We have a cool house this morning 
.
So...I can get back to work. Since I was hanging out in the basement a lot this week I have organized some of the paperwork and kid's artwork and some of the workshop so the HVAC guys could work in there. (But I didn't do too much because the 102-103 temps were making me move slowly...even in the cooler basement.)
I have done pathetically little so far:
~ I started one of the kitchen table projects and it is still mid-process (draining an oil infusion).
~ I put away a few herbs from the studio table and kitchen that I think I am finished with for awhile.
Meanwhile, I have been organizing my calendar. LOL My DD is still in elementary school until later this month; then, a 6-week break before she starts middle school. I looked up the new school calendar and bell schedule and entered it all into my computer calendar. Also looked up the dress code and had DD give me a "fashion show" of all the non-long-sleeve clothes she owns on Tuesday. I took notes and we know she needs certain items. She showed me her shoes yesterday. Still need to finish the long-sleeve tops, jackets, panties, and socks. We used the same list to start her packing list for overnight Girl Scout camp in August.
Me too, me too! I just started working from home and my office/bedroom space needs an overhaul. Hoping this will help me keep a fire under my rear.
I need to join too, here is my list:
-Dining Room table
-Junk Drawer
-DD's Bedroom
-Office Cabinet
-Spare Bedroom Closet
-Pantry
-Hurricane Supplies
-Garage
-Master bedroom
-Master Closet
-DS's Playroom
-DDs Therapy Equipment
-My Nook
sunnysandiegan - Organizing your calendar can be really helpful! I've been working on putting together a home-binder to keep up with all sorts of things--meal plans, calendar, bills, etc. I was even shocked when I found DH using it!
I spent some time today organizing and decluttering the dresser in DS's room. I was able to pull out a lot of things that don't really fit him well. I started on the closet but quickly learned that it's a project that would be a lot easier if I wasn't also trying to watch him at the same time.
I was also able to get a bit of paperwork filed. All of our owner's manuals are now filed and I've got just a tiny stack of paperwork left.
~ Put away little project piles in living room; clear off stairs. (I already took care of recycling the boxes from a recent volunteer project before even reading this! :) ) Done!
~ Finishing clearing projects from the kitchen table and counter. (These are very small, space-wise, but require time/effort to complete.) Done!
~ Straighten up studio (sewing supplies + herbal remedy supplies). - Worked on this some more today.
~ Clear off my vanity in our master bedroom (makeup project I got distracted from + empty bottles & small supplies for homemade toiletries); put away stuff on floor (bigger homemade toiletry supplies). - Worked on this a little bit today.
~ And, the big one....which I may not finish, but would at LEAST like to get started on....my craft supplies in our family office. I have the window nook + part of the closet + one tall narrow Ikea cabinet + the bottom half of the TV shelving unit, yet the floor is overrun with my supplies from an all day crop back in MAY! EEK!
Sunnysandiegan - wow...you're on a roll! Putting away projects that are works in progress is always so difficult.
I've done nothing productive today. We bought the kids a SUP so we took it to the beach this morning (and then laid around the house in the afternoon). They had a blast so we are going back tomorrow morning. Hopefully I will get something accomplished in the afternoon.
Just saw this thread. I NEED to organize our home before the new home-schooling year starts. Our hs space, my business/personal paperwork, as well as storage for things I buy and sell on Ebay all share the same area.
My major goals before the end of July:
~Organize school/work area
~Organize crafting supplies
~Clean out DD's closet
~Clean out and organize pantry
I'll join!
