Organizing Your Life from Top to Bottom

The first step in getting your kids organized starts with their bedroom. If their room is a complete and utter mess, where nothing can be found, then that is going to make every aspect of their lives hard. Picture Source

It will make it hard to find clean clothes or to put the clean clothes up in the first place. It will make it hard for them to do their homework, if it's done in their room. It will make it hard for them to get ready for softball practice if their glove is hiding under a stinky, mold growing mess of clothes. It will also make it hard if they want to have friends over but you say you have to clean your room first. What will they do? Probably walk into their room and be totally overwhelmed.

We are going to start with the basics today. A child's room should be their place of refuge. It should be a place they enjoy going to and relaxing. A place they feel safe and a place they can express their unique personalities.

Step 1: Get six boxes and label them: give away, throw away, store away, garage sale, stays in room and the question box. The give away, throw away, garage sale and stays in room boxes are pretty obvious what they are for. The store away box is for clothes that are too small, that you might want to save for a younger sibling, or out-of-season clothes that are just crowding the closet.

The question box is for items that your child can not make up their mind if they want to keep it or give it away. That can be a really hard decision and you don't want to throw away something without their permission.

Go through the entire room and sort everything into one of these boxes. As far as clothes and shoes, put the dirty ones in a hamper or trash bag and the clean ones in the dresser or closet. If you don't really have a designated place for the clothes and that happens, then grab another box and put them in there. Also put the shoes nearby and set those two things aside for later.

Step 2: After all the clutter is out and you have a clean slate to work with, take a good look at the furniture. Is there too much? If so, then it is probably crowding the space way too much and a crowded space is hard to keep organized.

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I read every organizing book that I can get my hands on. I do it for 2 reasons: #1 I am always wanting to stay on top of all the information out there about organizing. I learn something new everytime I buy another book. And #2 I just love it! I feel like a kid in a candy store every time I have a new organizing book to read. Yes, I know I am weird. I have come to terms with that. :)

Well, I have found an e-book that I want to recommend to you. It's called Declutter Fast. This book is for those of you who are sick and tired of the clutter and you are ready to tackle it head on right now. Organizing your house in baby steps, which is usually recommended, is not for everyone. There are times in our lives when we need immediate results. If that is where you are at in life right now, then you will appreciate Declutter Fast.

Here is what some readers are saying about her book:

Review 1
"Clutter, says author Mimi Tanner, sends a signal that your unfinished business has power over you. Was Mimi in the garden peeking in my windows? I've spent 18 months fatigued by what Mimi calls 'the tyranny of clutter'. I've claimed to be sorting for a move.

This amazing little book made me face that I've been pretending, most of all to myself. Broken hearts don't want to move on; what I truly desired was to turn back time.

I've put Mimi's simple system into place and the chaos is rolling away, leaving space for a kinder time."

Review 2
"I bought "DeClutter Fast" and it's been a ve e e e ry big help with getting my new and very small apartment together . . . lots more to do but the book is my bible for the project.

Try it, you'll like it!"

Review 3
"Hello,

I just purchased this e-book, and at first was dubious that it would contain anything new from all the other decluttering books I have read.

I am so surprised and glad to have found this unique book!

The idea of fast decluttering appeals to me; I am always looking for new, fresh ideas in this area, and I too enjoy reading about decluttering.

Can't wait to finish this book!"

As I always say....if you buy this book, please come back and share with the rest of us what you thought about it, good or bad.

Stop Clutter from Wrecking Your Family: Organize Your Children, Spouse, and Home, was one of those books that was an eye opener for me.

I am, by nature, an organized person. I was raised in an organized home. Early in my organizing career, I really didn't know what clutter can do to a family. But as I studied more and was in other people's homes hearing their stories, I learned a tremendous amount about clutter and its effects.

Here's an opening quote from his book: "People are more important that things. Balance is the key. Relieving stress about cluttering is the way. This book is not just about decluttering. It's about balance. A cluttered household is an unbalanced household. But so is a home where unresonable expectations of neatness cause discord."

I love that quote because it addresses both sides of the issue - a cluttered home which causes stress and an overly clean home with too many expectation that one can not meet.

