I have found the key to getting and staying organized lies in writing stuff down.  Sounds simple enough, right?  

I have kept just about every kind of planner or calendar system out there over the years and they have all worked fine...if I kept them up.  I have found for me, the simpler the better, if it's too complicated I tend to skip using them when I'm in a hurry and before I know it, I get discouraged and just give up.

Another way we can over complicate an easy task is by wanting to make our daily planners into works of art (which I love to keep, just not for my everyday scheduling).

So now I keep it simple by keeping three hand written planners, one electronic planner and two notebooks.  Whew!  What's so simple about that?  To start with, I don't write in all those planners every day and I don't write much at all when I do write in them.  Let me break them down for you.

A basic daily planner - This is where I keep what needs to be done each day.  I divide it into two sections, household and errands.  On Monday I might have written under household - clean bathroom and do laundry.  Under errands I might have written - pick up tomatoes, return library books.

I purposely don't put times on my daily planner (unless it's an appointment), just stuff that needs to get done that day.  Simple enough, right?


I also keep a work daily planner - This is where I keep an exact list of what area of my business I work on each day of the week and what in particular needs to be accomplished.  Again, no time frames just tasks.

The third planner I keep is more of a journal and it is work related as well and includes what needs to be done for video footage each week and by what day it needs to be done, so that I can finish my editing in time to publish on schedule.

If you don't work from home, you may not need those last two planners.


The biggest help and the one I resisted the most has been my electronic Google Calendar.  This took a few hours to set up but now that it is, it doesn't require any time at all because I rarely make any changes to it.  This is where my day is broken down in chunks of time.  This is what keeps me on track.  I watched this video by Amy Landino to learn how to set up my schedule.  I highly recommend watching the video and setting yourself up.  This one has been a game changer for me.

I also keep a work notebook that I use for class homework, creative ideas and stats for my business.  If you'd like to see that one, just let me know and I will do a blog post devoted to it.

And the last notebook I keep is my household journal which is where I track my household expenses/budget, quarterly cleaning schedules, appliance maintenance and home improvement wish list.  Again, this notebook requires it's own post as well and I will be sharing it soon.


So there you have it, a quick over view of my planners, calendars and notebooks.  I plan the activities on my calendar on Sunday afternoon for the entire week.  Let me know if you'd like me to go into more details on any of the planners and I will put together a blog or video to share in more detail.

Next week I will have a free planner insert with my basic cleaning schedule on it for those of you who are newsletter subscribers. so if you aren't signed up yet be sure you do that here.

Have a wonderfully productive week my friends!

xo, Patty

You might enjoy this video that highlights how I set up my desk space to be as organized and productive as possible even if you have a small space.

People often ask me how I can get so much done each day? How I can juggle the housework, keep up a flower garden, entertain friends, enjoy my time in the craft room, run an Etsy shop and still make YouTube videos?  Let me tell you, this wasn't always the case.

When I went from full time employee to full time wife and home-keeper I thought I would automatically have all the time in the world to keep my house clean, put healthy meals on the table and still have time for lunch with friends and a little shopping.

Boy was I in for a rude awakening when I quickly discovered that having more unstructured time does not accomplish any of those things on its own.  In fact, I seemed to get so much more done when I was working 40 hours a week.

But how could this be?  I now had an additional 40+ hours in my week to be the perfect wife and friend so why was I rushing at the last minute to get things done and feeling overwhelmed by the disorder in my life?

What I discovered was that when I worked outside the home, I valued those hours I was inside the home and planned what I would need to get done and when I would do it.  

In a nutshell, we use wisely what we have most scarcely.  

I know what you're thinking, love to clean?  Maybe I should re-title that to - Learning to appreciate the feeling that having a clean and organized home provides and how that lets me do the fun stuff like bake and decorate and take off on a fun shopping day with friends and even leisurely enjoy tea and a magazine without guilt.  But that's a little long for title, don't you think?


I hear from women all the time that they don't like cleaning and they don't want to squander whatlittle free time they have doing something they don't enjoy.  I hear you, I have felt the exact same way.  I have always wanted to have a clean and organized home but my best intentions were met with distraction and lack of motivation.  And so I would put it off until I had a free day or next weekend or before the next gathering in my home and by that time it was so overwhelming that I hated and resented every minute of it.  Sound familiar?


I'm hoping to convince you that routinely spending a few extra minutes everyday tackling some of the big stuff in small increments will leave you plenty of free time to do the stuff you love and also provide your family with the feeling of a well loved home.  A home that's ready to welcome a friend at a moments notice without panic or embarrassment setting in.


