your Donations, and Recycle your Recycling.  Have you decided to get rid of something in your home?  Go ahead and move it along this week.  Selling that air hockey table or those Halloween costumes? Have bags of clothes to donate to a charitable organization?  Or a pile of old computer components and cords?  Send it all on its way! Making decisions is the hardest part of getting organized, so if you’ve made decisions about things that need to go – either donated, sold, recycled or just trashed – then please, spend an hour, load up the car and drop those items off.  Get them out of your house and on to where they will be useful again.

So, what’s it going to be?  Let’s send clutter on its way, and create organizing momentum to get things done!

Back To School: First Things First – Clothes!

These next few weeks are about action and Taking Care of Business for a lot of parents, myself included.  So I am keeping these next few posts simple.

Do-able.

Positive.

Pared down and drama-free.

Just like back-to-school time should be!

So let’s do this!

First things first, friends. Clothes.  Reviewing the current, and shopping for the new.

  1. Before tackling the clothes / closet review, do all the laundry and put it all away. Yes.  All of it.  Away.  And if you say – “All of it?  THERE’S TOO MUCH!”, then that’s an indicator that this project can reap big benefits for you!  And if you say “AWAY?  We don’t have an AWAY for all the clothes!” then that, too, indicates that this project is extremely overdue.
  2. Next, clear a couple hours on the schedule, for you and your children (each child individually).  Make sure you’re both rested and fed.  Don’t start this at 10 pm, or right before lunch.  Turn on some fun music, grab a pad of paper to write down items to purchase, and get at it.
  3. Make the bed, and then cover it with a clean white sheet – it can be great work space for sorting.
  4. Pick a starting spot, and begin.  DO NOT TAKE OUT EVERYTHING AT ONCE!  Tackle a dresser drawer or a single closet shelf at a time.   Better yet, address a single category of clothes at a time.  All the shorts or pants or skirts or shirts, etc.  Do not try to tackle everything at once!
  5. As you work through the clothes, purge items that are: too big, too small, old or beyond repair, off-season, etc.  Label and store the off-season and too-big items, and donate, sell or hand down the too-small or too-old items.
  6. Do an initial quick review, and purge everything that YOU KNOW fits into the above descriptions  (items that are too small, too stained, too icky, etc.).
  7. Now, have your kids try everything else on.  Yes, everything.  Use the criteria listed above when you review the clothes.
  8. I have teenagers, so I also need an “I’ll never actually wear this” pile.  I find this frustrating, but since my sons aren’t overly picky or materialistic, I respect their choices.  I have also declared that I will never buy clothes for my sons without them with me again.  I don’t want to waste the time or money of buying clothes they won’t wear.
  9. Make a list of items that your kids need for the school year and new season.  (If you need a suggested list, http://peaceofmindpo.com/2010/08/05/that-age-old-ritual-back-to-school-clothes-shopping/ ).  I went through my own closet, too, and got rid of an old and tattered pair of pants and dressy skirt, among other things.  I won’t wear them again, but I will need to replace them so I added those items to my personal shopping list.
  10. Put away the clothes you are keeping (for more ideas, check my past blog articles), and deliver the purged items to their destination.  And then go do something fun!

You CAN do this!  And enlisting your child in the process teaches them organizational skills they can use for life.