Stump the Organizer Saturday! Organizing Boy Scout Stuff

The regularly scheduled Stump the Organizer! post will not be seen this week in order to bring you this special post. Thank you readers for your Stump the Organizer! questions and I promise to answer them next week.

Whether you realize it or not, Monday, February 8, is the official 100-year birthday of Boy Scouts of America. Scouting has a special place in my heart. I have been a scout leader for six years - first Cub Scouts and now Boy Scouts. My son is a First Class Scout and we're having a lot of fun in the Scouting program.

Boy Scouts is a boy-run program, and as such the boys have a lot of responsiblity. Keeping track of all of the achievements and paperwork is part of the experience. At least, the Boy Scout Manual makes it pretty simple to record all the achievements involved with rank advancement. But keeping track of everything related to merit badges can be a chore. To organize merit badge items, the Scout can use some standard organizing tools.

A file drawer or a file box are tools that every school-aged child needs. Filing is a life-skill and to learn it, it must be practiced. Place a hanging file for each school subject, one for warranties and manuals, and files for each extra-curricular activity in the file drawer. From the picture of my son's file drawer, you can see he has a file for scouting that is labeled "BSA."

My son has different handouts on scouting skills in his "BSA" file. If he needs to review how to use a compass, he can find that particular handout quickly. But the most important things he keeps in his "BSA" file are his merit badge cards, advancement cards, skill cards and patches.

Merit badge cards are the only acceptable proof that a scout has earned a merit badge. This proof becomes very important when scouts are working on their Eagle rank. In order to become an Eagle Scout, twenty-one merit badges must have been earned. There are many other requirements, but finding the merit badge cards seems to be a big challenge for many scouts. All of my son's merit badge cards are kept in a zippered sandwich bag and are filed safely away. The sandwich bags are used to contain the advancement cards, skill cards and patches too. The bags keep the small things together and offer visibility.

The shallow drawer in my son's file cart is where he keeps his current, active projects. He is working on two more merit badges right now. The merit badge books and the supplies he needs are handy when it's time to work on them.

Of course, there is much more stuff than paper in scouting. Camping, hiking, and fishing require plenty of stuff. We have a plastic set of drawers in my son's closet that is used to store the smaller things like the mess kit, compass, flashlights, tackle box, etc. His sleeping bag and back pack are stored next to the set of drawers. When it's time to camp, it's easy for my son to grab everything he needs because it is all stored together in a handy location.

One of the smarter things we did was put a couple hooks in my son's closet for his uniform. He has to wear his uniform for a meetings once a week - which isn't really long enough for it to get dirty. But my son is not likely to put his uniform back on a hanger. The hooks are the perfect solution: the uniform is off the floor and it takes little effort to use the hooks.

Scouting is a wonderful program for learning new skills and responsibility. It's so much more fun when all of the equipment and papers can be found effortlessly.

If you are interested in scouting please check out these websites: www.scouting.org and www.stlbsa.org. During 2010 there will be many special events to commemorate the Scouting Centennial. It's an exciting time to be a Scout and a Scout Leader!

P.S. Don't forget the custom sticker/labels give-away. Enter your comments to the February 2 post - just look for the UPrinting.com picture.

P.P.S. There is still space available in the upcoming Letting Go and Lightening Up class at a special reduced rate. Please visit the Clear Spaces website to enroll.

Stump the Organizer! Dealing With Toy Clutter

It's Thursday and time for "Stump the Organizer!" This week's question comes from Bonnie who has five year-old twins.

Bonnie emailed this question: "My children’s toys are everywhere! We thought making a playroom was the right thing to do but they hardly use it. Our house is small and there isn't a lot of room in the twin's bedroom. What can we do to keep the toy clutter from taking over our house?"

Young children want your company. I suspect the reason the toys are everywhere is your children follow you throughout the house with their companions, the toys. On the positive side, it's a whole lot easier making sure your children are happy and safe if they are following you. To keep the toy clutter from endangering your sanity follow these guidelines.

