“I’ve been cleaning and I can’t find it!”

I left this message for my son’s Cub Scout den mother and realized how ridiculous that sounds.

When your home is mess, it’s understandable that you can’t find papers back…. but when you’ve been cleaning, it’s supposed to be EASIER to find stuff, right?

Well, yes, in theory.

But here’s how it is for me.  I have selective memory of the first place I put things.  So I remember where I first put the Cub Scout schedule.  It was in my purse after the den meeting.

Then last night I cleaned out all the old papers from my purse…. and I think I put the paper away…. somewhere!  Or it got in the wrong pile and got pitched.  I went through the recycling, the trash, the two new baskets for papers, with no luck.

So… what did I do?  I called the den mother and learned another lesson on my journey to becoming an Organized Mommy…

My personality remembers the first place I put things, so I better put things away right to begin with!  No putting something here for just a minute.  I probably won’t remember the new home.

How about you?  What do you remember best?  The first place you put something, or do you remember it at all?

My son definitely inherited the naturally-organized gene from his grandma… when he’s in the mood, he is even more organized than his mother!  Last week, he decided to get organized, so he went crazy cleaning his room (you can even see the tops of his dressers) and created his daily routine, complete with a “goal for the week.”  It’s posted on the bulletin board in his room.

He is very into technology so he is using the calendar on his Palm and his computer to record his schedule and appointments.  He also reviewed the Flylady Student Control Journal to get inspiration but he didn’t want a paper planner.

Last night he tackled his closet so he can have clothes in each slot for the week of his hanging clothes organizer (and we pulled out an entire trash bag of clothes that’s too small for him.  It will help me with the laundry, too, because I’ll know if he has enough pants for the week.

I’m so proud of him (and he’s only ten years old)!  And the best part?  His sister wants her clothes and closet organized, too!

Happy organizing!

OK, I admit it. I really need to lose 25 pounds.  As I walked by the window outside a store today, I was really upset at the way my stomach was sticking out!  I also need some new clothes for fall but who wants to buy bigger/fat clothes?

Any other mommies out with weight they need to lose?

It’s just slowly been creeping up on me the last few years… and when I do seem to lose a few pounds, it seems like they return so quickly.  I know the basic concept >> do more and eat less >> but I’ve been looking for some ways to make it a whole lot more fun and interesting–and easier!

So one of the things I’ve tried is to find some tools online to help.

Last year I worked with the Three Hour Diet, and I liked it.  Every day Jorge Cruise had a motivational message to get me focused for the day, and there was a place to record my weight and track the changes.  I even got one of their “5 pounds released” magnets in the mail.  My subscription expired when the credit card number changed, and I didn’t sign up again.

This year I’m on the same path–lose these 25 pounds–and I’m completely entranced by the show The Biggest Loser.  It’s just amazing to me to see how much weight some of the contestants need to lose (and they actually do it)!

So after this week’s show, I went to check out the BiggestLoserClub.com.  It looks very interesting (similar to 3 hour diet) and they are even offering free books if you sign up for three months.  I almost signed up… especially after I read Don’s Biggest Loser Club Review.

In the grocery store this week, I also found the The Biggest Loser Weight Loss Planner.  It’s similar to one of those small magazines with recipes you can get at the checkout.  So I’m going to start with this planner.  In addition to the inspiring stories from the contestants on Season 3, it has the Biggest Loser diet, a daily food diary, recipes and workouts.  Here’s my plan for the next 30 days (I’ll keep you updated on how it goes):

• Exercise 5 of 7 days a week including my FitTV workouts or walking
• Only 1 piece of chocolate candy per day
• No more eating when I’m bored or upset
• Fill out the food diary
• Watch The Biggest Loser for inspiration.

OK, that’s enough rules for now!  Too many and I start rebelling.  I’ll keep you posted… want to join me on My Biggest Loser quest?  Let me know in the comments!

Soccer, Cub Scouts, Dance Class, Religion Classes… you know how busy your weeknights get. Here are three tips to save you time:

Tip #1. Put everything in one bag.

