Family Calendar
Family Calendar – Time Management
We all have busy schedules, and when we throw our kids schedules in the mix, things can become chaotic! How can you stay organized and still feel in control of your schedule. You want to be the one running your day not the other way around! Here are some simple steps to get you going with some recommendations of books to read for your reference!
First of all you need to choose what kind of planner you would like to use. The one to the left is a basic dry erase board which I have seen work very well for families. You can also choose a written daily planner, your computer, or your phone / palm pilot. There are also different kinds of calendars that gear specifically to the Mom and to Families that may be worth a try. The important thing is that it works for your family!
Once you have chosen your calendar, you need to make sure all of your appointments are in one place. If you are a visual person, this is going to be very important to you. You want to be able to see everything in one place rather than having 2 or 3 different calendars. You are taking the steps to ensure there is no overlapping in schedules.
Color code for each member of the family. This is making it clear who needs to be where at what time.
Prepare! Look at your schedule every Sunday with your family and discuss who is going where and how they are getting there. This is a visual snapshot of what is ahead.
Prepare! Look at your schedule every night before the next day! Do as much as you can the night before to make the mornings less chaotic. Get clothes picked out and ready to go, lunches packed, bags packed. Anything you can do the night before will HELP you in the morning!
Remember to block out enough time for travel if it takes you more than 10 minutes to get somewhere. Sometimes we are in a rush because we don’t take this into account.
Books I recommend on Time Management include: Getting Things Done, by David Allen and Time Management from the Inside Out, by Julie Morgenstern. 
Clearing the Clutter in your Child’s Room!
Help!
Does this look familiar? It’s a pretty common picture in many of our homes! I recently did a presentation to a group of mom’s and we talked about how to organize a child’s room. Here are some ideas that have helped my family as well as some of my clients!
Think about how you feel when you walk into a room full of clutter, some of the feelings you may feel are frustration, stress, a high level of anxiety. Well our children feel the same way! We can help them …Go from Chaos and Confusion, (look at that little girls face), to peace and a sense of freedom….
Tip #1 – Involve your children in the process. Ask for their opinions and thoughts about how to organize their room. Let them pick out the colors and type of bins, of course with your discretion! When they take ownership, they will more likely maintain it. Plus they will know where everything is, because they helped decide where it goes!
Tip #2 – Organize the room like a preschool or kindergarten room. It does not matter how old they are, if you organize their toys or belongings in such way where everything is clearly labeled and contained, it will be much easier to keep clean.
Tip #3 – Group like items together - and store them where they use them. All the books on the bookshelf near the reading area. All the stuff animals together, so on and so on..
Tip # 4 – Avoid large bins and toy box’s unless you are only putting only one type of toy in them. Stuff animals are great for toy chests. Some of the larger toys like big trucks can go into the larger bins. What you want to avoid is having these be “dumping grounds” for everything. Toys, especially smaller ones will get lost on the bottom.
Tip #5- Teach the concept of putting toys and belongings away after you use them and before you bring something new out. It’s a simple concept and a very difficult one to implement. But I still think it’s worth talking about and teaching our children to take care of their belongings.
Eliminating Toy Clutter!
Toy Clutter
If you have children, then you have toy clutter! There is no real way around it. Our kids love to play and we and everyone around them loves to give them toys! So how do you control the chaos that may be lurking around in your home? Basically two ways…. Reduce and Rotate!
Reduce:
Go in the room either with or without your children (your preference) and clear out any toys that are broken, have been outgrown or are no longer played with… Donate, or save in a box for a younger sibling. If you decide to do this with your children, give them an incentive. For every 5 toys donated, we will get a new toy, or go do something special like a day at the park. Teach your children the value of giving to others less fortunate.
Go through the toys prior to any special event where the children may be getting new toys. Christmas, Birthdays, etc.
When our children have too many toys out, they can not focus and they certainly do not play with everything they have, so remember less is more!
Rotate:
Rotate toys every few months- Take half of your current toys and put them in a box labeled “Rainy Day”. When your kids are bored, bring out the box and a few hours in the afternoon will fly by. When they are finished, put everything away for next time! Rotate what is in the box every few months, and remember to reduce the toys they have outgrown.
