Photo:SXC

First up was going through every item and sorting it into one of three piles:

• Expired
• What was I thinking when I bought that?
• Keep

The keep pile was neatly boxed up and labeled and then placed in a dry area out of the way. The What was I thinking pile was sorted into “Doesn’t Alice eat refried beans?” and “Maybe someone at the mission likes canned okra.” sections.
Then, the food was packaged up to be carted off to different locations. The expired pile, which was thankfully on the small side, was tossed.

After this, we took out all the old shelf paper. Now, the pantry is ready for demolition.

A few quick tips:

• Pack things with lids right side up so the lids don’t leak.
• Use newspaper or another type of padding to keep jars and bottles from clinking against each other.
• Make liberal use of right side up arrows and clear labels on the boxes.
• Really think about whether something you bought will be used before you hold onto it. You need that valuable space for things you will eat, especially if you are planning to put together an emergency stockpile.

Post from: Blisstree

Tidy Tuesday – Clean the Pantry for a Move

In my failure to accomplish the big task, however, I learned something. When it comes to clutter, small steps are equally as effective. For example, while I didn’t organize the entire house, I did organize my bedroom. I got rid of clothes I didn’t wear, and organized drawers so now everything fits very nicely in. Now, when I do go in that room, I feel a sense of peace and accomplishment. (Whereas before I would see the messiness of things and feel overwhelmed before I began.)

Now, just seeing the one part of the house I was able to organize has inspired me to keep going. I don’t feel as if “the whole house is a mess” anymore. I like the idea of tackling one spot here and there. It will fit better into my busy schedule than just trying to cram everything into a Saturday afternoon.

Image: sxc.hu.

Post from: Blisstree

Small Steps to Being Clutter Free

Welcome to the January 7,2008 edition of organize your life.

David presents Make A New Year’s Resolution To Get Organized – A Step By Step Guide. posted at My Two Dollars.

home

Veteran Military Wife presents Put Your Received Christmas Cards to Good Use posted at Life Lessons of a Military Wife, saying, “Have a plan for those Christmas cards, and make someone happy!”

Tea Party Girl presents You Don’t Have To Be Unprepared for Unexpected Hospitality posted at Tea Party Girl, saying, “Hopefully the title of this post speaks for itself!”

Rebecca presents How to organize your kitchen (once and for all!) posted at The Experimental Kitchen.

Bonnie Krueger presents How Does Abundance Thinking Help Get Rid Of Your Debt? posted at Student Loan Consolidation.

life

Madeleine Begun Kane presents That Errant List posted at Mad Kane’s Humor Blog, saying, “humor”

Pat B. Doyle presents How We Can Find Healing in Nature posted at Barton Pond Feng Shui.

SJ Yee presents 7 Motivational Quotes To Start Your Day, Everyday! posted at Personal Development for the Book Smart.

Alex Blackwell presents The Two Things We Want Most posted at The Next 45 Years.

Steve Pavlina presents Career Transitions posted at Steve Pavlina’s Personal Development Blog.

Ralph Jean-Paul presents Keep Your New Year’s Resolutions posted at Potential 2 Success, saying, “Start sticking to those New Year’s Resolutions by learning what resolutions really are, why resolutions don’t work and how to follow through on them.”

David B. Bohl presents Information Overload and Personal Development posted at Slow Down Fast Today!, saying, “Feeling innundated with today’s explosion of information and the corresponding choices available to you?”

Jose DeJesus MD presents Select Mutual Funds with Lower Turnover- Your Money posted at Physician Entrepreneur.

Jose DeJesus MD presents Avoid These Mutual Funds – Be Like Goldilocks posted at Physician Entrepreneur.

office

Woody Maxim presents Do you lack focus? posted at Woody Maxim.

Richard Lee presents The PDF Black Hole posted at Richard Lee.

Peter25 presents More Productive With a Better Environment posted at Small Business, saying, “Everyone wants to be productive but not everyone lives in a productive environment. You know you live in a productive environment if everything that surrounds you helps you achieve your goals so you can become who you desire to be.”

FitBuff presents Work Un-Appreciation Day posted at FitBuff.com’s Total Mind and Body Fitness Blog, saying, “Do you feel unappreciated at work? If so, be careful. According to this study, you could be at increased risk of heart trouble…”

thoughts

Warren Wong presents How To Start A Successful Blog posted at Personal Development for INTJs, saying, “Tips on how to start a successful blog and what it takes to succeed.”

