No, I did not make it up – apparently May 17th every year is officially Pack Rat Day.

So today, I will not get on my soap box about organizing and purging. I will practice restraint. There is actually a little pack rat in everyone. I was thinking about myself, my husband, and the children who still live at home. Here are a few things we are guilty of “packing away”.

For Me-
• Pieces of flat, thick cardboard (never know when I might need it for a craft project)

• Tea sets ( I literally have them packed up and haven’t held a tea in quite some time)
• Plastic containers (as an organizer I can’t seem to get rid of them)

For my husband-
• Rocks (they are inside and outside our home)
• The old windshield from his truck because it has an old KZAP radio sticker on it

For my son-
• Music journals, every piece of paper with music he’s ever written
• Trash – like cough drop wrappers, empty mail envelopes, product wrappers (and yes, he has a trash can in his room)

For my daughter-
• Stationary and all manner of writing tools
• Bags and boxes from stores and gifts received

So how are you a Pack Rat? Leave a comment here today and celebrate!

Summer may not be officially here yet but the weather is definitely warmer! As you make plans for your summer no doubt you are trying to get your ducks in a row. Be it vacation, planning a move, or summer activities – it all requires planning. Have you ever noticed that when we are planning on leaving for vacation, all (or more than the usual amount) of our work gets done? I know that my home is at its cleanest when I leave for vacation because I hate coming home to a mess. Imagine if we were able to get more things done “as if” we were heading on vacation!

What does it take? It takes planning, for sure. But if you want to keep it up, it takes habits.  So what 2 habits can you begin to implement this month? Okay, I’ll go first….

I want to get in the habit of walking for 40 minutes, 3 days a week

and

I want to plan healthy meals for my breakfast and lunch

You can see that my habits revolve around good health because that’s an area where I really need work. One of my favorite bloggers is Leo Babauta of Zen Habits.  He tells it like it is. Leo written 3 great ebooks that I would like to recommend.

#1) The Zen Habits Handbook for Life – Learn the arts of decluttering, single tasting, editing your commitments, eliminating all but the essentials, not doing everything on your to-do list, doing nothing, clearing your desk/inbox, becoming motivated when you are in a slump, accepting criticism with appreciation, and many more tips.

#2) The Simple Guide to a Minimalist Life – Taking steps to reduce your possessions, figuring out what is really necessary, simplifying your schedule/work/life, going digital in your life. It’s the ultimate guide for creating a minimalism in all areas of your life (home, workspace, travel, wardrobe, finances, fitness) and even for dealing with kids and other loved ones.

#3) Zen to Done – Teaches you the key habits needed to be productive, organized, and simplified, how to implement these key habits, how to organize these habits into a simple system that will keep everything in your life in its place, and how to simplify what you need to do.

Each of these books are extremely easy to read and contain tons of valuable tips and lessons. It’s a great place to start if you really want to create room for life, better habits and stay organized. You can order this e-bundle right here for only $19.

Disclaimer: Some links in this post are my affiliate links.

I am always purging and donating items. We have a donation center in our home; it’s a rather large 3 drawer plastic dresser. All family members know that if they do not want an item or if something no longer fits, you put it in the donation center. Then, when I receive notice that there’s a donation pick-up in our neighborhood (which happens about twice a month) I put everything from the donation center in a box or garbage bag and set it out at the end of the driveway.

Recently, my neighbor mentioned that she is helping to gather goods for a yard sale to benefit the Chico Cat Coalition (her favorite charity). I told her I would “pull a few things together” to donate. Little did I know that this would cause a shift for me in my purging habits… What happened?

1. I started to look at my “stuff” differently

I have given my neighbor a plethora of things. So far over 20 things have moved out of my home to go to the Cat Coalition Yard Sale, with more purging happening almost daily. I realize that some things I had been keeping (but not using) were things I felt were “too good” for Goodwill. Now, there’s nothing wrong with Goodwill, it was just my own personal justification. Some of these items are nicer items (non-clothing) that cost a bit of money. I wanted to give them away before but I guess I felt that they would not get a good home at the thrift store?? I don’t understand the logic either… All I know if that I am releasing things on a whole other level.

2. It’s almost become an obsession

Now I am looking everywhere to find things to donate. It’s like the show “Biggest Loser”- I am digging down deep and really working hard at finding more [stuff] to lose. I am challenging myself to gather up things that I never considered letting go of before. It’s like a level of emotional attachment to stuff has come unraveled and I am free of those “clingy” feelings.

