www.bothell-reporter.com • www.kenmore-reporter.com[10] January 7, 2011

...TODAY’S pArenT

Everyone is welcome. Financial assistance is available. The YMCA of Greater Seattle strengthens communities in King and south Snohomish counties through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. *Monthly dues apply. Photo ID required. Valid only at YMCAs in King County through Jan. 31, 2011.

FOR YOUFOR GOODINSPIRING WELL-BEING TOGETHERJoin Now & Save up to $125*

NORTHSHORE YMCA425 485 9797

vISIT ystart.org

449497

Join the Pancake Pig at our Pancake Breakfast at 10am on Saturday, Jan 15th!

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Third Generation Violin Maker

www.hkbviolins.com425.822.0717

450005

“Voted Evening Magazine’sBest of Western WA

Musical Instrument Store!”

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• PRESCHOOL • PREKINDERGARTEN• KINDERGARTEN • THEMED SUMMER CAMPS

KENMORE: (425)486-9333 • WOODINVILLE: (425)486-5499www.morningstarschool.com

Located in Kenmore & Woodinville

A CARING PLACEto learn & play

for ages 2 1/2 to 6

Is your house a mess? Do you waste a lot of time searching for things the family needs to get out the door in the morning—over and over? If you’re nodding vigorously, it sounds like some organization is in or-der. But you shouldn’t have to do it alone. Try these tips to get even the littlest messy children on board.

Send a consistent mes-sage about neatness. Yes, it’s tiresome to repeat yourself, and sometimes it seems easier to put away the toys yourself. Remind your chil-dren regularly to put their things where they belong, before too long the message should start to stick.

Set a good example. If you fling your coat on the nearest chair as soon as you walk in the door, there’s a pretty good chance your children will follow suit. Enough said.

Make it easy to be neat. Make sure coat hooks are visible and within reach of your children’s grasp, put a hamper with a wide opening in their bedroom, and use other strategies that make it easy for your kids to be neat.

Separate stuff into con-tainers. Most kids like and respond well to an orderly space. If they see a big shelf with a jumble of toys on it, they’re not likely to find the toy they want—or put it back when they’re done playing with it. By dividing toys into containers, kids know where to find them, and they have no excuse for not putting them back where they belong at the end of the play session. The

same concept can work well for clothing drawers. Take the container idea one step further by labeling each container, either with pictures or words. This way, you’ll hear fewer cries of “Where’s my favorite ____?” It also reduces the all-too familiar excuse for not putting things away: “I don’t know where it goes.”

Allot time for cleaning up. Oftentimes, we schedule our families so tightly that we can barely throw on our clothes and gulp down

breakfast before we’re out the door for a day’s worth of activities. If you slow down a hair or two, you can use that extra time to encour-age children to make their beds, put their plates in the kitchen sink, and twist the cap back on the toothpaste.

Steve Ahrens is the owner of Kiddie Academy Bothell.

Kiddie Academy is located at 22703 Bothell Everett Highway

in the Canyon Park Shopping Center. For more information, please call 425-485-7200 or go to kiddieacademy.com/bothell

on the web.

Get Organized at Home—With Help from your KidsBy STEVE AHREBS

kiddieacademy.com/bothell

Separate stuff into containers . Most kids like and respond to an orderly space. Steve AhrenS, Kiddie Academy