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Thursday, July 26, 2012

Organizing Your Bathroom

It's Thursday and time for more organizing!
 

If you are just joining us, we have been getting organized using Jennifer Ford Berry's Organize Now book.


 

It has some great info and tips on organizing various parts of our life and home. You can see past posts here:


Week 1 about Organizing Your Mind and Life Vision HERE,
Week 2 about Organizing Your Priorities HERE,
Week 3 about Organizing Your Schedule HERE
Week 4 about Organizing Your Cleaning Schedule HERE.
Week 5 about Organizing Your Personal Information HERE. 
Week 6 about Organizing Your Finances HERE. 
      Week 7 about Organizing Your Bill-paying System HERE.
        Week 8 about Organizing Your Receipts and Taxes HERE
Week 9 about Organizing Your Files HERE
                             Week 10 about Organizing your Magazines and Newspapers HERE.
                                               Week 11 about Organizing Your Email HERE
                                                Week 12 about Organizing Your Mail HERE
                                         Week 13 about Organizing Your Child's Toys HERE.
Week 14 about Organizing Your Crafts HERE.
Week 15 about Organizing Your Photographs HERE.
Week 16 about Organizing Your Purse or Wallet HERE. 
 Week 17 about Organizing Your Vehicle HERE.
                                                  Week 18 about Organizing Your Pet HERE.
Week 19 about Organizing Your Books, CDs and DVDs HERE.
Week 20 about Organizing Your Entryway or Mudroom HERE.
                           Week 21 about Organizing Your Family Room or Living Room HERE.
Week 22 about Organizing Your Kitchen Countertops HERE.
Week 23 about Organizing the Kitchen Cabinets HERE.
Week 24 about Organizing the Pantry HERE. 
Week 25 about Organizing the Refrigerator HERE.
Week 26 about Organizing the recipes HERE.
Week 27 about Organizing the dining room HERE.
Week 28 about Organizing the Laundry Room HERE.



Today we are organizing the bathroom. Since this is probably the first thing you see in the morning, it's a good idea to have it organized so you start your day out right.


We updated our downstairs half bathroom and I blogged about it HERE. It was fun to do and not too difficult. We are in the process of updating our master bathroom. I will definitely post when we do.

This Week's Goals:

1. Clear the counter top. Clean it well and put only the necessary items back in their place. (ie - toothbrushes, soap, etc)

I have mentioned before that I use Basic H2 Organic Concentrate and the Germ Off wipes to clean my bathroom counter tops.  I love using the window spray on my mirrors. I only use 1-2 drops of the cleaner to 16 oz of water and it works so well!!! Better then anything I have ever used before and it's non-toxic so it's safe around my kiddos. The wipes are so fantastic for quick cleanings and wipe downs.

2. Jennifer suggests putting 95% of your bathroom items away in drawers and cabinets and grouping things together. (makeup and hair care things together, soaps and shampoos together, etc) Don't let things clutter up on the counter top. I know I can be guilty of this. How about you?

3. Throw things out from under the sink that you don't use or are expired. Don't keep sunscreen more then 2 years. Half used bottles of toothpaste, shampoo, etc should either be consolidated or tossed. Appliances that are broken should be thrown out. Wash out the cabinets as you clear them out.

4. Short on space? Consider organizers like clear plastic storage bins, shower caddies,  hooks on the backs of doors, hanging extra towel racks, stackable plastic drawers under the sink, etc.



Tips:

1. If you are lacking shelf space, consider rolling up your towels and washcloths and putting them in a decorative basket near the shower.

For more tips, please check out the Organize Now book.

 
Thanks again for reading. I hope you enjoyed the post. Feel free to leave your own tips below.

Have a great day!!
Rebecca  

Monday, July 23, 2012

More Family Fun!

My oldest son participated in a backyard soccer club that our friends Klein and Reiko had at their house on Tuesday nights this summer. (and last). We had a great time and last week was the last practice. Andrew grew so much in that time and built up great confidence with playing. We are so proud of him and thankful to our friends for hosting and coaching such a wonderful club and group of kids. Here are some pictures from the last practice. you will see my youngest having fun there too:)









even the dads got into the game:)


Thanks for taking a look. Have a great day!!

Rebecca

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Organizing Your Laundry Room

Happy Thursday! One day closer to the weekend, right? We're back to organizing. Are you excited?:)

 

If you are just joining us, we have been getting organized using Jennifer Ford Berry's Organize Now book.

