Happy Home Organizational Series: Link Up Your Projects

I wanted to share with you all one last simple project I worked on this month before I give you a chance to link up your own projects. It was in our laundry room. We're in a rental so there's limitations to things we can do in our place, but for this project I simply wanted to go through everything get rid of the old stuff or stuff we didn't use and organize the rest. Here's a quick look at the before:





I got rid of some vases, and other odds and ends and donated those things to Goodwill. Then I organized the rest of the stuff, I used two boxes from Ikea to put paint brushes and supplies in one, and in the other paper plates, cups, napkins, etc. All of our tools are in the plastic three drawer tote. Here's the after:





I like that everything is clean and has a place! It's time to link up your projects that you've been working on. Link up one or two or ten! I can't wait to see what you've all been working on this month!

Happy Home Organzational Series: The Best Resources



Can you believe that we're already in the last week in September? I can't! I've been having a lot of fun with the current series and it's really been helpful in holding myself personally accountable to tackling some of those organizing projects I've been putting off! What about you, how are you doing with organizing things in your home this month?

Join me Wednesday and link up the projects you've been working on all month! Link up one or ten, share them with us!

As we come to closing out this series, I wanted to share with you some of the best online resources to take advantage of. As well as some of the best places to find gear to help you organize your spaces.



Hands down one of the best blogs I've found on organizing your spaces! I'm not an expert but Jen, she is. If you're looking to find a resource and the best ideas on the Internet she's your girl. Check out her blog as well as her online shop full of organizing worksheets for your family.

Best Places to Shop:

These are my fave places to go when searching for reasonably priced items for storage and organization. I encourage you to check out the sale sections at some of these stores, most of the time you can score for less. I keep an eye out for items that will serve the best function and maximize space before buying anything. Also planning out your area before buying anything else helps save time and money too. Recently I went to Ikea for some storage solutions but before hand I made sure to measure my shelving and used a measuring tape to make sure what I bought was going to fit.

The Container Store: Obviously one of the bigger places to shop, they have everything you can imagine. Great ideas to for storage and organization.

Storables: A smaller chain of stores, they had one of these in Minneapolis that I used to go to and found great ideas.

Ikea: Simple storage solutions and very affordable.

Dollar Tree: great for smaller storage items, tons of hidden gems there and you can't beat the $1 price tag!

Best Websites:

Real Simple

Better Homes & Gardens

I hope this series has helped inspire you to find what works best for your own family. Inspired you to start somewhere and make your space your own and functional. I look forward to Wednesday seeing your projects and sharing a few last projects I've finished here in my own home!

Happy Monday friends!!!

{Organize It} Two Drawers, Ten Minute

I feel like organization has to be easy or else we won't do it. Anything to complicated, or expensive and we'll lose interest and feel like we can't accomplish anything when it comes to organizing our homes. 

This next project was quick.

It was cost effective.

It took ten minutes, anyone can do it!

I know everyone has those drawers in their homes that "can get outta control" if you know what I mean?!

I have a few of those in my kitchen, and one in our living room. It's easy to throw things in a drawer and shut it. That way you don't have to think about it or how it looks until the next time you open it. If you're anything like me you get what you need and close it right back up. 

It was time to take care of them. I made my way to the Dollar Store where I found some plastic baskets and some other plastic drawer organizers for a buck a piece! Can't beat that. Here's what the drawers looked like before.

Pretty crazy huh!!! 

Here's the fun after that only took a few minutes.

Nice, huh? See what I mean about simple and effective?!!

What have you organized lately that was a simple task but you're so glad you did it? Tell me in the comments below. 

Happy Friday Everyone!! 

Happy Home Organizational Series: Keeping the Blog Under Control

The #1 question that I get from people about my blog is: How do I post so often? It's a question I get asked a lot. I'd be lying if I said the blog wasn't a priority. It's something I enjoy, and I'm passionate about it. I'd also by lying if I said it wasn't work or didn't take some thought. Most of the time I don't just wake up and start writing, most of the time posts are thought about and planned very in advance.

This is what works for me. This is how I keep it together and post so often. So today, I'm going to share with you some tips and things that have helped me in my blogging journey. 

When I first started this blog, I wrote about very random things. It took me a while to figure out just what I wanted this blog to be about other than recording our daily lives. I feel like three and a half years later I'm in a groove, found my niche and enjoying every minute! 

