I don't know what it is about this time of the year. I have the urge to do a major purging and organizing! Like a spring cleaning binge only 5 months too early. It must have something to do with it being the end of the year, like I need to start 2008 FRESH. It could also be the fact that I have been spending an awful lot of time in the house lately, with all the snow we have gotten and the cold weather. I am not a winter person. Hubby says that i'm "HIBERNATING"!! I have been unemployed for a while so if i don't have to leave the house, i am fine with that!! We pretty much have everything we need ( I stockpiled supplies and food).
One of my favorite shows is "Clean House", which is on the STYLE network. It just amazes me how people can live amid such kaos and clutter. I grew up in a home that although it was clean, it was filled with clutter. My mom never threw anything away. It got stored in a closet or the attic or basement. Whenever I visited my mom's house (after i was married) i would feel the need to purge my own home when i returned. When she died last year, my husband and I had to clean out her house. What a mess. It took us 7 months to clean it out, paint it and get it ready to sell!!
My guess is that 1/2 of what she had went to the garbage, 1/4 went to Goodwill/St.Vincent, and the remaining 1/4 came to my house. I ended up with a basement FULL. Furniture and tons of boxes to go thru and decide what to keep, sell, give away. I vowed right then and there that my home was not going to be like that when i die!! I managed to keep just 4 pieces of her furniture. The rest was sold or passed on to friends or relatives in need. Plenty of vintage items were sold on EBAY. TONS of clothes, books, dishes, knickknacks, whatever were donated to charity.
Even though I pretty much keep the house clutterfree and ALWAYS have a box for donation handy, there still seems to be room for improvement.
One thing that helps me is that when the mail comes i open it immediately and throw out any junk mail and put the bills to be paid in the bill-pay/mail box. If there are magazines, (this is weird, i know ) I pull out all the stupid cards and tear out the full page (both sides) ads and throw them in the trash. That way I can read the magazines later without all the cards falling out. To me nothing is as annoying as trying to page through a magazine and there is a full page drug ad on every other page! The magazines then go into a drawer in my bedside table to be read and when i am done with them they are passed to a friend or relative. I try to keep magazines down to just 3 subscriptions. I only buy them when i get a fabulous deal. Right now i get Reader's digest, Family circle and Good housekeeping. Well, enough blogging for now, I have to get to work decluttering.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
My Bichon Frise
Is this a cute face or what?? Gigi has been with us for nearly 7 years. Having her has been a joy! She is soooooooo spoiled, but that is what companion pets are for!! I have learned how to bathe and groom her myself which saves me some of the cost of having her, but i still get her professionally groomed several times a year. Mostly when i have let her hair get too long or i don't have the patience.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Keeping organized with Kits
One of the ways I am able to keep organized and have what I need at hand is by making kits! What I usually do is buy plastic pencil boxes on sale for sometimes 75% off in September or October after the back to school sales are over. Walmart usually has a ton of these left. They are about 8 1/2" X 5 1/2" X 2 1/2" with an attached top, and come in various colors. I use these for the make-up kit, mail/bill-pay kit, and nail care kit The other kits require a larger shoe size plastic box.
Kit #1: Make-up kit......All the basics (for me its moisturizer, foundation, blush stick, cover stick, mascara, eye-liner pencil and shadow trio) + tweezer, cuticle scissors, hair clips, pony tail loop, eye lash comb brush combo. If I am staying somewhere overnight, I add a few cotton pads moistened with baby oil in a plastic sandwich bag, my toothbrush and paste, and I am good to go! The hard plastic keeps everything from getting crushed in my suitcase and also it stays securely fastened.
Kit #2: Mail/bill-pay kit.....Stamps, address labels, address book, tape, small calculator, bank book, check book, pens, paper clips, small ruler, extra envelopes, small note pad or book, small scissors. This kit keeps everything I need together and helps me keep my bills and accounts up to date and on time. I also keep a few assorted greeting cards in there for emergencies ( when I forgot that I needed to get a card for someone.)
Kit #3: First-aid kit: (Shoebox size) Gauze, bandages, bandaids, salves, aloe gel, and everything else!! + scissors
Kit #4: Pet supplies kit: (Shoebox size) Gauze pads, tape, good scissors, boots ( to keep bandaged foot dry) nail clippers, brush and comb, medicines, shampoo, extra leash and collar, chew bone. emergency vets phone number!
Kit #5: Sewing kit: (I used a small toolbox) Thread, bobbins, pins, buttons, needles and threader, measuring tape, iron on hemming tape, good scissors, snaps, and anything eles that pertains to sewing or mending.
Kit #6: My personal tool kit: (so i don't have to hunt through my husbands stuff to find what i need) haha!! (I used a plastic tool box for this also) I have: scissors, measuring tape, small level, assorted tacks, nails and screws) adjustable screwdriver, small hammer, glue gun and glue sticks, assorted tape (masking, duct, painters, scotch) pencil with eraser, safety glasses, knife with razor blades, plastic and metal type scrapers, rubber bands, tack cloth and assortment of sandpaper.
Kit #7: Craft kit: (shoebox size) but you may need something bigger. I have one for all my
painting supplies and another for needlework.
Kit #8: Nail care kit: Polish remover pads, assorted polish, cuticle cream, orange wood sticks, nail clippers, emery board, small scissors, hand cream, and nail stickers.
What I love about these kits also is that they are portable I can move them to another room easily, everything is together and I don't have to go searching for stuff! One thing I hate is having to go searching when I need a scissors. This way there is one in every kit! I usually pick these up cheap at the dollar store, but I keep a better quality pair in my sewing, first-aid and pet care kits.