Todd Goldfarb presents 11 Simple Ways to Improve Your Memory posted at We The Change, saying, “Wonderful techniques for increasing memory…and great ways to keep your thoughts organized!”

Super Saver presents Doing Routine Home Maintenance In The Fall And Winter posted at My Wealth Builder, saying, “I’m going to begin spring cleaning activites earlier, by starting in the late fall and winter.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of organize your life using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Post from: Blisstree

Organize Your Life Carnival #19

I did this exact thing this morning. My family and I are leaving for that whirlwind trip to Colorado that I’ve mentioned and I have so many things to do that my head is spinning. So, I started off the day making a huge list of everything that came to my mind – things I need to bring on our trip, shopping I need to do, calls I need to make – you name it, it’s on that list. Now I have a central location to write things down as they come to me and I also can mark things off as I do them, which is a great feeling!

So my challenge for you today is to make a list. Get everything out of your head and onto paper. Maybe this will help you feel a little more at ease this holiday season.

Post from: Blisstree

Make a List and Check it Twice – Motivate Me Monday

For those of you that are new and have no clue what I am talking about, lol, here is a list of my Monday through Friday topics:

• Motivate Me Monday
• Tick Tock Tuesday
• Where’s My Desk Wednesdays
• Tame Those Toys Thursdays
• Find It Friday

Here’s a brief description for each day which I posted awhile back:

• Motivate Me Mondays - Every Monday I will issue you a challenge. Either to go through one drawer in your house and purge and organize it. Or, to take a trash bag, go through one room in your house, set the timer for 5 minutes, and get rid of some stuff. Or, to sit down and write out a step by step plan for the room that bothers you the most. This plan would involve everything it is going to take to get your room back! From beginning to end.

• Tick Tock, There Goes That Darn Clock Tuesdays – This day is all about time management. We will learn together how to get back our days and weeks and be able to look back on them with a smile on our face.

• Where is My Desk? Wednesdays - This day is all about that home office. From bills to files to piles and piles of paper. We will also cover the computer, your office supplies and when to turn off that phone so you can get some work done. We have voice mail for a reason people!!

• Tame Those Toys Thursdays - This isn’t just going to be about toys. Toys just happened to start with a T. This day is all about your kids. (If you don’t have any, well, email this day to a friend who does.) We will be talking about kids’ schedules, bedrooms, school work and whatever else is in between. Teaching our kids good organization skills at a young age is something they will take with them and benefit from for the rest of their lives.

• Find It Fridays – Are you sick and tired of always looking for things? Do you find yourself rummaging through drawers and closets and under the bed for who knows what? Well, this day is all about finding everything within a few seconds. It really is a good thing to know where your keys are as you are leaving the house. Or to know exactly where those twin sheets are when you need them. Or to be able to look in your closet and see exactly what you have in your wardrobe.

I’m also adding a topic to Saturdays and Sundays:

• Supper Saturdays will be all about meal planning, grocery shopping and kitchen related organizing.
• Sweep Through Sundays will be a day that I “sweep” through the b5media blogs and find topics that other bloggers have written that I feel you can benefit from. We have an amazing group of bloggers here and they all have something great to share.

Alright, I think that does it! Let’s get started….

Post from: Blisstree

A Note from Declutter It!

Veteran Military Wife presents Get Your Holiday Assortment in Order posted at Life Lessons of a Military Wife, saying, “There can be a system to your holiday madness!”

Sagar presents Sensual Vacations: 25 Kinky, Fun and Sexy Getaways posted at Travelhacker.

Meredith Mathews presents 6,000 Post-it Notes and Unfinished Business. « Lemonade Stand posted at Lemonade Stand.

Sagar presents Just Do It: 67 Ways to Tame the Procrastination Beast posted at Bootstrapper.

David B. Bohl presents Small Business Trends Column: Will Amazon “Kindle” a New Lifestyle Trend? posted at Slow Down Fast Today!, saying, “I’m all for Kindle and any other technology that delivers convenience and enhances the quality of my life without further complicating it. I am hopeful that Kindle will allow me to conduct business — professional and personal — in a way that provides me freedom of time and place, as well as to enjoy my leisure without becoming a slave to the very technology that allowed for it in the first place.”