My first tip is: Keep a list of blogging ideas. 

I keep a running list of blogging to-dos, ideas and projects in my day planner. It helps me stay on track, keep focused, and really helps with writers block. If I ever get stumped on what to write about I'll pull out my list and look over the ideas I've been writing down. Our current series was on the "to-do" list. I thought about it months before I started writing, dreaming of ideas I wanted to cover and writing them down. Keeping a list of ideas really helps begin to organize things for me, and see where I'm going in my writing. 

My second tip: Find a rhythm for your blog posts. 

When I say rhythm, I mean for how often are you going to post? When I first started writing there was no rhyme or reason I was just posting whenever I wanted to. That's not bad my any means, but as life got busy, a baby got added to our lives and other life changes I knew I needed to find a rhythm for my writing, and what would my writing frequency be? Sit down and really think about how often you can and want to post. What's the amount you can do so that you still love blogging and don't feel burnout and your family isn't suffering. For me that is about three times per week. I usually try to post three times a week and most of the time I take the weekends off. If you see a post on the weekends, it's probably because it's been scheduled. Which leads me to my next tip.......

My third tip: Schedule your posts.

My biggest reason that I can post so often is because I schedule posts. I didn't even know that you could do this until just about a year ago. Crazy, right!! Since learning of this tool it's changed the way I blog. As I said before I keep a list, and when I have the time I sit down and crank out a few well planned blog posts based on this list. I will usually sit down and write an entire weeks worth of posts in one day during that time. I do most of my blog writing when Ava naps or at night when my Hubby is off working out. I try really hard not to let the blog take away from family time or time with my Husband. So during a two hour nap time I'll do my best to get some intentionally writing done. Scheduling posts for me has been a life changer, and made me even more excited to write knowing that I'm actually putting something that I've thought about, planned and love on this blog. 

So there you have it, all my BIGGEST blogging secrets. I really encourage you if you have a blog to take some of these ideas and see how you can let them inspire you and how you can make them your own. I don't consider myself any authority when it comes to blogging, but this is what has worked for me and I wanted to share that with you today. 

I hope you feel encouraged to take your blog to the next level, and feel less stressed about blogging. 

Happy Monday Everyone!! 

{Organize It} Media Cabinet

You may remember me telling you about our media cabinet at the beginning of the year. You can read about part 1 here, or part 2 here. I finally got around to organizing this area. Our original cabinet had two pull out drawers that held all of our DVDs, CDs, cords, etc. You could shut them and the stuff would be contained and out of sight.

This new cabinet has glass doors, you can see everything inside. We needed a solution to contain it all, and make it look pretty too. The media cabinet is from Ikea, so I headed back to Ikea to find some storage solutions for our cabinet. I really like Ikea for affordable storage options. You could also find similar options at The Container Store, Storables, or Target. 

I picked up some KASSETT DVD & CD boxes. Here's what the cabinet looked like before:



As you can see everything was just thrown where ever it would fit. Not cute & not pretty by any means.



I pulled everything out, and went through it first. I got rid of some old stuff that we were no longer using and donated it. Then I got to work on organizing with my boxes from Ikea.



After organizing everything and putting it all into the boxes I made in Word some labels to put on the outside to easily and quickly identify what was inside. Here's a look at the after:



Doesn't it look prettier and better already? Let's take a closer look at the details shall we?!?



Everything has a place now, it's all categorized and neatly placed inside.





The remote drawer is my fave, you can read more about how that came together here. I love how it all came together and turned out. Everything is labeled for you to quickly see what's inside.

What have you organized lately that you just love & makes your home function better? Tell me in the comments below!

Happy Home Organizational Series: Keeping A Calendar

It's no secret in our home that I'm a crazy calendar girl! I write everything down in my day planner; birthdays, appointments, events, when bills are due, to-do lists and probably more. I've been this way since I was in high school. I make notes in their too; grocery lists, to-do lists, blog ideas, etc. 

Our lives are busy. Every one's lives are busy, add a few kids in there and I'm sure your days and weekends are sure to fill up. Keeping a calendar is one way to keep it all together and keep you on track so you're not missing something important. 

Here's my 3 tips for keeping a calendar in your home:

1. Decide what type you'll keep

- are you a paper and pen kinda gal like me and keep everything in a day planner?