So maybe having the right cause is the answer. Or maybe it’s a focused event with a deadline. Or maybe it’s something else. I don’t care – hallelujah, I am letting it go!

By the way, the Chico Cat Coalition Yard Sale is Saturday June 2nd. Go here for more information.

Last week I discovered a new product that is great for those who have a tendency to pile things. Pilers, you know who you are… if not, I described the 3 types of personalities when it comes to dealing with paper in a blog post. I interviewed the creator of Fishbinz, Lisa DeVeau, of Completely Organized. She confessed that she struggled with piling and had to find a better way. (Necessity is the mother of this invention!) I believe this product is the perfect solution for those who like to stack their papers and projects sky-high!

Introducing Fishbinz

The Fishbinz system consists of a tower with shelves, binz and optionally, lids. The tower comes in 2 heights – just under 48” or 26” tall, in your choice of black or white. The small binz are 2.5” high and the large binz are 5” high. The bins are see through and can be easily labeled.
It’s not just for paperwork. Imagine a place to hold:

• yearly school memorabilia for your kids

• your direct sales products

• scrapbooking and card making supplies

• laundry sorted by the family

• toys, toys and more toys

• pantry overflow items in your garage

• all of your projects

If you want more information, I suggest watching their video. And when you order, tell them Natalie sent you!

Leave a comment here and tell me what you would use Fishbinz for…

Fall seven times, stand up eight. – Japanese Proverb

My dear friend Elizabeth Hagen has written a book called “Confidence: Now is Your Time” and today when I was reading it I read the quote above… and it struck me. Many times people say that they try to get organized and just can’t seem to keep it up.

Being more organized has to do with habits, not containers or labelers. It takes time to develop the habits you desire for a more organized you. Each time you feel like you have “fallen down” on your organizing, just get back to it.

Each time we begin again in our efforts at becoming more organized, we are learning what works and what doesn’t. So if your desk is a mess again, I say that’s okay. You’ve fallen and you can get up! Just keep moving forward.

I’m all about encouraging you so leave a comment and I’ll get back to you soon.

I came across this darling picture of my daughter headed to summer camp. What great memories!

Do you have kids going to camp this summer?

Here’s what I did for packing for my kids for camp.

Camp is all about fun for the kids not staying clean or worried about their belongings.

I used Ziploc® bags for their clothes. I would put an entire outfit in one bag – socks, undies, a top and a bottom.

I packed a Ziploc® bag for every day that they were to be gone and put it in their suitcase/or duffel bag. When it was time to get dressed each morning, they would open a new bag and put on whatever it contained.

I also used a bag for their swim suit, towel and sunscreen.

I told my kids that it was okay for the dirty clothes to go back in their suitcase without a bag. That way they knew what was clean and what was dirty.

Bagging their clothes also insured that their outfits matched, I know, only a mother would care about that!

With my son Branden, it was not unusual with him to come home with half of his clothes still bagged! He was so busy having adventures that he would forget about changing clothes!

Oh well, at least the clothes were available!

Many people complain that receipts seem to over run them. I am often asked “What’s the best way to manage receipts?”
My answer: Get in the habit of staying on top of them every week.

I personally have a secret weapon when it comes to receipts. Here’s a look at it…

Yes, it’s a simple magnetic notepad holder. So the key to managing receipts isn’t the tool, it’s the process.

Here’s how it works in my home:

• My husband and I try to empty our wallets/purse about every other day

• All receipts go into this notepad holder (aka the in-box of receipts)

• Every week when we look at our account we check to see of the amounts are correct and assign categories to the expenses

• Most receipts are then shredded

• Any saved receipts go with merchandise to be returned or stapled to the product manual (in the case of big ticket items)

During Christmas we keep an envelope marked Christmas 20XX that holds all receipts for gifts purchased. That’s usually tossed about March of the following year.

This system works for us because we have a landing place for incoming receipts and we deal with the receipts on a weekly basis. How do you manage your receipts? Please leave a comment below.

