Leaving on a Jet Plane

Hello TMS'ers, and Welcome to a Whirlwind Wednesday. Our family is flying to the Sunshine State this week for a vacation, and also to see our son perform with his Show Choir. Thank goodness for lists, and more lists, as I count down the time to prepare for our trip.

I took this week off from work, in order to get ready for our trip, yes, it's been that crazybusy.

Among the items on my "to do list" that I've completed are-

- Pay the bills

- Finish taxes

- Laundry, lots of laundry

- Stock up on petfood

- Pick up maps and guidebook about our vacation destination from Auto club

- Meet with petsitters about care of our furbabies and plants

- Print out boarding passes and theme park tickets

I still need to finish packing, charge and download diversions for various electronic devices, and make sure the boys have packed appropriately.

I also have to change purses, cancel the newspaper, and tidy up the house before we leave.

Did I forget anything?? ;oD

Please share your travel secrets, whether you venture cross country or county! Thank you so much, Martha

More about → Leaving on a Jet Plane

Virtual Closet Clean Out

In addition to actual drawers and closets, I have also been cleaning up my "virtual closet", aka my Email folders and Inbox.

I spent over an hour deleting outdated and unneeded mail, thousands of emails. It's amazing how email is full of junk mail, that isn't even Spam.

I have been unsubscribing from all unwanted emails, to help stop the flow into my inbox.

I am also practicing the immediate delete, if I don't need to save an email or act on it, then off to the trash/recycle bin it goes.

What real life tools and tips do you use to help reduce virtual overload?

Thank you so much.

Photo of "Flying Spam" from Broad Contemporary Art Museum, Los Angeles, CA.

More about → Virtual Closet Clean Out

Taming the Paper Tiger

Happy Wednesday and thank you for your visit.

MarthaM's Minimalist challenge has motivated me to deal with some much procrastinated items, including cleaning and sorting three file boxes worth of "stuff" in my home office.

I have finished sorting all three boxes and need to finish some filing and shredding. It's amazing how much paperwork is generated, even when I do so much online and allegedly "paperless".

Sorting can be a real mental chore, and I never spend anymore than 3 seconds making a decision about the paper I am holding.

I don't stress about setting up categories, a natural organization always seems to present itself whether I'm cleaning up paperwork or closets.

I had piles for shredding, recycling, prompt action required, and I also separated the various categories of Medical, bills, financial documents, maps, and personal memorabilia.

During this somewhat ardous task, a few treasures were found - gift cards, stamps, and photos.

I am really appreciative of MarthaM for the virtual kick in the booty with this challenge and her inspiring example. The feeling of accomplishment and progress helps me want to finish, and also, continue to do small things daily to "get ahead of the curve".

Thank you so much, and what tips or routines do you use to tame the Paper Tiger??

More about → Taming the Paper Tiger

Motivation Monday - Closet Declutter Challenge

As most of you know I recently moved. I did a good declutter of my clothes before the move, but at moving time there was no time to try on, just at a glance kind of decluttering. I did get rid of a lot before the move but once we moved in I kind of just hung and piled what was left in my new closet - it's a nice little cedar lined walk in and it's not even shared, our master bedroom has two, one for me and one for hubby - nice!

I know there is still more that needs to go that I will probably never wear. Today I am going through it all one more time to see how many work outfits I can put together and to get it all more organized. Maybe I will reward myself with a couple new items for back to school time :-)

Since we started The Motivation Station I have a different outlook on things. I use to fluctuate in weight so often that I would never part with clothes no matter what size I was at the moment - I had my fat clothes, my skinny clothes and everything in between. Now that we concentrate here at TMS on working out, eating healthy, etc. I no longer feel it's necessary to hang on to stuff that doesn't fit. If my clothes start feeling a little uncomfortable I know it's time to kick up the workouts, not go buy bigger clothes. If those bigger clothes are already in our closets it just makes it easier to give in to weight gain before doing something about it!

So what do you say - ready to clean out your closet? Yes, this is a challenge! Will you accept?

I will post updated photos here on this post later today. If you can't get around to doing your own closet today just commit to doing it at some point this week, and then link up your before and after post on our TMS Show and Tell on the sidebar.

UPDATE... Closet declutter and organization complete!