- or are you a digital kinda woman and like to sync your calendar with your computer or phone?

- or maybe you're the dry erase board kinda girl and keep it on the family fridge for all to see. 

Either way, decide what type of calendar you'll need to keep you and you're family organized. I love a good day planner. I keep it in my purse at all times.

Source: lifes-a-journal.com via Andrea on Pinterest

2. Keep 1 calendar in your family

In my family I am the organized one, not the Hubster. It's ok, he's got other giftings. Maybe your spouse is really organized to, but I encourage you to keep 1 calendar for your family that way you're not crossing events, or over scheduling yourself, or double booking. My advice would be to make sure you both agree/know about an event before it goes in the 1 family calendar. If you're husband wants to schedule something make it a habit to talk about these events before saying "yes" and putting them on the family calendar. This will make for a much happier home. 

Source: simpleorganizedliving.com via Andrea on Pinterest

3. Come together once a week to go over family events, schedules, etc.

Maybe Suzie has soccer Mondays, and Tuesday you have a lunch date, and Friday is family night coming together with your spouse once a week to go over the weeks events will help keep both of you on the same page, and give each of you a chance to write these important events in your respective calendars from the 1 family calendar. We come together in the Worley House on Sunday nights after dinner. The Hubby and I review the weeks events, and talk about the upcoming week. Since my Hubby doesn't carry a calendar or have anything on his phone I make sure to write these events on a printable calendar that's hanging on our fridge. You can find free printable calendars everywhere online, but I printed mine for free here from The TomKat Studio.  Simple and easy, and he can access it anytime he needs to and see what's going for the week/month. 

Source: ecosystemlife.com via Shawna S. on Pinterest

4. To get the most out of your calendar you actually have to use it.

I know a lot of people that really try to get on track with a calendar/planning system. They buy a cute calendar in hopes that it will inspire them to be committed, and then they fall off the wagon only after a few weeks. Just like anything else in life if you want it to work, you actually have to commit and work at this. If this doesn't come like second nature to you, then it will be work. But, I promise that it'll start to pay off when you're family is no longer late to events, when you're not pulling your hair out trying to remember birthdays, appointments, events, etc. It's all right there ready to work for you and your family. 

And just to show you that keeping a calendar and staying organized doesn't have to break the bank here's a round up of some of my fave free printables from blog land. Enjoy! 

Source: designfinch.com via Andrea on Pinterest

Happy Home Organizational Series: Cleaning

Ok, I'm going to admit all my secrets to you today! Don't judge.

Well, at least my cleaning secrets and some tips that make life easier for us that you could implement into your own cleaning regimen.

First things first, I don't clean everyday. It just doesn't work for me. Well, I guess I should say I don't "deep clean" daily. I don't dust, vacuum or mop my floors daily. I do however clean like that once a week, Fridays on my day off. While the baby is napping I usually will do all those things.

I can't keep up during the week on cleaning with our schedules, so I've resolved that deep cleaning days are Fridays and I'm ok with that. I also don't do laundry every week either. I do it about every two weeks this is what works for me and our family.

Of coarse we do our dishes, and take out the trash on a daily basis! We're not total slobs! (he, he)

If your life is crazy busy and hectic too, and you feel like you can't quite get "on top" of it all, let me offer some tips to you in the area of cleaning that may make things easier for you and more manageable.

First, of all I think it's a good idea to give yourself a break and get real with yourself. Once I resolved to the idea that I wasn't and couldn't be dusting, doing laundry, mopping, etc. everyday it gave me the freedom to make a cleaning schedule based on what our family does need. I told my Husband I can't do this, but this is what you can expect from me every week.

Enlist help! The Hubs and I have a deal: I cook; he cleans. Every night. It's glorious, and it works for us. I would encourage you to talk with your spouse and if you have children who are old enough to help about a cleaning schedule and how you can divide tasks to help make the cleaning happen, so that not everything is falling on you. Make it fun, have chore charts, allowance, etc. whatever works for your family. Here's some ideas to help make cleaning more fun for all involved:

Fun cleaning check lists for you:

Source: designfinch.com via Andrea on Pinterest

Chore blocks for the kiddos:

Source: deliacreates.blogspot.com via Andrea on Pinterest

Chore sticks with a free printable:

Source: whateverdeedeewants.com via Andrea on Pinterest

Good Morning Chore cards:

Source: onestepahead.com via Andrea on Pinterest

Creating a plan to keep our house clean, enlisting help, and making it fun for everyone is a great way to keep your home happy and organized!

