When your house is unorganized, it can make your life seem the same. Wading through piles of toys for a lost shoe or mounds of bills for a stamp is enough to make anyone a little nutso. I can’t even concentrate or relax when my house is cluttered. I’m guessing you are the same — that or I’m just a little crazy. It’s so distracting. And all that time spent digging through clutter to find what you’re looking is a big fat waste of one of your most precious commodities – time.
For me at least, life always seems less complicated when my personal space is organized and clutter-free. So, today I’m sharing 7 tips to help you bring a little more order to your life — well as much as you can have with kids in the house anyway. One of the easiest ways to do this is to streamline your junk (piles of mail, mounds of toys, miscellaneous shoes scattered everywhere…). Read on for a few organizational tips that just might help you hold on to that last little shred of sanity you have left at the end of the day.
- Keep a filing cabinet by the door. You can have a slot for things that need immediate attention, things that need mailed or signed, or even for things the kids need to take back to school (permission slips, etc.). Don’t want an actual filing cabinet? I got one of those large decorative bamboo bowls from Target and placed it on a little end table (also from Target) by the door. Now before we head out, we check it for things that need to make the trek with us.
- Create a bill box – In this box (or file or envelope) you can keep your checkbook, bills that need to be paid, a pen, envelopes and stamps. Now you’ll have everything you need at your fingertips when sitting down to do one my personal “favorite” jobs (someone needs to create a sarcasm emoticon).
- Bins are a great way to keep kids’ toys from murdering your toes in the middle of the night, but they are often unsightly. If you hate having large plastic bins scattered around your house, stow them in a closet. Or invest in a nice wooden chest, pretty baskets or an ottoman with a storage compartment.
- Have shoes scattered everywhere? Who doesn’t?! Get a shoe rack and keep it next to the door. Better yet, place it on the bottom of the coat closet to keep it out of the way!
- Put a cardboard box in the garage for clothes that are too small or toys that the kids don’t play with anymore. Then when the box is full, drop it off at the Salvation Army.
- Overstuffed closet? Turn all the hangers backwards in your closet. At the end of the season, donate or giveaway any items that didn’t get turned around.
- Sippy cups rolling around in your car? Wrapper flying around when you put the windows down? Keep one bags in your car. One for trash and one to collect the toys and snacks that somehow end up lodged between the seats.
What are you best organizational tips? Share it below!
This graphic made me snort! Love the idea that “toys murder us” in the middle of the night 🙂 Also, great tip with turning the hangers around!
I like this entry. I always love organization tips!