Edith presents Life is Too Short for This posted at Edith Yeung.Com: Dream. Think. Act..

clothes

More great submissions below the cut.

Meg presents How to create extra closet space: Organizing your wardrobe, Part 2 posted at The Bargain Queen on Fashion and Beauty, saying, “Part 2 of the series.”

Meg presents How to find extra storage solutions: Organize your wardrobe, Part 3 posted at The Bargain Queen on Fashion and Beauty, saying, “And part 3.”

home

Heather Juma presents Life Can Be Risky! posted at Girls Who Network Diary.

SummerM presents Red Stained Tupperware | Our Family Village posted at Our Family Village.

James DeLelys presents WORDS A Prophecy Fulfilled | New Scriptures: Spiritual Growth, Healing, Help and Comfort posted at New Books, saying, “New Book WORDS A Prophecy Fulfilled will organize your life like never before!”

John Crenshaw presents Are You Proactive or Reactive? posted at Dominate Your Life, saying, “You can learn a lot about how to be successful in life and business by studying what works for people in really intense situations. Am I ever going to be so bombarded with information that I’m incapable of processing it all?”

Joseph presents Building a Walk in Closet Out of Extra Space (No Construction Necessary) posted at Home Decor and Decorating News.

Warren Wong presents Focus On One Thing At A Time To Completion posted at Personal Development for INTJs, saying, “Learn to focus on one thing at a time to save time and get more done.”

Christine presents Me, My Kid and Life: The Single Mom and The Cost of Starting an Online Business posted at Me, My Kid and Life: An American Single Mom Living in France, saying, “Making the money you need to live the life you want! This article is specifically geared toward single moms and stay at home moms who want to start an online business without needing start-up capital. It’s written by a single mom who has made 100% of her income online for the past several years and who is raising her daughter in France supported by her online income. If I can do it, anyone can do it!”

Heather Moore presents Easy steps to clearing the clutter posted at Girlfriendlink.com.

Sunny presents 7 steps to a clean, peaceful home for the holidays posted at Dandelions and Daydreams, saying, “All I want for Christmas is a clean and peaceful home”

Eric@APennyCloser.com presents Moving Is Helping Us Simplify posted at A Penny Closer.

Rolf F. Katzenberger presents GPD: Getting Presents Done posted at Evomend | Timeless resources for personal organization., saying, “Holidays and birthdays always come as such a surprise, don’t they … ? There are gifts to avoid, gifts you can do yourself (DIY) and appropriate times to start.”

Tea Party Girl presents How to Build Your Tea Party Pantry | Tea Party Girl posted at Tea Party Girl, saying, “I thought I would submit this to your carnival because it is one of my top read articles, laying out simply what to have at home for easily hosting others.”

Marcia Francois presents Organising library books posted at Organising Queen, saying, “Library books”

Raj presents How Often Should You Deworm? | MT Herald Dot Com posted at MT Herald Dot Com, saying, “Don’t know if this will fit into your carnival, still I think it’s a part of organizing home and kids, hence sending in the application.”

life

Steve Oliphant presents 27 tips to getting organized posted at Steve Oliphant’s Musings.

Aaron Brandon presents The File Folder Effect posted at Aaron Brandon.

Matthew Paulson presents Why College is The Best Time to Start Your Own Business » American Consumer News posted at American Consumer News.

Ralph Jean-Paul presents Meet 7 People in 7 Days posted at Potential 2 Success, saying, “There are 6.7 trillion people in the world. How many of them do you know? Meet a new person for business or social advancement each day this week.”

James DeLelys presents Home posted at HOME, saying, “What is Love?”

Warren Wong presents How To Feel Better And Be Happier posted at Personal Development for INTJs, saying, “Some practical tips you can use now to feel better and be happier.”

The Career Counselor presents Six Time Management Tips for the Self-Employed During the Holidays posted at ask the CareerCounselor, saying, “Home workers and small business owners typically encounter a tricky balancing act during the holidays. You work from home, at least in part, in order to spend more time with your family, but during the holiday season self-employed folks just can’t drop everything to make way for family events and school plays. And, particularly for one-income households, holiday shopping may actually demand an increase in earnings amid all the distractions. Obviously, organization and planning are critical to making sure you meet deadlines and still have a merry holiday spirit at home. Read below for tips and ideas to help small business owners make the most, personally and professionally, out of the holidays.”

