Kids, Clothes & Charity - How Are They Connected ?

I know that most people don't want to think about the summer coming to a close and everything that it entails, but being organized means thinking ahead.

The end of summer means the start of the next school year.

The start of the new school year means new clothes for the kids.

And that means that you will be taking their old clothes (and I mean clothes that don't fit, not tattered clothes) to Goodwill or another charity that could use them.

Kids outgrow things. Sometimes too quickly. You turn around and the next thing you know they are 4 inches taller than when they got out of school in June. It happens! So you have to buy them new clothes.

But before you just randomly go to the store and buy everything in sight you need to go through their closet and drawers and take an inventory of what they really need, not just want they want. BUT, you need to get them involved in the process.

This is not always fun for the kids and they will probably fight you on this, because they have better things to do than go through their clothes, things like playing outside or being with their friends. But as a parent this is a "teaching" moment. You are teaching them how to make decisions, how to organize their closet and drawers, how to recognize when clothes don't fit and the biggest lesson of all is why it's important to donate things that you no longer need to a worthwhile cause. And of course you know that you get a tax write-off.

Once you have gone through their closet and had them try on all of their clothes and put them into piles of "keep", "donate" or "trash" (because they were too worn out to donate) it's time to make a list of exactly what items they will need.

Making a list is very important because it will save you time and money at the store. You won't remember how many socks they had and they will try to get you to buy things that they don't really need.

Once you have the "needed items" (socks, underwear, pants...) you can look at "extras" but try and keep it in perspective. They don't need twenty pairs of jeans or twenty new pairs of shoes. Kids outgrow things very quickly.

By starting when they are young and helping them understand the concepts of "moderation", buying only what they really need and also buying only what they have room for, you are teaching them skills they will use their entire life.

Get into the habit of going through their closets at least once a season, especially when they are young and growing like weeds. And by the way, why don't you clear out your closet at the same time. You would be setting a great example!

Happy Closet Organizing!


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