 

It has some great info and tips on organizing various parts of our life and home. You can see past posts here:


Week 1 about Organizing Your Mind and Life Vision HERE,
Week 2 about Organizing Your Priorities HERE,
Week 3 about Organizing Your Schedule HERE
Week 4 about Organizing Your Cleaning Schedule HERE.
Week 5 about Organizing Your Personal Information HERE. 
Week 6 about Organizing Your Finances HERE. 
      Week 7 about Organizing Your Bill-paying System HERE.
        Week 8 about Organizing Your Receipts and Taxes HERE
Week 9 about Organizing Your Files HERE
                             Week 10 about Organizing your Magazines and Newspapers HERE.
                                               Week 11 about Organizing Your Email HERE
                                                Week 12 about Organizing Your Mail HERE
                                         Week 13 about Organizing Your Child's Toys HERE.
Week 14 about Organizing Your Crafts HERE.
Week 15 about Organizing Your Photographs HERE.
Week 16 about Organizing Your Purse or Wallet HERE. 
 Week 17 about Organizing Your Vehicle HERE.
                                                  Week 18 about Organizing Your Pet HERE.
Week 19 about Organizing Your Books, CDs and DVDs HERE.
Week 20 about Organizing Your Entryway or Mudroom HERE.
                           Week 21 about Organizing Your Family Room or Living Room HERE.
Week 22 about Organizing Your Kitchen Countertops HERE.
Week 23 about Organizing the Kitchen Cabinets HERE.
Week 24 about Organizing the Pantry HERE. 
Week 25 about Organizing the Refrigerator HERE.
Week 26 about Organizing the recipes HERE.
Week 27 about Organizing the dining room HERE.

Today we are organizing the laundry room. Last week I said that I did not have a dining room to organize, but I DO have a laundry room. And it can get a bit messy at times. How about for you?





This Week's Goals:

1. Take out anything that does not belong in the laundry room. This includes clean clothes! Only dirty ones belong in the laundry room so it doesn't get confusing and you don't create more work for yourself later.

The only time I keep clean clothes in the laundry room if I am hanging them to dry. My father-in-law hung this great bar toward the top of the window, for hanging clothes in our laundry room. I am sorry the picture isn't better to see it.


also notice the fire extinguisher - something important to keep in your laundry room in case of fire. Cleaning the lint trap after each drying cycle will help prevent fires. (my brother is a firefighter, so I feel obliged to mention these important things to you:)
Our laundry room is a pretty good size. Since we don't have a basement or much storage area, I will confess that we do store bins of toys in the laundry room. We have way too many toys, thanks to generous grandparents, so we rotate them out often. The kids never get bored that way. Once every 6 months or so, we try to go through the bins and donate some to Goodwill. 


2. Have a laundry bin or basket to put dirty clothes in. Tell your family to put the clothes in the bins. Clothes placed in other areas will not be washed:)

We have room for four baskets in our laundry room. One for whites, one for colors, one for towels and one for sheets. It works well for separating and doing loads quickly. 
3. Have a shelf or a good place near the washer to store detergents, fabric softeners, etc. We stopped using bleach a long time ago. Did you know that bleach is the #1 cause of accidental poisonings among children? We found that Shaklee's Nature Bright, a natural alternative to bleach, works as good or even better in some cases and I don't have to worry about my kids getting into it. It will whiten whites really well and also brighten colors.





If you have multiple detergent or softener containers opened, then combine them to save space. Don't open a new one until you finish the old. I love the natural Shaklee detergents and softeners that my family uses. They clean fantasically and my sensitive skin has stopped itching since we switched. Also great on the baby bottoms and washing my son's cloth diapers. The diapers are almost 2 years old now and they look brand new!


I have a few posts about the laundry products including some before and after pictures in the last 2 posts. Warning, some of the before pics are pretty graphic. View at your own risk! lol 


Tips:
1. Do a little laundry every day. It will not get out of control that way. I like to do at least one load per day and tackle sheets and towels on the weekends.

we try to make the most of the space we have, so this towel rack works well in the corner of the laundry room.
2. Have a "pair the sock" game with your kids to get them involved in the folding process!


Thanks again for reading! I hope the posts have been helpful to you.


How do you organize your laundry room?

Next week.....the Bathroom!!! :) Have a great day!



Rebecca 
 
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