Take a look at your space and decide what you need in each area to accomplish the tasks that happen in that area. 

For example, where is your coffee maker?  If there is a cupboard nearby, then store your mugs, coffee, filters and sugar in this cupboard.  By placing all these items together, it eliminates the running around from one spot to the next to gather all the items used for this one activity, namely making coffee.  (Tell me this won’t make mornings a little easier!)

Now that you know how the train of thought goes for this process, repeat it for each activity – baking, cooking, cleaning, setting the table, eating (imagine storing your cereal bowls in the same cupboard as the cereal!). When you are planning your space, think in terms of main areas - the stove area, dishes, food prep, lunch items, storage and even paper flow. Where does the paper stuff flow in from and where does it land?  By creating a visually appealing space for it to land in will reduce the likelihood that it will spread throughout your whole kitchen. 

If there are many people who will be using this space, labels make a great addition to help everyone maintain the new systems and keep everything in its place. Labels also help to identify what items are missing or you’re running low on, making it easier to make your weekly grocery list.

Having a home for everything makes things easier to maintain and clean. 
 
Happy Cooking!!

The next step is evaluate how often you use this stuff. 

The question here is do you use it ALWAYS, SOMETIMES or RARELY.

The ALWAYS stuff needs to be close at hand, either on the countertop or in the easy to get at cupboards and drawers. 

The SOMETIMES used stuff can be put a little higher on the shelves, in harder to reach areas but still conveneint. 

The RARELY used items can find a place out of the way, in cupboards above the fridge or even in closets away from the kitchen. 

These RARELY used items often take up an enormous amount of space in our kitchens, as they are often the big items like the roaster you use once a year to cook turkey in or the deep fryer that gets used only occasionally.  As these are items that you will go looking for only when you need them, they can be stored in another area of the house – perhaps a basement cold room or a not often used closet that can be converted with the addition of shelving into a great pantry area. 
 
As always we welcome comments and idea you may have to share with us and our readers…we can always learn new ways of doing things.

Spring is Sprung , the grass is ris

I wonder where my taxes is? 

Oh maybe they’re on the kitchen Isle? 

ops I just knocked over that pile… 

But I am a big girl with lots of style 

I can tackle this paper awhile 

Imagine…a beautifully organized paper file!

Spring is the perfect time to tackle all those piles of paper and create an easy to use filing system to keep them contained. let us know if we can help! 

Happy Spring everyone!

You are probably not quite ready for stocking hanging, but with all of  the preparation that you have done in the past 5 weeks you are most likely feeling a bit more together than usual for this time of year. 

That is the point…all the organizing and preparing enables you to slide through this last week, as opposed to frantically clawing your way through it.

Some final Holiday Organizing Tips 

Week 1….the Final Countdown 

• Wrap the remaining gifts in recyclable paper or use reusable gift bags…make this a Green Holiday season
• Hand deliver all those items for the special people in your life. Your visit will probably be cherished more than the actual gift. 
• Make room in the fridge and cupboards for the extra groceries that you will need this week.
• Shop for Perishables and purchase extras to take to your local food bank to share with those who are less fortunate.
• Take your holiday meal preparations to a whole new level of organization…I mean get some of your  cooking done ahead of time and freeze it. That is what will be happening in my kitchen this weekend….the squash, potatoes and the casserole for Christmas eve will be ready so I can spend time with my company not a slave to the kitchen.      

Finally…have fun and enjoy yourself and your loved ones…you have planned and spread the work over the past 5 weeks, now you get to ENJOY!

We wish you a Joyous Winter Solstice, a Merry Christmas, a Happy Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa

This week for my KV Style article I wanted to share some of the lighter moments of the holidays…yes those gifts that we ask ourself…What were they thinking”? I hope you enjoy this and to read the online version click here

The names and details of the “What were they thinking” gifts have been changed to protect the innocent. I would like to thank my face book friends again for sharing their stories and allowing me to share with you. 

On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me…
A white fun fur aviator hat with ear flaps…and black leopard print…which was exchanged for a lovely leather wallet and coin purse.

On the second day of Christmas my good friend gave to me…
A chia pet that was given away with a car that was sold the next week.

On the Third day of Christmas my parents gave to me…
A snuggie type 100% polyester quilt thing that you snapped yourself into that made you look like the Abominable Snowman dressed up for Easter. It went to goodwill.  
 
On the Fourth day of Christmas my grandmother gave to me…
A lovely mounted bass fish that sings, “Don’t Worry, Be happy”…that now adorns the wall in the garage and sings joyfully to all who enter.

On the Fifth day of Christmas my mother-in-law gave to me…
A carnival glass rooster candy dish…that belonged in a carnival…that sat in a cedar chest for years before finally getting thrown out.

On the Sixth day of Christmas my husband gave to me…
A lovely lingerie set that would fit a Victoria’s Secret Model, flattering as that thought was, it got exchanged for a lovely set that did.
  
On the Seventh day of Christmas a friend (?) gave to me…
An etched glass Jack Daniels framed mirror from a bar that closed down. It went in the spring cleanup pile and was promptly snatched up by a true admirer…it was a gift that kept giving.