Here's a look into Stop Clutter from Wrecking Your Family:

*How Important Is It?
*A Short Overview of What Does and Does Not Work for the Busy Parent
*The Family that Declutters Together Grows Together
*Computer Clutter
*Are You a Clutterer?
*Is Your Partner a Clutterer?

There's also some good information about ADHD, single-parent families and teenagers. It's a book full of some good helpful advice that I think you will glean from.

Organizing from the Inside Out, second edition: The Foolproof System For Organizing Your Home, Your Office and Your Life - This was one of the first books that introduced me to the science of organizing. I have always been an organized person. When I was a child, I would make a schedule for myself for the week and post it on my bedroom door. :) Sure, the schedule was basically wake up, eat breakfast, brush teeth and hair, go to school, come home, play with friends, eat dinner, take a bath, brush teeth, go to bed. I wasn't exactly the busiest kid on the planet. I also would organize my shoes and clothes in my closet. Okay, enough about me......

Back to Julie Morgenstern - she is the Martha Stewart of organizing. Her books are easy to read and she has some fantastic ideas.

Here are a few of the topics you will find: A New Way of Looking at Organizing, Traditional Offices and Filing Systems, Household Information Centers, Bathrooms, Bedrooms, Kitchens, and Conquering the Clock.

I think you will enjoy this book and it may introduce you to a way of organizing that you have never seen before. She knows what she is talking about!

For those of you who are homemakers and are really struggling with keeping your house organized with little ones all around, this is a great book for you. It's called Confessions of an Organized Homemaker: The Secrets of Uncluttering Your Home and Taking Control of Your Life and it's written by Deniece Schofield. Taking control of your life, doesn't that sound nice?

Her book is filled with very practical ideas that anyone can do. Here's a glance into what you will find in her book:

*The Basic Organizing Principles
*Failing to Plan? Planning to Fail
*Calendars, To-Do Lists and Schedules
*Centering Your Kitchen
*Curing Mealtime Madness
*How to Organize Another Person
*The Four Storage Options

Her chapter called "Centering Your Kitchen" changed the way I organize my kitchen completely. I had one of those "Why didn't I think of that" moments. When I organized my kitchen the way she suggested, I was so much more efficient.

She is able to write this book in an understanding way because she was once disorganized herself. She starts off by explaining what her life was like. She says that she knew the principles of organizing and was able to keep her office neat and tidy, but when it came to her home and schedule, something was missing.

This is a great book for a beginner to start with. I sure enjoyed it and I think you will too!

This book actually isn't an organizing book. It's a book for people who have gotten the clutter in their homes under control and are ready to start learning ways to keep their home healthy.

It's called Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping House. Just as a caution, it is extrememly detailed and the information she shares can be a little overwhelming.

Here are a few of the topics: Easing into a Routine, Serving Meals, The Fabric of Your Home, Beds and Bedding, Closets for Clothes and Linens, and Understanding Your Castle.

So, if you are interested in learning about the art and science of keeping house, then this book is for you. Enjoy!

Have I mentioned that I have quite a collection of organizing books in my library? :) Well, I do. It's a little embarassing but I have good reasons. Since I was a professional organizer these were my study books. I wanted to be well-informed. I also taught organizing classes, so again, these are my study books. Okay, okay...I am also addicted to the subject of organzing which I have alreay admitted to.

One of my all time favorite books that is perfect for those just starting out or even for an ol' organizing pro is The Everything Organize Your Home Book: Straighten Up the Entire House, from Cleaning Your Closets to Reorganizing Your Kitchen (Everything Series). Whew! That's a long title.

Here are a few of the chapters: Clearing Out the Clutter, Creating Closet and Storage Solutions, Organizing Your Kitchen, Arranging a Spacious Dining Area, Uncluttering Your Bathroom, and a lot more...

I was a little surprised by some of the reviews on Amazon about this book. I really liked it and thought it had some really good ideas. I think this book is perfect for those just starting down the path of organization.

Take the book chapter by chapter and organize your home as you read with the ideas he gives. I've even highlighted and marked all over mine. I don't care what the reviews say...I like it and it's staying in my library and on my top 10 list!