Organizing your home

I got to say with this everything going on, it is no wonder our homes are bedlam at the moment, especially if you do have a sick friend or family member at home at the moment, so what do you do in such cases,

1. If someone offers to help out then let them, but remember to follow hygiene rules at all times to protect yourself and them
2. Do a space at a time and set a timer on each task, going round with antibacterial products
3. Do a brain dump the night before or during the day of tasks that need to be done, then break them up
4. Create a block schedule which I have on my google docs
5. Create a organizing playlist on Youtube to play whilst you organize
6. Don't just organize a draw but clean up your computer aswell.
7. Organize wires and refer to Youtube for Hacks as there are loads
8. Tidy your fridge, freezer and food cupboards, as no time like the present
9. Re stock on items and stock pile now if you can
10. Have emergency supplies I always do now, of tin food as they always come in handy

So what tips do you have? Please comment below and I will write more soon.

Many thanks for reading,


Carrie X

Organizing my Life

Getting to grips with everything can be tricky so organizing my life is a must especially being a parent.

• The one strategy I follow is have everything ready the night before and wash my sons school uniform during the week and at the end of the week, to get ahead for Monday.

This is the same when going some where for the day and it is good to have items of clothing being a mum, you can grab in an instant.

• Mail should be opened as soon as possible if not right away and then taken to its relevant place, or I will put it on my notice board in the kitchen where it is easily seem.

It can be a hard to juggle but I find the weekends to be the days in which I catch up with everything.

Staying organized during the school holidays can be tricky as you do tend to lose the sense of routine for a bit, but it is easy to bring it back once you are back and let them know of the change.

The key to staying organized is to.

• pre-warn first if you have kids and get everything ready again a day or so in advance.

Be consistent and the more organised you are the more confident and ready you will feel for the days and weeks ahead.

So how do you organize your life, please comment below. You can keep up to date with all my posts at:
https://www.carriesblognetwork.squarespace.com

Many thanks for reading,



Carrie  X

Parenting organisation

Becoming a parent not so long ago, giving birth to a baby boy in November it is so important even more now to be organized.

It can easy become frantic and have everything everywhere, especially when your baby begins to scream which at first can make you panic and suddenly you have milk everywhere, baby clothes in piles, washing piling up and can be never ending.

Since being a mum for the first time the one piece of advice I would give is, if someone offers to give you a helping hand, take it. Having a new baby is an exciting time, but also a stressful time too, because of all the things you have to remember, and having a premature baby can add to the anxiety of being a new mum or dad too. So let others do the house chores whilst you enjoy your baby and getting some well deserved rest, and it is beneficial even though I am sure you new mums have read over and heard this trillion times before, but do sleep when your baby sleeps.

If your mum like mine offers to help with taking care of the baby some nights or days giving you a night or afternoon to catch up on some sleep or you want to go out but don't want to take the baby outside yet, then let mum or dad take care of the little one, as giving yourself time helps you to recuperate and get that time to yourself back.

The one thing I have created which has helped is a changing basket this has everything from spare clean babygrows, vests, bibs, nappies, cotton buds, baby wipes, nappy rash cream and nappy bags. I would not go without this and it has everything I need so when it is time to change my son Henry, it is all there ready, and no frantic panic because I have to leave the baby on his own to go upstairs should his baby grow need changing, and trust me babies do need there clothes changing a lot.

Here is my changing basket I created:



The basket was purchased from Amazon for £20.00 which included delivery and is perfect size and very light to carry. I also would advise if you like myself have your baby sleeping downstairs during the day and upstairs during the night and you change your baby in those places have 2 changes mats one for upstairs and one for downstairs so you don't have to keep transporting one all the time.

Also invest in a travel mat very handy when changing baby in baby changing cubicles when out. Mine came with my changing bag and very useful, worth paying the extra just for this.

