Clutter Conversions

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

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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.

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.

Get Organized for the Holidays

Column by Kathryn McMillan

This is the time of year that everyone should be enjoying time with family and loved ones, and that includes you!

Yes! You can have dinner parties and enjoy your guests! You can make time to go to the mall and enjoy your shopping without rushing! You can enjoy decorating your home without the stress or spending too much money!

How? Follow these tips and enjoy the holidays!

   

1. Say “NO.” Be realistic about what you can and cannot do. There are only 24 hrs in a day!

   

2. Create a Plan. What do you want to do during the holiday season? What do you want to accomplish? What is your goal? Is it preparing a Thanksgiving meal a Christmas meal or both? Is it decorating the inside or outside of your home or both? Do you want to send Christmas cards to friends/family or business partners/employees? How many holiday parties do you want to attend?

Put your plan in writing.

3. Strategize. How are you going to complete your plan? What needs to happen in order for your plan to be successful?

Example: Do you need to shop for last minute gifts, decorations, supplies or food?

Make a list and of whom you are buying presents for, what you want to get them and a budget. (In January, you should prepare a list for next Christmas of people you know you will be buying gifts for and what you think you would like to buy them; keep it in your wallet or pocket book, purchase throughout the year and mark it off as you get it. It will save you time and money during the holidays). Gift buying should be completed two weeks before the day and wrapped one week before.

Prepare your menu. Look at your menu and recipes for your party/dinner. Make a list of the items you will need to buy at the grocery store. Compare that list to the items in your cabinets before you go shopping. It will save you time, money and space.

When entertaining in your own home, you should designate two separate areas food/beverage, designate area for kids, turn down heat a couple hours before and have plastic containers ready to give leftovers. Use paper plates, cups, cutlery stacked inside a plastic cup.

4. Commit! Pull out your calendar/planner. When are you going to do what? Write it in your calendar in ink.

Schedule: time of party/meal, grocery shopping, writing/mailing out cards/invitations (three weeks before date), food preparations, decorate, wrap presents.

Prepare ahead of time:

Ask yourself: Is there any decorating I can do the day before? Is there anything I can cook or prepare the day/night before? 

For example: If you are cooking Christmas Dinner and everyone will be at your house at 1 p.m.

Here are possible advance preparations you can make:

- 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.

Only buy two kinds of wrapping paper so that you can mix and match ribbon and bows with them. As much as some of us do not like to admit it, it is only paper and it is going to be torn into shreds and thrown away anyway. There will be less to have to store away for next year and you will not spend as much money buying different color ribbons and bows to match.

5. Remember, moderation is the key with gifts, food, time and money. People complain about spending too much money during the holidays or eating too much. Please remember that whatever you put on the credit card you will have to pay back, most likely with interest. When buying a gift for someone, ask yourself, is this something they need or will really use, and can I afford it? When buying gifts for your children, ask yourself, “Is there room in their space for that item?” If the answer is no, are they going to be willing to give up something to make room? Only you can answer these questions but be prepared to make storage room for everything you are buying them.

6) Keep things in order. At this time of the year it is easy to let things slide.  You can still be de-cluttering about 15 minutes every evening.  The children can continue putting their things where they belong.  Everyone can continue keeping their schedules.

7. Enjoy. Schedule time during the Holiday Season for yourself! Write it down on the calendar; then you will most likely make it happen. Make the time to do whatever it is that you enjoy. Go shopping for yourself, spend time with family or friends or enjoy a hot bubble bath.

   

8) Assess. This is the time to sit back and reevaluate the season and make adjustments for next year. Write your thoughts down on paper and keep it with your holiday card list. Remember that once you have taken the time to prepare menus and time frames, you will not have to “re-invent the wheel” next year, just make some minor adjustments.

9 Easy Ways for Having a Stress-Free Holiday!

This is the time of year that everyone should be enjoying time with family and loved ones and that includes YOU!

Yes! You can have dinner parties and enjoy your guests!  You can make time to go to the mall and enjoy your shopping without rushing!  You can enjoy decorating your home without the stress or spending alot of money! How? Follow these tips and enjoy the holidays!!

1) Say "NO". Be realistic about what you can and cannot do. Each day has 24 hours.  Enjoy the Christmas season with time for yourself

2) Create a game plan.   If you are hosting a Christmas party or you're the one fixing the main Christmas Day feast, PLAN!! 

Write down a master plan.

• Create a menu.
• Set a date and time.
• Let your guests know the time line for acceptances, regrets, or special requests.

You are less likely to keep making changes if you have to keep re-writing each new change.  Being flexible about times, food choices, and special requests is wonderful.  Letting your guests and family know the date you will be completing your menu lets everyone enjoy the holiday festivities.  Once your menu is done...stay the course.  Cooks have driven themselves crazy trying to make last minute changes.

3) Make a list.  Make a list of who you are buying presents for and what you want to get them.  Stick to that list when you go shopping, it will save you time and money.  Look at your menu for your party/dinner, then make a list of the items you will need to buy at the grocery store.  Compare that list to the items in your cabinets before you go shopping.  It will save you time, money and space.

4) Prepare ahead of time. Take a look at the area you will be holding your party/dinner and ask yourself two simple questions.

1. Is there any decorating I can do the day before? 
2. Is there anything I can cook or prepare the day/night before? 

For example: If you are cooking Christmas Dinner and everyone will be at your house at 1 p.m. Here are possible advance preparations you can make:

• 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.

