Camel Races and Junk

I have been going nuts lately with the messes my kids seem to leave constantly.  I have tried confiscating things, but they have so many other "things" that it doesn't even phase them.  So, I decided we need to start getting rid of stuff.  My friend Liz posted on her blog about having camel races last week for FHE.  they crawled around the living room with couch pillows on their backs... sounded like something the kids would love.
For the lesson we read from the Book of Mormon about Nephi and Lehi and how when they left Jerusalem they left everything behind.  We talked about how "stuff" isn't important and that the prophet has asked us to simplify.  Nephi simplified his life in terms of material possesions, and we were going to follow his example.  The few things he did take were carried by a camel....so we had camel races.  We started with a giant laundry basket overflowing with stuffed animals and dolls. I had them go around the family room with the couch cushions on their back, and then if they did well they got to keep a toy  (okay so I cheated-- I was super lenient at times and super strict at others, so they each ended up getting to choose the five toys they wanted to keep the most).   I turned out GREAT!!!  They had a wonderful time and we got rid of a bunch of things that just add to the clutter :)