I encourage you this weekend to think of some ideas of how you can simplify your cleaning regimen and get more done. For more household cleaning tips, check out some of my ideas on my pin board! 

Happy Friday & Happy Cleaning!! 

Happy Home Organizational Series: Meal Planning

One of the things that really makes our home run smoothly is: MEAL PLANNING!

I haven't always done this, but since I started doing it for the last couple months I've noticed some real changes in our home. Mostly in my attitude. I feel less stressed about dinner, a bit more organized when I take the time to meal plan, and I feel like it helps me from over spending at the grocery store on food/things that we don't need to really eat.

My family's schedule is a bit crazy, so this really helps us since we're not usually eating dinner till about 8 pm! I would encourage you to Tailor this to your family and make any necessary changes to make this work for your busy family.

I buy my groceries for the month. This is what works for us, so I've been doing it this way for years. But, if you buy your groceries weekly for your family this too can still work for you. I make a list of meals we're going to make for the month based on tried and true dishes we love, new recipes I might wanna try and from there I make my grocery list and go shopping based on what I need for meals.

Every Sunday, I sit down and take about 15 minutes to plan out meals for the week to come. I go through our pantry and take stock in what we have and make dinner plans.

Then, I write each days meal on our chalkboard in our kitchen as a visual reminder as to what we're having each night. This visual reminder helps me remember to take out meat from the freezer each morning so that's it's ready for me when I get home from work, and I can start prepping dinner.



Seriously, that simple and saves me weekly. I stress less because of this. And, I really like to take the time to make a meal for our family and sit down to connect over our day. Doing so, makes life run a little bit smoother.

You could also, utilize some of the amazing free print ables in blog land to keep track of your meal planning and weekly meals. I really like this one, and this one. You can print them for free to help you keep track.

I'd love to hear if you already do this, how this works for you and your family? If you're not doing this already I challenge you to start next week and see the difference it makes for your family!

Happy Meal Planning!!

{Organize It} Easy Bathroom Clean Up

To kick off our month long series on organization, I wanted to share with you a really easy organization project that I tackled a couple weeks ago. It all started in our bathroom, after watching a segment on the Today Show about cleaning your medicine cabinet I thought to myself it's been a while since I've actually looked under the sink and taken stock in what's all down there.

Underneath the sink is great because you can easily shut the doors and keep a multitude of things out of sight and under wraps. Which also probably leads to never checking out the chaos that's under there sometimes. Which is my case!

So I took about 15 minutes one day to check out what was all down there. Here's what it looked like before I pulled everything out and got to work:



Not to bad, everything appears to be somewhat "under control." The worst part was that I probably haven't been through most of these items since we moved in last August. One of the things that prompted this clean up, was looking through everything and getting rid of expired/old medications, make up, etc. Did you know all that stuff expires? Well, it does. And if you're using old/expired medicines and make up you're putting yourself at risk of infection, and they aren't going to work for that cold you're suffering from.

So I pulled everything out, and starting going through every last bottle, medication, make up item, etc. To my BIG surprise I filled and entire plastic shopping bag with expired and or old stuff. Cough medicines, perscription meds, lotions, make up, etc. Kinda crazy, see here:



It felt really great to get rid of all that! Once I threw it all away, it was time to start putting everything back. I really love these Komplement boxes found at Ikea. You've heard me rave about them here before. They come in packs of 6 in a few different sizes. They are perfect for this space and help corral everything under our bathroom sink.

After cleaning the area, wiping it down and putting everything back in an organized more stream lined way, here's what it looks like after:



Not a huge difference, but now everything is clean. And there's nothing expired that's going to bring sickness to my family. And, that's a great feeling. If you're looking to start making small organizational changes in your home start with something simple like this. You're less likely to get overwhelmed by starting small, and afterwards you'll feel inspired to tackle more projects like this!

Happy Home Organizational Series: Where to Start?



Where do you start to create a happy functioning home?

