Clothing Inventory

With two children who grow and change
I have to keep atop of the needs for the next school year.
It is far too easy to neglect this until school days are at hand.

I try each summer to go through the clothing
at least a month before school fall semester

My reasons are two fold

1. The children around me who are of the sizes that my kids out grow can better be set to know what they are going to need for the next year as we will be .

2. It is NOW that the clearance racks are full!
In another two weeks the competition for said items will increase substantially.
It is now that the greater selections are at hand.
In this economy it will even be more fierce a competition than before.

We are doing clothing inventory this week end.

What that looks like...
Each child will go through the clothing to see what they will no longer want and put it aside.
I then go through that.
I find things like pants that I can let the hem out of...
undies that are new and not the out grown ones :)
Genderless items that can be passed down in house.

One other category of keepers even though out grown are those hand made items that I will store for them to give them when they are adults.
That will come faster than any of us think:)

Dove did a pretty good job yesterday with very few exceptions.
This morning attending her closet with her we went through every item.
All of the child's hangers are being switched over to little brother this year....
She is becoming a young adult soon.
Oh the joy she felt to graduate to grown up hangers.
(they were readied by the inventory/sorting of our master closet this morning).
I box winter and open summer to hangers by swapping them out.
Then sorting out the worn out items or things that have not been used.
Some items that I really like and hope to grow/reduce :) into are stored.

I have a huge box in the hall with the clothes from us in the bottom.
Dove is the next layer and then later today Dash will have his on top.
This way I know who to send what items when I box them to pass them on.
This year will be the first year (Dash is now 9 and Dove 11) that I will need to purchase or make much for them. I make clothing every day.
I remember when we adopted the kids that we were afraid or concerned how we could pull it off or afford to tend them...(Darling was laid off right after Dash came home from Russia). So we just trusted.
Year after year beginning with their arrival God had led folks...
some I did not even know
to pass on to us the things their kids had out grown.
It has been amazing how God has provided for these tow kids.
It is a joy to give freely and pass them on to others.

I have been tempted at times to sell on ebay to cover costs and every time it was just not my way...
when I gave it always returned back often many fold.

Remember School is only a few weeks away...