On the Eighth day of Christmas a well meaning family member gave to me…
A blue/grey/white/red sweater with a big Sheep Dog on the front and actual big floppy ear attached (and wool sewn on its head for fur) and a red ribbon tied around the ear – kinda reminded me of those grey/white/red work socks? Anyway, since I was brought up to never return a gift, the sweater became a travelling companion through my many journeys – it finally found its way to Goodwill after a few years ~ after MUCH deliberation…Oh the Guilt.

On the Ninth day of Christmas my brother in law gave to me…
A skidoo ashtray at the family gift exchange…in front of everyone!

On the Tenth day of Christmas a family member who I barely know gave to me…
A set of very ugly ceramic toads that arrived in the mail with broken limbs that stayed in the box for several years before going to the second hand store.

On the Eleventh day of Christmas my grandmother gave to me…
A box of Kleenex …although it was the first sign of Nanny’s dementia…it was a very practical gift.

On the Twelfth day of Christmas my daughter gave to me…
A large soup can covered with macaroni pieces and painted silver with a delicate red bow that still sits on my desk 40 years later and makes me smile every time I see it.

I will leave you with the words of a character from a favorite Christmas movie…THE Grinch. 

“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,
stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons.
It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags.
And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before.
What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store?
What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”

It is hard to believe that it in just one month the wee ones will be donning their backpacks and heading into a brand new shiny school year.

All at once you are probably feeling a sadness that summer break is winding down and at the same time excitement to get back to routines, and for many…some peace of mind and quiet.

Make a commitment to yourself this year to be in charge of this annual event and save a pile of stress, time and some money by getting organized and taking control.

Counting Sheep, getting the required ZZZZ’s

There is nothing worse than cranky sleep deprived children. Typically children need 9-10 hours of sleep a night. If you have to wake the wee ones at 7:00 am for school, then a bedtime of 9:00 will do it…giving a buffer of an hour to settle and actually get to sleep.

• Set a date a week or so before school starts and let the kiddies know that they will be getting back on schedule as far as sleep goes.
• Make sure they have an electronic game free hour before bed so their brains have time to come off the game high.
• Have them go to bed 15 minutes earlier each night, this will help them to adjust slowly to the change.

Cha Ching, the School Supplies

If you have a crew to shop for then you need a master list. By combining all the lists into one you have a complete picture of what you need. However, before you run out with your list in hand take a few minutes and dig through the supplies that were brought home at the end of the last school year.

Take the obvious garbage paper and recycle it. Sort out any pictures that are wall worthy and set aside for framing. The rest can be reused. Yes you can re-use school supplies, so what if the 32 page Hilroy book is now only 25 pages…you are saving your hard earned cash and it is good for the environment.

Once you have assessed what you already have, mark it off the list and you now have a complete picture ready for a marathon School Supply Shopping event.

Fuel for the brain, the School Lunch

As a parent, nutrition as well as simplicity are a priority for the school lunch.

I consulted the experts at Simply for Life in Quispamsis for some advice on this hot topic. Nela McHugh was delighted to share some great Lunch Box Tips that satisfy both requirements for simplicity and nutrition.

Ideally, a school lunch box would contain all or some of these items:

1. Fruit that is easy to pack such as apple, pear, banana or berries
2. Vegetables like carrot sticks, cucumber slices, celery or peppers and a yummy dip like hummus…which kids actually do like.
3. Whole grains – fiber! Like in granola bars, Kashi are the best for low sugar content. Home made pita chips are great with hummus as well. Perhaps some crackers or a wrap.
4. Protein like tuna, leftover meat from the evening before and cheese provide healthy protein choices.
5. Water…children need 1.5 to 2 liters a day so pack a water bottle.

Nela said. “But being realistic, it would be a wonderful thing to see at least one piece of fresh fruit and a fresh veggie in every kid’s lunch.”

I am going to add leftovers to this list. It is a quick, healthy lunch that is always a welcomed choice in our home.

Take the next month to purchase supplies, get the kids back to a regular sleeping routine and practice the lunch making so the kids learn how to prepare their own lunches.

By taking these simple steps you will set the tone for a successful school year.

In my cruising the web today I found this great article about Taming kids Clutter from Readers Digest, it has some great info to keep the clutter at bay and teach the kids some good habits. Check it out here.

Is it possible that how we talk to our kids can actually be encouraging them to be future  clutters? A fellow professional Organizer Tracy Paye wrote about a conversation she overheard one of her clients having with his daughter…read the article here for more.

While we are on the subject of kids clutter I have some helpful hints if you are tackling the kids toy room, read the article: Playroom Storage Solutions for Kids Toys.

As it is Summer here in North America things seem to be quite quiet and I have not found any upcoming events to mention,  if you have any organizing events coming up please share them with us so we can share them with all our readers.

Here is a great book if you have kids that are interested in organizing, my daughter loved this one as it is written by kids:

Hope everyone had a great July and are looking forward to the coming months…Drop us a line if you have anything to contribute to the next Watercooler at the end of August, we love to share!

Kim and Elaine

This week for the watercooler we are doing things a little differently.  we want YOUR feedback and information about the watercooler and what you would like to see in it.

If you would be so kind as to fill out the this survey, we will be able to better serve you and your organizing needs.

Take Survey Now

We are also asking about our Affilaite Program.

Survey is Here:http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HRWCZHB

Thanks in advance for your feedback,

Kim and Elaine