But before we can get to the few extra minutes part we need to establish order and that means assessing what we have, need and use in our lives right now.  Not someday in the future or what was in the past, but right now.  How do I live my life?  How and who do I feed, entertain and want to make comfortable?  And then we systematically go room by room and assess our stuff, purge, clean and organize what stays and dispose of by donation, sale or trash what goes.

With the holidays coming I can think of no better time to start.  What do you say?  Are you with me?  Let's make September the month to reclaim our homes and even if we don't learn to love to clean, at least make it the month that we learn to love the feeling having a clean home provides.


Gather your favorite cleaning supplies, a few empty boxes and let's get started.  I will be going step by step both here on my blog and by video on YouTube.

Leave me a comment and subscribe here, or go over and subscribe to my YouTube channel and leave a comment there, (or both) if you plan on joining me and that way you'll be notified when I post next.

Trust me the work will be worth it come the holiday season and you're house is ready to decorate and enjoy without the frenzy of having to clean it first.

Let's do this together!

xo, Patty

You might enjoy my posts on cleaning routines and loving our homes that speak along these same lines.

Here's my latest video.  I'd love for you to subscribe and join in on the conversation because life isn't about perfection, it's about connection.

I know every spring everyone talks about the urge to clean and purge but I think I'm so busy in the garden that the thought of giving up that precious outdoor time to come inside and get organized just passes right by me.


For me that feeling hits somewhere around August when the back to school supplies hit the stores and

It's no secret that I love costume jewelry (do they still call it that?).  I've been collecting it for more than a few years now so I have quite a stash.  I think the right necklace can really take an outfit from so so to perfectly polished with little effort, and if you hit the thrift stores like I do, very little cash.


I have tried different ways of displaying/storing it but with each new necklace it becomes more and more difficult to see what's where.

In the middle of preparing for Christmas my husband made an off handed remark about wanting to switch hobby rooms.  He said he wouldn't mind taking the downstairs for his music and I could have the upstairs room for my crafts.

You can bet that little statement sent this organizing junkie into immediate action.


Never mind that I had a million and one things to do for the holidays...never mind that it meant moving two million and one boxes, books and all manner of craft things up a flight of stairs...never mind that we had just rearranged the furniture all over the house when my daughter and grandsons moved out in September.


When opportunities come your way in this house they must be seized immediately lest the giver rethinks his spoken words and changes his mind when the reality of what he said hits him.  (Ahem...not that he's ever done that before.)


The downstairs room with it's beautiful built ins and pretty view also houses the laundry closet and sits right off the main living area.  Which means a lot of traffic and the perfect place to stash those nasty piles of stuff that accumulate on the dining room table.

The upstairs room, while it can get warm in the summer, is the largest bedroom in our little home.  It is situated directly across from the guest room/grandkids room which also happens to be my dressing room and where I keep my clothes. Old houses have very small closets and my hubbies clothes are in our bedroom closet downstairs.

So basically it gives me the entire upstairs as my private two bedroom suite with my very own teeny tiny bathroom.


There is still so much work to do but all the major components are in place.  I have managed to arrange my jewelry (most of which has been found at thrift stores) on a wall in my craft studio so I thought I'd show you that today.


I've already made a tentative schedule for the coming months to complete the rest of the spaces upstairs including redoing the small bathroom.  But first on the list is our bedroom downstairs which is exactly as it was when we moved in here seven years ago.

New planner, new ideas and God willing, a whole new year to accomplish them in!  Have you made any plans for the New Year, yet?  I'd love to hear them.

xo, Patty

One of the first things I do after Christmas is to get my new planner ready for the new year.  I have been purchasing the same planner from Target for the last couple of years but thought this year I wanted to personalize one a little bit so I picked up an expensive plain one from Walmart.


I always use a big 8.5 x 11 week a glance planner because I am a writer and note taker and this size gives me plenty of space to do both.



I picked this pretty teal blue color because I new I had some new Pink Paislee paper that I was itching to tear into.


And I mean that literally...


I started off by deciding what paper I wanted where and then started tearing and placing them jigsaw puzzle style until I was satisfied with the result.


Then I just started modge podging it down in reverse order.  (I always take a picture with my camera phone for reference at this stage.)


Once it was all down and dried a bit I started adding paint and stamps and doodling...


Then I finished the right side edges off with a couple of rows of washi tape.


I love the idea of having a single word to inspire you throughout the year and had already decided mine would be "home"...as in stay home more and get stuff done...home comes first...love your home, etc.  but then as always happens, I started reading other peoples words and was having second thoughts about mine.


