It's inevitable, having kids means accumulating more possessions. From the necessary baby gear to the cute keepsakes, kids just seem to attract stuff. Often parents keep outgrown baby gear for future use with subsequent kids. It just makes sense. Why get rid of a perfectly good highchair if you plan on having more children who will one day need the same item? And so it begins. Suddenly you aren't just housing the items that you actually use on a day to day basis, now you're storing things that you may or may not use in a few months or years. Once your little darling starts creating artwork or attending school there will be a steady stream of cute creations that many parents feel compelled to keep for posterity. Add to that many kids' tendency to want to hold on to favorite books and toys even though they no longer use them regularly and it's easy to see why many people feel as though they need a larger home or a storage unit to house all their stuff. Luckily, Stockpile at home inventory solution can help you declutter and organize your space so that you can avoid outgrowing your abode.
First Things First
Let's start with all that baby gear. If you got everything brand new with baby number one and you plan on having another in less than five years, it's a good idea to hang on to all that stuff so that you don't have to rebuy a lot of expensive items. The caveat here is if some of these items were personalized or gender specific. Are you really going to want your son riding around town in a frilly pink stroller? Do you want baby number two to have identity issues because they spent their toddler years being called by their older sibling's name? Probably not. In this case, you're going to have to replace these items for the next kid anyway so you should let them go as soon as your eldest has outgrown them. Similarly, if some of your items were used when you got them you'll need to check your dates. Car seats and some other equipment should be replaced after six years. Plus, safety recommendations are always changing so if your gear is a few years old it may not meet current standards anyway.
If you've made it this far and you have items that you plan you keep, you're ready to implement Stockpile at home inventory solution. First, decide where you're going to store baby gear. If possible, clear out a specific area to hold all the items together. Creating records in Stockpile is quick and easy. Because Stockpile is fully customizable you choose which fields to include. There's no need to try to make data fit, you can include the things that you want to know and skip the rest. You may want to include details like manufacturer name, warranty info, color, size and more. Stockpile also allows you to include a photo in your item records for easy recall and identification down the road. Now you'll know what you have on hand and what you need to register for without spending time digging through your house.
Look What I Made!
That brings us to the next arena of stuff generating kid-dom, personal creations. Whether your child is a budding artist or not, every kid creates. Sometimes it's cute handprints or drawings, other times it's just the photos that you take of your child. Either way, they generate lots and lots of stuff. To tame the clutter, we recommend going digital. There are a number of sites that let your photograph your child's artwork and then store it in a virtual collection so that you can browse it on your computer anytime you'd like. That's way more convenient than dragging out a bin and digging through pieces of sticky paper to see their art. Plus, it takes up way less room. Sounds like a win to us! You can use Stockpile at home inventory solution to track both physical and virtual creations. Having one place to look to locate items saves you time and eliminates headaches.
But I Love It!
This can be the toughest one, those treasures that don't get played with anymore but are still too hard to part with. Again, designate an area to store these keepsakes. You can give each child a certain amount of space, whether it's a shelf, a bin, or just a box in the garage and allow them to keep whatever they can fit inside. As they get older they may have to make some tough decisions and let go of somethings that they would prefer to keep. Often finding a worthy recipient can help make parting with these treasures a little easier. If they don't have a younger sibling, cousin, or family friend to pass things down to look for a charity that will accept gently used items. Sometimes knowing that someone else will have the chance to enjoy something they loved so much can make your child feel better about letting it go and it can encourage empathy and altruism. Remember to update your Stockpile records though so you'll know what they're still holding in their special area and what is now gone.
We can't guarantee you won't outgrow your living space, but we hope these tips help. Using Stockpile is a great way to stay organized and make the most out of the space and stuff that you have. Visit our blog next time for more tips on how Stockpile at home inventory solution can make your life easier. Ready to get started? Try Stockpile today!