5) Everything in Moderation:  Gifts, food, time and money.  Too often I hear people complain about spending too much money during the holidays or eating too much. Please remember that whatever you put on the credit card you will have to pay back, most likely with interest.  When buying a gift for someone, ask yourself, does the person really need this, is it something they will really use and can "I" afford it?  When buying gifts for your children, ask yourself, "Is there room in their space for that item?"  If the answer is no, are they going to be willing to give up something to make room?  "Does my child need another set of skates or another C.D. or another 5 shirts and 4 pairs of jeans?"  Only you can answer these questions but be prepared to make storage room for everything you are buying them.

6) Wrap up your presents wisely.  Do not buy too much - only buy 2 kinds of wrapping paper so that you can mix and match ribbon and bows with them. As much as some of us do not like to admit it, it is only paper and is going to be torn into shreds and thrown away anyway.  There will be less to have to store away for next year and you will not spend as much money buying different color ribbons and bows to match.

7) Keep things in order. At this time of the year it is easy to let things slide.  You can still be de-cluttering about 15 minutes every evening.  The children can continue putting their things where they belong.  Everyone can continue keeping their schedules.

8) Ask for help.  This is the Season of Giving...let others give to you as well.  Are you baking?  Ask for a helping hand rather than struggling to multi-task drying clothes, cooking, cleaning, and a thousand other chores.

9) Remember kindness starts with YOU! Be kind to yourself.  Schedule time during the Holiday Season for you! Write it down on the calendar then you will most likely make it happen.  Make the time to do whatever it is that you enjoy.  Go shopping for yourself.  Have coffee with a friend.  Enjoy a bubble bath.  Read a good book.  Treat yourself to a pedicure.

My Mornings Are Exhausting...Before I Even Get to Work!

You feel as if you have just run a marathon and you are not even out the door yet to go to work!

Well, you are not alone!  It is a extremely common problem facing most of us on a daily basis due to the fact the most people do not have a clear reality of how long it actually takes to do a task. 

For example:  I had a client who had a full time job from 8 a.m.-4 p.m .  She was the stress-out mother of two elementary school aged children, a boy and a girl. When we met for her organization planning session, she described her weekday morning routine.

I get up at 6 a.m., go downstairs and turn the coffee on. I turn around and go back upstairs so I can wake up my husband.  I go back downstairs again. Then I start making the kids lunches, straighten up the den, and grab my coffee. Now I trudge back upstairs  and pick out clothes for my husband.  Did I mention that I am usually ironing his clothes at this point?  Now I can finally get ready for work from about 6:30-6:50 a.m.  Between 6:50 to 7:30 a.m. I focus on getting the kids up and dressed for school. After getting them downstairs, they get a bowl of cereal while I load their backpacks.  We head out the door at 7:30 a.m.  I'm exhausted every morning.  I don't know how much longer I can keep this up without going bonkers.

"How would you like your mornings to run?" I ask.

She said that she would relish having 10 minutes of quiet time.  Enjoying a cup of coffee would be a luxury.  It would be a miracle not having to rush getting herself, husband, and children ready for the day.   Eating breakfast?  Now she eats a breakfast bar on the run.  Would it be possible to eat at the breakfast table every morning?

Your "In A Snap" Solution: Knowing how many tasks are in a project and how long each task takes. 

Step One:  I had her write down every single task that she did in the morning.  Beside each task, she had to write how long she thought it took to do it.  Next she added up the total time for all her morning tasks.  Her first list did not include every single task because she still kept lumping things together.  She combined her shower time with dressing, hair drying, and make-up time.  I had her break out her list in detail.  She added each individual task. 

Step Two: I then asked her to write down a new list.  For the next 4 days she was to write down how long it actually took her to do each task.  She quickly realized that she was trying to do way too much in the time she allotted herself. 

Step Three:  I sat down with her.  It was time for making a few tough decisions. With gentle coaching, we walked through the process of deciding what she could do the night before : Straightening the den, packing the kids lunches, preparing their backpacks and sitting them beside the door, having the kids help her pick out their own clothes, and setting the timer on the coffee maker.  Then I asked her what could she delegate to someone else (her husband).  He could wake himself up, pick out his own clothes, and make sure they were pressed.  This allowed her husband to lend a hand with the morning routine.

Step Four:  After giving her new routine a test run for just one week, she was de-stressed! She was thrilled, her kids were less moody, and her husband was able to lend a helping hand. 

The morale to our organization story:  Are you setting the stage each morning for a positive day or a rushed, stressed out day?  Let Clutter Conversions in control..Organized Living in a Snap!

Hurry! Get in the Car!

Do You Find Yourself Rushing Around Every Morning?

Are You Completely Stressed Out Before You Get to Work?

There are thousands of parents who are trying to get the kids dressed, breakfast and lunches prepared, backpacks packed in the morning, as well as, themselves ready for work and by the time the family is headed out the door, parents are already stressed and tired. 

Are you one of these harried parents?  Do you hear yourself say, "There's never enough time in the mornings to get everything done?" 

Here are a few "In A Snap" tips that will make your mornings much more enjoyable!

1. The night before, set out the children's clothes they will be wearing to school the next day.
2. While you are preparing supper, make the children's lunches, put them in their lunch bag and designate a place in the refrigerator that you will put it every night.
3. Every night before the they go to bed, set aside about 5-10 minutes for each child to pack their back pack.

 

Develop this plan and make it a part of everyone's routine every night.  By doing these 3 things, you will be teaching your children how to plan and organize while at the same time reducing everyone's stress in the morning.

Our guarantee:  You will save yourself at least a half hour every morning!  Relax and enjoy that extra cup of coffee.