Mittens, Hats and Scarves...Oh My!

Now that winter has arrived I feel overwhelmed with winter gear. My kids come home from school and create a pile the size of a mountain at my door. Mittens, scarves, hats, boots - you can barely see the door once my children are fully undressed. Last year I was visiting a friend and saw probably one of the simplest, yet most brilliant ideas of my life. She had all her winter gear stored in a shoe holder which was attached to a closet door. Each child had a few pockets to store their hats and gloves. I finally purchased a shoe holder last week and set it up. Little kids on the bottom, big kids towards the top. It has only been two weeks, but already I love it! This may not be a tip on helpful parenting but trust me it has solved a lot of undo arguments concerning the lost gloves, the missing hats and the still wet scarves.

Gift Drawer

I was inspired many years ago by Liz to start a "birthday gift drawer." It has saved me much time & frustration on more then one occasion. I buy toys, creative things, jewelry, really whatever, during sales and put them in a drawer in my office. Then when we get a last minute (or forgotten) invitation I send the girls "shopping" in the drawer. They love picking something out. I also keep a few generic baby shower gifts & gift cards as well.

A gift drawer...it's a good thing!