Time Management

I have just purchased a book called: 

"Simplify your Time: Stop Running and Start Living!"

by Marcia Ramsland.  

Here are the 3 books she has written. 

I want all 3 of them!

 I haven't even finished reading her book, but have already put into practice some things that I've read.

Here is a tip Marcia gives:

Try and see what you can accomplish in 2 minutes!

Seriously!  So, I put on a pot of water to boil for supper.

...and decided to tackle my utensil holder.

 

There are a LOT of items that are never used in here.  It may not look bad to you, but it's overflowing!

After dumping everything out, here is what I saw:



All I can say is..."yuck"!  And, no...they're not bugs!  LOL!  Looked like Ramen Noodles to me.

Here is what I have kept, and now everything is handy and easy to get at.  Looks much nicer!

 And, all this before the water boiled!!

So, I decided to keep going and see what else I could accomplish in just a few minutes, or more than a few.

This small area is between our pantry and refrigerator. 

BEFORE:



AFTER:

We moved our toaster to this area...it was cluttering up another counter top (but I forgot to take pics of where it had been).  We put the peanut butter containers and cinnamon/sugar mixture in the cupboard above.  The small crock on top of the sugar container is where we keep the butter.

This is the counter where the toaster was kept...between the small crocks.  It always looked so cluttered (for 9 years!).  Oh, and did you see the crockpot?  Yep!  Supper is ready!  (I'm working on better menu planning)

This had been hanging above the sink...what in the world was I thinking?  I have no idea what I was going to do with these things.  So, I took them down.

I thought I had taken a 'before' pic of my island, but couldn't find it.  This is the first pic I took of it cleared off.  Then, I decided I didn't like it.

AFTER

Anybody ready for SPRING!!
I changed switched out the candy to this green Longaberger crock.  Who doesn't like candy?  Just wish it was chocolate!  The toothpicks had been in a gingerbread votive candleholder.  It was time to change that!  And, I love this little pitcher!

My next areas to tackle this weekend are:

How do you think we eat at this table?  We don't.  And, that is something else I am working at changing!  Bad habits are hard to break.

Oooohh...do you see the countertop on the left side of the picture?  I knew I had taken a BEFORE picture!  At least you can get a glimpse of it.

Here is the area I had decluttered a few weeks ago.  It so easily becomes a "hot spot".  I just need to add this area to my daily routine.

So, the next time I feel that I don't have 'time' to clean/organize/declutter, I will remind myself: 

I can do ANYTHING in 2 minutes, or any small amount of time!    

• Swish and swipe toilet
• wipe down toilet, sink and bathroom countertop
• put dishes in dishwasher
• throw a load of wash in washer
• change clothes from washer to dryer
• make bed (this takes LESS than 2 minutes!)
• spot wash the kitchen floor
• fill ice cube trays
• read my Bible
• Pray
• so many more things!

So, what can YOU accomplish in just a few minutes?  Feel free to share your pictures and ideas.

Organizing bit-by-bit,

Shari

Working on balance!

Today has been a busy day, as I've been preparing to go to a nearby town tomorrow morning to minister with puppets.  When I was winding down for the evening, I was tempted to just sit down on the couch to watch a movie...veggin' out, ya know!  Well, something inside of me said "NO!  You have to balance out the day!"  So...I thought about what one thing really bothered me a lot about my house, and my fridge came to mind!  Every time I opened the door of the fridge or freezer, this is what greeted me:

I made this picture larger so you could see how gross the shelf is!  It's been like this for about a week...why is it that something this easy to clean takes so long to actually get to?

Oh, yeah...we are guilty of being pop-a-holics!  I've thought about starting Pop-a-holics Anonymous!  Seriously...

There it is!  The dreaded refrigerator!

But, after about 1/2 hour, this is the make-over:

I found 2 unused plastic shoebox containers to try to...um...contain...like items.  I do think I will look for other containers that are not quite as tall, though...and I still need to label them.  It's a start...

See the clean shelf!!  It was VERRRYYY sticky!

I think it's time to do a little grocery shopping now.  It's much easier when you can see what you have!

I do have to show one thing that my daughter thought quite disgusting...see if you can figure out what it is:

If you guessed 'cilantro', you are right!  At least in it's 1st lifetime!  LOL!  This was the worst food item found in the fridge, though...

For the little time it took, I am very pleased!  Thank you, Lord, for reminding me to keep balance in my day!  If I can keep this going on a daily basis, balance, order, and peace will be a constant in my home!

I'd love to hear how you organize YOUR fridge and freezer!

Organizing bit-by-bit,

Shari