Don't peek....

As many of you know I spent the entire month of January in deep organizing.  Also many of you know that I have seven kids so the organizing can only go so far.  Try as I may --- I just can't keep up with everything 100% and be a happy momma so there are things that I avoid purely for my sanity.  Here are just a few:

           *  I DON'T venture downstairs to the kid's play
               area unless absolutely necessary
           *  I avoid taking children with me when I'm going
               grocery shopping
           *  I RARELY look in the kids' drawers

People often ask me for tips on how I do it (handling 7 kids and remaining happy) - this is how.  I have discovered things over the years that trigger a little mom grumpiness in me and these are some of them so to remain a happy positive mom I avoid things that might turn me against the kids.  It isn't 100% fool proof as I still have my days but it definitely helps a lot.

Anyway, today the kids are taking some skiing lessons so after they headed off to school I had to venture in their rooms to find the right clothes for them to take to the mountain.  Needless  to say this was going to require me to hold my breath and dive into the kids' drawers.  You may be wondering what is so wrong with looking in their drawers -- I'll tell you why.  I don't really love doing laundry.  I know it may seem like I love it because I do it almost every day but the truth is sometimes we do things that we simply don't love.  The part I don't like about laundry the most it putting it away. 

I don't mind folding it, although I wouldn't pick it to do on a Friday night.  I have a ritual I follow.  I set up on the couch and turn on a show and fold the night away.  Everyone has a pile and then they each have to put away their own laundry.  As I hand them their pile I always remind them, "Please sort your clothes and put everything away in the right spot".  The "right spot" meaning the drawer or cubby where the clothes go.  Everything has a place when I organize their drawers for them (when the seasons change).  If they'd just keep putting their clothes away as I organized for them things would stay organized.  Right?!

As you've probably guessed, things don't run this way.  I wash, fold and hand them their pile of laundry with the friendly reminder and then they run upstairs and stuff their clothes wherever they please so when I open their drawers I get angry.  I see everything all mixed up.  Dirty clothes in the drawers and clean clothes on the floor and I usually start emptying their drawers and yelling at the kids that they need to come and re-organize their drawers the way they are supposed to be.  There you have it!  I don't enjoy being that kind of mom so I just keep their drawers closed until it is time for me to come in and go through sizes and switch winter for summer and vice-versa.

Today I started in the girls' room and it was pretty easy to find what I needed.   The drawers were sorted as they were supposed to be.  They weren't folded but at least their was some sort of organizing.  Then I opened their sock/underwear drawers and they had placed one of my organizing baskets in their for the undies and the socks were on the side of the basket.  They also had a little piece of notebook paper taped on the edge of the drawer with socks/ underwear scribbled down (they aren't allowed to play with my label maker).  I was very proud of them and it made my frowny face turn upside down.

The boys room was another story.  I looked vainly for what I needed without success then I ran out of the room and shut the door.  I will spend the remainder of the day trying to forget what I saw in there .... at least until Saturday and then they'll get it!  Want to venture a guess at what the boys will be doing with their Saturday????