In the basket I have used my spare toiletry bags to keep certain items in. The spotted toiletry bag (see full details of this in picture above and the two below) this was also bought some while ago from Amazon and I keep all spare vests, socks and bibs in.

In the bottom compartment I have spare bibs and vest suits.



In this picture above is the top compartment of the toiletry bag and has more vest suits and a pair of socks.

I keep spare babygrows, another spare baby vest, baby tops and bottoms in this spare bag to your left which originally carried another product I bought but no longer use, so used it for other purposes for holding toiletries but now very handy for story baby clothes and has string attachment on it so easy to open and access quickly.

Here is a picture of some of the items I keep in this bag, these were lovely items the baby vest suit was a Christmas present for Henry which came with a matching blanket too from my brothers family, and a babygrow which was a present for Henry, for when he was born. It was bought by one of my mums work colleagues and I will post more details on these gifts on my other blogs http://theparentingadventures.wordpress.com/ and http://cazzachalloner40.wordpress.com/

 I keep my nappies, cotton wool buds, nappy rash cream and baby wipes in a hello kitty toiletry bag, which I bought from Avon, and great as I can just take this out with me and store in the compartment underneath my pram so very useful. (See photos).

I do also keep a spare packet of nappies in basket so I can refill my hello kitty bag whenever this runs out or runs low with nappies.

This helps save me a lot of time and is always there ready to use when I need to and I can easily transport it from upstairs to downstairs and visa versa.

I keep spare nappy rash creams and baby wash  in a little see-through bag in basket aswell which I bought with my changing bag from the baby show and great as I see exactly what is in it.

I would recommend that if you are expecting a baby or just had a baby to create yourself a changing basket or even use a bag, just keeping everything you need together.

It is worth planning and preparing before your baby but do also prepare for when the plans don't workout exactly to how you wished for them too. Our son didn't take to the Tommee Tippee bottles we bought as he couldn't get on with the teat so we had to buy instead Avent bottles which were better, so try as much as you can not to get frustrated if things don't workout as originally planned and do ask for help if you need to. It is an overwhelming time being a new mum and dad, and the easier you can make it for yourself the better.

I will posting more about parent organization and posting on my other blogs which I provided links to above aswell, as I keep you posted of my new learned parent dilemmas and skills. If I can help others as I learn to be a new mum too, then the better it is for you and myself. If you want to get in contact with me for a chat online as some support or advice I can help with then please do leave a comment in the box below this blog.

Many thanks for reading,

Carrie X

Saving money on utility bills

With the heavy storm that hit us through the night and today I think I can say the winter has arrived with a bang.

If you haven’t started preparing for winter now is a good time to begin, as the weather is changing as we move through the days and weeks ahead. It is good to plan ahead of time for the extra cold or stormy, blustery days that await us.

So if not done already you should have started getting your winter clothes out now, and put the summer clothes away. A good way of storing them is in vacuum bags, best things invented as they help to make room and don’t use up too much space.

To help save money also during the winter is plan ahead for Halloween, fireworks night and for Christmas and start putting your lists and plans together ready for the eventful days ahead, so you know what you are buying for what, and remember to have a budget and stick to the budget the best you can.

The energy rates is going up again this year if you haven’t already heard and so if you are worried then I would start thinking about switching now if you wish too, but there are ways to save money on electric and gas, still if you decide not to switch, such as:

-          Don’t leave lights on in rooms that are not being used.

-          Any appliances that you can turn off when not using then turn them off, as even though the items are not on, electricity will still be running through them if on at the mains, so turn off.

-          If you have central heating, have the heating set to come on, on certain times, example if you work during the day have the heating on 30-15 minutes before your wake up time, as this will help you to get up easier especially in the winter when it is extra cold in the mornings. Have the heating turned off at the time you leave for work, and then turned back on one the approximate time you are back home from work. Then turn off at the time you go to bed.

-          Use small lamp lights instead of main room lights (which switch on via the wall) as they use up more energy in a room than a small lamp plugged into the mains.

