Partner-proofing, husband-proofing, relative-proofing

Partner proofing, husband-proofing, relative-proofing – whatever it may be. You need them to be able to find things when you need them and it also helps with putting things away where they go.

So while you’re doing stuff like sorting out the baby’s nursery, putting clothes away and sorting out those drawers with those wonderful inserts, we need to label everything. So whether it be onesies, long onesies, short onesies, leggings, swaddles, blankets – have it all clearly labelled.

You are going to have a lot of laundry when the baby comes along, especially in those first few months – although even when they are 8 years old there is still a lot of laundry! 

If you can get somebody to put it away, they’ll put it away. They might be your partner in your life or a nanny, but that person who’s sharing those household chores with you will need to be instructed. 

The interesting thing (and there have been studies) is that they while you might think they are being lazy or unhelpful, the truth is they are just worried about doing something wrong. So you are really fool-proofing in a way. The minute you say, “Oh, you’ve done it wrong,” they will just stop doing it all together. Take this insight and apply it throughout your whole house.

This really is the best tip because you’re not living with yourself, you’re a family. Just like everything else, we need to teach them and most importantly, you want to have help with putting things away. It doesn’t matter if it’s toys or dishes – it relates to every single place in your home. 

So don’t forget – they would rather do nothing than do something wrong. Show them how to do it and they’re going to do it right and everyone’s happy.

Finally, once you have decluttered/organised/labelled, you need to take your family or whoever’s going to enter that home (and help) in those first weeks or months, on a guided tour! This means opening every cupboard, every drawer and showing them where everything is and you’re going to be so happy to do it because it’s clear and it’s labelled.