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100+ Ideas to Help Organize Your Home and Your Life

100+ Ideas to Help Organize Your Home and Your Life
665.5K Flares Twitter 57 Facebook 2.1K Pin It Share 663.2K Google+ 70 Email -- Email to a friend 665.5K Flares × I love to organize!! Okay, that may be overstating things a bit. Let’s rephrase: I love to be organized. I think all of us love to be organized, whether we admit it or not. Sometimes I really have my act together on that front, and other times–not so much. With four kids, I always seem to have a hard time getting out the door. Anyhow, if this time of year also makes you feel the need to get more organized, this post is for you! This post is massive–there are over 110 ideas here–and it took me almost two months to write it. May 2013 be your best–and most organized–year yet! (And as always, please share any of your own favorite tips in the comments below… I’d love to know what works for you!) Please note that Organize-It, a company whose products I often mention in this post, is currently extending an exclusive offer to my readers to save 10% on your entire order–woohoo!

How to Make Homemade Laundry Detergent In the spirit of Laura Ingalls, with wash day being Monday, here's a little recipe for homemade laundry detergent you can use tomorrow, Monday! wash on Mondayiron on Tuesdaymend on Wednesday churn on Thursday clean on Friday bake on Saturday rest on Sunday from Little House in the Big Woods * I use these utensils for detergent making only. They all stay in the pot until I make a new batch. You will need: 1 bar of soap (any kind you want)1 cup of Borax1 cup of washing sodaa big pot ( that holds more than 2 gallons)a gratera funnela long spoon2 empty gallon jugs/containers Grate your bar of soap into your pot. Fill one gallon jug and pour water into pot with grated soap. Add the Borax and washing soda. Bring to a boil. Turn off the heat. Pour 1 gallon of your detergent into each container. A funnel helps tremendously. Now you have 2 gallons of homemade laundry detergent. This won't make many, if any, suds. Let me know if you make any or if you have any questions. Happy washing!

Sew Much Crafting: {Projects in Progress}: Kitchen Organization Welcome to Week One of my {Projects in Progress} series! I am so excited to write my first series here in blogland and even more excited that you have joined me! If you missed the intro or list of projects, be sure to check them out! This week's project to complete deals with kitchen organization. I don't know about you, but I hate clutter. It's annoying. Here's the before shot: See all that clutter? I bought these lovelies at Wal*Mart for almost nothing. And an after shot: I split things up a little bit and now have two drawers for all that stuff. Here's an up close view. Thanks for joining me for week one of {Projects in Progress}! Here's a quick list of all of my {Projects in Progress} posts: Week One: Kitchen Organization {Drawers & Utensils} Week Two: Simple Mending {Buttons and Hems} Week Four: The Pull*It*Together Dress {Mixing Patterns} Week Five: Chap*Stick Holder {Practice Quilting} Week Six: Table Runner & Centerpiece {Machine Quilting} Week Nine: Freezer Organization {Chest Freezer}

Chocolate Dessert Tacos Can I interest you in a taco? How about a dessert taco? A chocolate dessert taco? A quick and easy homemade chocolate taco shell that you can load up with your favorite fillings! This issue was full of fabulous taco ideas (and yay, they have them online as well!). I melted some chocolate coating and piped a bit along the edges of our tacos and then dipped them in sprinkles. Mix your dry ingredients, then add your wet ingredients. The batter reminds me of a very sticky brownie batter. The recipe says it makes eight, but I did six – which worked out perfectly. You bake them for about six minutes, and the moment you pull them out you need to carefully get them off of your baking sheet and onto something – a wooden spoon over a bowl works well, in order to create your taco shape. While they are a bit delicate, I’m happy to report that none of mine broke, they held together very well. Heck, for a healthier version, fill them with bananas or berries! I should say, these are pretty messy to eat.

75 Extraordinary Uses for Baking Soda Baking soda is a chemical compound that appears as a fine powder. It releases bubbles of carbon dioxide when it interacts with an acid and a liquid. It’s most commonly used in baking, where it acts as a leavening agent. The following are 75 other uses for baking soda aside from making muffins soft and fluffy. Health Uses 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. In the Home 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. In Cooking 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. Cleaning Purposes 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75. The most amazing thing about baking soda is that it’s very cheap.

Darling Doodles Tips for Cleaning Tile, Wood and Vinyl Floors Clean Ceramic-Tile Floors Ceramic-tile floors can be cleaned easily with nothing but warm water, but be sure to sweep or vacuum first to remove any loose soil or grit. Never use a sponge mop to clean ceramic-tile floors. Clean Hardwood Floors Use boiling water and two teabags to clean hardwood floors. Fill in any Scratches If there are scratches that stand out after cleaning the hardwood floor, simply take a crayon the color of the floor and rub it on the scratch to fill the gap. Clean Vinyl Floors Mix borax in a bucket of warm water and wash the floor.

