The Leave-Ins

I love the leave-ins. They are effortless. They are quick. They are easy.

After they come out of the washer, they go into the dryer where they spend the night.

They are greeted in the morning by one (or more) of my children. It is then that the leave-ins begin their clean journey back to their permanent homes in their respective drawers.

The best part - I don't have anything to do with the sorting! My husband has nothing to do with the sorting! It's the kids' job, and they are responsible for the sorting. Have I convinced you to try this method?

Where do these children put all of the underwear, socks, undershirts, pjs, tights, etc.?

The answer, quite simply is - The Bins.

What are The Bins? Easiest thing is for me to show you a picture. The link below shows the exact bins that are in my laundry room. Our bins came from the Container Store, but I have seen different brands from different stores that serve the same function.

(Credit goes to Leah Marcus for the idea many years ago. She has almost double the amount of kids as I have and she came up with the brilliant idea of kids sorting their own laundry using these bins.)

http://www.containerstore.com/shop/closet/cubesBins?productId=10006897

We have 8 bins, one for each member of the family ("Ma and Ta" share a bin.) Everyone's name is written in Sharpie marker on the front of the bin.

As each piece comes out of the dryer, it gets put into the right bin. No folding or neatness involved. They just throw it in. Depending on the speed of the child, an entire load gets sorted in 5-8 minutes. When 2 kids do it, it's must faster.

(Socks are put in the sock graveyard. I will discuss socks at a later time.)

If you are the type of housekeeper that needs perfectly folded and neat laundry, this is not the system for you. If you need to have control over how neat your kids' drawers are, look elsewhere. But if you need to have a more efficient system with family participation, read on.

Next post will continue with more leave-in "policies and procedures".