From my family to yours, Happy Holidays!  For all who celebrated Hanukkah ​I hope you had a great holiday.  This year the holidays will be different with the pandemic restrictions, but make the most of the holiday.  Celebrate and enjoy this time with family making memories.  Enjoy the little things!  ​

​This Holiday season will be quite different this year!  Assess your holiday traditions like family gatherings and church services.  Do they need tweaking this year due to social distancing?  If so start planning now.  Schedule one-on one time with the people you want to see, in person or on a zoom call. Are your travel plans cancelled? Schedule a video call to open presents with family or friends. Send holiday cards, even if this is not a regular tradition for you.  Everyone can enjoy some cheerfulness.
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The one tradition we were able to follow through with this year is decorating the house inside and out.  My husband and son have certain decorations that they want to put up.  Being able to put up the decorations and still maintain a stress free environment takes lots of organization.  I thought my 13 year old and 10-year-old would know that some of the holiday activities we normally do would not happen this year, I was wrong!  I decided to find some fun holiday activities that are safe but still bring cheer to my kiddos. This time of the year is so magical for us.  Driving around and seeing the homes with all their lights brings a smile to me.  What are you doing to stay calm during this busy season?

Below is a list of some fun no contact holiday list.

Want more Holiday tips check out my Christmas Checklist.  If you are still struggling we can help with all your organizing needs, reach out to make an appointment today.
christmas_countdown_checklist_-.pdf

Enjoy The Holiday Season
​Annie

Organizing Tips for When the Tricks and Treats are Over

1. Store your decorations in storage containers that are easily  identifiable by color or by large easy-to-read labels so that you  don’t waste time shuffling boxes around trying to find your holiday  decorations. Plastic storage bins are the best. Boxes attract bugs  and mold. 

2. Create a content list for each bin. Place the content list inside the  box on top of the contents. This will help you find the exact item  you need in the future. The content list will also help you pack  items away next year because you’ll know exactly which box they’ll  fit in. 
3. Place fabric or paper items in resealable plastic bags. This helps  protect the item from bugs and moisture. 
4. Label each resealable bag with the contents. I label each plastic bag  with the contents so that I know which decorations go where when  I pack away the decorations. 
5. Place smaller items inside of larger items. I always place smaller  items inside larger items so that I can pack more into each box. This  also helps secure the items so that they won’t rattle around as  much.

Happy Halloween!  Enjoy the spookiness!

                 Junk Drawer Chaos
Who has a junk drawer, or maybe two junk drawers?

Some people may feel that a junk drawer should not exist, but in my opinion you need one drawer to hold the miscellaneous stuff as long it organized.  As long as you are not lacking drawer space a junk drawer can be a mini organized command center.  Do you need the drawer space but still need the miscellaneous items at the ready, think of over the door organizer with horizontal pockets.  The pockets are great to hold the flashlights, tools, pens and clip holders.
 Declutter the chaos of the junk drawer is quick organizing task with amazing results.

Follow these quick steps for an organized Junk Drawer:
1.       Empty the drawer, throw out the trash
2.       Sort like items together, put all the lighters, candles together
3.       Here is the moment of TRUTH: 
DO you really need 50 ketchup packets from fast food restaurants? Do you need 30 silverware packs from take out places?  How many menus do you really look at?  Do the 100 of pens and sharpies actually work?  Do you need all them in the junk drawer? 

4.       Consolidate all the excess pens, condiments, and tools.  Relocate the pens to the office area, and tools to the tool area.  Recycle the extra menus, donate condiments and silverware packs
5.       Organize: Once you have only the essentials that you need at hand you put the like items together in a utensil organizer
https://www.amazon.com/Dial-Industries-B694W-Small-Organizer/dp/B00114ZTBO/ref=sr_1_11?crid=KOD3Y4R9SMPM&dchild=1&keywords=utensil+tray+drawer+organizer&qid=1600698369&sprefix=ut%2Caps%2C175&sr=8-11
 
Drawer Organizer:
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Drawer Divider: https://www.amazon.com/gp/slredirect/picassoRedirect.html/ref=pa_sp_atf_aps_sr_pg1_1?ie=UTF8&adId=A02774767GVRVSB6SGZT&url=%2FAdjustable-Organizers-Spring-loaded-Expandable-Organization%2Fdp%2FB088TBDB2Z%2Fref%3Dsr_1_2_sspa%3Fcrid%3D1OGSSUJ0WZOC3%26dchild%3D1%26keywords%3Ddrawer%2Bdividers%26qid%3D1600698534%26sprefix%3Ddr%252Caps%252C188%26sr%3D8-2-spons%26psc%3D1&qualifier=1600698534&id=7380495419192101&widgetName=sp_atf
 
Enjoy the quick organizing task!  Thanks to the 10 minutes you took there is no more digging for what you need!