2 Keys to Pondering About Your Child2 Keys to Pondering About Your Child | Susan Merrill Blog Pondering takes selflessness, and selflessness takes self control. Those are the two keys to pondering that will help you overcome the 9 things that get in the way of pondering. Self-Control It takes self-control to put down a good book when a child comes in bored and wants to play a game. It takes self control to look up from Pinterest when your son walks in the door from school, or to get off the phone when your daughter needs help with homework. The great benefit of learning to exercise self-control is this: if you learn self-control, you will be better able to model it to your child. Selflessness It takes self-control to be selfless. In the moment we want to indulge ourselves and use our spare time selfishly, but many moments later when our children are grown we will wish we had not. Ponder about your child every moment you get, until your child is a child no more.

Household cleaning tips | The Pegboard Cue the spring cleaning. I’ve been twiddling my thumbs waiting for the day it’s warm enough to open all of our home’s windows and ventilate, but in the meantime, I’ve been getting down on cleaning inside with some of my favorite tools. Maybe you’re like me, a little bit of a gadget-seeker, someone often seeking the easy cleaning route, and often compelled to go organic (even though I’m not the poster child for that way of living, I just do what I can and can afford). If you are too, you’ll probably enjoy seeing this article on DIY Network that speaks to 10 different ways to use vinegar in your household, and you’ll enjoy some of my tricks involving products that suit all of the aforementioned housekeeping qualities for those with limited time to shine: For more detail on three products that I really, really love, keep on reading and prepare to get your inner clean-freak on. Our floor steamer is one of the best things that happened to me. The Original Spaghetti Scrub by Goodbye Detergent!

13 Ways to Honor Your Child's Memory Online - Still Standing Magazine We have a lot of newly bereaved moms and dads that find their way to us everyday, and I hope this list will be a comforting reminder that their children will always be remembered. There are so many generous and loving families who have gone through the loss of a child before you that dedicate their precious time to helping other loss families. If you know of any others, please mention them in the comments and I will be sure to update this list. Christian’s Beach have your child’s name handwritten by the talented and inspiring CarlyMarie on the seashores of Perth, Western Australia. Wall of Remembrance a free way to remember your child by including their name, a picture and a message on this page. White Signs of Grief a beautiful way to send a message to your child. Pledge to see the movie Return to Zero Treasure Beans Pebble Works painted rocks with your baby’s name and beautiful artwork. Butterfly Footprints this artist can create a printable keepsake using your baby’s footprints. update:

The Ultimate Spring Cleaning Checklist Date: March 24 2014 | Author: BrightNest | Category: Clean We are pumped for spring cleaning! What better time to clear out all of that winter dust and bring the fresh feel of spring into your home? If you’re geared up and ready to go, here are ten “must-clean” areas of your home. Want the free printable version? Ready to rock your cleaning socks off? For more cleaning tips & tricks, join BrightNest for free! Want some spring cleaning extra credit? Doorknobs. Washing machine. Garage. Refrigerator coils. Toys. Clothes Iron. Coffee maker. Plant leaves. Shower curtain. Remote control. Dawn + Vinegar = Soap Scum KILLA So, you might remember this post from a while back. And if you do, you'll remember that I cannot stand soap scum. Like, it actually bothers me. I hate that we have this gorgeous bathroom, and all I can see is the soap scum that threatens to take over. I've tried it all. So when I saw this post on pinterest, I was a bit skeptical. My oldest daughter asked me if I bought the Dawn just because it had a penguin on it (I collect penguins). So it's pretty simple. Again, that's a one to one ratio of white vinegar to blue Dawn. Do you know how hard it is to take a pic of soap scum? Isn't that gross? I let it sit for 2 hours, came back in with a sponge and some warm water, and wiped it off. Yes, that is an unedited (except for the watermark, obviously) photo of the same area. So if your nemesis is soap scum, give it a shot. No, I'm not getting paid to post this. Sharing this here...

Over 50 FREE Cleaning and Organizing Printables Are you busy cleaning and organizing this month? I know I am. I use printable pages for many things in my home. I can always find free versions online of some really great printable organizers. I thought I would share some I had found with you all. Well the list grew as I did some research. Cleaning Organization Labels In the Kitchen Home Management For Health For Kids I am also joining in with a few other ladies today to bring y’all even more organizing fun (it is fun right?). Check out these awesome organizing posts for even more inspiration. I hope y’all enjoyed my list of printables. NEW! Just click on the button below to add this download to your cart. Just click the add to cart button above to download my complete guide to natural cleaning for just $1.99!!

Bathroom Cleaning Secrets From the Pros : Rooms Whether cozy, sleek or luxurious, hotel baths are the perfect getaway. Now you can transform your bathroom into just such an escape. At Inn-spired Bathrooms, you'll tour six hotel-inspired baths, garner simple ideas for getting the look you want and learn the cleaning secrets of hotel housekeepers. How do hotels keep those bathrooms so clean? One quick answer is that hotels clean bathrooms every day, even if the same guest is occupying the room night after night. While you may not want to clean your entire bathroom every day, doing small things ? To get the dirt on the routine, we asked two experts: Jenny Botero, resident manager of the 697-room Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Va., and Erika Jacso, director of style for the W New York Union Square, in New York City, which boasts 270 rooms. Step 1: Vacuum and dustOn the rare occasion that the W Union Square receives a complaint, "it usually has to do with finding hairs on the tile or floor in the bathroom," Erika says.

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