Start stocking up for winter, and no this is not the same as hoarding completely different. You don’t have to go overboard but start getting tins of soup, boxes of cuppa soups, frozen vegetables and meats so you can make those hearty stews and casseroles, and frozen food lasts longer so if you don’t fancy going out when it is bitterly cold then you have some food stored ready to be cooked.

The points you have gained from shopping cards, such as nectar points, Tesco club points can start being used towards your shopping your winter shop so you can have a free shop when you like to.

I stock up on toiletries aswell such as showers gels, shampoos, toilet rolls, toothpastes, spare toothbrushes and cleaning products, that have long use by dates and they are kept (the items that are stored for when we need to use them) in our shed in our garden so we don’t have to go far should we need something, and again in the winter we won’t need to go out to get anything, and being pregnant this year it is essential that I have everything I need ready so the months ahead where I can’t go far I won’t need to.

Start donating or having a clear out: Any clothes from last winter that don’t fit, or shoes that have seen better days, then it is time to donate or dispose, and create two piles for both. You can at your local recycling centre still take clothes and shoes you wish to dispose of for recycling bins. To find your local recycling centre check under your local authority.

If you drive start getting the anti-freeze and ice scraper out, and plan your mornings ahead ready to defrost your car so you can still be at work in plenty of time. Or to save money when it is cold why not get the public transport if possible and if you are in London get an Oyster Card which are really cheap now about £5.00 and then top up as you go, and this will save you money on petrol and time in the mornings when it is extra cold and don’t want to get up extra to defrost the car. However as the public transport seems to come to a halt and have problems during bad stormy or snowy weather make sure you check and plan your journey away ahead of time.

Turn off the hot water when not using it. Depending on what system you have, we had a boiler in our last place which we could turn the hot water off during the day when we weren’t using it, and now we have switches for the shower for example which we use to turn off, and so again saves us money. Also don’t need to wash up all day, just wash up 2-3 times a day, in the morning, after lunch or dinner and or do all before you go to bed at night, and then put away the next morning.

Create a winter fund, start putting a fund together for the winter days which can be used towards bills, shopping or Christmas. I do one for Christmas, our expected baby, shopping and holidays.

I put my money into certain accounts aswell to pay off certain bills.

Protect your money and be aware of scams online. In the winter you may shop more online like I do, and so do be vigilant when buying online, don’t use easy guessing passwords but ones which are hard to guess, as I have been a victim of fraud online and it is not nice, and if you do suspect anything contact your bank and report it to your bank. When it did happen to me I was refunded and you should be too but it just a pain when it happens as you have to then change your card details too.

When it is dark and you are out or running, make sure you wear something bright so cars can easily see you. I have seen a lot of people when I used to go running wearing dark clothes when it is dark and in Epsom there are a lot of main roads, and a car isn’t necessarily going to see you when it is dark.

If you do walk home from work when it is dark make sure you have your mobile on fully charged and are alert, don’t have headphones on, as you won’t be aware of who is around and it is best you stay alert as someone could jump out on you and use it as an opportunity to attack you. People think it will never happen to them, but it can especially if you make yourself vulnerable, and they can see you aren’t paying attention.

When it is cold outside use it as a way of having a girls or guys night in, and instead of going out spending money why not save money and have a few drinks indoors. In my mind you are never too old for a sleep over and it is good way of catching up with other people without being surrounded by loads of other people you don’t know, you won’t have no queuing to be served at the bar and can play music you like and at the level you want so you can still have a good conversation without having to shout over some load no tune music. You can play music that you and your friends like instead of music you don’t like.

Use winter to organize and tidy other areas, such as kitchen draw, your bathroom cabinet or change your bed clothes and have a change around, so it will help refresh you and put on the extra warm duvet quilt or blankets ready, and make your room seasonal so you have duvet covers for the different seasons.

