THE JUNK - Doing the Pile Shuffle

Last week, since it was March break, I had time to do a bit of organizing around the house. I tidied and cleaned the babies room, as that had become the dumping ground of things we weren't sure what to do with when we were doing a quick clean before guests came over. It was amazing the things that came out of that room. I also had the opportunity to tidy the older girls' room. It was ridiculous, I swear my 7 year old is going to be on the show Hoarders when she gets older. By the way a shout out to makers of all children's movies, you made my job going through their stuff much easier. I thank you.

While I was going through the rooms I made the inevitable piles. Piles of clothes to go through to see if they still fit or not. Piles of stuff to go to different rooms in the house. Piles of papers to file, recycle, or shred. Piles that have been sitting there for months waiting for you to do something about and you just get complacent and don't. Piles, piles everywhere.

In a perfect world there would be a place for everything and everything would be in its place. When we were using something we would put it back in its aforementioned place. Life would be quite peachy. When spouses or children asked where an item was we could tell them with confidence instead of racking our brains retracing its steps and trying to remember the last place you saw it. I call that stuff utopia.

I do not live in stuff utopia. Instead I deal with the pile shuffle. No matter what room you tidy there always seems to be a pile of things that made the great migration out of their spot into a room they do not belong. It seems that tidying is just a shuffle of stuff and that it seems to be a never ending shuffle of stuff. The worst is when you are in the middle of a tidying or organizing project and you can't finish it. You have to leave your piles and hope you get back to them soon, otherwise the stuff in the piles want to have a party and start moving and making new friends in piles that are not their own. Or sometimes you simple don't know where to put the item, or don't have the storage set up to house the item. These items are in pile limbo, being shuffled everywhere.

The worst culprits for the pile shuffle are toys. With three kids ranging from 7 to 1 we have toys for different ages and interests. Some toys I have in their bedroom, others are in the living room, the rest are in the playroom in the basement. Yet without fail, the 5 year old wants to play with the babies toy, or their Barbies in their room need to have a movie party downstairs etc. etc. The worst is when they are playing and then want a snack so they bring their toys into the kitchen put them down while they get a yogurt and then leave them there on the floor for me to step on when I do my cooking stuff. I had to ban toys from the kitchen, and so far, so good.

While, we cannot get rid of the piles altogether as they do come in handy, there are somethings they can do to use them as a help and not a hinderance. Here are some tips I thought of while in the middle of the chaotic pile shuffle.

1. Put piles in baskets. This is super helpful for piles of things that don't belong in that room. It makes transport of these items to their proper home so much easier. It also helps keep the piles contained. They won't become the leaning tower of Pisa and merge with other piles. It also helps break up your cleaning. Once the basket is full you can take a break and walk around returning items to their homes. It is nice to be able to take a break to help you feel refreshed and ready for the next round of organizing.
2. Make sure you actually deal with the pile. I know I have just dumped a pile onto the couch or the dining table and then just left it there. If you don't deal with it immediately the items will disperse, get ripped, wrinkled or lost. I know after a long day of organizing it is the last thing you want to do, but your sanity will thank you later.
3. Be honest. If there is an item that always seems to be in a pile, ask yourself "do you really need that item?" If it so important to you it should have a home, or making it a home should be your top priority. If you don't, maybe you shouldn't have that item. (This does not count for files that are needed for taxes or other necessary things like that. Bite the bullet and get a filing system, seriously.) Also, if there is an items that are always in your bedroom but it's home is really in the living room, perhaps you should change its home to the bedroom. Some battles are worth fighting but where a certain toy or magazine is kept is not worth it. Ask yourself "is this really the best place for this?"
4. Give away piles need to leave immediately. For items that are giveaway it is best to put them directly into the box or bag you are going to take to the donation place. As soon as the tidying is done or the bag is full put that bag into your car or out in the garage so no one is tempted to pull things out. You want those items gone, make it as easy as you can for yourself. We are saving items for a yard sale. We have a dedicated spot for those items. It is in a closet so we cannot easily see what is in there. This makes it easier for those items not to get back into the rooms.
5. Be realistic. Right now I have three young kids. My expectations for what I can get through, organizing wise, is quite low. My 1 year-old is quite fast at emptying baskets, getting rid of piles, finding the quickest way to make the biggest mess. It is a true art really. Don't give yourself a huge pile to sort through unless you know you have the time to do it, without interruptions or "help" from little hands. It will make you feel frustrated if you are constantly not able to get it done. Accept what you can do with your limitations and be happy with that. Also accept that you might need help and do what you can to get that help.

Remember the less your things go on vacation the less rounding up of them you will have to do. Make their homes a place that makes sense for their use and try to educate others in your home of where they belong, but listen to your families input as well. What might make sense to you, will not always make sense for others. Work together on this.

What do you do to reduce the amount of time you have to do the pile shuffle?