Have you heard the news?

There's a new challenge over at A Bowl of Lemons.!

Toni is having a new weekly challenge starting tomorrow January 30th!

I can't wait, how about you?

Day 21 of 21

I did it!

Here's my last challenge of the 21 day challenge. Don't worry, I'm not quitting because I might be a little addicted!

My Favorite Organizing Idea

The Basket of Better Homes . . . the never ending, once a month, for the last four years, keep because I might need one day Better Homes and Garden Magazine. I love this magazine, I anxiously await the mailman's delivery of this little baby every month. I love the decorating and recipes and have even tried to duplicate a few myself. That being said, do I need the WHOLE magazine? I say I don't think so!

Here's my before:

The Basket that sits under my coffee table. It looks quite nice if I do say so myself. 

Apparently I collect PBteen too.

 

I threw the magazines onto the floor . . . 4 years people!

Got some sheet protectors and 3 ring binder

Made some labels . . . (although I didn't think this one completely through . . . the sheets are larger than the dividers. Still looks pretty!)

Ripped out the pages of the ideas I liked, put them in the sleeve protector and filed them under the appropriate heading. Then I recycled the magazines! All the ideas are now at my fingertips . . . I like it!

I can't thank you enough Toni! This was so much fun!

Day 20 of 21 Days of Organization

Sadly, it's Day 20.

Gladly, Toni is going to continue weekly challenges!

Day 20 Organizing Your Photos

I started with seven boxes of photos. This has been a difficult challenge for me, I have two boxes of "before Maya" photos. Most of these photos are of her biological father and his family. I've always wanted to keep these for Maya but have never been able to sort through them to decide how many or which ones to keep. So I decided to keep them all and she can decide. I dedicated 1 1/2 boxes to "Pre Maya" and then sorted through the rest.

I sorted through all of the photos, matched the doubles and stacked them all on the floor by event or time. There were a lot of pictures! It was exhausting.

I then loaded almost all the photos up and separated by each chronological event (tried to remember!). I know have the majority of the pictures (pre-digital) in these totes.

Although it's not complete, it's a good start!



21 Days to Getting Organized!

Day 19 Master Closet

Oh Boy! Here we go!

BEFORE:

Not too bad, but not too good either!

Look what I found in my closet. That's my mom, my dad and me!

I threw everything out onto the bed and the floor.

Naked

and wiped down

Looks like this needs a good painting

I have several canvas containers. Some are his, some are mine and this is ours ;)

His side all loaded back in. I started with his containers, I tidied up his jeans and shorts. Then I moved to the shirts where I put all the long sleeve shirts in first, then the short sleeve button up, long sleeve pullovers and t-shirts, mock collared golf shirts, collared golf shirts and t-shirts. Lastly slacks and belts. After the clothing, I moved onto the shoes. I took everything off the shelf, cleaned it and then stacked the keepers back on it.

Then I moved over to my side. I started with my containers, jeans, shorts & capri's, pj's and swimsuits & cover ups. Then I worked on my shirts. Instead of long sleeve to short sleeve then color like I have done in the past, I just did like colors. My slacks were arranged by color and then capri's by color as well.

I should have taken a picture of the 3 garbage bags of clothes and shoes that didn't make this cut!

What do you think?



21 Days of Getting Organized

Day 18 Keepsakes

OK this one has been set up already. Remember my Closet Office and the baskets. I just realized you can't see the top shelf in that post . . anyhow it looks just like the bottom shelf with the white baskets and red & white liners. The very hard to reach strategically placed basket holds all of Maya's school keepsakes. I've already organized each year with folders and it looks like this:

Here's the basket with all of Maya's school keepsakes, there's a photo album my mom made for me years ago - out of fabric if that tells you how long ago! and a finger print kit. Everything is stacked on top of each other, files first and then the album.

Here are all the folders, starting with Preschool going to 5th Grade. I remember making these while she was in 1st grade not knowing how many folders to make. I made enough to go to 5th grade but that seemed SO far away. She's in 4th Grade now. Sigh.

Some of her Preschool things.

Oh the dang flash! Every day in 3rd grade I wrote her a note with her lunch . . . and she kept them all!

Awards

Certificates

Drawings

Reports 

Assignments 

Tests

Gifts for me Mother's Day (that says massage!) 

Christmas Love Messages for me! 

Ribbons

Those are some of the things I keep in my keepsakes! This was a fun challenge to look through her accomplishments and how much she has grown!

21 Days to getting Organized Day 17

Day 17 The Mail Station

OK Here it is . . . The BEFORE:

So believe it or not this black thing collects a lot of crap. Hanging crap, filing crap, ledge crap, and coat-purse-sweatshirt-backpack-anything with strap crap.

As you can see the TO BE FILED is quiet full . . . and needs to be filed.

I took everything out of the TO BE FILED and sorted into stacks.

Found this from a year and half ago. Isn't she sweet!

Got these from my "office space" and started filing all the paperwork into the labeled folders.

This was all the random paperwork that I HAD to keep but now realize I DON'T need.

Empty and wiped down.

Here are the labels I had before and I think it works pretty good.

AFTER

I need to work on training my husband better, he always stacks papers on the counters or buffet (I think he wants me to sort everything in his defense) which causes a little chaos but can be tamed with practice ; ) You're reading this right Hubs? I think if I trained myself to file on the first of every month then I wouldn't feel so overwhelmed filing 8 months worth of paperwork.

That's all, any suggestions?