In my early young adulthood, I worked for a retail clothing store. I learned all of the retail folding techniques and became addicted to how beautiful a shelf could look when everything was folded just so and even organized by color. I began to use this system in my own drawers and closet at home. In my later adulthood, during my single years in Texas, I was downright obsessive about it.
Then, I moved to Utah, married my "Prince Awesome", and got pregnant with our first baby, all in the same year. Since that time, and two more babies later, I have been fighting the fight that EVERY mother does with the LAUNDRY! You find time to fold, only to have the kids try to "help." Or they villainously knock over piles and fling clothes everywhere the second you turn your back! Then you re-fold and re-pile to put everything neatly into drawers, only to have the drawers trashed by the children the next day as they roughly search for the items they want to wear. It's a never ending battle I tell you! And something's GOTTA give!
So a few months ago I thought about it and determined that I had to decide what's worse? Messy drawers? Or a laundry covered couch? Definitely... The Couch!
My children are 4, 3, and 21 months. Some of you mothers out there are AMAZINGLY organized and have equally organized children right when they're born. For me, it is a constant uphill battle to get my children to understand the importance of neatness and they really couldn't care less! So, I decided that I was through with laundry filled couches and COMPROMISED my earnest want for perfect and pretty drawers.
I no longer fold my kids clothes.
There, I said it! Judge all you want, but I'm telling you it has made a big difference.
My new routine:
Pull clothes from dryer to large basket. Sit with Large filled basket on my side and three empty baskets in front of me. If there is a little "helper" around, I no longer fight them off, they are perfectly capable of helping me and NOT destroying the work. We then proceed to sort. Each child has their own basket that gets filled with their own clean laundry. From that point, it's out of my hands. (Except for the youngest's clothes.) The two oldest then take their baskets and sort from them into the proper drawers. Yes! THEM not ME, putting their clothes away. And they're GREAT at it. At some point, I will require them to fold, but for now... this works for us.
Great idea!! I do this now, too! Sort from the dryer (or if I'm in a hurry, from the couch later) into people's baskets. These people take their laundry to their room. Since they are 13 and 9, they are supposed to fold their stuff and put it away. The older kids do their own completely. I wash the boy's laundry separate from ours and the little one's, so the sort is even easier!
ReplyDeleteI'm excited to see your blog is going again! This means you are all mostly healthy!
Amen sister!!! We put our kids clothes in "piles", neat piles, as we sort through the laundry, and then they put them away. But they are definetly not "folded" like they used to be. You're right, it is impossible. And why fight it? Go with it! The only "judging" you will recieve is, "wow, she's smart!" :)
ReplyDeleteI must say at the rate I am going now with just doing laundry for Nate and I, I think my kids will be lucky to have their laundry washed :-) I sort and wash the clothes and then put the clean laundry on the couch or our bed (I like the bed because then I know it has to get put away before going to sleep.) I then sort the clothes into a hang up pile, which Nate puts away, and then I sort all the other clothes and throw them in the drawers, unfolded. On a good day I might even turn the clothes right-side out.
ReplyDeleteI guess I am in the minority. I still fold or hang everything. :-) I hang right out of the drier (sometimes they continue to hang on the doorknob all day), and I fold it right onto my kitchen table when the basket is full. I have one basket.
ReplyDeleteMy new favorite laundry detergent is Western Family Basic. Smells so good.