Kit #1: Make-up kit......All the basics (for me its moisturizer, foundation, blush stick, cover stick, mascara, eye-liner pencil and shadow trio) + tweezer, cuticle scissors, hair clips, pony tail loop, eye lash comb brush combo. If I am staying somewhere overnight, I add a few cotton pads moistened with baby oil in a plastic sandwich bag, my toothbrush and paste, and I am good to go! The hard plastic keeps everything from getting crushed in my suitcase and also it stays securely fastened.
Kit #2: Mail/bill-pay kit.....Stamps, address labels, address book, tape, small calculator, bank book, check book, pens, paper clips, small ruler, extra envelopes, small note pad or book, small scissors. This kit keeps everything I need together and helps me keep my bills and accounts up to date and on time. I also keep a few assorted greeting cards in there for emergencies ( when I forgot that I needed to get a card for someone.)
Kit #3: First-aid kit: (Shoebox size) Gauze, bandages, bandaids, salves, aloe gel, and everything else!! + scissors
Kit #4: Pet supplies kit: (Shoebox size) Gauze pads, tape, good scissors, boots ( to keep bandaged foot dry) nail clippers, brush and comb, medicines, shampoo, extra leash and collar, chew bone. emergency vets phone number!
Kit #5: Sewing kit: (I used a small toolbox) Thread, bobbins, pins, buttons, needles and threader, measuring tape, iron on hemming tape, good scissors, snaps, and anything eles that pertains to sewing or mending.
Kit #6: My personal tool kit: (so i don't have to hunt through my husbands stuff to find what i need) haha!! (I used a plastic tool box for this also) I have: scissors, measuring tape, small level, assorted tacks, nails and screws) adjustable screwdriver, small hammer, glue gun and glue sticks, assorted tape (masking, duct, painters, scotch) pencil with eraser, safety glasses, knife with razor blades, plastic and metal type scrapers, rubber bands, tack cloth and assortment of sandpaper.
Kit #7: Craft kit: (shoebox size) but you may need something bigger. I have one for all my
painting supplies and another for needlework.
Kit #8: Nail care kit: Polish remover pads, assorted polish, cuticle cream, orange wood sticks, nail clippers, emery board, small scissors, hand cream, and nail stickers.
What I love about these kits also is that they are portable I can move them to another room easily, everything is together and I don't have to go searching for stuff! One thing I hate is having to go searching when I need a scissors. This way there is one in every kit! I usually pick these up cheap at the dollar store, but I keep a better quality pair in my sewing, first-aid and pet care kits.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
5 ways to save Big money!
1. Don't buy a bigger/more costlier house than you can afford or need!
Buying a cheaper/smaller home will allow you to have money to put away for emergencies ( or gives you the option to pay off your mortgage earlier) and will save you more on utilities, furnishings, taxes, and insurance too!
2. Consider being a property manager/caretaker for an apartment complex!
We were assistant managers of an apartment complex for 3 years. My husband was laid off from his job and found one making much less money and I was home with our baby at the time. I would clean hallways and laundry rooms 2 days a week and my husband would do repair work in the evenings 2 or 3 nights a week (which he did along with the managers husband) This job allowed me to stay home with our baby and not pay for daycare, we got a FREE apartment which included heat, and my husband learned a lot about home maintence and repair which helped us later when we bought our home. The rent money we saved for a down payment. Another perk of this job was that we cleaned and painted the vacancies for additional income.
3. Learn to cook! Eat at home!
Healthier too!
4. Coupons aren't always the BEST money saving deal!
I could fill a whole post on this subject alone!!
5. DECLUTTER AND ORGANIZE TO SAVE MONEY!
Knowing what you have and where it is will save you money big time! no more running to the store because you can't find an item or having multiples of the same item because you forgot where it was. see my post on organizing kits!
Buying a cheaper/smaller home will allow you to have money to put away for emergencies ( or gives you the option to pay off your mortgage earlier) and will save you more on utilities, furnishings, taxes, and insurance too!
2. Consider being a property manager/caretaker for an apartment complex!
We were assistant managers of an apartment complex for 3 years. My husband was laid off from his job and found one making much less money and I was home with our baby at the time. I would clean hallways and laundry rooms 2 days a week and my husband would do repair work in the evenings 2 or 3 nights a week (which he did along with the managers husband) This job allowed me to stay home with our baby and not pay for daycare, we got a FREE apartment which included heat, and my husband learned a lot about home maintence and repair which helped us later when we bought our home. The rent money we saved for a down payment. Another perk of this job was that we cleaned and painted the vacancies for additional income.
3. Learn to cook! Eat at home!
Healthier too!
4. Coupons aren't always the BEST money saving deal!
I could fill a whole post on this subject alone!!
5. DECLUTTER AND ORGANIZE TO SAVE MONEY!
Knowing what you have and where it is will save you money big time! no more running to the store because you can't find an item or having multiples of the same item because you forgot where it was. see my post on organizing kits!
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
My first post! (how original, oh well)
Over the past two years I have read many wonderful blogs and finally decided to start one of my own. My intention for this blog is to write about money saving tips and tricks as well as homemaking tips and time savers. Occasionally throwing in a recipe or two and photos (as soon as i figure out how). Also, ramblings about life and whatever is on my mind that day. Bear with me, I am not a professional writer! Just someone who has put in a FEW YEARS living and learning. (please, don't ask me HOW MANY!)
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