Maria Fernandez presents How to learn Spanish when you’ve got no time posted at Learn a foreign language – blog, saying, “How you can learn a foreign language while doing other things at the same time.”

Ralph Jean-Paul presents 7 Reasons Why You Haven’t Reached Your Goals Yet posted at Potential 2 Success, saying, “Check this list of reasons why your goals have not been met then go out and accomplish those goals.”

Kingsley Tagbo presents How To Improve Your Skills And Get A Lucrative Job posted at HOW TO LEARN COMPUTER PROGRAMMING FAST OR GET A JOB EASILY.

SJ Yee presents How to live each day and get from where you are to where you want to go posted at Personal Development for the Book Smart.

office

Kathleen Gage presents Are You Losing Money by Doing Your Own Work? posted at Street Smarts Marketing, saying, “According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), the average small business owner spends up to 40% of his or her time on routine administrative tasks.

Constantly working on non revenue-producing tasks that could be more productively and cost-effectively performed by a highly skilled, knowledgeable assistant is losing your business significant income.”

Stefan Töpfer presents THE SMALL BUSINESS BLOG » Blog Archive » Work-Life Balance 2.0 and Small Business posted at The Small Business Blog.

Phil B. presents 8 Signs That You Work Too Much « Phil for Humanity posted at Phil for Humanity, saying, “From time to time, we all work too much. Here are a few signs that you are working way too much and need to work on your personal life.”

Ralph Jean-Paul presents Start Meaningful Conversations posted at Potential 2 Success, saying, “Have more interesting and engaging conversations by learning the right way to begin them. The way you connect with people can improve your social and professional life. So if you want to improve your overall lifestyle, improve the way you connect with others.”

David B. Bohl presents A Messy Desk is the Sign of a Messy Desk | Slow Down Fast Today! ~ David B. Bohl posted at Slow Down Fast Today!, saying, “I was amused recently to see that one of the major office supply stores now carries not only filing supplies but also, believe it or not, “piling” supplies. These consist mainly of plastic envelopes and folders where you can put everything regarding one project together and leave them on your desk. I haven’t talked to anyone who uses them, but I find it interesting that someone is finally noticing that we don’t always even want to keep our desks clear.”

Lodewijk van den Broek presents The benefits of a clean desk and a tidy office posted at How to be an Original, saying, “This is a post about how a former slob discovers the benefits of a (GTD-inspired) clean desk and a tidy office. Including two pictures of the office.”

paper

Marcia Francois presents How to deal with mail clutter posted at Organising Queen, saying, “Mail overload”

thoughts

Matthew Paulson presents How to Start a Business without Quitting Your Day Job posted at American Entrepreneurship.

Yazan Manasrah presents Uncluttering your mind posted at The Blasted Crossing, saying, “Want to find out how to gain the focus and mental energy to accomplish the daily tasks you must do?”

Shamelle presents What Would You Do, If You Were Not Doing, What You Are Doing Today? posted at Enhance Life.

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of organize your life using our carnival submission form.

Post from: Blisstree

Organize Your Life Carnival #18

Do you have items in the backseat of your car sliding around everywhere? Keep an over-sized tote bag to store loose items in. Empty it a few times a week or when it starts to get full.

via SELF magazine

Post from: Blisstree

Tip of the Day #38

via November issue of SELF

Post from: Blisstree

Tip of the Day #36

Welcome to the August 24, 2007 edition of organize your life.

Carlon Haas presents How to Stop Internet Surfing While Working on Your Computer in 5 Seconds or Less | Possess Less Exist More™ posted at Possess Less Exist More™.

home

Veteran Military Wife presents Gift & Christmas Shopping Without Panic posted at Life Lessons of a Military Wife, saying, “You’ll find some great tips to get your gift shopping and gift giving more organized!”

Jamie Carr presents Take a Media Fast posted at Peace Inside.

evelester presents Life Management ~ 6 ways to Make Errands Easier posted at Confessions of an Everyday Housewife.

Meredith Mathews presents Do you know where your DVDs are? posted at Lemonade Stand.

