Free Webinar: The Courage To Purge

Last month I held a free webinar and received so much positive feedback that I’m doing it again!

I’m holding another Free  Webinar this Wednesday, February 24th at 8pm (EST): The Courage To Purge

This webinar will be an open discussion on why we hang on to our “stuff” and keep the clutter in our homes. Topics we’ll cover are:

• The reasons behind why we hang on to things
• What questions to ask ourselves when we are decluttering
• My process for decluttering any room and purging the clutter

To join me, simply subscribe to my list below and the webinar login details will be sent to you.

Note: If you are already on my list, there is no need to sign-up below – you’ll automatically get the login info!

First Name:
Email Address:

I hope to see you there!

10 Quick and Tasty Family Meal Ideas

What are you serving for dinner tonight? How about lunch on the weekend? It can be a daunting task to come up with meal ideas especially if you have kids. Here are ten quick ideas for family meals try one tonight.

1.    Spaghetti – It’s easy to quickly boil noodles and simmer some spaghetti sauce. Spaghetti has so many add-ins your family will enjoy: Italian sausage, hamburger, diced vegetables and a variety of herbs and seasonings. For a low calorie meal, use spaghetti squash in place of traditional noodles.

2.    Tacos – Olay! If your family likes Mexican food, whip up a batch of tacos for dinner. Use hard and soft shells for variety. For family menu planning, dice the fixin’s ahead of time so you can just pull them out on taco night.

3.    Macaroni and cheese – What kid doesn’t like this as a dinner main dish? Spice it up with diced tomatoes, crumbled bacon, sliced hot dogs or hamburger.

4.    Pizza – This is not the store-bought or the delivery. Keep several prepared pizza crusts on hand (like Boboli for instance). On pizza night, let the entire family choose which toppings they want on their pizza. Prep time is fun so it doesn’t last long and it takes about 20 minutes or so to bake.

5.    Skewers – you can create tasty chicken, pork, seafood or beef kebobs quickly. Skewer the meat and your favorite vegetables and place them in a sealed container until meal day. This is the benefit of meal planning – getting prep work done early. Cook your tasty kebobs on a gas grill or use a grill pan indoors.

6.    Hot dogs – Nothing could be easier than throwing them in a pot of boiling water or grilling them up. For the health-conscious family, use light franks or turkey franks by Oscar Mayer or Ballpark.

7.    Chef salad – Salads are always quick to fix but they usually lack something in the taste department. With a chef salad you get your portion of protein from lean ham or turkey. The taste comes from the add-ins: bacon crumbles parmesan cheese, tomatoes, shredded cheese, black beans and cucumbers. Use others that your family likes.

8.    Grilled cheese sandwich – Dinner doesn’t need to be a four-course meal. For a new taste, add deli meat or a juicy tomato.

9.    Tortilla wraps – Create delicious quick sandwiches with your favorite flavor of tortilla. Glaze with mustard or low calorie mayonnaise. Add crunchy veggies and diced chicken, pork or beef.

10.    Leftover creations– Use leftovers to create salads, casseroles, sandwiches and soups. Don’t let anything go to waste if it can be used for new meals.

Let these ideas spark your interest in having a great meal with your family.
photo credit: Takanori Ishikawa

photo credit: WordRidden

Get Organized with Daily Routines

Apparently Americans are an unorganized lot because there’s a lot of talk, both online and offline, about how to get organized. You’ll find magazines with featured articles about it and television shows devoted to nothing but organizing your home. If you listen to many of these sources, you’ll find that one of the easiest ways to get organized is with a daily routine.

What is a daily routine and how can it help you get organized? A routine is another word for a habit. It’s something you’ve done much the same way for so long that you don’t even have to think about it anymore. You can easily create a routine for getting organized. Let’s look at the concept and see how it can be used to get your home organized.

Bedtime routine – Take 20 minutes to work in one area of the house:

• Kitchen – Waking up to a sink full of dirty dishes is enough to make anyone dread getting up in the morning. Before you go to bed, make sure your dishes are done. Either wash them by hand or start the dishwasher.
• Living room – Pick up anything that doesn’t belong in that room and take it where it goes.
• Bathroom – Make sure all clothes and towels are picked up off the floor and put into the laundry.
• Bedroom – Put your clothes into the laundry and pick out your clothes for the next day.

Take some time to plan your day. Think about what you have to do tomorrow and write down anything else you may remember. This will give you a chance to clear your brain and allow you to sleep better.

Morning routine – This will help you get your day off to a good start.

• Empty the dishwasher.
• Make breakfast, washing dishes as you go. When you’re done eating, put dishes into the dishwasher to start later.
• Check your calendar to make sure you’re aware of any appointments.
• Thaw a frozen dinner by putting it in the refrigerator.
• Start a load of laundry.

