One Job Wonders

To follow up the multitaskers, I have found that some things function better when dedicated to a single purpose.

A prime example would be my beloved packing cubes.  I think I may have mentioned them before once or twice or twelve times.  I love to use them when packing because it keeps everyone's clothes separate and contained, making for more orderly packing and unpacking.  Not to mention it's much easier to hand a boy a packing cube and say get dressed than to have him hunt through the entire suitcase.

I had the thought that those cubes would come in handy for storing other items here in our temporary house, and so I put toys in one, books in another, etc.  But then it came time to head to England for a couple days, and I had to empty them all to use them for packing.

And so now they are stored inside the suitcase, waiting for our next adventure.

Other things I keep stored for one purpose?  Things I only have 1 of and use often.  Mostly storage containers of various types.  For the most part, if a kitchen container is empty, it will get filled again, so it is pointless to use it for something else.  I learned that lesson when my boys hijack containers for their play.  Also, the rubbermaid liner I use for my daughter's placemats.  Whenever I repurpose it for something, I seem to lose it and never have it when I need it.  So she gets three mats that stay with her dishes.

Most of these lessons I've learned through trial and error, and it takes good evaluation skills of what our family needs.  Our home is a balance between less clutter (chaos) and more convenience (peace and efficiency); one is often sacrificed for the other.

What does your scale have on each end?