So even though the nights are darker and it is dreary and cold, if you like me suffer with SAD, it is a great opportunity to help reduce those feelings and make winter just as lovely as summer.

Many thanks for reading,

Carrie X

Organizing time for your friends.

Yesterday I had a real good catch up with some friends I have known since I was a young child and we’ve all grown up together, my friends mum and my mum and my mums friends daughter I grew up together. We always would hang out and meet as kids, and even went on holidays together when we were younger. However as time moved on and we started having our own lives we stopped seeing each other as much, as life has it, but we always make sure we meet at least once a year if possible, and this inspired me to write this blog.

 

Sometimes we get so caught up with our daily routines, going to work, taking the kids to school, picking up shopping, meeting the better half and then when we get home we start to cook dinner and clean, along with other chores in the home; that we sometimes can forget our friends, and before you know it feels so long since you last contacted them or saw them, that it would feel strange just calling them out of the blue.

Catching up with friends even if it is once or twice a year or every few months, is healthy because you are seeing someone different and it is great to have a catch up once in a while, what they’ve been up to and what they’re doing with themselves now, and then what you’ve been doing.

My friends for a long time were my survival when things at home were tough, and I couldn’t have got through those times without them, and so it is important to me that I stay in touch with them.

So what I tend to do when it comes to meeting friends is I always pre-arrange a day to meet up, and stick to that day, if I know I am definitely going to be free on that day. Sometimes you may need to cancel if something else crops us (see my previous blog on what to do is something crops up) http://organize4thebetter.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/something-that-crops-up.html; Or my friends may cancel as one has a little boy and sometimes if he has had a bad night then she will say sorry but not able to make it, but then we arrange another set day, and we always know we will meet up at some point, and don’t leave it for too long.

Making space to meet up with friends can be hard but even if it is for an hour having a coffee then that is still making time. Never try to arrange too much if it going to be impossible, but remember that making time for friends gives you some me time and them time aswell, as it is a release sometimes to chat with friends about the goings on in your life, instead of seeing the same person every day or the same four walls, so it is important that friends are not forgotten and will be there for you, if you are there for them.

Send them a text now again just to check how they are, and let them know you’re ok and that you are thinking of them and you will meet up with them soon. When you say that do so and say to them, let me know when you are free so we can meet, and that is opening that next meeting straight away, and if they don't respond don't hassle them but send another text a couple of week or month check your diary select a date or weekend your free and ask are you free on such and such a weekend? Would you like to meet and catch up then? Once that is done they will respond if they are good friends and will either say no or yes, if they can't then check your diary and suggest another weekend, and comprise on a date that suits you all.

Many thanks for reading,

 

Carrie X

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 

 

Kitchen Pantry Organization

Today I organized my kitchen pantry as it was jam packed and had cluttered up, so I organized it so it is now a lot easier to find items and take items out and put back.

This is the before shot, (see picture below on the left) the top shelf did have teabags but it was only after I cleared the top shelf that I remembered to take picture.

Before picture

 

Tea draw

 

So all my Teabags went into a kitchen draw to make  create more space and we do have a lot of different types of tea that it made sense to put in draw as we do drink tea daily. We also have a jar o decaf coffee out too as we tend to have a decaf before bed time, for some reason it helps me to sleep.

As I did each shelf I used some flash all-purpose spray and a wet cloth to clean the shelves and then separated the shelves into categories.

The first shelf I put all the other type of hot drink refills and sachets on to the shelf organized first, and other items we mainly have for breakfast or as a snack.  

 

 

Then all my baking ingredients I use on the 2^nd shelf, and this carried on to the next shelf with my cake decorations, dessert sauces and creams and oils.

 

 

 

 

The next shelf all sauces and extra ingredients for dinners; some boxes of cuppa soups, rice and gravy granules.

Then below all tinned items that we use for dinners and lunches, and I separated on the right what Elv (my husband) mainly has when he comes home for lunch and the right what we use to make our even meals with in the middle and on the right of this shelf.

