This one’s for anyone who walks past the pile on the stairs and pretends they don’t see it.
I know I am not the only one who piles things up at the bottom or top of the stairs hoping someone else will pick it up on the way by, we all do it.
When the house has stuff everywhere and the countertops are full of random pieces of toys I feel so overwhelmed. I start putting things on the stairs and tell myself “when I go up next I will take it all up”. But 3 trips later the pile is still there and the kids have taken half the stuff back to the living room and I feel back to square one.
This is such a small, easy thing but I have found that it has made a bigger difference than I thought.
Along with my Basket method (I shared more about that in another post) I have been trying to take at least one thing back to the correct floor when I go on the stairs.
Never on the stairs empty handed!
Even when you’re carrying a toddler you can have a random book in your hand that needs returning to one of the kid’s rooms or a cup that needs to return to the kitchen. It’s very easy to just walk past things but I have really been trying to stop myself and say “just pick the damn thing up!” and it has been helping a lot.
It doesn’t get everything back to where it belongs in one go but it does start to feel good when it becomes a habit.
Depending on the age of your kiddos they can also get into the habit of returning things sometimes when they are on the stairs. Might not get to the correct spot but even being a little closer helps! Some days this works and some days it doesn’t, it’s not something we need to force.
Try combining this and the basket method and things will start to feel less cluttered in your home and hopefully in your mind as well!