How Safe Is Your Medicine Cabinet?

As a mother of a 1 year old and a 3 year old, I constantly have my safety radar on. From choking hazards to electrical outlets to cleaning products to toilets and bathtubs, you can never be too careful. One important part of home organization for you and your family is safety. This includes your medicine cabinet.

Preferably while your children are asleep or out of the house, go through your medications. Examine each package and sort out every expired product. You may be surprised at how many of the medications you have are out of date. After you have finished, dispose of them immediately so there is no chance of your children or pets getting to them.

We don’t have bathroom medicine cabinets, so I store most of our medicines (cold medicines, allergy, stomach relief, etc…) in a clear plastic container with a lid. I keep this on the top shelf of my pantry. For the vitamins and pain relievers we use frequently, I keep them in the cabinet above the stove. Another idea is to use a lazy Susan. This may be easier for people who use several medications on a daily basis. They will be easy to find since the lazy Susan turns 360 degrees. Be sure to store this in a cabinet out of the reach of children.

My children have a small corner of the cabinet above the sink specifically for their medications. Of course if you have a medicine cabinet in their bathroom, you can keep them there. If you share a bathroom, keep their medicine on a different shelf from the adult medicine. I feel it is safer and more convenient to keep their medicine separate from mine and my husband’s. If my baby spikes a fever in the middle of the night, I’m not fumbling through bottles trying to find the fever reducer. To make sure you haven’t picked up the wrong medicine in a sleepy state, always check the label.

As I said earlier, you can never be too careful around children. Always make sure all medications are out of children’s reach or locked up, even those with childproof packaging. Remember to keep purses out of reach as well. Many times, purses contain medicine too. Make sure all visitors adhere to this as well. Grandma may think nothing of leaving her purse on the floor, but that little 15 month old explorer will no doubt see it and want to investigate.

When organizing your home, don’t forget about your medications. While some are necessary now and then, they can also be a hazard. Use caution with medications and make sure they are in their proper place.

For more great home organization tips, visit my site at http://practicalhomeorganization.com/ and pick up your free report, "Practical Home Organization Tips to Save Time and Sanity."

Create a Schedule and Stop Running in Circles

Being a stay-at-home mom of two very small children is a job within itself. Not to mention the fact that I also run an online business, clean my husband’s elderly grandmother’s home and do her laundry, have committee obligations at church, and I am currently keeping my brother’s two young children two days a week while they are out of school. Without a schedule, I would be running in circles and never accomplishing anything. Anyone can benefit from a little structure in their days and weeks.

Some people cringe when they hear the word schedule. Those who work outside the home may consider it something else that dictates to them what to do. Someone who works from home may not like the pressure of having set days to do something. However, the beauty of a personal schedule is that you can plan it to fit your needs. It also helps to free up some of your time, because you only do certain things on certain days. If you schedule to do laundry on Monday and Thursday, you can forget about it the rest of the week. Schedule your errands on one or two days of the week and complete all of them on those days. Try to arrange doctor and dentist appointments on the day you would run errands.

Try to think of things that you have to do on a regular basis. Such things may include vacuuming, mopping, cleaning bathrooms, laundry, dusting, running errands, carpooling, grocery shopping, kids’ activities, etc… Now sit down at your computer or even write it in a notebook and come up with a schedule for these everyday things.

For the very detailed person, you can go a bit further and select times for these choirs. This may motivate some people to get tedious jobs done quickly so that they can move on to something more fun. Setting times may not be for everyone though. If it puts too much pressure on you, just stick to the daily schedule. I worked by time frames when I only had one child. As soon as the second child arrived less than two years later, those times flew out the window. A daily schedule worked just fine!

Keep in mind to schedule fun things too. Plan a day or a couple of afternoons a week just for play time with your children, and keep everything else to a minimum. You may be surprised at just how little quality time you spend together as a family. Also, don’t forget to schedule some time for yourself and for you and your spouse as a couple. Even if it’s just watching a movie together after the kids are in bed.

For busy people, it may be hard to fit everything in to a 24 hour day or a 7 day week. It can be done. We may find that by planning a schedule, we actually need to leave some things off. If you have too much going on to even have family time, you may need to re-examine your priorities. A schedule may help you do just that.

