Manic Monday

School daze…
Getting our little ones up, fed, dressed and ready to go out the door can be a real magic act. One trick I found helpful, and something that I implemented the first month of kindergarten was a clothing cubby. Getting 3 kiddos out of bed, on the potty and seated at the breakfast table was my morning work out. Up the steps…down the steps…up the steps…down the steps. OK, running up and down the steps was getting out of hand. In an effort to reduce the number of times I chased my tale helping my little dependants and to make my overall planning-ahead job easier, I started placing a weeks worth of clothes into clothing cubbies. For around $20.00 from a mail order catalog, I cut one of my jobs from the morning “to do” list.

Each week, as I put the laundry away, I fill Monday thru Friday with completed outfits. I make sure that each bin gets socks and undies as well as the right clothing for the right day. Sweats and sneakers for gym class, the new shirt for casual day and a sweater on the day that the trusty weatherman is calling for a drop in temperature. Now, I can stay down stairs feeding the baby and coaxing the 3 year old to finish breakfast while the older one is up getting dressed independently. I think next, I’m going to hang a small picture of books as a reminder on the day that library is scheduled.
The best part is how easy it was to incorporate into our daily routine. I pulled the day of the week cubbies out of the delivery box and wrapped the Velcro hanger around the closet rod. Step one…DONE. I explained that it was something she could do “all by herself” and she couldn’t wait for the next school day. Step two…DONE. On Mondays she needs to get the step stool out of the bathroom to reach the top bin, but it barely even slows her down. This one gets filed under one of my best ideas ever. If only I had invented the day of the week cubbies….Ahhh that would be nice.
Let me know your manic Monday, “make life easier” ideas.