5 Organization tips to make space for a baby
Our baby is not due for another couple months, but apparently he’s having his belongings FedEx-ed ahead of time. Our modest home has begun filling up with his crap, and he’s not even here yet. In light of the fact that his room is not even ready, although it does have a ceiling and 1.4 walls, it has made us re-examine our belongings and weed out the things that we don’t need.
I just so happen to have a dumpster in the yard for the destruction and reconstruction of the nursery, so it comes in very handy in the paring down process. I personally try to recycle or give away anything that doesn’t need to end up in a land fill, but there aren’t exactly people lining up for backs of decades-old paneling and plaster. We’ve been able to free up considerable space in our closets and attics by throwing out or donating stuff that has been handed down far past it’s lifespan of usefulness.
Some small shortcuts which conserve space or organize, in anticipation of a child’s arrival or not, include:
1. Donate clothing to Goodwill or other charities.
To help the filtering process, we tried to get rid of anything we haven’t worn in the past two years. This may be tax deductible in addition to reducing trash and doing something good for others.
2. Get a CD / DVD case to hold all of your movies and music.
This allows you to get rid of all your bulky DVD cases and CD jewel boxes. Take it one step further and rip all your CDs to your computer.
3. Use a laptop.
If you have a desktop and can afford a laptop, get one and do away with the old desktop. I got an external hard drive case and pulled the had drive from my desktop so I wouldn’t miss any of my old files. This allowed me to get rid of desk set up as well.
4. Clean out your fridge.
Get rid of all the half used jars of relish, that package of hot dogs from last year’s picnic and that gallon of cheese that started out as milk. You’ll need the space for bottles. Check out the freezer space as well as friends and neighbors inevitably bring food when there’s new baby.
5. Go through your linens
…towels and blankets. Weed out any old or unused items and donate them to an animal shelter.
6 opinions for 5 Organization tips to make space for a baby
brent
Sep 19, 2007 at 10:41 pm
whoah there nellie.
hang on to those towels - you’ll need milllions of them.
Kids also seem to need 15 blankets each - one for the loungeroom, 2 for the bedroom, one for the pram, one for the car…
Phil
Sep 19, 2007 at 11:31 pm
“Take it one step further and rip all your CDs to your computer.”
I did this a few years ago… Ripped 1200 CDs to the computer, then sold them on eBay. Had most of a down payment on our house!
Bill
Sep 20, 2007 at 2:45 pm
Hi Brent,
My wife an I apparently happen to be towel pack-rats. We have a bunch that are barely fit to dry the dog. I’m not quite sure why we have them other than we just never tossed them as new ones came in for wedding, housewarming, misc…
We still have an arsenal of drying aparatus.
Bill
Abel
Sep 21, 2007 at 7:42 pm
Maybe it’s still early but it’s always good also to make sure the home is child safe. The vases, furniture with glass panels, etc.
Tamiko
Dec 30, 2007 at 5:01 pm
Congratulations on the new arrival!
My 2 cents: Just don’t throw out any washcloths…you’re going to need a lot of them!
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