For great home organization tips, check out my site http://practicalhomeorganization.com/

and get your free report, "Practical Tips to Save Time and Sanity."

Help For Dirty Laundry - Sorting

Although we are thankful for the clothes we wear, those big piles of dirty, smelly laundry are no fun. Perhaps a new and more organized way of sorting would help.

It may depend on the size of your laundry room as to how you are able to sort the laundry. If possible, have a separate hamper for each load you normally wash. We are going to have to separate the laundry one way or another. If we put the laundry into separate hampers as we finish using it, then all we have to do is wash the contents. No sorting is involved. An example would be whites, dress clothes, dark linens, white linens, play clothes. You get the idea. Remember, if your laundry room is small, you can keep hampers in your kids’ rooms and the bathrooms. Once you have your new system set up, explain it to your family. They may not like it at first, but it will make doing the laundry so much easier. If it helps, fasten or tape labels to each basket to help your family put things where they should go.

To prevent wrinkles, take the clothes out of the dryer as soon as it stops. If hanging clothes outside is a possibility, try it. It helps air out the wrinkles and saves on electricity.

Make your laundry room easily accessible. Put up shelving if possible to store all your detergents and stain removers. Leave hangers in the laundry room to make putting up the clothes quicker.

Hopefully these few things can help ease the burden of laundry. It sounds so simple, but a few changes could go a long way. Laundry will always be there. The headache that it causes doesn’t have to be.

For more great home organization tips, visit my site at http://practicalhomeorganization.com/

and get your free report, "Home Organization Tips to Save Time and Sanity."

Help For Dirty Laundry

Laundry is inevitable. One thing I used to get so frustrated about was the never ending piles of laundry all over my house. It seemed I would finish all the laundry one day and by the next morning, a new pile had somehow popped up. I decided that getting aggravated every time I opened the laundry room door wasn’t going to help. The best thing for me to do was somehow organize it better and stay on top of it.

One thing that helps is to put the laundry in the proper places every time you are finished with it. Don’t leave a blouse hanging over a chair in your bedroom or on the bed. If you only wore it a couple of hours, hang it up and let it air out for an hour or two. Then put it back in the closet. If your kids are old enough, give them the responsibility of putting the laundry where it goes. Leaving it on the bedroom floor or in the bathroom is just another problem for you. Are towels and washcloths on the bathroom floor a problem? Have a hamper in the bathroom just for those. It sounds simple, but it can help immensely.

If you have small children, it helps to do a quick sweep of the house before bedtime. I know how hectic bath time can be. You may easily forget to put the laundry where it needs to go. Before bed or first thing in the morning, walk through and pick up any clothes or linens and put them where they belong.

Where do they belong? If possible, have a hamper in each of your children’s rooms or in their bathroom. You can use a portable hamper with wheels or handles. Using one that has a removable liner is helpful too. It will be easier to transport to the laundry room. In your laundry room, have as many separate hampers as possible to keep from having to sort as much. There are inexpensive collapsible hampers. If you have a small laundry room, a hamper on wheels may be a good idea. You can find some that already come with separate bags to help sort your laundry. Be creative. If you have a two-story house, is there any way to engineer a laundry shoot from the bathroom directly to the laundry room or basement?

Getting your family to help put laundry in the correct places as they use them and using a little ingenuity can help decrease your laundry woes. We should always remember amid all the dirty laundry that we are blessed to have these clothes to wear.

For more great tips, visit http://practicalhomeorganization.com/ and get your free report, "Home Organization Tips to Save Time and Sanity."

Is Your Furniture a Clutter Problem?

Clutter comes in many forms. Mail, toys, beauty product, tools, and other things can all become clutter. Clutter is the main reason why a house looks disorganized. One thing that few people may consider as clutter is furniture.

A room can easily become overcrowded with too much furniture. A small room can look smaller and a large room can look too busy. The easiest way to see if this is a problem in your home is to take a walk throughout your house and look closely at each room. Play with the pieces. Move things out or reposition furniture to see how it looks. Does what you see help the room look more open? Does it feel less cluttered?

If you think the room would look better with less furniture, but you feel you need all the pieces, try combining things. Could you move the clothes out of a dresser in your bedroom and into your closet? Could you remove the coffee table in your living room? An ottoman may work better.

