Organizing Class #2

I was hoping to actually get the "homework" done before going to the class last night, and posting it here, but Jacob was SOOO cranky this week I barely got the family fed. He's better now, so hopefully I can show you the fun projects I've been working on.

First of all, the House of Order gal said something really shocking last night. She said that coupons are not worth the hassle and time and money savings, yada yada yada. {GASP} And that there is no great way to organize them (say what?). I was almost ready to stand up and tell everyone that she's wrong, that it can be worth it, if you have a little extra time, the know-how, brain capacity, basement space, etc. (he he he). Oh well. I'm just sad that she said that because everyone is taking her so seriously and now they're led astray with foolish notions. I know, I know, I'll get over it.

Okay, so here are my notes. I tried to take good ones for you since so many of you were interested! Enjoy! We talked mostly about kitchens and paperwork:

-D&C 88:123 (oh, and last week's scripture was D&C 123:17)

-When going through your stuff, try to get rid of 50%. Throw away/share anything you don't really like or that's ugly. Don't feel guilty if it was a gift or whatever. Just get rid of it!

-It's all about controlling the incoming clutter. Whether it be mail, school work, shopping, etc.

-To help control the library books, tell the five-year-old that he can borrow 5 books from the library, six-year-old can have 6, etc.

-Order does not happen by chance. Order is control, setting the parameters. (mail doesn't touch the counters and is dealt with immediately, shoes stay in the basket by the door, you get the idea.)

-Every kitchen has 3 parts to it: counters, sink, and stove.

-If you have clean (not cluttered) counters, you can cut your cleaning time by 10%.

-In trying to declutter counters, decide whether the item is a "freeloader" or a "friend." If you use it daily, it's probably a friend. If you are sick of having to clean around it, it's a freeloader. And yes, those 4 canisters you got for your wedding are freeloaders, go ahead and put them in a cupboard, unless you use them daily that is.

-Think of ways to hang things to get them off the counter: phones, plants, paper towels.

-Your toaster goes to the bathroom every time you use it. So put it on a cookie sheet and store it in a cupboard. IF you're not using it daily.

-You should do everything in your kitchen one-handed. So store things with that in mind. Stack all the small bowls together and the medium bowls together, instead of nesting them small inside medium.

-If you clean off your counters, you'll double the space and feel like you're kitchen is bigger.

-If your husband likes to dump everything on the counter, give him a drawer instead.

-FINISH putting it in its HOME.

-We're not the maids of our homes, we're the nurturers teaching others how to take care of themselves.

-It's more effort to stay disorganized!

-If you're standing at the sink, the places nearest you that you can reach just moving your hands are your A space. Put things you use frequently (plates, cups, etc.) there. Your B space is where you reach with outstretched arms, and you store things you use less frequently there. And so on with C space and D space. If you use an item in your kitchen just once a year, consider moving it into basement, garage, or other storage place.

-Get rid of anything in your kitchen that is not helping your life. Like if you have never used a potato masher and it's just taking up space, or that colander that just doesn't work for you.

-If you burn something on the stove, put an inch of water and a couple squirts of dish soap in it and bring to boil. Then let cool, and it will wipe right off.

-Use small plastic containers (the ones at the $ store) to keep like items together. Such as: baking stuff, baby bottles, etc. This will also eliminate things getting lost in the back of your cupboards.

-If you use a divider in your drawer, then secure it using an old towel.

-We should not have to move while we work in the kitchen, so condense everything so that the things you use are in the same spot (spatulas and wooden spoons next to stove, rags and soap next to sink).

-If you find that you keep pulling things out of the dishwasher to work with, consider buying a second one.

-Install corkboard on the inside of your cabinets and post announcements there so less clutter on fridge.

-Put some of your A space stuff (and B space stuff) beneath counters so kids can reach.

-Put extras in the cupboard above fridge or stove. So, if you have an extra Worcestershire sauce, put it up there in the bin of extras. Also, in your food storage, put a rubber band around the last item. So if someone brings out a ketchup, and it has a rubber band on it, then you know you need to stock up (I do kind of the same thing- I draw a star on an item that is about to expire and need to use up soon).

-You either have reference paperwork or treasured paperwork. Reference paperwork: phone numbers, class schedules, emergency #'s, internet passwords. Treasured: drawings, awards, pictures.

-Make a Family Information Binder with all reference paperwork in it (including a divider for each child). Include an information paper for each person (blood type, height, weight, etc.). Xerox contents of purse (in case it's stolen) and put that paper in the binder. Ward lists, extra keys, birthday lists, soccer schedules, etc. If you want to keep this all on the computer, she suggests only doing that if you can get to it in 3 seconds or less, and if you've got a backup paper version you can take with you in case of emergency.

-For the treasured paperwork, make a binder for each person in the family. For the children, put 20 dividers in their binder and label per year (2004, 2005, etc.) for the first 20 years of life. Then add a bunch of page protectors filled with cardstock in it, so you can just add as you go.

-Handouts, stories, poems, etc. are SHMOOSH. Make sure you are really going to use it some day before you file it.

-Paperwork is best kept in binders so it's better contained. File folders should be temporary or semi-temporary.

-As far as greeting cards go, only keep the heart-felt ones, and the ones from your spouse. They should all fit in a shoebox.

-Keep vital documents (birth certificates, passports, etc.) in a fire proof box or safe deposit box. To organize these, make a paper for each person, record what papers that person has and where they are located. Keep in Information Binder.

-Our homework this week is to clear off counters in kitchen, reorganize kitchen, make a Family Information Binder, and find a way that works for us to deal with our paperwork (A-Z, color coded, etc.).

-And go on a "paper fast" until you can get it into control.

I'm so sorry this is sooooooooo long. I hope you enjoy my notes!