Many parents agree that their homes had a fraction of the clutter before they had children. From toys and trinkets to art projects, there’s a lot to keep track of and, for many, it’s hard to part with things that your children made or cherishes. Here are six tips to help minimize kid clutter while still saving memories:
Designate a File Box
Use a banker’s box to file away school projects, tests and artwork you want to save for your children. The organization experts at Divine Caroline (.com) suggest that “your child will not have the same attachment to these as you will. Be picky, and set your limit.” Choose items that show improvement and growth over time so that when you and your kids look back on these items, the work will illustrate and chart their progression and advancement.
Rotate Toys
Does your child have more toys than he or she needs? Though, they only play with one or maybe two items at a time, it may be difficult to get rid of toys they cherish or that they’re not old enough to enjoy.
Parenting experts at the University of Illinois Extension recommend parents “rotate toys, putting some in ‘inactive’ storage for a time.” Attic space and sheds are two good places to store excess toys if you have the room, but you may want to bag them or you may have to hose them off later. Don’t have enough storage space at home? You can rent storage units for a low monthly rate to get excess toys out of your house.
Scan Important Papers
If you dread throwing away your child’s report cards, school reports and tests because you think that some day they may want these items, we have the perfect solution: scan it! Create a digital copy of everything you wish to keep and toss the hard copies to save space. Put all of the digital copies on a removable hard drive and keep it in a safe place to prevent losing everything in a computer crash.
Create Photo books
Take scanning one step further and create digital copies of your child’s artwork. Compile each year’s work together into a photo keepsake. Photo books make great coffee table books, as well as gifts for family members. Don’t want to take the time to scan everything in? Take a close-up photo of each piece instead.
Use Personalized Bins
To minimize the clutter of school papers, organization experts at Get Simplified (.com) suggest that parents “assign a storage bin for each kid and put it where you regularly sort through homework and paperwork.” To prevent bins from overflowing, take time each month to clean out each bin with your child and get their input about what they want to save and what can be tossed. Keep your kids’ bins in a central location where they like to do their homework. Consider choosing a location near the front door or the kitchen to prevent forgetting important papers in the morning rush to school.
Make Greeting Cards
Do you have a stack of your child’s drawings that you don’t want to throw away, but don’t really need to keep? Repurposing them as greeting cards and stationery for your kids to send grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. Do you prefer your cards to be more polished? Photograph or scan artwork first and make customized stationery and cards online.