Making your home more livable and attractive are two reasons for home organization. That may mean removing furniture as well as other clutter. Try evaluating your rooms. If you decide you would be better off without some pieces of furniture, donate, sell or possibly use them somewhere else. This is just something to think about as you try to organize your home.

For some great home organization tips, go to http://practicalhomeorganization.com/ and get your free report, “Practical Home Organization Tips to Save Time and Sanity

Why Do We Keep All That Stuff?- Part II

All the things that we accumulate are in our houses for a reason. Some things have emotional value and some have monetary value. Here are some of the monetary reasons.

*I paid good money for that! That may be the case, but is that outdated three piece suit really doing you any good? Could you use the space that the dust covered item is taking up? If you haven’t used it in years, it’s time to let it go. You may have paid good money for it, but what value is it to you now. Give it away or sell it to someone who may actually use it.

*I got a good deal on it. Okay, but what is it doing for you now? Is it still useful to you?

*I may use it again one day. Honestly, if you haven’t used it in years, you probably won’t.

*It may come back in style. Yes it may. Most things eventually do. Are you willing to wait? Has it been more than two years since you wore that outfit? If so, couldn’t you use the space more?

*I can get more money for it if I wait and sell it. That’s not a bad reason. If you intend to get rid of something by selling it, take it out and put it in a box or bag. Go ahead and start the ball rolling to get the items sold. If you can’t find the time, go ahead and donate them.

Why are you keeping that? All of the above reasons may be good ones. However, if you are ready to organize your home, one of the first steps is getting rid of clutter. It’s time to stop making excuses and start purging our homes of things we don’t need.

For great home organization tips, visit http://practicalhomeorganization.com/ and get your free report "Practical Home Organization Tips to Save Time and Sanity"

Why Do We Keep All That Stuff?

I come from a line of pack rats on my mother’s side. My mother used to joke about my Granny keeping all sorts of things for years that she never used. When I became a young adult, I kidded my mom about doing the same thing. Now that I have a few years on me with a husband and two children, I find myself having the same tendencies. However, I am determined to keep only what I absolutely can’t let go. There are two main reasons why we keep things: emotional attachment and monetary attachment. Let’s talk about the emotional issues.

*It’s been in the family for years. No-one should be made to feel guilty for keeping a family heirloom. Some things are priceless, even if it is only priceless to you. The problem comes when you have a whole storage room filled with items that were once your loved one’s and you just don’t have the heart to get rid of them. My mom has kept my Granny’s clothes, dishes, old books and many other things in a storage house ever since she passed away, nearly 8 years ago. Just last year, she decided she needed to let some of it go. It may be difficult, but if you are just keeping the items out of guilt, give yourself a break. Give the usable things to people who need them. I am sure that my Granny would be happy to know that someone was getting use out of her clothes and dishes rather than them simply collecting dust.

*It was a gift. Okay, here comes the guilt again. We feel guilty for not keeping everything that has been given to us. Truly, we should be thankful. Some gifts nevertheless end up in a closet or cabinet and are never used. We simply cannot display every figurine or use every coffee cup that has been given to us. It is okay to give it away if you are not using it. Honestly, if you haven’t taken it out in years, you probably are not going to use it.

*It has sentimental value. I am very sentimental. I have things stored in my attic that I made or achieved as a child. My children are still very young, but I already have a hope chest filled with sweet memories like hospital bracelets and ultrasound pictures, first Christmas and Easter outfits, crocheted baby blankets, first birthday souvenirs and other “firsts.” You know what? That’s alright too. Those things are priceless to me. We just have to ask ourselves if we are keeping things because they truly do have sentimental value or does it make us feel guilty to think about getting rid of them? We really don’t have to keep every single school project we ever did. Reevaluate the things you have stored away and see if it is something you can part with.

Our emotions play a big part in the things we decide to keep. It’s just a part of who we are. There’s no shame in that. There doesn’t need to be guilt either. Don’t keep something just because you feel guilty. Let it go, the guilt and the stuff.

