Weeding for Gardens and Children's Clothes

It's Spring, a time to start gardening and enjoy being outside. This is also the perfect time to "weed" your child's clothes to get ready for the warmer weather. Here's how to start.

• Set aside a time to purge the winter clothes out of your child's closet and dresser. Put all the cold-weather clothes you find into a pile in the middle of the room - toddlers may have fun helping with this part!
• Sort the pile into clothes to keep for a sibling or for sentimental value, and clothes to donate. See if you can donate at least half.
• Put the clothes to donate into a bag and place it in your car or near the front door. Plan to drop off the items the next time you go out.
• Place the winter clothes that you want to keep in a long-term storage area, such as your attic or another closet. Store them in clear containers. To easily find the clothes at a future point, label the containers descriptively, such as "Winter Clothes: 12-24 months" or "Special Dresses."
• If you have found clothes from last year that might still fit your child this season, hold a fashion show - have your child try on everything while playing fun music. If there are items that don't fit, decide which to put into long-term storage and which to donate.

Congratulations, you are done with the spring clean up! Now here are strategies to help you stay organized throughout the year.

• Only keep clothes that fit and are for the current season in your child's dresser or in the front of the closet. Regular weeding or purging will prevent your children's clothes from getting "overgrown."
• Create a "To Donate" box and keep it in a closet. As you find clothes that no longer fit, immediately put any you don't wish to keep into this designated box. When the box is full, bring the items to a charity.
• Children can help keep their clothes organized, if you show them where everything goes. Make it easy by keeping all the bottoms in one drawer, tops in another, and underwear/socks/sleepwear in another. Label the dresser drawes or closet shelves with words and pictures, just like an elementary classroom.
• If you purchase clothes out-of-season, store them in a clear container. Label the container with the contents ("Paige clothes for fall") and put it in the back of your child's closet. When the season comes, look through the container before you go shopping - you might have forgotten what you bought many months ago.

Happy spring organizing!

Call Elizabeth today if you need help getting your child's clothes in order.

This article was originally written for the Arlington Family Connection newsletter.