"THAT" Closet: Drop Zones

Everyone has THAT CLOSET… you know the one where you put things when you don’t know where else to put them. In this instance, it happened to be the office closet. But this family really needed that space to help keep the family’s daily things organized while also hiding some office equipment for a cleaner, less cluttered look for the room. Time to get busy and put a new system in place.

OFFICE CLOSET: AFTER

OFFICE CLOSET: BEFORE

Office: The office closet was a catch-all for all kinds of clutter and the entire room became the default drop zone for all things coming home from school, work, the mailbox, etc. Piles everywhere added to the family’s daily stress.

Requirement: A streamlined look and system for keeping kids belongings going to/from school organized (preferably independent from parental help), while also storing office supplies, stationary & mailing supplies, work supplies, various kinds of paper, extra electrical cords/chargers, a shredder and a printer, and archival/occasional use items.

Tip: Pull an extension cord in the closet to power the printer and shredder (and any other non-pretty but functional office equipment).

Kid Drop Zone: Print the online family calendar each month and have a place to pin important reminders for school as well as write notes & reminders to the kids. Each child has a bin in which they can set their backpack, library books, instruments, hats/mittens, etc.. I opted not to use hooks because these backpacks are REALLY heavy and the kids sometimes have to leave some items at home to keep the weight down. To maintain the system, the kids are instructed about what types of items belong in the bins and are asked to clean out the bins every couple of weeks or so. Parenting win: this space is now their responsibility, not yours!

Homework Supplies: All the kids homework supplies are ready right here when the kids need them. Lap top computers and a comfy couch are also right here in the office, so this is where the family hangs together after school.

Tip: Consider keeping all electronic devices stored in one common use space rather than spread out throughout the house. This makes it easier to monitor usage and may present more teachable moments for kids learning responsible internet behavior.