For more help in getting your home organized, visit my site at http://practicalhomeorganization.com/and get your free report "Practical Home Organization Tips to Save Time and Sanity"

Getting Your Family Involved

Here’s a home organization tip to try. Get your entire family involved. I know what your thinking, “Yeah right.” It may take some persuasion, but getting your family on board for this undertaking can make this project better for everyone. It will help your feelings to know you’re not alone in this. Also, once everything is organized, everyone will know how to keep it that way. They will want to keep it organized because of the hard work that they put into it.

Communication is the key to getting your family to help. Have a family meeting and let your spouse and children know what your plans are. Tell them the importance of having an organized home. For instance, you will be less stressed, and that is good for everybody! There will also be more time to spend together doing what you enjoy. Everyone will be happier when things are easier to find and there is less clutter.

When you are ready to start, make a list of things that each child can do to help. Remember to keep things age appropriate. It shouldn’t be too difficult for small children because most young kids love to help Mom and Dad. Picking up toys and putting them where they belong is one simple task for kids. Learning to put dirty clothes in the proper hampers is another. Use this as an opportunity to help them develop good habits of organization and cleanliness. For older children, let them know that they are a valuable part of the family, and you need their help too. They can sort through toys or clothes to decide what they want to keep and what they want to give away.

You decided to organize your home to help you and your family. Don’t become too hard on your family if they have a little trouble adjusting. It isn’t easy to break old habits. Offer gentle encouragement and try not to nag. Try to be patient with everyone including you. Your goal is to make life better; you don’t want to add more stress on everyone in the process.

For some great home organization tips, check out my site for a free report, "Home Organization
Tips to Save Time and Sanity"

http://practicalhomeorganization.com/

Organizing Your Car

My car is like an extension of my home. I am sure it is that way for most people. With two small children, it’s almost as if I have to pack half of the house to go anywhere. With car seats, toys, snacks, books, groceries, and other things, sometimes my car gets so full, I can’t even see the floor boards. To get in my car and see it neat and clutter free is a great feeling. Besides being a nuisance, clutter in a car can also be dangerous. Anything lose can become a flying object in an accident. Just like our homes, ours cars should be kept organized and clutter free to promote ease and safety.

If you have children, you know how much it takes to go anywhere. Toys, snacks, diapers and wipes for babies and toddlers are a must. As kids get older, the necessities become games, ball gear, dance gear, and many other things. Here are a few tips to keep it all in check.

*For little ones, it’s okay to keep a couple of toys in the car. A drawstring bag is great for keeping soft toys, which are much safer for a car.

*Magazines and books can be placed in the pockets on the back of the seats. There are even pockets you can buy that attach to the seats that will add extra room to store things.
Other car organizers are available for those who need to keep a lot of things in their cars. Just be sure to only keep what you need.

* Lots of cars today come with extra storage compartments in the console. If your car doesn’t have these, use a small plastic container with a lid. You can keep wipes, hand wash, facial tissue, pens, small trash bags etc… in it. This can be store in the passenger floorboard or under the seat.

*Use the small trash bags to clean out your car every time you get back home.

*Keep a small waste basket or recycling bins in your garage to quickly dispose of the trash.

* Keep your glove compartment free of clutter so that you can find important information quickly. This includes insurance information, manuals and registration.

Our cars are an important asset to our lives. Keeping them neat and organized will make things much easier for us and our families. Safety is first priority in a car, and keeping it clutter free is a great way to make it safer.

For more great tips, visit http://practicalhomeorganization.com/ for a free report, "Home Organization Tips to Save Time and Sanity."

Organizing Beauty Products

Beauty products are something that most women love to collect. It’s not intentional, but this collection can eventually become a huge mess. My two weaknesses are lotions and hair products. At times, I have had so many that when I finally decided to organize them, I found stuff I forgot I had! A few simple steps to organize these products can make your beauty routine faster and you will even find you have more room.

The first thing to do is take all of your beauty and hygiene products out of the cabinets and drawers, and put different type items into separate piles. Some examples are:
Make-up, lotions, hair removers, perfumes and body mists, feminine hygiene products, hair products, bath products, etc…
When I did this, I found tons of samples I never used. I told myself, “I may use them one day.” That day never came. If you haven’t used your free samples, throw them away! Now, go through each pile and toss out any expired or unusable items. If an item is still good, but you don’t use it, try to think of a friend who may want it. You know the old saying, “to each her own.” Just because you don’t like it, doesn’t mean someone else wouldn’t.

