Kid’s Bedroom
Let’s jump right into organizing a kid’s room. For some reason organizing a kid’s room causes me great anxiety. I have too many memories of hundreds of tiny poly pocket pieces found all over the bedroom. I must admit tomorrow’s assignment of organizing a teenager’s room may be worse. Pray for me.
Actually, organizing Sara’s room was fairly easy. Because she has only been with us for less than 2 years, she doesn’t have as much stuff as the average 12-year-old. She was so excited to organize her room.
She has a shelving unit in her room that has 16 square cubbies. Before I even went in her room I told her to take everything off the shelves and put them on her bed. I don’t want to do it for her; I want to teach her how to organize.
We went through everything she had on her bed and found the perfect cubby for everything. She has three basket drawers. We decided one should be for art supplies, another for her special notes from friends, and the last drawer for her jewelry. She has a small amount of books which fit on two shelves with adorable book ends.
We then moved to her dresser. You guessed it. We took everything out of each dresser drawer. We asked ourselves the same questions I asked myself yesterday in my closet. Have you worn this in the last year? Is it still in good condition? Do you still like it? Is it still in style? Does it still fit? We added a few things to our donation pile to friends of ours with two girls younger than Sara. We also took inventory of what winter clothes she needs before it gets cold.
Once the drawers were finished, we moved to the top of her dresser. She has a cute box which now only holds her hair accessories. Sara likes headbands and has several. She has a jewelry holder which she likes to use to hold her headbands. Truthfully, I would have put them in the box, however it is her room. I am teaching her how to organize to better serve her needs. Her dresser has one hair box, the jewelry holder, a lamp, and a family picture on it.
We then moved to Sara’s walk-in closet. Inside the closet, she has two small bookshelves. This works great as a shoe rack as well as neatly storing a few toys. We emptied the shelves and once again went through everything. We added a few toys to the donate pile. She was so sweet telling me that another girl would play with some of the toys more than she does. I had placed a few hooks strategically in her closet, one for her robe, and a few more for bags.
Lastly, we set out to organize her desk. Now only two pencil cups, she likes them both, and a CD player are on her desk allowing for a great workspace for homework.
We washed her bedding and were finished. She was so proud of what we had done together. We really had a lot of fun going through everything and finding a perfect place for it all.
Tomorrow I will be organizing a teen’s bedroom.
Simple Steps:
Tackle the biggest thing first. Maybe it’s a bookshelf or cubbies like Sara has. Follow the same routine: empty it, sort everything, make a donation pile, and put things back with a specific purpose and place. For example don’t mix a bin of My Little Pony figurines with books.
Go through the dresser. Take inventory of what clothes you need for the cooler weather. Kids grow so fast, rarely can they wear the same clothes from last winter.
Now move on to the clothes in the closet. You know what to do by now, ask yourself those same questions and take inventory of what you need.
Look at the floor of the closet. Can you see it? I know some kid’s closet floors that are impossible to see. Clear everything out and sort. Make a keep, donate, and trash pile. Remind them that Santa is coming soon and he will be bringing them lots more toys. Also talk about donating toys to help other kids. This is a great opportunity to teach your children how to give. Hopefully they have been watching you modeling giving as you organized your living zone and your bedroom. They will want to mimic what you do, set the example.
Clear off flat surfaces like dressers and desks. Be sure to have a family photo somewhere in their bedroom. Both of our girls have several family photos.
Put another big red X on your calendar. You are doing great.
Come back tomorrow as we organize a teen’s room.
