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Kitchen Organizing for the Holidays

The fall is a great time to start thinking about the holidays, which are really just around the corner. I promise you, they will be here before you know it. So why not take some time this month to start prepping your kitchen? By cleaning and organizing it now, you will have a head start and prevent future stress. It’s actually a great time to organize your cabinets. Focus on one or two each weekend. But while you are doing that, you should also start keeping an inventory of what you have and what you need. For instance, if you … Continue reading →

Home Blog Week in Review: December 1st Through December 7th

Today we finally made some real progress with decorating our home for Christmas. The holidays are here! You can expect many more posts about the holidays at home. Meanwhile, check out last week’s blog posts. December 1st Home Week in Review: November 24th Through November 30th After last week’s running around for the holiday, I am looking forward to a quiet week at home. How was your week? If you missed any posts, check them out here. December 2nd Home Month in Review: November 2008 Is your home ready for the holidays and winter? Now that November is over, it … Continue reading →

Another Good Thing about Organizing before Christmas

Here’s another thing about organizing for Christmas that makes the holidays a bit simpler at my house. As you go through all the stuff, purging, donating, storing, you may find that there are some things you need to add to your Christmas list. Your kids might be growing out of a lot of their clothes and need a few new hip outfits. You might find that some new books would be good or you might want to replace some games or puzzles. This is a good way to dig around and find out what the kids need without coming out … Continue reading →

Take Inventory Before You Shop

Before you shop, stop! Try this quick trick that will save you money now and in the long run. To save money, do a quick inventory of what you already have before you go shopping.  This will help save money in so many ways. From duplicate purchases to avoiding the pitfalls of shopping for bargains that you don’t need, a quick assessment each time you are ready to shop can make a difference. DVDs I’m ashamed to admit that we have two copies of a certain new Disney princess DVD movie. We simply forgot that we had the movie and … Continue reading →

Organize the Clutter Before Christmas

Christmas and clutter seem to go together. There are the boxes of decorations that we take out of closets, basements, garages and attics. There are the extra toys and other presents we need to make room for in our homes. There are even extra food supplies that may overstuff our refrigerators and pantries. Because I get overwhelmed with clutter (although I’m not always very good at keeping it at bay), my first instinct is to run out to the store and fill the cart with all sorts of new organizers to wrestle the clutter away. Did you know that there … Continue reading →

Christmas Decorating

It’s the tradition in my home. The day after Thanksgiving I start pulling out the Christmas decorations. Then I take the rest of the day off and save the actual decorating for Saturday. I absolutely love the day of Christmas decorating. A hot mug of coffee, Christmas music playing and my living room is transformed. This is also the perfect opportunity to get in some cleaning. Because I have to move furniture in my living room to fit the Christmas tree, I take advantage of this by wiping down the baseboards and getting on my hands and knees to scrub … Continue reading →

4 Things I Have Learned in Preparing for Thanksgiving

Last minute trips to the grocery store. Deep cleaning areas in the home that family will be gathering in. Hoping nothing has been forgotten. Figuring out what needs to go in the oven when. It’s all part of the Thanksgiving preparations. Depending on how well prepared you are, it could be a stressful next couple of days or smooth sailing. Here are some things I have learned over the years when it comes to reducing stress during the holiday season. The first is to enlist the help of family. Year after year I would be getting the home ready, complaining … Continue reading →

Holiday Preparations: Meals

Hopefully by now you have been making some real headway with your holiday organizer. Maybe you’ve come up with your own ideas on what to include inside. Today’s blog is going to look at preparations for the meals. We have just over a week until Thanksgiving and if you haven’t already done so, it’s time to start planning what you will cook. I like to carve out an hour or two, sit in a comfy chair with a hot glass of tea and look through all of my recipes and recipe books to come up with a meal plan. In … Continue reading →

Holiday Preparations: Cleaning

So did you purchase a binder to start your holiday organizer? Or perhaps you found another method that works better for you. We are now just over a week until Thanksgiving. So it’s time to start preparing your home for guests and that means…cleaning. One of the suggestions I had given in my previous blog was to write down the rooms that need some extra attention before you have family and friends over. If you haven’t already done that, use your holiday organizing binder to make notes. The point of writing it down is that you don’t feel like you … Continue reading →

Holiday Preparations: Planning

With the start of November, I know it’s time for me to start planning for the holidays. As of today, we have just over a couple of weeks until Thanksgiving and just over seven weeks until Christmas. For many this is their favorite time of the year. But for others it is one of the most stressful. However, I believe that much of the stress could be relieved by preparing and planning ahead of time. Are you starting to think about the cookies to be baked…the meals to be planned…the house that needs cleaning? This can quickly become very overwhelming. … Continue reading →