There are lots of organizers made for small spaces. A container of small drawers is great to store make-up, fingernail clippers, files and other small things. Keep this in your bathroom cabinet or even on your make-up table. To store bottles like lotions and hair products, use plastic containers to keep each type separated. Items that are used often can be stored on a decorative wall shelf or in a cute tray on your table. There are also wall shelves that hold hair dryers and curling irons.

Using a shower organizer over the shower head or in the corner of the tub is a great way to keep shampoo, body wash, shaving cream and razors out of your way. My husband used to hate it when a swipe of the elbow or shower curtain would cause a domino effect of bath products.

These few tips helped me organize a massive amount of goods. Now I have a neat way of keeping them organized. I can always find exactly what I am looking for. Maybe now you can too.

For more great home organization tips, check out my site http://practicalhomeorganization.com/ and get your free report, "Practical Home Organization To Save Time and Sanity."

What is The Point of Home Organization?

If you want to greatly reduce tension and stress, having an organized home can help. If you work at home, being amidst all that clutter can be nerve-racking. If you have been away at a job all day, the last thing you want to do is come home to a mess. All the different aspects of everyday life like laundry, mail, toys and dirty dishes never seem to end. Even if your house doesn’t look that bad to the untrained eye, are your closets and drawers weighing on you? Anyone can benefit from a little organization.

We all live busy lives. Taxing careers, demanding schedules, family responsibilities and errands to run can overwhelm us. Our homes should be a place of refuge and rest instead of adding to the stress we already have. Time is something we all wish we had more of, and most people feel that trying to organize their homes would be too time consuming. However, by never getting things organized, they stay perturbed and discouraged. It will take some effort, but it is worth it.

Clutter and disorganization seem to be never ending. This is where we get frustrated. Laundry continues to accumulate, the mail only stops on holidays, and we always have to eat. Just these three things alone can seem impossible to control. For many, mail and laundry keep piling up and the kitchen never stays clean. There is a solution to this frustrating ordeal. We have to decide to get things in order, do it and keep them that way.

There is a sense of satisfaction in having an organized and clutter free home. There is a lighter mood created, especially for the primary housekeeper. Life is made easier for everyone because everything has its place and less time is spent cleaning. Now you have time for the more important things in your life like family and friends.

For some great tips to get organized, visit my site at http://practicalhomeorganization.com/

Why I Got Into Home Organization

Before I had children, I worked for a business machines company for 10 years. I worked in customer service and later handled the tedious task of inventory. I always had my office organized. I knew right where everything was. I also had a schedule that I followed to make sure I did everything I needed to do. I had many interruptions throughout the course of the day, but somehow, I always managed to get everything done.

That all changed when I had children. I quit my job to stay home with my son when he was born. Nearly two years later, our daughter came along. My days of organization seemed to be long gone. I barely had time to eat, much less put everything in the right places. I didn't really care much the first 8 or 9 months after my daughter was born. I couldn't even think about organization. Slowly however, I realized I was stressed beyond words, and it wasn't the children. It was everything else that seemed to consume my days.

I began to realize that my house had me in a headlock. I felt like I was always cleaning, straightening, washing and it never appeared that I had done anything. I would literally cry when I walked into my kitchen only an hour after cleaning it and see crumbs on the floor, dishes in the sink and clutter on the counters. I also got so frustrated with the piles of laundry that I did not even want to open the laundry room door. This mess of clutter and disorganization was stripping me of energy and sanity.

I made a New Year's resolution the year my daughter turned a year old to take my house back. I wanted to have a home; I didn't want my home to have me. I started slowly. Of course it was slow; I had two children under 3. Little by little, week by week, I slowly got my house under control. It actually wasn't that hard to get it in shape. The difficult part was keeping it in shape.

I am so glad that I made the effort. When I walk into a room that previously made my skin crawl and see it neat and orderly, it gives me great satisfaction. I can breathe a sigh of relief, and I feel at ease. I also have more time to spend with my precious little ones. After all, that is what my home is for.

For some free tips that helped me get organized, visit my site at: http://practicalhomeorganization.com/