The Junk - Clothing

I don't know about you but clothes seems to always be an issue in our house. I just can't seem to get a handle on it. Laundry getting in the hamper is not usually an issue, unless my girls decide under the bed is better than the hamper. The problem is once the clothes are washed and folded, they just don't seem to want to back in the drawers from whence they came. So they end up as piles on the floor that get knocked over and mixed up.

Then, there are the outgrown clothes. Since I have all girls I save all the still nice looking clothes to pass down the line. So, I have totes with labels of different sizes, which house the said sized clothes. Not a problem. The step that seems to be crazy is I will wash the clothes that need to be stored, and somehow instead of ending up in the tote, the end up back in the drawers. And then, I get to deal with them all over again. It seems to be a vicious cycle.

I am still coming up with a sure fire method to this clothing madness. There are some tips that have helped me. Here they are.

1. Minimize the amount of clothes

We live in a time where clothes are fairly cheap. I can buy shirts and pants for $4. As well, they are making kids clothing so darn cute that you want to buy everything you see to make your child the cutest ever.

Another problem, is that many of us don't know how many articles of clothing our children actually need, so we keep buying because we figure that they need it. My brother in-law sat down and made a list of the bare minimum his kids needed to get through the week/seasons. I have tweaked the list a little to better suit my children, but it is nice to have a starting point. The following list is for girls, but it will give you an idea of what you need and should be fairly easy to change to make it work for boys.

• 1 Snow Suit
• 1 Spring/Fall Jacket
• 1 Rain Coat
• 1 pair Winter Boots
• 1 pair Rain Boots
• 4 Shoes/Sandals (this include running shoes, and dress shoes)
• 2 Winter Hats
• 2 Mittens
• 2 Summer Hats
• 2 Bathing Suits
• 1 pair Sunglasses
• 7 T-shirts
• 2 Sweaters
• 7 Long sleeved shirts
• 1 Nice White Shirt
• 5 Pants
• 4 Skirts/Dresses
• 5 Shorts/Capris
• 8 Socks
• 8 Underwear
• 3 Tights
• 3 Warm Pyjamas
• 3 Cool Pyjamas

This doesn't mean that you can't have more clothing, but hopefully this will help you avoid buying clothes unnecessarily.

2. Don't store totes in children's room

Part of my clothing in tote problem is that sometimes the totes are in the girls' closets. It is nice to have them close to where they will be needed, but at the same time, you can open them and not close them properly, or you might just place the clothes on top instead of putting them actually in the tote, or the kids are napping and you don't want to disturb them so you end up not putting the clothes in the totes at all.

It is much easier to keep the totes in the garage or other storage area that is independent of the children's room. That way they are still easy to access, but they are not dependent on the rooms being unoccupied. Also you will actually lift the lid and put the clothes in the tote as you don't want clothes randomly floating around with power tools.

3. Help children put away clothes or at least be in the room with them

You may not have to do this with older children, or teenagers, but with younger children it is essential. I know that my 6 year old can open the drawers of her dresser herself and that she knows which drawer each different item goes in. But, if she had a choice between putting her clothes away and playing with her toys or coming up with a cool game with her sister, well I think we all know what she will do.

By being in the room you can encourage, help if needed, and make sure they haven't missed anything, before the playing starts. You may think that there are other household chores you could be doing at that moment, since it seems redundant to be sitting there but, if you don't want to have to deal with THE JUNK that is clothing, it is worth the five minutes.

So hopefully some of these tips will help you tackle THE JUNK of clothing. I am still working on other ways to keep the clothing at bay. If you have any tips or insights let me know!

Homemade Granola Bars

I know this is not a normal posting day but I had two people in the past 24 hours ask me about home made granola bars. So, I figured that it was sign to do a post about it.

As part of my crusade to create a more simple life I have come to the conclusion that I need to make more things instead of buying them. One of those things are granola bars.

Ah yes, the granola bar. The thing you grab in the morning as a quick breakfast as you run out the door or get lunches ready for children, or you are making everyone else's breakfast. A lot of the store bought ones are dry, too sweet, or full of ingredients I don't know how to pronounce. They also cost a bunch. I knew I had to make  my own. That way I could stretch my dollars and provide something for my family that was healthier and not so full of unpronounceable ingredients.

So I turned to the glorious internet to solve my problem and I found this recipe. This was a great base but there were somethings I wanted to change, so I did. I was able to tweak it to meet my families needs and likes. This is such a versatile recipe. If there is something you don't like, leave it out, if you want to add something go ahead.

So the following is my family's version that I love. And, most importantly, my husband and children love. I hope you love it too. The only negative about this recipe is that it is so yummy you will want to eat the whole pan! (But is that really bad?)

In a large bowl combine
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat flour (all-purpose is fine)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/4 cup flax seeds
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup chocolate chips (it is a heaping cup full)
2 Tbsp raw sunflower seeds
2 Tbsp raw pumpkin seeds (I sometimes leave the seeds out, my four year old is not always partial to them)
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp sea salt (I usually just measure it in my 1 tsp measuring spoon and have just a bit less than full.)

