Today is National Organize Your Home Day

To Do List and key holder

Today is National Organize Your Home Day.  It is a good reminder of the importance of having an organized home and no it’s not to avoid shame if company drops in unexpectedly.  Rather, our home should be a place of refuge from the crazy world we live in. January is a great time to get your home in order; the weather outside is frightful so naturally we spend more time indoors and in our home. I bet like me de-cluttering, simplifying, or organizing made its way to your New Year’s resolution list.

Speaking of the New Year, have you pulled together last year’s financial records? I like to use a colored envelope for all my tax records (this year’s is blue). I went thru my files from last year, shredded the documents I don’t need to keep 7 years and put the rest in the envelope. When my W2 and 1099s show up, I’ll add them too. By early February I’ll be ready for my accountant.

If the cards you buy tend to be of the belated variety, try Send Out Cards. They will send real cards thru the mail to your friends and family for you. Simply upload your contacts and their birthdays, pick out a card or create your own, tell SOC to send the card on your friend’s birthday and forget about it. In one day, you can setup deliveries for the month or year!

We have photos galore and since I’ve been researching our family tree other family members keep gifting me their photos. So while it is hard to tell, I have made progress scanning picture as I try to reduce the actual photos in the house. I’ll keep plugging away at it in 2015; hopefully it will start to look like I’ve made progress soon.

The lack of visual confirmation of progress with the photos got me looking for a project that I could see more immediate results. The linen closet was my chosen target. Now that that is done, I will spend some time shredding some of the incredible amount of non-financial paper I seem to constantly accumulate, while I contemplate my next de-cluttering project.

Spring Cleaning Tasks

It Spring, time to enjoy the flowers and warm breezes. It's also time to clean the house to really enjoy those Spring breezes. I put together a list with the help of other blogs and am partially done with the work. I'm hoping posting it here will help motivate me to finish the tasks.

1. Clean vacuum cleaners & filters - check
2. Organize & purge medicine cabinet - check
3. Organize clothes closet. Donate unused clothes. Pitch un-wearable. Organize what’s left. – Check, check, check
4. Wipe down walls and baseboards – check
5. Clean & polish wood furniture – check 
6. Wash bedding – check
7. Clean stove top – check 
8. Clean out Dryer lint trap - check
9. Clean your washing machine – trying this right after Home Depot run
10. Clean your dishwasher.
11. Clean the inside of microwave.
12. Clean drains naturally – Home Depot run needed for snake
13. Clean inside of oven.
14. Clean inside of refrigerator – half done, Freezer complete.
15. Organize Spice Cabinet – buy that in cabinet spice rack I’ve been looking at.
16. Clean & sanitize the inside of all the garbage cans.
17. De-clutter the tough spots: (partially done)
• magazine clutter - check
• foyer closet - check
• home office – in progress   
• utensil drawer
• above the refrigerator 
18. Weed out bookcases – donate books to Friends of the Library
19. Vacuum the furniture.
20. Vacuum under the furniture. Add fix Roomba so IT can vacuum under the furniture.

How is your Spring Cleaning coming along?

Aha-Ha Moment

A conversation with a Lisa, a fellow book club member created a mini aha ha moment yesterday. This month my book club is reading “The Happiness Project” by Gretchen Rubin. Disclosure: I haven’t read it yet as I’m still waiting for my copy from the library. The book has led many people to alter their lives for the better. Another one of our book club members wants the club to do a happiness project together. Since I haven’t read the book yet, Lisa gave me a quick rundown starting with the challenge to change 5 things in your life a month. My stomach started to clench with the stress of a) coming up with 5 things b) the upheaval in my life to change 5 things in a month and c) oh God I’ll have to come up with ANOTHER 5 things for the next month. With these thoughts swirling around in my head, I zoned out on the recap of the rest of the book. Then I tuned back in to hear Lisa admit how changing 5 things was beyond her at this point.

Wait a minute, what? This is a very organized and together lady we’re talking about. I’ve lost count at the number of self-help books and organizational blogs I read, while my life and house remain a mess. This is not a knock on any of the authors I’ve read, this is all about me. Why is it when I go in with such good intentions about implementing all the fabulous ideas, nothing happens. Oh a pile of stuff might be cleaned up or I create my affirmations list, then… I get overwhelmed and nada. Oh wait this was about her response not mine. Without guilt my friend said since 5 changes were to overwhelming, she decided to pick one thing to change a month to create more happiness in her life. Hmm, pick ONE thing to change in my life and do it for a month. Well yeah, that I should be able to manage. (As soon as I decide what that change should be). The aha-ha for me is I can take a piece from a self-help book or blog and just do that piece. AND thats OK! I don’t have to implement the entire process, just incorporate the part that really resonates with me. 

New Year, New Post

Yes, I've finally gotten around to updating this blog. It's been a tumultuousness few months. I went to Tina Sloan's NY premiere of "Changing Shoes", a wonderful show. If she's in your area, do go and see her one woman show. Tina kind enough to come to the Roxbury Library for a book signing. Thank you Tina!


My dad moved in with me. While preparing for the move, I had an accident which ended with me a little bloody and with both arms in slings. Luckily only the left elbow was broken, but I was fairly useless for most of the move. While dad is moved in, my car is still unhappily waiting to move back into my garage. 

The move necessitated a re-evaluation of my belongings. There have been endless trips to charity drops and the dumpster. God bless the Telenext dumpsters. There is something therapeutic about throwing junk in a dumpster, even more than the endorphin rush of donating to charity.  But let's face it we all have stuff that is worth money. Maybe not a lot, but something. Now I loved the video shop in Mendham that had an E-bay store on the side. I could just drop off my stuff, he'd sell it & I'd get a check or if it didn't sell, he'd give it to charity. Either way once it was at the shop, it was out of my life. Unfortunately not only has Netflix taken out Blockbuster, they forced my video store to close as well. So the search began for a new venue to sell my more valuable belongings. The whole Craigslist/E-bay world is confusing to me. The concept of having to pack & mail items gives me a headache and has me shying away E-bay. Craigslist proved challenging but I did sell the biggest pieces of furniture, so I consider it a success. I've still got a number of items I need to relocate from my home/storage. So, if you know of anyone looking to by dishes, I've got two sets of china and one everyday set I'm looking to sell. 

One of the fine china sets I'm looking to sell

Organize Your Home Office Day

Today is Organize Your Home Office Day and to celebrate, I’m cleaning off my desk. That is my goal, whether I finish today or tomorrow, I will have a desktop that contains my laptop, printer, pens/pencils, current project folders and a notepad. From the before picture I’m sure it is obvious I’ve got a lot of work ahead of me. The mess I have now is paralyzing me. The pile represents my past, present and future. There are the last vestiges of a business and contacts from the TV show now off the air. Then there are the tax receipts that need to go to my accountant and bills to be paid. Lastly there is my future lost in all that clutter, pieces of inspiration needing to be unearthed. So that is my task, dispose of the past, organize the present and find the dreams of the future. Wish me luck.