My projects:
-inventory clothing and prepare shopping list for fall/winter needs
-organize art & craft & hobby supplies
-catalog home library & organize
- implement new home management and financial organizational binders
-organize food storage & canning pantry
-inventory and reorganize emergency supplies & kits
-freshen up first aid cabinet
-wrap and inventory items in gift closet and complete fall/winter holiday/special occasion shopping list
Thanks dbsam! :)
This is sooo typical.... LOL
I started working on clearing off my vanity in our master bedroom when I got out of the shower this morning...but then I went to get dressed and got sidetracked because I am always wishing I knew exactly which clothes fit and which didn't, without having to try a bunch on OR just grabbing the ones I KNOW fit.... So, I went through my entire closet, 3-shelf cabinet, and two tiny drawers today. I actually organized all my clothes by what fits and what doesn't right now. I gave away a handful, too. The items that fit are in my favorite places to get items: front and center in the closet, top two shelves in little cabinet, and ONLY items that fit are in the two tiny drawers. The items that don't are in the least accessible areas, but I left everything looking full in order to prevent buying anything new....except I did discover I own exactly one pair of shorts that fit. We have a warm season that lasts half the year; another pair of shorts are in order.
I did a little more in the studio, too.
I got exactly nowhere on the office. The big project. Oy.
We finished something that wasn't on my list but should have been - the inside of the minivan. Well...my husband did most of it, but I helped a little. He did a very thorough cleaning. He took out the center counsel, the seats, booster seats, etc. Today I am going to re-vacuum because we went to the beach again last night and there is a little sand inside. I am also going to spray the carpets with BacOut and wash the outside.
Also not on my list in my previous post...I went through the extra fridge and freezers and organized, took out a couple of expired items, and wiped down the shelves. I am hoping to clean the fridge/freezer in the kitchen today too.
Sounds like everyone is doing great!
sunnysandiegan - Organizing your calendar can be really helpful! I've been working on putting together a home-binder to keep up with all sorts of things--meal plans, calendar, bills, etc. I was even shocked when I found DH using it!
That sounds like a great idea! I have these things stuffed into drawers and/or in standing magazine boxes - not very effective. But there is a big, empty red binder I'm staring at in my office that would be a great home binder. Thx for the idea!
I was out of town for three days, so no decluttering or organizing then. This morning so far I cleaned the dust out of the inside of my computer tower - does that count for anything? 
Now it's time to work, but I'll take an organizing break later.
I want to join too. I need some motivation!
To do:
Organize pictures and put them in albums (about 1 million pics :)
organize dining room(craft) drawers and downsize stuff
organize bookshelves - donate unwanted books
clean and organize my closet
organize and take stock of pantry
go through kitchen drawers
organize office/paper stuff
Ok I'm tired just looking at this 
I want to join too. I need some motivation!
To do:
Organize pictures and put them in albums (about 1 million pics :)
organize dining room(craft) drawers and downsize stuff
organize bookshelves - donate unwanted books
clean and organize my closet
organize and take stock of pantry
go through kitchen drawers
organize office/paper stuff
Ok I'm tired just looking at this
Photos - what a good idea!
I haven't even printed photos in five years. Mine are on disks and SD cards shoved in drawers, piles, etc around the house.
I think that will be the last thing on my list...something I will start once the kids go back to school.
I need to join too, here is my list:
-Dining Room table
-Junk Drawer
-DD's Bedroom
-Office Cabinet
-Spare Bedroom Closet
-Pantry
-Hurricane Supplies
-Garage
-Master bedroom
-Master Closet
-DS's Playroom
-DDs Therapy Equipment
-My Nook
OK, I Had a slow start and only got the dining room table done over the weekend, but I also had Laundry, a house to clean, etc etc. But today I finished the pantry and started on the hurricane supplies. I only need a trip to the store to finish those off (woo hoo!!!!!). There was a toy store that went out of business last May and I cleaned them out of Lego Star Wars (at 75% off), so I have bribed my DS with Lego star wars for helping. So he earned a kit today for helping (which he deserved we did a lot of moving around), he gets to put it together tomorrow while I am working on my nook. 2 birds, one stone, I kinda rock today!!!!
Photos - what a good idea!
I haven't even printed photos in five years. Mine are on disks and SD cards shoved in drawers, piles, etc around the house.
I think that will be the last thing on my list...something I will start once the kids go back to school.
I have had them on my table (over 4 bags full) for the last 2 weeks.....time to get a move on. I have a ton on cds too (yikes - that's for another day) I can't figure out where to store the albums though. They are awkward on a bookshelf. Plus I have about 20 of them......