In a smaller bowl combine
1/3 cup melted unsalted butter
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 banana mashed
1 egg, well beaten
2 tsp vanilla

Mix the wet and dry ingredients together until mixture is moist throughout. Put into a greased 9"x13" pan and bake in a 350F preheated oven for 24 minutes. These freeze well, though we usually go through the pan before freezing them would be necessary.

Tips

• put ripe or over ripe bananas in the freezer. You can put them straight in, no need to wrap them. The peel will turn brown, so don't worry. When you are ready to use them just set them on the counter to thaw, in a pinch you can thaw them in the microwave. The banana will turn squishy and will be easier to mash. It eliminates waste and helps you always have bananas on hand for recipes.
• If you don't want to use bananas you can substitute applesauce. I use 1/2 cup of applesauce. I prefer to use the banana because the granola bars seem more moist, but sometimes I forget to buy bananas and replenish my freezer supply.
• The original recipe called for honey. I prefer to use maple syrup. You can exchange maple syrup for honey in any recipe using a ration of 1:1. I buy my maple syrup in 4L bottles from the mennonites who live around Waterloo. If you can't find a bulk supplier in your location, you can use the honey or another type of liquid sweetener, you may just have to play with the amounts.
• If you buy bulk maple syrup you can store it in the freezer with no ill effects. I usually have two 4L bottles in my freezer at any given time and then I use them to refill the bottle I keep in the refrigerator for day to day use.

The Junk - Loot bags

Kids seem to come with a lot of junk. Everywhere you turn kids get more and more junky toys and crafts. Restaurants, community activities, school, and the notorious party loot bag. Oh how I loath the loot bag. Tiny plastic craziness.

Now don't get me wrong. I love bringing joy to children with a loot bag but, the cheapy stuff from the dollar store that breaks, doesn't work well and just plain sucks... NO THANKS! (I love the dollar store for many other things.)

It was refreshing to me when my daughter came home from a birthday party with a tomato plant seedling. The party was held in mid-march and the seedling was an inch or so high. My daughter watered it faithfully. She made sure it had enough sunlight and, when the time was right, planted it into a bigger container for the summer. She watched in anticipation as her plant continued to grow and thrive. She squealed with delight when the yellow flowers appeared and was in awe when she saw the green tomatoes start to ripen.

This simple loot bag idea kept giving and giving. It showed thoughtfulness, as the birthday parent would have had to start the seeds in advance of the party, and it taught their own child about gardening and seeds. Super awesome! My daughter was thrilled with the plant and didn't come home asking, "where are the toys?"

My last loot bag was homemade play dough and chocolate. (Two of my children have birthdays in late April. Hello Easter candy sales!) Both items are consumable and will not add to "the junk". (If the play dough was not wanted it can be put in the compost or a green bin as it is homemade.)

So this is my plea. Say no to the itsy bitsy toys of plastic. They may look cute but they really suck. Kids love them, parents don't. They add to the clutter of our homes and the clutter of the earth, as they are most likely to end up in the landfill. Quality is much better than the quantity of toys. Give loot bags that will give an experience. Though the tomatoes are gone, the memory of the plant is still there, and my daughter is already planning our garden for next spring.

The Junk - A Series

Some people get drawn to the simple life because it promises a life of less stress, less clutter and more meaning. There is not excess. Things are bought with a purpose in mind. Things are kept because they serve a purpose.

Right now I feel like I am drowning in clutter. Perhaps drowning is a bit over the top. You will not find our house on a hoarders episode. However, the clutter that is around the house makes me feel stressed and not happy. If your belongings are not adding to your happiness, then what is the point of them. (I am talking about the extra things that you don't really need, not about the stove or sink, those are necessities and if they are not bringing you happiness then that is another issue all together.)

For me, I don't want to go completely minimalist. I just want less junk in the house. I want what is in my house to have a purpose and be beautiful. If I want to sew things at my sewing machine I don't want to have to move piles in order to do it. I don't want to have to move things around to set the table for dinner. When it gets to that point you are not happy. The stuff is becoming a barrier for you to be able to do the things that interest you and that you enjoy. If you have to move stuff out of the way to sew are you likely going to sew? I am guessing the answer is, no.

Over the next few weeks I will have a series of blogs that relate to "the junk". It will deal with things that create clutter or is clutter. The posts will commiserate with you as well as give you hints on what to do or how to manage things differently.

I came to this idea, because I am ready to pare down and get rid of the stuff that is preventing me from doing what I would love to do. Before I was giving myself excuses, "you just had a baby" or "wait until you have money for more organizing materials" or "I don't know where to begin". Well no more. My husband and I had a powwow session and decided that we need to be adults and just do it. Make the goals have the follow through and just do it. So we are doing it.

I am by no means an expert, but hopefully by writing my experience as I go through my stuff it will help you as well. It will definitely help motivate me.

So de-clutter "the junk" from your life. What tips do you have? Is there a room in your house you are loathe to go through?