Afternoon routine – If you’re at home during the day, use the time to clean areas you may not have gotten to earlier. Dry, fold, and put away the load of clothes you washed earlier. You may want to take time to make a tentative schedule of when you’ll complete other weekly cleaning.

The more things you can create a routine for when cleaning and organizing your home, the better. Routines, when they’re done often enough, become second nature to you and you don’t have to think about what to do next. Take the time to create your own and then get organized with daily routines.

Custom Closet Organizers

Do you dread going to your closet? Is it full of clothing, shoes, and accessories? Do you have to dodge falling objects, and then search endlessly for something you know is in there? If this describes the closets in your home, that you should look into custom closet organizers. They come in many styles and are made from various materials including plastic and wood. This is a great way to divide your closet into sections, making a space for each item. You will love being able to open up your closet and see everything neatly arranged and very simple to find.

The first order of business is to take everything out of your closet! I know this can seem overwhelming at first but it is necessary. Go through each item and place it in a pile depending on how you want things to be organized. Some people choose to organize their closet by colors of the clothing; others do it by the style of the clothing with piles for blouses, skirts, sweaters, etc. Pick a system that is going to work well for you. Once you have all of your piles in place you can start allocating closet space to meet those needs.

Custom closet organization doesn’t have to be difficult. You can be creative or you can use the internet or magazines to help you make a decision. Adding a second clothing hanging rack to your closet is a very simple solution if you have too many clothes to hang up. You can also use various types of hangers that put several pairs of pants onto one, reducing the amount of storage space they take up.

You can choose from various dividers, shelves, and baskets to customize your closet storage space. Many closets have a deep shelf on top but it is hard to keep piling more stuff on it. Putting in shelves or dividers will help you use more of that available storage space at the top of your closet. These products are quite inexpensive so organizing your closet won’t be too harsh on your budget.

Shoes are a common issue when it comes to closet organization. Install a shoe rack or even a wooden shoe storage box that attaches to the inside door of your closet. These are great ways to get your shoes together without taking up a great deal of space. It will also ensure you are able to find the shoes you want quickly on any given day.

Once you have installed the items you are going to use to keep your closet organized you are ready to start putting items in. This will be the really exciting part of the entire project. As you see your closet transform into an organized location for your clothing, shoes, and accessories, it will look more approachable and less like a jungle that swallows up your things. This memory compared to your old closet organization will help you stay motivated to put things back into their place.

Custom closet organization may seem overwhelming at first, but if you break it down into small tasks it will be easier. The time it takes you to complete the transformation will be a very worthwhile investment. You will save time each day as you go to your closet and find everything in its place. Who knows, you might even create enough extra space that you have an excuse to go on a shopping spree!

Closet Organization Tips

Making the decision to get your closet organized is a step in the right direction. The task can see too much in the beginning, but with some helpful tips you will get the job done. The amount of closet space isn’t what is important – how you use it is! Break the entire task down in to small, achievable steps. This will keep the project from seeming like it is too much to tackle. The first order of business is to decide to eliminate clutter from your closet forever.

Remove everything from your closet. Be honest about what you find in there. Analyze each and every item. Getting rid of things if very easy for some people, but harder for others. Why keep dealing with these items though each and every time you open up your closet? I understand some articles in your closet may have sentimental value. Store them in an air tight container in another area of your home.

If you have worn out shoes that you never wear get rid of them. If it doesn’t fit then get it out of your closet. If you have items that need to be sewn or have alterations done, this is the time to do it before you place those items back into the closet. Anything that you have just stuck in your closet for lack of a better place for it needs to be removed from your home or given a proper location.

Come up with a system for organizing your clothing. This can be by color, style, or season. You can also choose to separate them by where you wear them such as around the house, work, and casual. A good idea is to hang all the pieces of a particular outfit together. Keep in mind the goal is to maximize the amount of space you have available in your closet.

Make a list of what you want in your custom closet organization. Do you love shoes? Then you might need a great deal of storage for all of them. Maybe you need shelves for your sweaters or your favorite books you keep in the closet. Start planning your closet organization by measuring the length and the depth. You will need this information to start figuring out how many shelves and shoe racks you can install.

What type of look do you want to accomplish and how much money are you willing to invest in this project? Do you want the organization shelves and items to be permanent or something you can easily remove later? The answers to these questions will help you determine the type of materials you will use to complete your closet organization. You can choose from wood, wire items, baskets, canvas, plastic, and anything else you want to consider.

The key is to eliminate anything you don’t really need from your closet and then set the remaining items up in a way that works well for you. All of us have different ways of organizing so make your system unique to you. This will help you stick with returning items to their proper location in the closet. Take some time to research the various types of closet organizers and come up with a plan you will love.

photo credit: Dvortygirl.

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