A Million Hours

Yes, I counted.  It took me a million hours today to go through the bins and bins and places I stashed things when I was too lazy to find the proper bins and bags and floors and closet shelves and drawers.
A million hours.

I'm not done.

It is a job I have known was coming.  It is a job I have been dreading for weeks.  It is a job for which I considered hiring caregivers to watch my kids so I could work and work without interruption.  Then I remembered that I would be paying $20 per hour for caregivers so I let the TV and outside be my sitters like a normal mom.  It is a job that walking outside this morning in the 56 degree chill (don't laugh, Timber, it was very cold to me!) let me know was now essential.

It is that time of year when the tank tops must go.  It is that time of year when shorts are likely fine in the afternoons but too cold for the mornings.  It is that time of year when short sleeves are still wisest, but some long sleeve shirts better be available.  It is that time of year when I will feel like a bad mom if I forget to send a little jacket to school even though it will warm up by the time they get to recess.

The mess in my living room today was a sight to behold.  I had to figure out who will wear what size this coming cool season and how that translates to what we have.  I had to figure out who has enough clothes and who is still lacking.  I had to count jackets and socks and sweatshirts and jeans.

I haven't been doing the 8 kid thing long enough to be great at this process.  Instead I made a great mess.  I sorted and stacked and labeled and hung clothes for the five younger boys.  I packed up shorts.  I pared down some of the wardrobes.  I got sentimental when I saw a shirt that used to be a favorite of someone who is now too big for it.  I got rid of almost every super hero shirt I came across.

I did some good work and accomplished quite a bit.  I feel a bit less accomplished, though, when I remember that I will have to do this sorting and stacking and boxing again when the short sleeve shirts must go and again when I find things in the laundry that missed the first grand sort.  I also have two giant bins of girl items that I have not touched.  I did an experiment and made up a box of blanket sleepers and a box of sweaters and a box of sweatshirts.  The boxes aren't sorted by size, but it seems that they will be useful when it's a cold night and I want blanket sleepers for everyone or when we are going on a hike and I need sweatshirts for everyone.  We'll see.  As I said, I'm still learning as I go.