Organization Extra: Re-Gifting -- In a Good Way

Photo from Magic 106.1 FM, Guelph, Canada
via Facebook

When my daughter was small, we started a book tradition at our house. I can't remember where I found the idea -- it might have been Family Fun magazine -- but I do seem to remember that it was just a front-of-book snippet by a parent. "Just" a snippet turned into a tradition that, at our house, lasted until my daughter was into her teens. And when a writer friend posted the photo at left on her Facebook page earlier this month, it had "Organization Extra" written all over it.

The process is a bit time consuming up front, but very simple. In November, gather all of your child's Christmas-themed books. Then, sometime before December 1, wrap each book individually. Beginning December 1, your child can open a book a day (or a book a week, or somewhere in between, depending upon the number of books you have available). Secretly purchasing new books I could add to the pile was fun, too, and less expensive than it would seem, as many old favorites endured for years.

My daughter loved coming downstairs each morning and opening a "new" book, and, as a bonus, it started each day with reading. Although mornings worked well for us, you could just as easily do this after dinner (or before dinner to procure some late afternoon peace and quiet), or at bedtime.

Once all of the books have been opened and the season has passed, gather them up again when you gather up the decorations and put them in a special box (labeled or unique so you can find them quickly in November). If you're feeling really industrious, you can wrap a few (or all of them) before you put them away, saving yourself some time at the outset, but choose carefully. You may find that your child deems some of this year's books too babyish next year.

Why is this an "Organization Extra"? Because managing our stuff doesn't always mean getting rid of things. Sometimes, it means rotating things from season to season so we can keep and enjoy more of what we love, without creating organizational mishaps along the way.

Merry Christmas, especially to my I love stuff friends. I've just given you an excuse to acquire more books. Then again, we authors do that.

Thank you to Carole Brown, who posted this photo on her Facebook page, 

bringing back many lovely memories.