There are many good reasons for a mom to get herself and her family organized, of course.  We all know that life runs more smoothly when you have a plan, when you remember where you put the kids' spelling lists, and when you don't run out of milk at 7:45 on a Monday morning.

And January seems to be just as good as time as any for purging and cleaning and finding a place for everything ("and everything in its place!").  A quick stroll down the aisles of your mega discount retailer will show you that this is a subject on everyone's brain these days--the bins and the slotted files and baskets abound.

But as I've contemplated the subject of organizing, I'm reminded that organizing is really just about simplifying, and simplifying is about much more than finding a consistent spot for my sunglasses.  My kids are watching the way I run my own life (and theirs), and I wonder if I've really been modeling for them the healthiest way to deal with all the STUFF life seems to throw at me. 

In other words, I can't imagine that keeping the same bottle of Tylenol in my medicine cabinet for longer than this president has been in the White House is a very positive life skill.

I want my kids to learn that people matter a lot more than things.  I want them to feel free to attach themselves to the important parts of life, and not to be unnecessarily weighed down by stuff.  I want them to learn that instead of saving a box of shells and sand and postcards and photographs and pamphlets from a vacation, a more useful (and simpler) way to preserve the memory would simply be to journal their experience.

Basically, I want my children to learn the art of living a simpler and less-cluttered life, and I want them to learn it from me.

We've made a few successful steps in this direction in the last year.  The kids each have a large plastic bin for their own little treasures (rocks and kite string and curiously important gum wrappers).  But when the bin gets full, they know it's time to purge.  They're learning, hands-on, to hold on only to the true treasures.

And each child also has a shelf and specially-designated wall space for displaying their proudest achievements:  trophies, ribbons, school pictures.  But when the designated area gets over-run, it's time for an important discussion about what we really need to keep.  When my husband and I work on a reorganizing project in our house, we make it a point to include the kids in our work (even though it often takes longer that way.) 

As is often the case in parenting, we're learning this skill together.  And as is often the case, that seems to be the most effective way to learn.

I've found plenty of great posts this month about organizing your life and family--don't miss out on hearing what these women have to say:

Ivy writes at Home Ec 101 about keeping things de-cluttered for the sake of the kids and grandkids that come along after you someday.

My Beautiful Mess writes my favorite thought on this particular subject:

Simplify. De-clutter. That’s what I want to do this year. Not just to my house, but to my life. Figuring out what really matters and getting more of that. Sure, it may not add up to a tax deduction, but the return has to be grand, don’t you think?

Chris at In the Trenches of Motherhood writes about the temptation to spend needlessly.

And Cynthia at White Space writes beautifully about cleaning and purging for the benefit of others--what a great thing to model for our kids!