Have a Donation Day!

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

10 Jan 2008 11:20 AM

New holiday presents cluttering up your home? Why not have a donation day?

One thing about most people's home, my own included, is that we have way too much stuff in them. From garages that hold storage instead of cars, to basements full of mystery boxes and tubs, to general toy clutter all around the house, we could use a regular clean out to clear out some space and rediscover what we already have.

One fun way to get everyone excited about de-cluttering the home is to turn it in to a celebration. Create a donation day party. Believe it or not, after your first one, your family will be looking forward to doing it again next year (or even in six months).

The first thing that we do as a family is to gather together and say a prayer of thankfulness for all that we have. You could also just take a moment to reflect on your abundance. I find that this puts everyone in the right mood.

Next, have some healthy and easy snacks on hand. You can bake some goodies the day before, or set out some fruit or veggies and dip. The snacks will help the event to feel like a party and will keep everyone's energy up.

Set out large bins for everyone to deposit their donations. Encourage everyone to go through their stuff section by section.

Hold contests throughout the day to keep everyone motivated and moving. Give out prizes that won't contribute to the clutter, such as an ice cream sundae, the honor of choosing that night's movie, a reprieve from doing chores for a day, an extra hour of television or video games, a trip to the park, etc. Some ideas for contests include the following:

A timed donation hunt. Whomever comes back with the most items dropped into the bin in five minutes wins.

A prize for the funniest or strangest item that is donated.

After the donation day is done, consider rewarding everyone with their efforts by going out to dinner, renting a movie or planing a day trip for the next day.

What other ideas can you think of implementing for your own donation day?

Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.

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Learn more about Mary Ann Romans

Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

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