Entering the closet just to the left is where I am keeping my 7 tie-dye bathing suit cover ups which is what I live in when I'm at home, so comfy, and one for each day of the week. They are great for around the pool, make great night gowns and are decent enough to just wear around the house and still be able to open the door if someone knocks - or just walks in as often happens here.  Next to those is my giant flip flop collection which goes all the way to the floor. I have work flip flops, home flip flops and even dress flip flops. I live in Florida so I live in them whenever possible, 24 pairs at the moment...

The set of drawers in front of the flip flops is on rollers and moves easily with the slightest touch. That set of drawers houses my undergarments, bathing suits, shorts, scarves and other accessories. See the box on the floor on the left in the back? That's my donate box the kitty is hiding in. Anything that I find I just can't wear for any reason will go directly to the box, no turning back...

The outfits I've put together here are 20 work outfits, enough for 4 weeks of workdays. There are 10 various long pants, capris and skirts each matched with two shirts...

Behind the outfits are my purses hung in what would normally be wasted corner space...

I'm down to 7 pairs of high heels and 1 pair of sneakers...

These are all the leftovers not matched up - but most are fall and winter clothes arranged in order from coolest to warmest in the back. I hung all my jackets in the corner space like I did the purses on the other side. The one little container on the top shelf is for solid color shirts that are used under some of the hanging clothes, usually the light print cover ups, it's the only thing on the top shelves!...

And here is the final overall shot of the closet. Everyday pants and capris to the left and more work pants to the right - although the bottom shelf are pants that fit that I probably won't wear anyway - they will go to the donate box it there are still sitting there in a couple of months...

Linking up to The Organized Junkie's 52 Weeks.

Wishing you a Motivated Monday!

More about → Motivation Monday - Closet Declutter Challenge

Motivation Monday - Find Yourself

                                                                           Source: imgfave.com via Martha on Pinterest

Have you heard of pinning yet?

Pinterest is a virtual pin board! You create your own pin boards and then sift through the incoming pins and add your favorites to your own boards - or you pin anything you find that you love from blogs or anywhere on the Internet!

I had seen this on several blogs lately but didn't sign up until this weekend. I finally worked my last 10 hour day on Thursday and decided to just take a weekend of total rest and relaxation. Once I got into relaxation mode I got started with Pinterest  - I have to say I really, really love it!

I will say that it can definitely be addicting and yet another way to procrastinate and waste time on the computer - but at the same time, it's a great way to find out who you really are! Seriously, after looking at the pin boards I've created I actually said to myself  "So that's who I am!" It was so liberating!

I guess the cool thing is that's it's a place to put together own own wants, likes, needs, styles, and loves all in one place without considering others opinions. Of course we can create special boards for things for our loved ones too if we want to.

Pinterest has also been really helpful for my upcoming redecorating. I have so many different likes and styles that I didn't know which direction to go - and I have two homes to finish renovating and decorating. My thoughts on things were all just mashing together. Pinterest really helped me to separate and organize the chaos.

Stop by my boards using the button below and then just click on each board to see details...



Hope you'll try it too!

More about → Motivation Monday - Find Yourself

Motivation Monday - Let's Talk Laundry

One room I keep ignoring as I've been going through my declutter, sorting and organizing process is the laundry room. There isn't really a reason but I just seem to keep working around it. Maybe because it's always in use. This weekend over at my blog MM's Missions I committed to getting my laundry room done this week for the 52 Weeks of Organizing.

This is how it looks right now. Quite a mess. I plan to get it cleaned out and organized hopefully after work today. I thought you might enjoy doing a laundry room challenge with me. Just take a before photo, get your laundry room decluttered and organized this week. After making it all nice and pretty take an after photo and post your before and after photos on your blog, Be sure to leave a link in the comment section once you have it posted.

Now let's talk about the laundry itself. It sure can pile up fast can't it? When my children were younger I made it a habit to do a load of laundry a day to keep the piles under control. It takes almost no time at all to do one load of laundry, but having loads and loads to do at one time is a big pain! If you keep clothes done during the week all you have to worry about is throwing in sheets on the weekends, and folding those can be avoided by putting them right back on.

