Clutter Conversions

New Years Resolutions

New Years Resolutions

Your very first New Years Resolution should be “I want to simplify my life so I can enjoy what is truly important to me.”  In order to simplify your life, you need to take a good, long, hard look at the things you have been doing in the past and decide if they represent your most important goals and values.  If they do not, then you need to stop doing them.  You have been wasting valuable time and energy!  Decide what you most important goals and values are (only 5-7), list them on a piece of paper and underneath each one, list the actions you need to take to achieve or reinforce your goals and values.  This list is what should fill your calendar.  These five to seven goals should be your New Years Resolutions!!

The first thing to do is create a plan!  Be specific when you describe your resolutions and make them measurable.  A New Years Resolution is just a starting point.  It should be a year-round project comprised of many small steps.  Break down large goals into smaller ones with time frames established.  Find alternatives to a behavior that you want to change, and make this part of your resolution plan.  Remain flexible, things change constantly and you must be able to adapt to be successful. The second thing is to be realistic!!  Setting a New Years Resolution that is unrealistic will set you up for failure immediately.  Remember that "effective" time management will give you the time needed to achieve your goal.  You will feel proud and successful, as well as, be a healthier and happier person!  An important component to having a successful resolution is to make yourself accountable!  Tell anyone and everyone what your resolution is because most people do not want to look like failures.

Finally and most importantly, make New Years Resolutions that are truly important to you and NOT what you think you ought to do or what others expect of you.

This is the weekend before Thanksgiving....What should I be doing??

You should already have your plans mapped out in your planner for the week. Cook your ham 24 hours early.
Roll dressing balls which can be refrigerated prior to cooking.
Prep potatoes and refrigerate them in a pan of salt water
Make desserts in advance. Many can be frozen up to a week. 
Check for items you can cook the evening before, refrigerate, and then warm up in the oven about an hour before you are ready to serve.
You may be able to set the table the night before or early in the morning.

New Class Being Offered

Simplify Your Life through

Effective Time Management

Presented by Kathryn McMillan

Hosted by Christina Rose and Dawn Hinde

Goal: To decrease stress in your life, increase productivity and find the time to do the things in life you truly want to do by learning and implementing “effective” time management skills.

Objectives:

1) Master Time Wasters:

1. 1. Interruptions by others
2. 2. Phone Calls
3. 3. Email
4. 4. Visitors

2) Stop Procrastination

3) Ways to Simplify My Life

4) Choose a Planner

5) Decide My Goals in Life

6) Establish My Life Schedule

***Class Requirements: you must bring your own calendar, day planner or whatever you use to keep track of appointments to class.

Date: Tuesday, December, 8th

Time: 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Location: Jerry’s Alignment and Auto Care (next to Kieth’s Auto Sales on Rt 33 W)

6232 Spottswood Trail, Penn Laird, VA

Fee: $20.00

Registration Information: RSVP by Noon on Monday, December 7^th by contacting:

Christina Rose – 540-421-4266 or email - christina@jerrysalignments.com

Dawn Hinde – 540-4822 or email - dawnscleaningservice@comcast.net

Kathryn McMillan – 540-294-1523 – clutterconversions@yahoo.com

Holiday Organizing Tips

Gifts

Prepare a list: who you are buying for, what are you getting them and how much money do you plan to spend on them.  This will help you purchase items that are usable and wanted for someone and keep you within your budget.  Gift buying should be completed 2 weeks before the Christmas and wrapped one week before.

Decorations

Avoid stashing everyday household items in closets and cabinets, by storing them in the containers that your holiday decorations were stored in.  Think safety when decorating!  Do not set items in areas that people can trip over or knock off and break.

Entertaining

If you entertain during this time, make sure your walkway and entrance is well lighted.  Turn the heat down two hours before guests arrive.

Meal Preparation

Prepare your menu for Thanksgiving and Christmas now.  Make a list of items you need to prepare both meals and compare to what you already have.  Double batch anything you can and freeze if you are going to serve it for both meals.  Ask yourself what you can do before such as setting the table or cooking items the weekend before your meal.