My goal for this series is to give you some tips and tricks that will help you live with less clutter, organize your spaces, your home life and over all make them happy and more functioning. I wouldn't consider myself and expert by any means but there are a few things I've learned along the way that really help me organize life and function better for our household, I hope to share those lessons here during this month long series.

One of my goals for 2011, was to get rid of 100 things! At the end of last year I realized we've accumulated a lot of stuff! Stuff we weren't using, or stuff that no longer fit our family and served a purpose. So I set out to take stock really in what we had and make sure we were actually using it, wearing it and loving it. There's so many projects I want to organize in our home, this series is giving me the accountability to do so, along with sharing it with all of you.

It's no secret, I don't like clutter. I feel suffocated with to much stuff lying around, cluttering the house and serving no purpose. I've almost reached my goal for the year. Here's my basic simple tips for making sure your home is clutter free and holding me accountable to this less is more lifestyle. I first wrote about this here, you can read the full blog post but here's my rules:

1. Twice a year I go through everything (i mean everything) in our home once in the Spring and once in the Fall.
2. If you haven't used it, worn it or seen it in 6-12 months get rid of it.
3. The in/out rule: You bring something in you take something out.

I recently did #3 when I went shopping at Down East, I bought 3 shirts that day came home and immediately took out 3 items from my closet I hadn't worn in the last six months and donated them. Then I hung up my new stuff. These three rules are my basic mantra when it comes to organizing our home.

Since, it's the beginning of the Fall season I will be tackling #1 over the next couple weeks. I think it's best when you start organizing a space to pull everything out. Look at it all, and decide what needs to stay and what needs to go.

Pair down first and then start organizing from there. I think it helps organize the space better after you've gotten rid of what you're not using and what doesn't need to be there. You have a cleaner more reduced palate to work with then.

When closets are cleaner they function better. When everything has a place it makes your home clutter free and function better. You with me?!?

Have a hard time letting go? Me too sometimes. I like to think of myself as a memory hoarder sometimes. There's things I've saved for memory sake like pictures, old year books, clothing, etc. but I usually try to designate one area or one box for keeping those things safe. I have a box of old high school things in our storage. I keep photos in albums all organized by event. You get the picture.

Now, I try not to buy anything or bring anything into our space that I don't already have an idea where it will go, or a use for it. There's a ton of things (mostly decor items) that we've accumulated over the years that I'm no longer using and it's time to really get rid of it.

I think another thing about getting organized and creating happy functional spaces is getting real with yourself first! Do you still have clothing laying around that doesn't fit for whatever reason and you're holding onto it? Are you keeping something in your home because you paid a lot for it and can't bare to part with it but don't really use it?

Me too sometimes. I keep telling myself that I'm going to have some sort of yard sale and get rid of everything. First, of all I don't have a yard to have a sale. Second, decide what is actually worth selling that you might get money from and then donate the rest. Getting real with yourself in this way allows you to look at your clutter & stuff objectively.

I've found that by actually having things in your home that are useful, lends to the overall function and make living easier. It is with these tips and principles that I want to begin this series.

Start this weekend! A nice long weekend will give you some time to evaulate your home the things in it, what can stay and what needs to go.

Over the next few weeks I'm going to be sharing with you some projects that I've organized and cleared the clutter.

We're going to talk about schedules, calendars and keeping your home/family life on track.

Lastly, I want to talk a bit about organizing your blog, scheduling posts and other things that make blogging life fun and not feel like a chore after a while!

If you have any questions or things you'd like me to cover please feel free to email me at andreaworley@live.com and I'll answer your questions and address your topics!

Happy Weekending, enjoy your Labor Day!!

{Organize It} Happy Home Organizational Series

Happy September Everyone!!! This month screams "new." A new school year, a new season of clothing options, cooler weather {for most}, a new beginning for some! What better way to kick off the Fall Season than to celebrate it with a home organizational series here at the Worley House!

All month long I'm going to be sharing with you some simple tricks and tips to get your home organized this season! Here's just a few things we're going to cover:

• time management/calendar options
• organize your blog
• organize your home
• simplifying in every area

Are you excited?!? 

I hope you'll join me all month long and be inspired! At the end of the month we'll have a link up party where you can show me some of your ideas that you've been working on this month! I'll feature my faves on the blog here at the end of the month! 

Who's with me!! Welcome to September everyone!