I have a secret - you don't have to sort clothes. Nope, they can all be thrown in together. Of course if you have some dedicates you'll want to keep those separate but things like jeans, t-shirts, shorts, socks and towels can all be tossed right in. This is something I've always done and never ruined a thing. Just be sure to wash any new dark clothing with only other dark clothing for the first washing or two, after that it will be fine.

I had to laugh when I read the same thing in The Organizing Junkie's Book Clutter Rehab - she doesn't sort her laundry either! It made me feel so much better to know I'm not the only one!

Now that my children are older they are in charge of their own laundry for the most part. Kids can learn to do it themselves by the time they are big enough to reach the knobs. Of course the younger they are the more help they will still need with folding but if you "help" them for awhile instead of doing it for them they can and will learn how do it. Folding t-shirts is still a challenge for my teen boys so they like to hang them up instead, works for me!

Another tip - if each person in the family has their own laundry basket there won't be anymore mixed up socks or clothes that were hand me downs winding up back in with the older child's clothes and it's so easy for children and teens to just bring out their basket when it's full and dump it all right in the washing machine.

How about ironing? I just say no! I can count on one hand how many times I've ironed something in the last 10 years. I just simply don't buy clothes that have to be ironed, and most clothes that are folded or hung straight from the warm dryer don't need to be ironed anyway. Save yourself some steps and stress, don't leave those clean clothes sitting it baskets, get them taken care of right away. If something does get a bit wrinkled just toss it back in the dryer with a damp towel for a few minutes and wrinkles disappear.

Do you have any laundry secrets to share?

Don't forget to get motivated and join the laundry room challenge this week!

More about → Motivation Monday - Let's Talk Laundry

Decluttering Motivation from "Hoarders"

One of my guilty pleasures is the TV show, Hoarders. It's "trainwreck TV", the subjects are so pitiful, you can't turn away. Watching this show results in a range of emotions for me, from disgust, pride, humility, and yes, strangely enough, motivation. Watching this show reminds me of how much emotional attachment people place on "things", and use the act of collecting and shopping to cope.

"Hoarders" is motivating because of some new tips, but also, how important teaching cleaning and decluttering skills are for children.

Some of the tips I have learned from the show are the 3 second rule, (make a decision to toss or keep in three seconds), and to lay things out so the items are all visible, and the boys can quickly scan for items they wanted to keep. I also did the "first decluttering pass", and cleaned out the items that were outgrown or worn out.

Our sons have been working on these skills in abundance and I am glad to share that they have been helpful, (with direction and nagging, I mean, Encouragement!) I was really impressed when our youngest sorted through this pile of clothes and got rid of well over half!

Before-
Before-
After-

These is just one area. In total, I have decluttered and cleaned 21 drawers, 4 bookcases, 3 closets, and one armoire getting ready for our yard sale this weekend. Tomorrow, I am going to start pricing merchandise, make signs, and organize the tables and display.

What have you learned and accomplished lately? Thank you so much.

Treasure people, use things.

More about → Decluttering Motivation from "Hoarders"

Tuesdays With Kris: Make-up Mayhem!

My love for make-up has turned into, well has always been, a disaster! Traveling doesn't help as I usually throw everything into a plastic bag to avoid airport shenanigans, and then that bag remains as my way of organizing my belongings for the face until the next trip! See...

Yeah, not pretty! I went ahead and bought an organizer off of Amazon with a gift card I still had. While I wish it maybe had one more tier for my individual eyeshadow sets (I'm a make-up freak) this size will at least prevent me from binges at Sephora, or will encourage me to purge what I don't use.

Not bad! This bathroom is also shared with a boy!

I need to thank all of you ladies here for inspiring me to do this. I love the Decluttering posts and am glad that I can FINALLY contribute! Next stop... the Closet. My love for clothes is an even more dangerous addiction!

Also, not sure if she is in your area but a lovely lady named Nikki has a business: Simplify Your Space. She de-clutters, reorganizes, and will just make your life better! I just created her website and brand creative. Check it out!

More about → Tuesdays With Kris: Make-up Mayhem!

Motivation Monday - Over your head in clutter?