Following these few tips can help you enjoy your family and friends more during the holiday season while decreasing stress and saving money.

Preschoolers and Toddlers - Preparing for the day

The two key components in getting the day started off well when dealing with preschoolers and toddlers is to establish morning routines and minimize distractions.

Preschoolers really benefit from a morning routine!  They are at the age where you can begin to mold them to be an organized individual and you can teach them about making decisions because they want to help with just about everything. Various morning routine charts can be found at www.suite101.com.

Kids learn by example and by making choices so leave enough time in the morning schedule for them to do as much as possible on their own.  Do not rush them.  Let them help pick out their clothes for the next day and sit them out so they can put them on themselves in the morning

Keep the items that distract your child out of sight.  They are easily distracted at this age by their toys and books and they do not have any understanding of time or schedules.

School is back in Session and I am Stressed!

It is really important to start a scheduling system at the very beginning of the school year so that everyone has a plan, knows what each other is doing and to avoid chaos and stress!  The key to starting the school day off without total chaos and stress is to be prepared, plan ahead and create routines.  There are various morning routine charts available online at www.parentingresources.suite101.com.

The night before you should prepare the lunches, put everything in the backpack that needs to be returned to school and sit it beside the door you exit.  Put signed papers in the backpack.  Make a prioritized, written schedule for the next day of everyone's activities.  Take advantage of the timer on the coffee pot so the coffee is ready in the morning when you are.  Have the kids do a nightly fifteen minute pick-up so there is no clutter to work around in the morning.

I recommend you start the morning routine two weeks before school starts so that it is not a shock to everyone the first day of school and you have time to make any necessary adjustments to each persons routine.  Preschoolers can really benefit from a morning routine.  They are at the age where you can teach them about making decisions and they want to help with just about everything.  Leave enough time in the mornings to allow them to do as much as possible on their own as appropriate.  Kids learn by example and by making choices.  Do not rush them.  Minimize distractions for them.  Keep the items that distract them put away.  They are easily distracted by their toys and books and do not have any understanding of time.

Do Not Over Schedule!  It is really easy to do as the kids get older and become involved in after school activities.  Having a centralized calendar with everyone's activities on it will make it much easier to see if activities are overlapping and to gauge the amount of activities being done.  It is recommended that kids should not be involved in more than three after school activities.  You need to leave time in their schedule for friends, family, studying and rest.

Back to School Organizing Tips for College Bound Students

*Space- Remember that they most likely will not have the amount of space in the dorm room that they had at home. Think compact.  Use multi-purpose containers and furniture.  Some colleges and Universities will not allow you to put holes in the wall or paint so check with them before you begin packing.   Also, if you are able, visit the college and measure the dorm room to see how much space you will actually have before packing things that will not fit.  Use a small cleaning caddy to carry personal items back and forth from the bathroom. *Packing - use collapsible storage containers to put items into while moving and then they can either be used for storage in the dorm or folded down and stored away. *Time management is key to success!  Use a calendar/planner to map out a routine.  College is supposed to be fun but it does need some structure to it if you are going to succeed without having a major melt-down at some point.  College can be stressful enough without adding the pressure of being late for class or not allowing enough time to write a term paper. *Color code your things, label them, bring some pictures and a few loved items from home to make the room more comfortable and relaxing. *The Container store has a couple of great articles to help you get through the college transfer.

Preschoolers and Toddlers - Preparing for the day

The two key components in getting the day started off well when dealing with preschoolers and toddlers is to establish morning routines and minimize distractions. Preschoolers really benefit from a morning routine!  They are at the age where you can begin to mold them to be an organized individual and you can teach them about making decisions because they want to help with just about everything. Various morning routine charts can be found at www.suite101.com. Kids learn by example and by making choices so leave enough time in the morning schedule for them to do as much as possible on their own.  Do not rush them.  Let them help pick out their clothes for the next day and sit them out so they can put them on themselves in the morning Keep the items that distract your child out of sight.  They are easily distracted at this age by their toys and books and they do not have any understanding of time or schedules.

