A card from Fair Play by Eve Rodsky
Clothes & Accessories (Kids)
News flash: Your kids’ shoes and clothes—in sizes that fit— don’t magically show up in their closets. Someone needs to CPE what clothes and accessories to buy, get to the appropriate stores, clean out drawers periodically, and hand off used and outgrown clothes to the “Tidying Up, Organizing, & Donations” cardholder. Suggested timeline: If your child’s feet have blisters, you’ve probably waited too long to buy new shoes. Exception: If there is a camp or school one-off clothing need, this responsibility stays with the “School Breaks (Summer)” or “Homework” cardholder.
Holding this card means owning all three
Conception
The kids need clothes
Planning
Exception: clothes for special school days responsibility of “Homework, Projects, & School Supplies” cardholder
- Sorting through child's current wardrobe
- Determining which clothes still fit and which they have outgrown
- Creating a list of clothing needs whether it be seasonal or by occasion or age (e.g., bras)
- Evaluating underwear, socks, shoes, and accessories
- Arranging for try-on time
- Coordinating with “Returns & Store Credits” cardholder if needed.
Execution
- Donating or passing on those items they have outgrown to other children
- Shopping for items in store or online
Suggested Minimum Standard of Care
Are there appropriate seasonal clothes available to the children when they need them? (i.e., winter coat available before the snow comes)
A starting point. You and your partner agree the real standard together, and the holder meets it without reminders.
Holding it well
- The holder owns all of it: noticing, planning and doing. No “just tell me what to do.”
- Agree the Minimum Standard of Care together, then let the holder meet it their way.
- Not working? Bring it to the weekly check-in and re-deal it. Don’t take it back mid-week.
Put this card on your table
Deal it, agree its standard, and see who holds what. Free.