  Photo credit Google Images

I've been talking a lot lately about getting organized and simplifying, it's always been important to me but just how important it is didn't really hit home until I had to deal with the huge task of having to sort through and clean out my mother's belongings. It became very clear that "stuff" holds us back from living life to the fullest. It's like chains holding us down, using up our time, and in some cases using up our money too. Let go of the stuff and be free!

It's so much easier to keep our surroundings clean and organized if we don't have a lot of clutter, and isn't it so much easier to function both physically and mentally in clutter free, clean, organized surroundings? Do you want more time in your day? Get rid of stuff and you will free up time almost magically!

Think about it - how much time do we spend dealing with our stuff whether cleaning it, moving it, looking for it, putting it away, etc.? Why do we hold on to so much stuff to begin with? Is it memories, guilt, fear of not having enough, saving things because they could be worth something? Maybe it's time we think about that and acknowledge the emotional reasons for the clutter before we can let it go.

Here's a few things that might help...

1. Photograph items you are holding onto just because of memories. It's much easier to store a digital photo in a folder on your computer than it is to store the stuff!

2. Are you holding onto stuff because it has some value even though you don't want or need the items - sell them. No, not later, right now! Be honest with yourself. When is the last time you sold something? Is it really ever going to happen? If you answered no then let it go. If you are going to hold onto things to sell be sure they are stored away together and ready to sell. Give yourself a sell by date and mark it on the box. If you haven't sold it by that date donate it!

3. Donating things to others brings good karma. Trust that if you ever need something the good you've done for others will come back to you. I honestly don't recall one single time I've ever wished I had something back that I had given away.
 
4. Live by that old saying "A place for everything and everything in it's place" - if it doesn't have a place it has to go!

5. Pick one room to completely declutter and organize. Pay close attention to how you feel while you're in that room compared to more cluttered areas of your home. I promise it will make you want every room to be clutter free!

Do you have any tips to add about simplifying and getting organized? Please share!

Join me on my quest to live simply, live well.

More about → Motivation Monday - Over your head in clutter?

Hope for the Home Office

Happy Wednesday at The Motivation Station, and thank you for visiting to share in my "Hope for the Home Office".

I telecommute for my nursing case management job, and I spend a lot of time in my home office. And I have the computer cables, equipment overload, bursting email inboxes, and junk mail folders to prove it. This past weekend, I just had had "ENOUGH". (Doesn't it always come to that? Where you are just done with looking at the mess, and you say, "Enough". Well, that's what happened to me.)

I finally tackled the snakepit under my desk that keep my two computers, two printers, VoIp phone, fax machine, and landlines powered up. Scary, isn't it?

This is quite improvement with at least some tangles free.

Next on my "To Do" list is cleaning up both work and personal email folders. I also plan to take my old electronics equipment to an E-Waste collection event this weekend.

How about you? Do you have plans to declutter your Virtual or Home Office?

Thank you so much, Martha @A Sense of Humor is Essential

More about → Hope for the Home Office

Motivation Monday - Getting Organized!

Over this past weekend I joined The Organizing Junkie's 52 Week Organizing Challenge. This is also a perfect challenge for all of us here at TMS!

Here's a little excerpt from Laura, The Organizing Junkie...

"I’d like you to think about 52 organizing projects or habits that need to be done or developed around your home…dressers, drawers, closet, toys, paper, you name it.  Let’s do it!   Having a plan is a great first step!  Tackle one a week or more and then come on back here on Fridays and we’ll talk about it.  The highs and the lows.  No stringent timelines, no project too small, just good fun, sharing inspiration and motivating one another."

If you'd like to join in the organizing challenge over at Laura's place check out the initial post 52 Weeks of Organizing and 52 Weeks: #1 Where will you start?

With everything I have going on this year I'm going to need as much support and encouragement as I can get with all the renovations, projects, decluttering and organizing I have to do along the way. I want to go into my new home uncluttered and living by my "Live Simply ~ Live Well" motto. Instead of living in the current chaos I'm in - I have a long way to go!

Check out Laura's posts and leave me a comment to let me know if you are going to accept the challenge and play along with me!

Oh and by the way, I've reopened my blog MM's Missions for the 52 Weeks of Organizing. Follow me over there to watch as the magic happens along the road to organization this year.

Wishing you a Motivated Monday and may the Motivation continue all year long!

More about → Motivation Monday - Getting Organized!