School is back in Session and I am Stressed!

It is really important to start a scheduling system at the very beginning of the school year so that everyone has a plan, knows what each other is doing and to avoid chaos and stress!  The key to starting the school day off without total chaos and stress is to be prepared, plan ahead and create routines.  There are various morning routine charts available online at www.parentingresources.suite101.com. The night before you should prepare the lunches, put everything in the backpack that needs to be returned to school and sit it beside the door you exit.  Put signed papers in the backpack.  Make a prioritized, written schedule for the next day of everyone's activities.  Take advantage of the timer on the coffee pot so the coffee is ready in the morning when you are.  Have the kids do a nightly fifteen minute pick-up so there is no clutter to work around in the morning. I recommend you start the morning routine two weeks before school starts so that it is not a shock to everyone the first day of school and you have time to make any necessary adjustments to each persons routine.  Preschoolers can really benefit from a morning routine.  They are at the age where you can teach them about making decisions and they want to help with just about everything.  Leave enough time in the mornings to allow them to do as much as possible on their own as appropriate.  Kids learn by example and by making choices.  Do not rush them.  Minimize distractions for them.  Keep the items that distract them put away.  They are easily distracted by their toys and books and do not have any understanding of time. Do Not Over Schedule!  It is really easy to do as the kids get older and become involved in after school activities.  Having a centralized calendar with everyone's activities on it will make it much easier to see if activities are overlapping and to gauge the amount of activities being done.  It is recommended that kids should not be involved in more than three after school activities.  You need to leave time in their schedule for friends, family, studying and rest.

Vacation Travel tips

Being organized will help you have an enjoyable vacation but you have to plan for it! The first thing you should do once you have made the decision to take the vacation you so truly deserve is to make a "packing list".   Make a list of the things you need to pack, making sure you're only taking along what you will absolutely need in order to reduce the number of bags you'll need to take.  This is also the time to make your grocery list if you plan on camping or needing any snacks. Look to see if you have the right amount of coolers. The list is made for each person in your family going on the trip and it includes everything that person needs to take. For example; what types of clothing, medicines, entertainment items, any special foods and all personal items.  You store this on your computer so that you can print it out every time you need it.  Items will need to be deleted or added for each trip but at least you will always have the basics.  You can print the list and check off the items as you pack. Secondly, you need to pack smart! If you are using the airlines to travel the FAA guidelines now limit carry-on baggage to one bag plus one personal item (i.e. purse, briefcase, laptop or backpack.) Some airlines have recently leveraged fees for checking bags or for checking more than one bag.

The Pack-It-System sold by The Container Store® compresses clothing in luggage to make the most of the space. This allows security personnel to quickly look through clothing and other packed items and speeds up the security check process.The Pack-It-System® is made up of see-through mesh side panels so that you can quickly see what is inside. Since your clothing is neatly folded and secured, it is quick and easy to put the items back into your luggage after passing through security.

If you are traveling by car make sure you have small toys and games easily accessible for children to use during the ride. Use clear bags so the children can see through them to pick out what they want instead of having to pull everything out.

Third, Pack for Safety If you are traveling by air the TSA may pick your bag for screening and may need to break into it due to stricter security checks.  There are three options for locking your bags; travel locks, locking luggage straps or cable ties.  The advantage to using the cable ties are that they are inexpensive, disposable, easily cut by TSA agents but still deter criminals for messing with them. If you are traveling with children pack a kit with first aid supplies.  Store it either in an outer pocket of a suitcase or in your carry on or day bag or in the glove compartment of your car. Consider carrying a small supply of the following items: bandages, pain reliever, stomach medicine, first aid ointment, sunscreen, hand sanitizer, stain removal pen and a sewing kit.