In Declutter Your Christmas Day I said that I’d post some great storage container options that are pretty enough to sit on your table during your holiday meal, but that also are handy – i.e. have lids and can go straight to the fridge.
Here you go:

Grip-It Storage Jars – these are small and pretty; perfect for sitting on your table, holding small food items like olives, pourable dips, salad dressing, and nuts. Then later pop the lid on and go.

First off, sorry to be so MIA. My son caught a nine day illness, which he then nicely gave to me (early holiday gift?) only my version has morphed into some major flu. I’m feeling a little better now, so hopefully we’ll be back on track here with organizing and decluttering the holiday season.
Since I’ve been sick, and somewhat stressed over it, I figured, why not start there.

Here are five ways to lower your stress levels over the holidays – why? A decluttered mind is more able to deal with all of life – we all know that.
Keep it simple: …read more

If somewhere along the line you forgot about your table setting tasks for this Thanksgiving, it’s time for a brush up.

1. First of all, you and the kids can get together and make some cool thanksgiving crafts – some that are pretty enough for a formal table:

Recycled Thanksgiving Crafts
Nature Crafts Pretty Enough for Thanksgiving Day

2. Decide if you’re going with a formal or casual table.
If you’re having a casual arrangement, you should do the following:

Set up a kid table at least – kids walking around with food is a choking hazard.
Set up a table with a nice tablecloth, some cool …read more

Thanksgiving! Halloween isn’t even here yet. While that’s true, I think early planning is key to keeping the holidays organized. That said, we won’t be dwelling on Thanksgiving much (yet), but we can get started…
The best tip is to go to someone else’s house for Thanksgiving; possibly a house where you’re only required to brink the whipping cream. Since we all don’t get easy invites like this, here are some tips that can help you to shave time off your Thanksgiving day events:
Make more sides and ditch the super-sized turkey: The bigger the bird, the longer the cooking time. Also …read more

This month, Lifestyles decided to have a little fun with one of summer’s favorite pastimes – picnics & potlucks. Here are all the tips from around the channel, there’s recipes, tips and a few laughs thrown in for free.

Of course here at Declutter It we looked at five tips to help you organize your summer BBQ. 
Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch by Robust Cooking
Watermelon Raspberry Lemonade at All Holiday Cafe
Rice Krispie Treats at Keeping the Castle
Homemade Oreo Ice Cream at Chocolate Bytes
Cool Summer Snacking at Inside Motherhood
Pasta Salad at Thrifty Mommy
Baking Delights is bringing enough chocolate for everyone to catch a chocobuzz with …read more

Today the Lifestyles Channel is holding a potluck / picnic of sorts. Each of the channel blogs will be somehow discussing potlucks and picnics today – a favorite recipe, maybe some ideas for decorating, and so on. At Declutter It, we’ll look at organizing that darn grilling area.
Now, I don’t BBQ, or even own a grill, mainly because I don’t eat meat. That said, I’m a fan of grilled veggies, and also have known my fair share of grillers. However, if I say something crazy, now you know why.
Quick clean up: Place a tub of soapy water next to the …read more

If you have a somewhat messy abode, and have company coming over, sometimes a little aesthetics can help solve the problem; at least temporarily.
Before guests arrive:  
Attempt first to at least remove visible clutter: i.e hide that junk. Grab a box and do a quick sweep of your house. Also, make tidy piles of clutter. Tidy pies look much better than messy piles.
Light some candles: much more effective if you have nighttime visitors. You can turn the lights lower (which hides some of the mess) and the candles create a soothing feeling.
Scent that house: Burn some incense, spray some non-toxic …read more

A Find it Friday post
Do you love to throw a good party? How about last minute parties? We used to have people over all the time before we had kids. We invited people over to the house for dinner, invited lots of people to the house to just hang out and also constantly had people just dropping in unexpectedly.
I really want to get back in the groove of having people over more and also letting our house be the “you know you can drop by anytime” house. It’s pretty much already the place where all the neighborhood kids congregate, but …read more