I was helping a client this week who has a beautiful home. Everything seemed to have its place and the home was very warm and inviting. I was asked to help with the home office. The office had a desk piled with papers, bills and receipts as well as boxes of more of the same tucked under the desk. I have seen much worse than this, but my client was struggling to get the home office organized and back into a functioning room. As we began to work, we talked about the reasons for the room’s unorganized state. There is always a reason behind the clutter. I am not saying this so that we can justify the clutter but to help us recognize that there is something behind the physical clutter we see. Here are a few examples of the reasons why people now have clutter when they used to be able to handle it:

• Death of a loved one

• Medical crises/long term illness

• Change/loss of job (including retirement)

• Family members moving in/out

• New baby

• Divorce

• Depression

• Moving to a new location

All of these reasons have something in common; change and transition. This is a very common trigger for many of us that causes a once under-control home to become cluttered and less functional.

“Every time we go through a major change, we experience a breakdown in our organizational systems.” ~ Julie Morgenstern

Periods of transition, such as the ones listed above, require that we give ourselves time to adapt and adjust and then rework our organizational systems to be more in line with our new, current reality.

“Our life is not static and neither are our organizing systems.” ~ Natalie Conrad

In other words, give yourself a break. You are going through, or have just gone through, a transition. Once you feel the earth is a little more solid under your feet again, then get some help and get back to being organized. Tweak your old systems or set up a new organizational system.

But here’s the thing – start with the present. Don’t try to go back through all the things that were “let go” during your transition. Deal with the things that are presently coming in the mail, the projects at hand, and the bills to be paid this month. Set up a system to manage today and if you have time, go back and straighten up the past later.

If you need ideas on how to get started on being more organized now that you’ve gone through a transition, keep reading this blog for ideas to get you started. Use the “search” function and key words to get help for your particular situation or room in the house. You can also leave me a comment and pick my brain a little!

That dark, hidden area under the sink.

It’s an awkward place because of pipes and having to bend down low to see anything.  It’s also an area that rarely gets organized again after putting things away in there after moving in. Here’s what it looks like under my sink:

That garbage disposal is huge, taking up nearly half of the right side of the cabinet!   The yellow crate, also in the right side of the cabinet holds my potatoes, onions and garlic.  It’s something I’ve done this way because that’s how my mom did it.  I think she told me the potatoes like a cooler dark storage environment.  (I digress…)

Then there are the cleaning supplies which I keep on a lazy susan for easier access. I also have cleaning rags and sponges behind the kitchen garbage bags.  To the far right I have a microfiber dish drying mat that conveniently folds up and doesn’t take any space at all.

Here’s a quick 3 steps to putting the under the sink clutter in order:

1. Remove all the items under the sink and clean the area.

2. Sort and purge what you have taken out, only keeping what you will use to clean the KITCHEN. A portion of the under the sink cabinet should be reserved for just kitchen cleaning and maintenance supplies. Find a home for the other items you will not put back.

3. Measure your space and the height available (due to the plumbing arrangements under your sink).  Figure out the best way to contain these supplies.  I did this with a lazy susan but you can also use these types of products-

   

   www.organizeit.com

Items like these can be found at Target® and Bed Bath and Beyond®.

Is it time to organize the things under your sink?  Leave me a comment and let me know how it goes.

Last week I talked about the clutter on the dining room table. What about the bathroom vanity?

Is the only empty space on your bathroom vanity the indented space that holds water (the sink)?

Here’s a solution: Clever Container’s Make-up Manager.

Obviously as the name implies it holds make-up but can be used to organize other bathroom necessities. This acrylic organizer features different sized compartments to house your toiletries and side handles so that you can move the organizer off the countertop and into a cabinet quickly, giving you a cleared surface.

Since I carry Clever Container products, I thought I would hold a little contest. Would you like to receive a Make-up Manager of your very own? I’m giving one away on May 1st! A random winner will be selected.

This contest is now over.  And the winner was Julie -Congratulations Julie!!

Here are the ways you can enter to win:

1. Become a follower or email subscriber of Organized Habits and leave a comment in THIS comment section and tell me why you need this.

2. Tweet or retweet about this giveaway using the @NatalieConrad handle and leave a comment here. A sample tweet would be: @natalieconrad is giving away an organizing product! Don’t’ miss this – ends May 1st!

3. “Like” Organized Habits on Facebook and leave a comment here.

4. “Like” Declutter Your Life on Facebook with other uses for this product and leave a comment here.

As you can see, you need TO LEAVE A COMMENT HERE on my blog for each entry to count. If you are an email subscriber, you must click over to the blog to leave a comment. Don’t miss out on this awesome giveaway!

(Want to see more of Clever Container’s products? Go to my product website at www.clevercontainer.com/natalie)