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Sunday, August 31, 2008

Organization



One of the biggest struggles for homeschooling parents is managing the household while teaching the kids. What are some ways that you stay on top of the daily chores? Do you have organizational tips to share?

I'm one of those people that LOVES the idea of everything being perfectly organized and in its place. I get butterflies in my stomach thinking about visiting a Container Store or watching Niecy Nash on "Clean House" (she's *so* cute). However, the application of all these great ideas in real life, my life, is a little more challenging. Some of the things that have helped are:

1) Being a Military Family. We move just about every three years. So about everytime we prepare to move, I purge stuff. Of course, I get rid of things and tidy things up in the interim, but a move is a great catalyst to organizing for me.

2) Living in a modest home. Currently we reside in an 1144 sf house. It does not allow for much stuff to accumulate, so when things start getting a little tight, Mommy starts decluttering. Since moving here, clutter literally makes me claustrophobic.

3) Bins, Bins, Bins. I've found that things tend to get put back in their place if I make a concrete place for those things. Enter plastic, fabric, basket bins and my trusty label maker. Beware of the label maker, you'll label everything. It really does help us, though. The kids have a large plastic drawer organizer for their crafts. Each drawer has a picture for the contents, so there's no reason they can't figure out what goes where. Which brings me to #4.

4) Enlist Help. I LOVE big families. I get the best ideas on thrift, recipes, and household management from those who live it everyday. One of my homeschooling friends here in CO, has given me many practical ideas on getting little ones (and not so little ones) to help with tidying things up. When I first implemented this, it required a bit of follow up, as might be expected, but the kids genuinely enjoy having a part to do in the home and it helps me as well.

5) Professionals. There are great resources on the WWW to assist in household management and organizing. For example flylady.net and motivatedmoms.com These are great resources for telling you what to do and when to do it. I was amazed at how much I overlooked when I first started using these programs! I won't go into any details here. LOL.

So, yes, Martha Stewart could conceivably walk into my home at any time and it would be ready, right? No, not even on some of the best days. :D It is getting better, though. I look forward to reading the other posts to glean more knowledge on how I might be able to do this. :)

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Tina,
Enjoying your blog. Thanks for stopping by!

-crystal

Unknown said...

Oh, TIna! I agree with pretty much everything you said. Clutter drives me nuts! I completely agree on the purging thing too. I do it all the time. And as for moving, we have moved 7 times in 8 years. Crazy, huh? Miss hanging out with you.
Jan

Sara said...

I love bins! And motivatedmoms.com too!! :)