 

 

Then the next shelf is a container with sachets for making casseroles and stock cubes, next to that some spaghetti; then in the larger container is all herbs and species and next to that some prawn crackers which I will be having with my meal tonight.

Then you will see the after shot of a more organized, decluttered pantry.

 

 

Didn't take long at all, and now I feel more at ease that it is tidier.

Makes all the difference when you can take something of the shelf without something else falling on the floor after it.

I then organized the whole kitchen and gave it a complete deep clean, just go to do the floor which I will steam clean, I will do a blog and take pictures of my entire kitchen organization once completely done. 

I hope this will help you, if you have an area or want a better organized pantry and kitchen.

Many thanks for reading,

 

Carrie X

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

My new home organization- a fresh start and bigger space.

So I have now moved into my new home not far from our previous place just the other side of Epsom near the hospital, but it is nice to have a fresh start and a bigger space.

I am going to share some of the furniture and storage organization I have used so far for my new home. The house organization and interior is not fully complete yet but getting there slowly but surely.

So the first thing I bought was storage for the bathroom, and purchased a 5 Drawers Slim Storage Trolley on wheels as I thought this was great, because if I do need to move this to another room I can, and our bathroom is in our new home pretty small so it fits perfectly.

 

This storage draw unit was purchased from Argos for £27.98, and I ordered this online for delivery which took less than 5 days, it is great because I can separate it out, originally I had my make up in the draws on top, but these have been moved to my chest of draws in mine and Elv (my husband) bedroom. But now I have on top a spare bottle of handwash, suncreams, and moisturisers for my face, in the first draw I have medicines and supplements, 2^nd draw I have my hair removing products, such as creams, spare cartridges for my current razor, the 3^rd draw is body moisturisers, 4^th draw spare roll on deodorants and the last draw spare toothpastes and toilet brushes.

I then have near and around the bath 2 chrome bathroom units, which I bought from Sainsbury’s for just £3.99 each, and keep our current products we are using for showering, bathing and hair washing, and great as we can grab as we are having our morning or even shower, bath or wash.

(see picture of these two chrome units below)

Then in the  picture on the right which is below the sink I have a large toiletry bag from Boots, which is made by Soap and Glory (see picture below) this holds all spare shampoos and shower gels.

Then on the window sill I have another small drawer storage unit which you can see on the left as you are looking at the picture, and this holds travel size shampoos, moisturisers and shower gels, which I keep for when we travel.
The top draw of this unit I have spare face and body scrubs, foot creams and other moisturisers that I use.

 

We will be adding some more storage to the bathroom just to clear those last bits on top of the draw unit and on the windowsill but haven’t decided on what I would like yet but that is all it needs and then the bathroom is practically done.

Spare towels are kept in mine and my husband’s room in a built in unit in a storage bin.

Then in our bedroom we still have lots to add and have planned to order more furniture to the bedroom next week or so. We are not going for usual bedside units this time instead my husband is going to have Ottoman to put his clothes he wears for work in and then he will have a fitted shelf beside his bed so he can put his other bits and bobs and probably have a longer shelve which will be the width of our bed at the top of our bed, I will have beside my bed a cubed storage unit, with bins as I am soon to be a mum and so I want to be able to just reach for baby changing items, and keep my reading material and journals near my bed too.

We have been lucky in the rooms as we have built in wardrobes, and so I have the one in our bedroom and my husband has the one in the guest room, which we both agreed on.

 

This is my chest of draws in the picture above, which I am using as kind of dressing table, bedside that there is a tall mirror which was here when we moved in, so great to have but I will be making this once I have another draw unit into a proper dressing table for myself or I may get the dressing table that matches the chest of draws, but not sure on that yet. This draw unit was from Argos for the price of £62.99, and I had to wait about 10 days or so for delivery but worth the wait.