I have had them on my table (over 4 bags full) for the last 2 weeks.....time to get a move on. I have a ton on cds too (yikes - that's for another day) I can't figure out where to store the albums though. They are awkward on a bookshelf. Plus I have about 20 of them......
The photos I printed I didn't even put into albums - I intended to but never did. Plus I wasn't sure where to store the albums. I put them in photo storage boxes and labeled by dates. The boxes I used are from this company and sort of this style (but mine are several years old and a little different). http://www.irisusainc.com/p-759-kp-xlpho.aspx (They're even made in the USA.)
They have a nice handle and stack well. I keep them in a closet and told my husband if the house burns down we should each grab two of them! (Right now I only have two filled.)
Ooooh I like that idea! I got some new albums really cheap at the thrift store. I'm thinking maybe I'll go through and put 'nicer' photos in those and check out boxes for the others (especially doubles or when you have 20 pictures of the same thing)
~ Straighten up studio (sewing supplies + herbal remedy supplies). - Done! However, now there is work to be done in the kitchen again. LOL Just as I finished the kitchen...
~ Clear off my vanity in our master bedroom (makeup project I got distracted from + empty bottles & small supplies for homemade toiletries); put away stuff on floor (bigger homemade toiletry supplies). - Worked on this a little more today.
~ And, the big one....which I may not finish, but would at LEAST like to get started on....my craft supplies in our family office. I have the window nook + part of the closet + one tall narrow Ikea cabinet + the bottom half of the TV shelving unit, yet the floor is overrun with my supplies from an all day crop back in MAY! EEK!
Overall, our entire house is in MUCH better shape after this weekend! :) There are three of us and we did what I call 10-minute cleaning. This time (we take turns in all categories), I was in charge of the timer, DD (age 11) was in charge of the music, and DH got first choice in rooms/tasks in most rounds. I'd start the timer for 10 minutes and we'd each pick-up/straighten/put away, dust, vacuum, clean, whatever needed to be done in the room we were in until the timer went off. I'd call "time's up" and we'd choose new rooms for the next round. Repeat.
For the first few rounds, we pretty much stayed out of each other's way. LOL Eventually, though, we needed to do the second or third round in each room, so we'd need a "pow wow" between timer stints to quickly (a minute or less) describe or show what had been done in a room, so the next person could pick up where the previous person left off. Our bathrooms only needed two rounds each since there was no decluttering/straightening to do. I'm the only one who could do anything in the studio this time and it only got one 10-min round. DD spent one 10-min round dusting the entire house, including the ceiling fans. We each spent a round or two with the vacuum (different parts of the house; the stairs actually took part of THREE rounds this time!). I spent several rounds handling laundry at the washer/dryer/outside line. DH spent several rounds putting laundry away in our bedroom and DD spent several rounds putting her own clothes away in her bedroom. We all spent one round in the kitchen at the very end finishing the table and counters and floor. I know cleaning is not supposed to be fun (LOL), but this actually is the most effective way to get a lot done in a short amount of time while adding quite the element of FUN to it all! :)
After all that cleaning this weekend, the last few things that need attention in our house (beside the daily dishes & laundry) are my herbal infusions (which I've been working on again today), my seed project (living room), my makeup project (bedroom), my potions containers (bedroom), and my craft supplies (office). Hmmm.... I am the main culprit for all the messes in our house lately!!!! LOL DH & DD both took care of their project messes. Since laundry was so behind and had been taking up a lot of floor space when DH did the vacuuming downstairs, three areas still need vacuuming downstairs. Plus, mopping never got done anywhere. We usually only spend one hour cleaning our house each weekend (all three of us, not usually in the ten-minute increments -- we mix it up), but we've been out of town or ill or super busy since early April. No wonder it took us two weekends (not in a row, though, because I was ill last weekend) to get our house back in shape. I'm so thankful it is nearly back under control!!! Ultimately, that is my organization goal this month...
Strained and bottled another infusion. I believe there is only one left now...it is mid-process.
Sheets have all been washed and line-dried in the glorious sun; folded and put away, too.
I wonder if the whole house is going to be clean before I step foot in the office.... ;)
Follow Mothering