There's a shift that's happening for many people and families across the country.  While resources such as money and clothes and stuff and homes have always been considered valuable in society, there's one valuable that will always be finite and fleeting.  That one thing is "time".  It can be said that families and people in the workforce used to have more free, unscheduled time from day to day.  But with today's busy schedules, dual income families, and multiple sport per season kids, free time is regarded as a precious resource of which many of us have very little.  So, we know how to make money, and how to slowly save for the things we want to purchase.  But how do we make the most of the time that we have, and create the feeling that we have more of it?

Be present.  Multi tasking can be overrated.  Live in the moment, and focus on what's right in front of you.  It's hard to enjoy the little moments with the kids, your favorite tv show, or walking the dog on a nice day, if your brain is already focused on the big meeting you have to lead the next day.

Plan ahead.  Often the moments we feel like we have the least amount of time are when we are simply trying to squeeze too much into too little time.  For example, anything that can be accomplished at night to ease the morning routine makes a huge difference.  Taking 15 minutes before bed to pack lunches for the next day, empty the dishwasher, and lay out clothes at a leisurely pace makes the next morning feel much less time crunched.

Delegate.  What do the busiest of CEOs and celebrities all have in common - they have assistants!  If you're not in the position to have one yourself, get creative.  Use an electronic calendar on your phone for not just appointments but tasks and reminders too.  Use a notepad (in paper form or on your phone) to track ideas and thoughts you don't want to forget.  Writing it down saves the idea for later and lets you get back to focusing on what you were already doing.

Budget.  Not just for more things and purchases, but for services that will free up your spare time.  Hire a cleaning company to come through once a month, pay for an amazon prime membership or grocery delivery service.  Of course you can always put a call in to your local professional organizer as well.  We all know getting organized and streamlining our belongings saves time looking for things and makes tidying up take much less time.

Prioritize.  When it comes down to it, every time you put something on your calendar, you are prioritizing that activity over having free time at home.  Organizing your calendar can be much like organizing your things.  Sometimes there is just too much to fit in one space, and something's gotta go.  If it's hard to resist scheduling something into an opening of free time, then plug "Sunday at home" into your calendar!  Sorry we have plans that day.  We're going to be at home catching up on things we have to do around the house.  Or doing nothing.  But that's the fun thing about free time, you can do whatever you want with it!

Your relationship with your home is much like your relationships with your loved ones.  Nobody is perfect, but we look past their faults and emphasize their merits.  When something isn't working or goes wrong, we communicate our feelings and work toward a solution.  Well that's the goal anyway.  We can do the same with our homes. 

It is very common to end up in a situation where you've found the location you love, but because of home prices you end up with a smaller space than you had envisioned.  Maybe you love the charm of an older home, but small closets were part of the deal.  When it comes to prioritizing space over stuff, location over square footage, these decisions aren't easy.  Luckily when we compromise, we can work with most any situation to figure out a solution that works. 

We bought our first house before we had any kids.  It's a 3 bedroom, and the bedrooms are a bit small at that.  After our first daughter was born, we had a room for her and still had a guest room.  But when we found out we were having the twins, we knew we would have to think outside the box for their sleeping arrangements!  We could have decided to move, but did I mention I was pregnant with twins and raising a toddler?  So, we made the obvious choice, to keep our oldest in the smaller bedroom, and have the twins share the slightly larger one.  Which was fine when they were in cribs.  But as they got bigger and so did their beds, we got a bit more creative.  We ended up having all three girls share the larger bedroom for sleeping, and use the smaller bedroom for playing & clothes storage.  They LOVE sharing a room, and I couldn't imagine it any other way.  I'll share some pictures with you all in an upcoming post, because we have always loved rearranging their rooms and creating fun spaces for them.

The point is, that if you're unhappy with your home, there is a path to falling in love with it again.  It will probably involve some tough decisions, prioritizing, and commitment to making it happen.  You can start by identifying what is and is not working.  Then, you can focus on addressing one challenge at a time.  Look online for ideas, or contact me to get the ball rolling.  Be cautious browsing Pinterest and Houzz for these types of solutions.  These photos are wonderful inspiration, but not what these homes look like from day to day.  With a little dedication and creative thinking, you can fall in love with your home all over again!

The hustle and bustle of the holiday season has come to a close, and as cold as it is outside, it's a great time of year to do some work inside the house.  But what if you're having trouble with where to start?  Sometimes taking the very first step can be the hardest part.  So here's a few tips I like to use with clients - and with myself - to get to work.

Define your goals.  Not exactly talking about New Year's resolutions, which are hard to keep up with.  But I am a big fan of setting goals year round.  How can you work towards something without knowing what you are striving for in the first place?

Set priorities.  Sure we might want it all, but is it possible to accomplish everything on your list simultaneously?  Timing, budget, and other factors typically force us to make some tough decisions.  Prioritizing helps to tackle one project or goal at a time, instead of facing a bottleneck of too much at once.

Establish routines.  Keep things in line by setting up routines.  For example if you decide to put a hall tree in your garage, make sure to help the family get in the habit of hanging coats and taking off shoes before entering the house.  

