Words cannot describe how
I have heard it said that in order to be more organized, everything should have it's own place. That way, everyone knows where everything is placed, therefore, helping to put all that "stuff" where it goes. I have found that this is MOSTLY true in our home. My children are still young, so I am hoping it gets better as they get older. My children know where everything goes. However, they are still not motivated to put it there without being told. But, in all actuality, ha ha, neither am I!
I don't know about you, but I am a visual learner. I have to see pictures to completely understand.
Here are some ways I have organized:
This is in the baby's closet. Fortunately, her closet is large enough to hold this shelf. I got this shelf for $15 at Wal-Mart. I found the white dish pans at the Dollar Tree (My fave for organizing "equipment" as you will see). I made the labels on my computer and then laminated them with my Scotch laminator. Now when I ask the girls to get me more diapers, they know exactly where to get them from. Or if I ask them to take the diapers out of the box and put them up, they've got it!!
These are two of the drawers I have organized in the girls' bathroom. I got all of these little "buckets" at the Dollar Tree. What was great is the small ones came in a 4 pack, so they were a quarter a piece!! Some of them came in a 2 pack. On the left is the drawer for their hair things. In the front is a bucket for ponytail holders. The two small ones hold earrings and the other holds baby bows. In the back, they place their brushes and combs. The other drawer holds miscellaneous things. I have a bucket for their "jewelry", one for bathtub crayons, one for broken bows or hair things, one for lip gloss, etc.
My girls love, love, love headbands. Probably because they are very tender-headed, and they would much rather me to simply brush their hair and stick a headband in it than to pull it into a ponytail.
So, this is an oatmeal container. It is wrapped in scrapbook paper and then I glued it to a candle holder I already had. If you pull the top off, I have stretchy headbands inside.
I have mentioned these before in a previous post regarding children's chore charts. I had these drawers for another purpose. I had used paint pens and labeled them. When I emptied them out, I decided to use them to store their kitchen set food/dishes and their dollhouse dolls/furniture. I covered the drawers with fabric (excuse the stripes are not straight). Then I took a picture of exactly what goes in the drawers. I took the picture and made a label on my computer with it. I then laminated and hot glued that sucker to the drawer. This has really helped a ton!!
This is a toy organizer we got at Target (I think) several years ago. Before I organized the organizer (what irony, huh?), toys just got thrown in whichever bucket. This drove me crazy. Plus, the girls couldn't find specific toys when they were looking for them. So, just like I did with the plastic drawers, I took pictures of what goes in which bucket, made a label, laminated them, and taped them onto the rod that holds the buckets. This also has been a huge help!
Growing up I was a little spoiled. My dad built houses. So, when he built their house, he made a pantry with pull-out drawers. I did not realize just how wonderful those things were! When we bought our house, I did not have those wonderful creations. For over 4 years in our new house, food was crammed in our pantry. Most of the time, I didn't know what was on the shelves and most of it was expired. So...I got to work. I completely cleaned it out, chunking all of the expired food. I bought these plastic tubs and separated our food. Of course, I also made the laminated labels and stuck those babies on there, too! Now I have my own pull-out system!
This is the drawer in the master bathroom. If only you could have seen it before...wow-wee! Can you say disgusting! On the right is a kitchen utensil organizer and on the left are more containers from the Dollar Tree. These hold makeup, brushes, creams, bobby pins, clips, ponytail holders, nail polish, Q-tips, etc. My husband really enjoyed this!!
Lastly, this is in our homeschool room. Again, these are Dollar Tree buckets. I took all of the girls' math manipulatives and sorted them. They each have their own bucket and they are extremely easy to access!
Again, I do not want to leave you with the impression that my house is uncluttered. It is not!! However, these little things have simplified the clutter. Instead of lying on a countertop or thrown somewhere chaotic, it has a place now.
There are a few things I need help with. One of those things is developing a kitchen command center. I just love those! I would love to hear about any ideas you have for organization in your kitchen!
I hope you enjoyed reading today! I pray that this will help you to have a little less craziness in your life while you tend to your lovely families! There is a little warning though: It can become addictive...beware ; ) Please share any ideas you have as well!!