We have separate bags or backpacks for each activity. All the “stuff” goes in that bag which is stored in the kids’ rooms. So the dance bag has tights, leotard, tap shoes, ballet shoes, dance skirt, hair bow, and the card for class. The soccer bag has the uniform, socks, shin guards, and soccer shoes. The secret here is to put everything in one place so you aren’t running around the house trying to find everything, or trying to remember if the uniform was washed. It goes right back in the bag out of the dryer. Keep an eye open around September and October when the school backpacks go on sale, and you can pick up some spare ones to use for activities.

Tip #2. Plan easy meals.

Take a few minutes at the beginning of the week when you plan your meals and go to the grocery store to determine what days you will need quick meals and when you will need to take a meal along (so you don’t have to hit the drive thru again!). Some of our favorite quick meals are light hot dogs on whole wheat buns, macaroni and cheese, and cheese quesadillas on whole wheat tortillas. For take-along food, some of the Lunchables are healthier than others, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, cereal bars/Kashi trail bars, and cheese sticks.

Tip #3. Pay by the semester instead of monthly, or automate payments.

My daughter’s dance class didn’t have an automatic payment option so every month, I had to make sure and get a check in the office by the 10th of the month, or we had to pay a late fee. After I missed the deadline a couple times, I found out I could pay for the whole semester at once and even save 10%. So now instead of 10 checks, I only have to write two. Check to see if you can get automatic charges to your credit card and take one more thing off that long to-do list!

With a little advanced prep, you can take some of the stress out of the kid’s activities–and actually enjoy them!

The biggest challenge for me when trying to get organized is keeping it organized. I actually love setting up new organizing systems (I have tried about six different systems just for organizing recipes!), but the maintenance is the challenge for me.

I love to see the nicely organized rows in the pantry, with the soups all grouped together and all the noodle boxes facing out… but what happens the next time I go shopping and suddenly there isn’t enough room for the four boxes of macaroni and cheese that were on sale?

And let’s not even talk about what happens when the laundry finally gets folded (and sits in the basket for days instead of being put into the drawers)!

So I’m not going to lecture you with all the “shoulds” about fixing this problem, but I will share some insights that have worked for me.

•  It’s got to be easy to organize. It has to be as easy for me to put something away as it is to leave it lying around.  Let me explain.  If the perfect home for my super-deluxe hot glue gun is at the back of the closet underneath three craft boxes behind my clothes, it will not get put away.  But if all I have to do is open a drawer and drop it in, you bet I’ll put it away.  So my craft area has a bunch of plastic carts with drawers for Open and Drop(TM) Organizing.

• I need rewards for maintenance.  When I do put something away, I want recognition–or at least a little chocolate!  Yes, I know I should just put my stuff away but it sure feels good when someone notices.
• The first home gets remembered.  The first place I put something is what I remember.  Let’s say, for example, I get a permission slip from one of the kids that needs to be returned by next week.  The first place I put that piece of paper is what I will remember…. so if I “just set the paper down for now” and then put it away tomorrow, there’s a good chance I will remember where I first set the paper down but not it’s new home.  This really motivates you to put your stuff away right away (or you’ll never find it back)!

What are some of your tricks and solutions for getting organized and staying that way?   I’d love to hear how you master the challenge of staying organized!

Are you struggling with trying to organize a too-busy household? Drowning under mountains of laundry with a fire hazard of papers on your kitchen sink? Running yet-again through the drive-thru because there wasn’t time to get groceries much less cook them?

Me, too.

And I’m so glad you’ve stopped by to visit… come and stay awhile. I hope you can learn a little and get inspired and motivated (a lot)!

In case you want to know a little more about me, I’m the daughter of the most organized mother on the planet… and thank goodness a little of her organizing knowledge rubbed off as I was growing up, because it sure didn’t come through my genes. I’d much rather do just about anything but clean, and my natural tendency is to “put-this-here-now” with grand intentions of “putting it away later” when I’m not so busy! Of course, later never comes and you know how that story ends.

I’m married to a wonderful hubby with two beautiful (and busy) kids so you’ll learn all about our escapades to get more organized as a family. I’ll share what works and what doesn’t–and maybe even a few photos along the way.

It will be a grand adventure–and I’m so glad you’re along for the ride! Let’s GO (get organized, of course)….