Millionaire Mommy Next Door presents Help Me David Wann Kenobi; You’re My Only Hope! posted at Millionaire Mommy Next Door, saying, ““My name is Paige and I am an Afflueholic. It began with watching the Brady Bunch. They always had the grooviest stuff….” If David Wann (co-author of Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic) were here in this room with me right now, I would have a few questions to ask him. Well, first I would have to clear my pile of stuff off of the nearest chair so he could sit down.”

FitBuff presents I Can Stand My Stand Up Desk | FitBuff.com’s Total Mind and Body Fitness Blog posted at FitBuff.com’s Total Mind and Body Fitness Blog, saying, “This is a perfect article for those working from home, because a home office is the easiest place to implement a stand up desk.

I know the idea of standing while working may seem crazy to some at first, but this article chronicles how using a standing desk for 30 days has improved my posture, performance, and productivity.

Plus there is even a short video showing you how to set up one yourself for free just to try out.”

life

Millionaire Mommy Next Door presents Memories are made of the things we DO, not the things we BUY posted at Millionaire Mommy Next Door, saying, “Should we buy a boat? Or would we rather go fishing?”

office

Alvaro Fernandez presents Training the Aging Workforce posted at SharpBrains: Your Window into the Brain Fitness Revolution, saying, “This is a trend for all to be aware of. Who doesn’t age?”

paper

Host Bee presents Catalog and magazine clutter posted at Busy Bee Lifestyle.

thoughts

Ellesse presents Want To be More Productive? Play More posted at Goal Setting College.

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of organize your life using our carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Post from: Blisstree

Organize Your Life/Carnival Edition #13

Welcome to the August 10, 2007 edition of organize your life.

TerryM presents Top 5 Quick Organization Tips posted at The Chocolate Chip Cookie Family.

clothes

Veteran Military Wife presents A One for One Closet Exchange posted at Life Lessons of a Military Wife, saying, “Never have an overflowing closet again! Follow along, and get it organized….for good.”

home

Millionaire Mommy Next Door presents Where Does Your Money Go? Tips and Tricks for Tracking the Flow posted at Millionaire Mommy Next Door, saying, “Money flows like water. It can gush like a raging river or drip like an annoying leaky faucet at midnight. If we use this precious resource mindlessly, we face drought. However, if we first observe the ebbs and flows, effective management becomes a simple matter of design. Tracking expenses is an educational task you may want to delegate to your kids. Here’s how.”

Veteran Military Wife presents Where O Where Did All the Library Books Go? posted at Life Lessons of a Military Wife.

Host Bee presents Clutter control for paper posted at Busy Bee Lifestyle.

life

Host Bee presents To Do, Grocery, and Menu Planners posted at Busy Bee Lifestyle.

GP presents Present Simplicity posted at Fish Creek House – INNside Innkeeping, saying, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”

Millionaire Mommy Next Door presents Some Fast Food For Thought posted at Millionaire Mommy Next Door, saying, “Research indicates that credit cards can make you fat and that the leaner you are, the richer you’ll get. I’m lean, I’m rich, and I kicked my fast-food habit years ago. How? Here are my suggestions.”

Scott Lee presents Design Your Life, Like a Paint Brush posted at Scott Free Thinking.

Matt presents Planning Out a Short Term Project posted at Realigned Living, saying, “Planning is a key part of organization, and what better way to organize your life than to actually plan out your projects, step-by-step? My post is a guide on how to successfully plan out a short term project; perfect for those people who are unsure of the steps to take to get started.”

vivek khemka presents TEN SIMPLE WAYS TO SAVE THE WORLD- ONE AT A TIME. posted at The Red Pencil.

Arun presents Practicing For Lifetime Awesomeness posted at Arun is Bringing You…Your Daily Remedy, saying, “Practicing different aspects of life is the only way to be your best, happiest self!”

James presents Best Free Legal Resources Online posted at ZooLaw.

office

Thad Guy presents Thad Guy, saying, “Lists have a special place in the heart of any voracious organizer. They have also recently developed recognition as a powerful form of expression on their own. Here is a funny look at the authority of our everyday list.
Best,
Thad”

paper

Ted Reimers presents Best Facebook Applications for College posted at CampusGrotto.

thoughts

Karl Staib presents Use Your Instinct and Logic to Make High Quality Decisions posted at Karl Staib.

That concludes this edition. Thanks everyone!

Post from: Blisstree

Organize Your Life/Carnival Edition #12