• *Set up some areas as toy-free zones. There is no reason for toys to be in the adults' bedroom, the formal living room (assuming there is an informal family room) and the foyer. There may be other areas in your home that are not conducive to play. Setting limits allows you to keep control on the amount of toy clutter.
• *Set up a small amount of toy storage in each kid-friendly room. Shelves, bins, storage ottomans, ans baskets are useful to hold toys and keep the surroundings clutter-free. Keep the storage simple so it's easy for your children to access and use. Keep the number of toys relatively small to avoid overwhelming your children with options - and to limit the amount to pick up. Turn-about is fair play: you can set up a special adult area in the playroom. A comfortable chair, good lighting and a table provide you a place to work on a small project or read a book while your children play happily supervised.
• *Establish a routine for clean-up. Some children can, and will, put one toy away before they get out another one with gentle reminding. Some children need to get a lot of toys out at the same time, and will need a specific clean-up time - such as before lunch. Make clean-up as fun as possible by singing a song (that clean-up song sung by the purple dinosaur served our family well) or making it a game.

Usually the best organizing solution goes with the flow rather than fight a natural tendency.

Thank you Bonnie for the question. I hope this provides you with the information you needed.

Do you have an organizing question or issue? Either email your inquiry to Denise@clearspaces.org or post it right here on the blog. Check here every Thursday for answers to your questions. You'll get information that you can use right now.

Magic For Getting Kids To Do Their Chores

It’s common knowledge that Santa keeps lists of who is naughty and nice, and it is that knowledge that inspires many children to be on their best behavior this time of year. Wouldn’t it be great if their good behavior lasted all year? Imagine if your child made his bed without grumbling or used “please” and “thank-you” without prompting? It’s possible through a little Christmas magic that will last all year and establish a lifetime of good habits. This magic is delivered to you through Santa’s sister, the House Fairy.
The House Fairy checks the children’s rooms unannounced. Her presence is made known by the sparkly fairy dust she leaves behind and the small prizes for good effort and progress. The House Fairy is not a perfectionist; her inspections focus on the progress that the child is making. She knows that it takes time to learn how to keep one’s room clean. Of course, a grumpy attitude or a lack of effort may inspire the House Fairy to leave a note rather than a prize.
I love the House Fairy program for families with young children. It is the most comprehensive program available for helping young children develop good habits and organizational skills while having fun. Plus it is ridiculously inexpensive to join – for just $10 you receive a two-year online subscription that comes with all kinds of downloads for parent and child. You can find the House Fairy at www.housefairy.org. Pssst grandparents, this could be a great Christmas present for your young grandchildren.
Pam Young created the House Fairy when her three adult children were very young. You may recognize Pam’s name. She co-authored Sidetracked Home Executives: From Pigpen To Paradise with her sister, Peggy Jones. By the way, this book is “laugh-out-loud, tears-in-the-eyes funny.”
As much as I love House Fairy, Santa’s sister may not be inspiring to the teen or the preteen. But what if chores became missions to save the kingdom from peril? What if every good deed were part of a quest for all that is excellent and noble? Welcome to the mythos of Chore Wars.
With Chore Wars the Dungeon Master – the person who creates the online party – creates the chores and assigns them a value in experience points (XP), gold and treasure. Everyone in the party strives to earn these prizes through defined chores and missions. Along the way monsters may be encountered which the players may choose to battle. Getting injured in battle or losing the battle costs points. But earn 200 experience points and a character can change levels. Each player gets to choose his character and its avatar. The avatar choices add to creating the mythos of the Chore Wars world. Most of the avatars look like they stepped out of Lord of the Rings.
The creators of Chore Wars suggest that it can also be used in an office to help motivate your colleagues to complete a big project or the day-to-day work. The price for all of this will astound you: free. Optionally, you can purchase a gold membership for $10 that will eliminate the appearance of advertisements on the site, and allow you to keep a history of your party adventures indefinitely. You can log on to Chore Wars and start your own party at www.chorewars.com.
Let’s face, don’t we do the fun stuff before we do the mundane? House Fairy and Chore Wars put a fun spin on chores by weaving them into a world created by imagination. Rewards reinforce getting the job done. Both sites offer parents a reprieve from being the taskmaster when it comes to chores. And that sounds like magic to me.