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​Did you know that my business has helped over 200 families and helped over 20 young adults and kids get their spaces organized? 

My business has also helped several nonprofits organizations organized their locations which allowed them to continue offering their amazing programs to those in need.  Starting my 7th year in business I never thought I would be dealing with a pandemic that would eventually shut my business down for 6 months.  From January to the beginning of March my business was going so well helping families and individuals get their spaces organized.  It was so much fun being constantly busy and doing what I love to do best.

  Then the pandemic hit, and I had no idea what to do.  I discussed what options I had with my bookkeeper and my husband and decided I had no choice but to shut down until further notice.  I was nervous wondering what was going to come of the business I spent the last 7 years building but most of all I was nervous about what my clients who already booked were going to do without my help.  I was nervous about how I would continue to pay my business expenses without having that steady income coming in.  We decided that I would stop all unnecessary business expenses and continue with only the expenses needed to keep my business up and running.   On top of having to stop my business I had to figure out how to become a teacher for my two kids who suddenly got moved to online schooling.  My husband and I did our best in helping our kids with all their school activities, but I quickly realized that organizing people’s houses were much easier than being a part time teacher. 
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In April I decided that I would try to help some of my clients virtually whenever I was not home schooling my kids.  I quickly found that helping clients virtually was better than nothing.  It helped me keep my mind from thinking my business was going to go under.  I kept in constant contact with my media person and we constantly kept our Facebook/Instagram pages up to date with tips for all my subscribers.  We constantly kept in contact with clients who already paid for services letting them know that once I was allowed back into houses, I would continue helping them with their organizing. 
Personally, I continued to do online yoga classes and online exercise classes to help me keep my mind off the stress of this pandemic.   

​We decided like so many others that we would jump into the dog ownership.  We started by fostering a dog to see if this was something our family wanted to do.   We only had the dog for two weeks before a lovely family in Havertown decided they wanted to adopt the dog.  My kids and myself were upset that he was leaving so quickly but lucky for us we were able to find the exact dog we wanted that was up for adoption.  This kept me busy for the next couple weeks which led into business’s being allowed to open back up for business.

Can you believe it’s June? It has been a VERY LONG few months with Quarantine!  A typical summer I find parents fall into two camps. The ones that are running for the wine and beer, dreading the next three months and the ones that are excited to be spending the next few months with the kids.  This summer safety, health and providing some summer memories are the priority!  
I fall into the later. I love making memories. Trips to the pool, beach and museums. Time for projects. What I don’t enjoy though is the sibling rivalry and the ‘’I'm bored’ comments. To counter that, we spend time together planning out our ‘summer bucket list’. I ask each one what they’d love to do this summer. We put together a fun list of summer to dos. Our list usually contains a trip to the movies (or two), bowling, trips to the beach, kayaking, paddle boarding and at least one museum. We even include things like riding our bikes and blowing bubbles.

Check out this pin and this pin if you need some inspiration.

Saving memories from the school year
I am so amazed by all the work the kids complete throughout the school year. Now is the perfect time to go through the pile of work and create a system that works, especially if you find your pile is pretty high right now!

The kids and I go through all the school workbooks, notebooks folders and worksheets that come home and we pull out any written stories or favorite comments and then recycle the rest.  We take the saved sheets, report cards, certificates and memories and place them in a file folder and label the grade on it. We then store in a file box or small container.

It’s important to get your children involved, especially when it comes to which school art projects and papers to keep. They may not like the ones you do. Let them pick out their favorite artwork. It’s fun to frame the top pick and even frame and give away some of them to family members. Store the rest with the other items from the year. Switch out the artwork as often as you like. If this seems to daunting, I love this system. It enables you to keep your kids' precious artwork and school memorabilia from toddler to 12th grade organized (no more crazy piles!)

Keeping organized over the summer break
Keep a loose routine so the chaos doesn’t take over your home.  Have summer reading and chores done in the morning before camp or any play happens.  Keeping organized will help you make the most of the long summer days. And remember, take time to enjoy the birds chirping, the sun setting late, the kids creative playing and summer barbecues. 

If you need help with your school work papers or any organizing needs call for a free consult