Gentle reader. We have declared war on our children. Well, specifically, kid crap. Good NIGHT! How is it possible for 3 short people to accumulate so much STUFF?! And how is it that they've come to feel so (insert explicative here) entitled to it?! Ultimately, that responsibility lies squarely on our shoulders for thoughtlessly indulging. A mistake we hope to learn from.
Either way, our kids will learn from our mistakes as they will (ironically and forcefully) adopt a very minimalist Zen approach to...stuff after this weekend. Very specifically, I told them that they were going to be handled much like I'd handle the more troublesome spots of the Middle East:
1. You have until 9 pm next Saturday night to organize the things you want to keep with an explanation of why. With the exception of Legos, books, and art supplies, those individual things need to fit into a box with rough dimensions of 18x30x14. Anything unaccounted for will be donated. Period.
2. Any toys or Legos left out after clean up time or that I hurt my foot on will be exiled to the hostage bin or trash.
That's it. Total scorched earth policy. Yes...we will be donating hundreds of dollars worth of stuff. Yes...there will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. Yes...we are going to do it anyway.
According to my studies in criminal justice, and yes, that is applicable here, consequences need to have the following attributes to be effective deterrents: swift, severe, and sure.
I like to borrow from a friend who consistently encourages his kids to travel lightly. His words of advice to his kids: choose wisely. In a "who knows where in the world we'll wind up" scenario, I think our kids will thrive in the art of traveling light and choosing wisely. A bike? A pencil? A book? ...possibly a Xoom? (just being practical...) What else do they need?
Wish us...and them...luck as D-Day approaches.