Declutter your calendar.  Don't stop at the physical clutter in your home!  If you're short on time, consider ways to cut down on things that waste it.  Try a grocery delivery service, limit kids activities, or research some new crock pot recipes to cut down on dinner prep!

Put things to good use.  If not by you, then by someone else!  Donations of food and clothing really ramp up during the holiday season, but why not keep it going year round.  When going through a cramped storage space, think about whether or not you really do have a use for each item.  If it's just collecting dust, it can help to remind yourself that there is almost always someone out there who does have a need for it, and can put it to good use!

Set your loved ones up for success this holiday season, with these home office gifts that add a little whimsy to the daily grind!  This post contains affiliate links, for which we may make a small commission.  Thanks for your support!

High heel stapler

Margarita glass tape dispenser

Cat Post-It Dispenser

Cat tape dispenser

Looking for more sophisticated office supplies? Go for the gold to update your desk with a feminine touch.

Gold framed dry erase calendar

Rose gold desk accessory set

Set of 3 crystal pens

Acrylic & gold pen holder (see matching stapler & tape dispenser!)

Want a more organized desk in 2018?  Get started with these ideas.

Paper sorter
This unit is a great choice because it accommodates vertical files as well as space to sort incoming mail and paperwork horizontally.

Monitor stand
If you're short on desk space, go vertical and incorporate storage right under your monitor or laptop.

Desk organizer
If your desk is located in a visible area, like a kitchen or den, look for organizers that blend in with your home decor.

Vertical file sorter
This low profile file organizer fits in with a home office or kitchen/command center.

For more ideas or custom options, reach out anytime and we can help get your home office streamlined and organized!

We may be in the middle of fall, enjoying the pumpkins and the cider and the leaves, but rest assured:

Winter is coming!  Is your entryway ready?  Here are a few tips to get your winter gear ready to go for those first cold mornings.

Get out the gear.  Go through the coat closet, or storage area if you've had the winter gear tucked away for the summer.  Now is a great time to find matches for gloves, check to see if everything still fits (especially for kids!), and make a list of additional items you'll be needing to pick up.

Image credit: MarthaStewart.com

Make it accessible.  Incorporate a few baskets or bins to organize gloves, hats, and scarves for each member of the family.  Keeping these things within reach this time of year reduces the amount of time it takes to get out the door in the morning!

Image credit: Wayfair.com

Keep it dry.  For soggy snow pants and gloves, an expandable drying rack is a great solution.  You don't want wet gloves & hats going into a basket with dry items, or hanging a wet coat in a closed closet.  The drying rack can be set up when needed, and tucked away to save space until its next use.

Image credit: Wayfair.com

Protect your floors.  A boot tray isn't really necessary year round, but in the wet and snowy fall and winter months it really comes in handy.  Puddles have a tendency to travel, and that can create a slipping hazard or damage to your floors.  Simply add a boot tray in the garage or mudroom, to keep the water in check.

The school year has just begun, so let's get a handle on the papers and artwork before they nestle into a nice big pile somewhere in your home!  I would like to share not only my favorite storage strategy, but also a regular routine that will keep everything under control throughout the school year!

Daily routine

To keep up with the daily papers, we need to establish a routine that includes a landing spot for everything.  Sterilite drawer units are great for this.  You can get them in different sizes - smaller ones for letter size paper, or slightly larger ones for scrapbook size paper, whichever works best for your family.

So on a daily basis, it's real simple.  Just go through the kids' folders every day like you'd go through the incoming mail.  Reminders and info for parents can go straight to mom or dad's desk.  Once you look through the artwork and schoolwork, it can go straight into the drawer, one drawer for each child.

Throughout the year

Here is what happens as the schoolwork begins to accumulate.  As the year goes on, limit what you keep to what will fit in this drawer.  Just weed out anything redundant, or anything that wasn’t really completed during school.  This allows you to keep some of the schoolwork, without it getting out of control.

End of the school year

This is when the magic happens!  I choose to wait until the end of the year to decide what my daughters and I want to keep from that year.  It's much easier to look at everything together and decide on favorites then.  At the end of the year, just pull out each child's drawer, and sort everything out.  Artwork, handwriting, math, etc.  Pick your favorite art projects, and a few worksheets/spelling tests/etc from the beginning and end of the year.  You can also include any certificates, special notes from classmates, and their class pictures.

Putting it all together

As I mentioned, there are many ideas for how to store your child's school memories and work.  I always loved the pre-made baby books, you know the ones that you just fill in and complete as you go.  

They end at age 5, but I wanted something similar for their elementary school days.  So I decided to create a memory book using a binder.  You can get them in any color and size, and unlike bound memory books, you can rearrange the pages and insert things wherever you want.

What I love about this solution, is that we can get the binder out and look through it any time.  It fits right on a bookshelf, and doesn't take up too much space.  For any artwork that is oversized (which you usually don't get much of in elementary school since everything comes home in their folder), I have one larger portfolio and everything goes in there with the child's name and date.  

So there you have it!  A place for everything during the school year, and a beautiful book with the most favorite pieces from the school year.