Rotate toys with other families. Pick 3 to 5 toys to borrow and lend out. We are teaching our children to share and to take care of something that does not belong to us. It gives them variety without spending any money!
Hosting Guests?
Are you expecting guests this summer?
Summertime is often a time where friends and family are passing through and may be staying at your home. Are you ready for them? You want to make the stay as comfortable as possible. One of the ways to do this to plan ahead.
Plan your meals ahead of time and make sure you are aware of any special diet needs or preferences. You don’t want to serve fish the first night and realize your guest is allergic! Get all of your grocery shopping done a day or so ahead of time. That way if you need to go to the store it is only for last minute changes or basics like milk and fruit.
Do your deep cleaning of your home a couple of days prior to arrival. This way on the day of, you are only picking up and doing light cleaning.
Make sure your spare room and bathroom are ready to go. Have the room set up with the clean sheets and make room in the closet for their clothes and a place in the room for their suitcase. Show them where the extra blankets are.
For the bathroom, make sure to have the all “extras” handy. Have a decorative basket on the counter with q-tips, cotton balls, an extra toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, and washcloths. Have the towels out in the open or show them where to go to get them.
In the morning, have the coffee ready to go with coffee cups, creamers, sugars, etc on the counter for easy access. You don’t want them to feel like they have search your cupboards. Make sure they know the plan for breakfast, it doesn’t matter if you are making it for them or it’s buffet style with cereal. It is important to help them get what they need and not feel uncomfortable doing so.
Last but not least……Enjoy your visit!
How to Organize your Child’s Closet!
Organize your Child’s Closets
Having two children of my own, I have learned by trial and error some of the best ways to organize a child’s closet. For many of us, the closet is not only being used to store clothes, but also toys! I have included tips with suggestions on product that can get any closet organized efficiently and be cost effective!
1. You must take inventory of the closet- take everything out and decide what is staying and what is going.
2. Have a bin labeled for the upper shelf to store clothes that are out of season or clothes to be donated. Have it be handy enough for you to put clothes in it as the kids grow out of them. When the bin is full, it is time to donate. For out of season clothes- do the same thing, just make sure it is labeled, so you are donating anything you do not want to be donated.
3. As in any closet – I suggest having the same kind of hanger. For children, a white plastic hanger works well. 
4. Pair up matching outfits and store them on one hanger.
5. Have a hamper in the closet or in their room. Teach them to always put their dirty clothes in the hamper rather than on their floor.
6. Use hanging shelves to display outfits for every day of the week. Keeps you organized during the week knowing what your child is wearing, no more guessing, day by day.
7. Use shoe organizer to keep shoes off of the floor, with children’s shoes being small, you should be able to at least get two shoes in one cubby.
8. I am a big fan of the double hanger rod in children’s closets, not only does it double your space but it let’s the child reach their own clothes. 
9. If your children do not like hang their coats or sweatshirts, put up hooks in the back of the closet. Make sure to make it the right height, so they are able to hang up their clothes on their own.
10. Use your closet to store toys, but organize it in a way where it’s easy for the child to help in the clean up. Instead of a large toy box, which is often a dumping ground, use cubes where toys can be separated by category. Use a toy box for just stuff animals. 
Happy Organizing!
Stay Together!
Group Like Items Together
This is a very simple concept, although even as a Professional Organizer I will go through my home and need to update a cupboard or a drawer to keep up with my own organization. Keeping all like items together keeps us organized and it does make a difference when you look at your kitchen cupboard and see that all of the coffee mugs are together and not scattered around in different places.
It can save you time and money!
It saves you time by not opening every knook and cranny to find what you need and it saves you money by not going to the store to replace the item.
There are many different ways to store your like items. Lazy susans are great for keeping all like medicines together as well as keeping all baking supplies together. Really anything you may need to store. Storage Baskets also give a decorative look to your home as well as add extra storage for your items. You just want to avoid having the misc. basket. This can easily become a clutter nightmare just like a junk drawer can be for some.
So to keep organized, just remember to keep like items together, no matter what part of your home you are in! 
** You may find these products and many other storage solutions in my store through Amazon.com
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