Amber's Organizing - Tips

Organizing your child’s closet is a great opportunity to teach him/her the value of a tidy and efficient space. It does not have to be an overwhelming task. You can make it fun by allowing him/her to pick out bins, baskets, and organizers to give the closet a personal touch. Working together with your child you can edit his/her belongings and create a place for everything. 1. Take Everything Out of the Closet The first step is to create a blank slate. You should start by taking everything out of your child’s closet. This will allow you to see exactly…

10 Organization Tips for New Moms Expecting a baby? Whether it’s your first child or fifth child, a baby changes everything. They are a huge blessing but also come with a lot of stuff. You can prepare and organize space around the home to make the transition smoother and easier. Finding room for all the baby gear and baby feeding items in the kitchen can be very overwhelming. Here are some practical tips to think through before the baby arrives. Hide rattles, blocks, board books, and other small baby toys in decorative lidded containers under the coffee table or the…

The trick to the completion of a successful school year is maintenance. If you start the year by building good habits into yours and their day and weeks, maintenance will take care of itself. Decide on ONE family calendar, whether it’s an electronic calendar or a physical calendar that hangs on the wall in the mudroom. Get into the habit of writing every parent or kid commitment onto the calendar. If you can review the day’s schedule with family members each morning at breakfast or the night before during dinner, you’ll be set up for success. Empty backpacks every night….

Transitions bring on stress – even those we’ve been through many times before, like shedding our relaxed summer selves and getting back to the school year hustle.  We can minimize start-up stress, however, by planning and putting things in place now.  With proper preparation and organization, we will avoid unnecessary anxiety, arguments, and overall pressure, leaving our kids with more energy to soak up new knowledge and reconnect with old friends.   Also, by engaging our kids in preparation, we not only give them a solid boost this year, but we model good behavior that they may copy throughout their learning lives. Maybe you’re…

A successful first day (or week) of school starts with organizing and planning. Physical and emotional barriers will get in the way. Here are some ideas of how to hurdle over them. Physical Logistics On the day before school starts, run through the morning routine with your kids and have them help you prepare the following items. Check that the bathroom is clean and there are towels, shampoo, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, etc. for each child (and yourself!). Layout each child’s outfit in an accessible and obvious location.  Put out everything they are going to wear in one place (shoes waiting…

During an organizing session with an 11 year old and a 14 year old, we went through their closets and organized their rooms. Both were excited to have one on one attention from an adult who wasn’t there mom or dad. They listened well, make great decisions and at the end of the day we had a hallway lined with about 5-6 black garbage bags for charity.  When I followed up with the family they were happy to report that the kids enjoyed their new organized space and the organizing has set a good mindset and focus for the family….