That's when it hit me to make a list of all the words and phrases that I want to live by in 2014 and put them on the cover of my planner.  You'll notice that I left just enough room on the bottom to add another word or two if I am inspired to do so.


I varied the fonts and mixed up the placement and I really like how it turned out.  I used another layer of modge podge to adhere the words down and finish it off.

Now all I have to do is put all the important dates inside and write my list of one year and five year goals on the back cover.  I love starting the new year off organized, even if it doesn't last as long as I wish it would.  What about you?  Do you have a day planner for the new year?  Will you write down any hopes and dreams?  I'd love to hear them.  I'll share mine tomorrow as well as my list that I started 2013 off with.

xo, Patty

btw...If you'd like a copy of my words and phrases just let me know and I'd be happy to email you one.

This is absolutely my favorite night of the year.  I know it's silly but this night holds all the hopes and dreams that I've dared to imagine in a brand new, never been touched year.   I realize that any day can hold the same opportunities but there is just something about the turning of the calendar year that ignites fresh possibilities.


For as long as I can remember I have been a lover of new beginnings...a new box of crayons, a new school year, new flower beds, new houses and the granddaddy of them all...a whole New Year. 


This is the stuff that the dreamer in me lives for.  Making lists and plans and setting new goals.  I gave up a long time ago calling them resolutions, that term seems to place a period after any failed attempts.  Hopes and dreams allow for the chance to try and fail and revamp and try again. 


Since this is 2012, I thought I'd list my top twelve hopes and dreams for the year.  Of course this list is subject to editing because life never goes according to plans. 

I found my pretty 2012 day planner at Target...don't you love it?  I"ll write my list inside the front cover that way every time I open it I can be reminded to keep focused on what I want to accomplish and to assess just what I'm doing to live the life I dream of living.



Right next to the day planners at Target was this handy dandy label maker.  I think it goes hand in hand with being purposeful about living life.   So here's my list...

1.  Pray more.
2.  Write more thank you cards.
3.  Be more organized.
4.  Walk regularly.
5.  Learn to cook new things.
6.  Take more pictures.
7.  Spend more time in my studio.
8.  Open an Etsy shop or booth.
9.  Be a better friend.
10. Spend more quality time with my husband.
11. Be content.
12. Give to others more purposely.

That's it...nothing earth shattering but hopefully life changing for me and those in my sphere of influence.  I have been given so much, I really want this to my year to give back.

What about you?  Any hopes and dreams you'd like to share?  I'd love to hear them.

Have a happy, joyful and content New Year my friends.  Thank you for all your encouragement and kind words in 2011.

Patty

 I am slowly but surely restoring order in our house since the explosion of Christmas last weekend.  Between making room for the new, by weeding through the old and deciding what I really want to keep in my new craft studio and what I will never realistically have a chance (or the ability) to create, we filled up the back of my husbands pick up truck and headed over to the Goodwill drop off site.


Having my husbands input certainly made the decision making a lot easier than ever before.  After hearing him say, "Really Patty, you might use that someday?" a few hundred times, it sunk in.  I may have a bit of a hoarder issue. 


Christmas decorations that haven't seen the light of day in the last couple of years went into the Goodwill pile without a second thought, as did three candelabra type candle holders from my tea party days.  Numerous prints from the 90's that I have been holding onto just in case I might need that size frame joined a menagerie of lampshades and wall plaques that really aren't my style anymore.


Slowly but surely progress is being made...it will definitely take some time to declutter and simplify this little cottage.  For now, we're just taking one room at a time.



There is something about the New Year that gets me into the organization-declutter mood.  Are you the same way?

For the longest time I've wanted to put together a little coffee bar in the kitchen.  I wanted a way to organize all my coffee needs in one place and to simplify and streamline the process of making coffee in the morning and of course, it had to look cute.




In the spirit of shopping at home first and repurposing what I already own I started nosing around.

I was using this set of storage jars in the cupboard filled with snack foods.  I knew they would look great on the counter and the size was right for what I had in mind.  Since the snacks are behind the closed cupboard door I found a small, empty plastic tote to replace the canister set with and it serves the purpose perfectly.



I used my chalkboard paint and put a couple of coats on each jar and finished it off with a framing of white craft paint creating simple, changeable labels.




I love the look and it cost me zero dollars.  The best kind of organizational project in my book. 

Have a wonderful week.

Patty

I'm linking to Boogieboard cottage for Masterpiece Monday
and Making the World Cuter Monday