Getting It Together

I'm trying!  You guys know I am always trying to get myself organized.  My main goal is to get everything together before we start school and then just maintain.  I've made some good changes and I'm happy with the results.  I thought I'd share some of them with you.  If they can work for me, they can work for you!

1.  Do ONE load of laundry EVERY day.  I'm normally completely overwhelmed by laundry.  I'll wait to do it once a week and then have 6 loads or more to do.  I'll end up with 2 loads sitting in a basket for a week or more digging for clean clothes every day.  I never have it all done and it looms over my head.  Now that I'm doing one load a day, I'm always caught up.  I've also removed all the clothes hampers from the bedrooms.  I have a laundry sorter (3 compartments) in the laundry room.  Now everyone sorts their own laundry by throwing it in the proper laundry basket (whites, darks, colors).  Whichever hamper is the most full gets washed that day.  Brilliant, huh?

2.  Centralize cleaning supplies & frequently used household items.  Part of being disorganized is losing everything.  I'm the queen!  And, having 3 floors in our house, I can never keep track of cleaning supplies, tools, etc.  Did I put it back in the bathroom?  Or, did I leave it under the kitchen sink?  Did I take that carpet cleaner to the basement or to the linen closet in the laundry room?  Where did I use the hammer last (I do this way more frequently than you'd think!)?  So, I took one of the lovely Pinterest ideas to work.  I purchased 2 over the door hanging shoe bags.  I didn't spend a fortune, btw.  I had Kohl's cash, it was on sale, and I had a 30% discount!  Anyhoo, I have  one hanging over the door in the laundry one and one in the closet on the main floor.

3.  Prepare snacks for the week.  How many times in a day do I hear, "I'm hungry.  Can I have a snack?"  Admittedly, when it's time to make a lunch, I'm throwing something together - especially on school mornings for Maddie.  Now that cheerleading is here, we need healthy snacks on hand to take with us.  What I'm doing to get this together takes about 30 minutes of prep time right after grocery shopping.  I go ahead and wash up all the fruit and place in individual Ziploc snack bags that they can grab and go.  Each girl also has their own snack drawer with individual bags of things like Cheezits, Goldfish, etc.  Now when they ask if they can have a snack, they get sent to a particular drawer.  (Some drawers are healthier than others.  There's only one "sweet" drawer, so they only get one from it a day.)

4.  Make a cleaning list & schedule.  I made a simple list of what is to be done daily and weekly.  It's not difficult.  There's one major chore a day (like cleaning out the fridge on trash day, stripping the beds on Friday, cleaning windows & mirrors, etc.).  I alternate Thursdays.  It's my "swing day", so there's a bigger chore that changes each Thursday.  I printed out the list, laminated it, and it hangs in my bathroom to remind me when I get up in the morning what needs to be done.

5.  Make it a family affair.  The girls each have their own list that looks just like mine.  It, too, is laminated and hangs on their bedroom door.  They also have a different chore every day and swing day.  Maddie is proud that she's in charge of making sure all hairbows and headbands make it back to their rightful place.  Audrey enjoys wiping down the bathroom sink & counter every day.

So, there you go!  I know it's simple and you've probably heard them all before.  I hope it encourages you if you're struggling as I have.  It can be done!