As you can see I have my large make up bag on top in a storage bin, with some nail varnish remover, another black make up case and my makeup brushes. I have borrowed the lamp you see for the time being from my mum but this will change aswell; I currently use this for when I read but the room before I go to bed but it can still be quite dark once the main light is off so I will eventually have one on the chest of draws, and one near my bed.

In the bags you see I have gifts which I keep and has saved me some money this year as I have been able to use some items I have previously bought as gifts as Christmas presents this year, and the other bag has our hair care equipment in.

In the draws, the 1^st draw has the rest of my makeup, my smaller makeup bags, make up sponges, cotton pads, nail varnish, spare hand creams and a travel make up brush set.

The 2^nd draw has my underwear and socks, the 3^rd my t-shirts, vest tops and pyjamas.  

In the next photo below the table you see is what I am using as a bedside table at the moment which has my roll on deodorant, my body spray, the current hand cream I am using, night spray and my stretch mark cream, which is essential at the moment as I am expecting my first child in January. I also keep some cleansing wipes to remove make up and when it is warm weather I use these to freshen up and cool me down and some wet wipes.

 





 

Here (see photo below) is the built in cupboard in our bedroom, which keeps our spare bedding at the moment but they will be moved, as we have a bed in spare room which has storage underneath, and I will go into this another time, as the guest room needs to be changed around completely and want to do a separate blog for our guest room once it is completely finished, but for now the spare bedding in a brown storage bin in the cupboard, our spare towels in the other bin, and then some more bathroom/toiletry items, in green basket is spare sanitary towels, in the blue, beige and pink cosmetic bag I have spare hair bands and a shower cap and in the pink toiletry bag some spare perfumes, creams and deodorants.

 

If you see the blue little wash bag next to the pink one, I keep samples of shampoos and shower gel and creams, such as the ones you get in magazines, spare shower caps and soaps. This I do take away with me with my walking pharmacy and mine and my husband’s joint travel toiletry bag.

Great thing to have and we never have to buy any when we go away.



 

 

 



In the picture above is my hanging storage unit, supposedly a show rack but I have used it for other items as well as storing my flip flops I still left out when the weather was still quite warm, a few pairs of flat shoes, which I don’t wear all the time only for going out, but I also keep my scarfs, gloves, spare body sprays, my England flag, belts and spare travel hair brush in the little pockets too.  

I would recommend this product and I am planning on getting something of this nature for the guest room but slightly different. The one you see in picture is from Sainsbury’s for the price of £8.00.

The bag on the outside of the door you see I keep my PJ’s in that I am currently wearing for night time.  

Then looking further inside my built in closet, not the biggest of spaces but still helps the need on not spending money on a wardrobe, I have put in our bathroom corner unit we had in there, as it doesn’t fit into the bathroom I use this to put spare pocket tissues, and bubble baths on.





I have cleared the top of this wardrobe out as there is a storage bit at the top, which is not shown in picture but I will keep some items in there, but not sure what as of yet.

Again still needs some changes made but works for me at the moment.

I have put all the shoes and clothes I am not currently able to wear away in vacuum bags and storage bags in our shed in our back garden, which is always locked when we don’t need to go in there.

I have some new shoes bought in my wardrobe my Doctor martin shoes I bought when I went away to Skegness, which I still need to break into as they can pinch at first, and then my ruck sack which I use for shopping.

Next to my wardrobe on the write I have my boot storage unit, but this will be changed to and probably will go into either the guest room or shed.

However our bedroom is getting there, as we can’t afford a whole chunk of stuff at the moment we are having to do it bit by bit.

Then downstairs in the hallway we keep our jackets we are currently wearing along with our shoes and boots we are wearing at the moment, again this won’t stay like this as we will get a proper storage unit for our shoes and boots, but we are using for some a storage bin, and then box you see is for items to be donated until we can get an alternative. You will see an unopened package, this is to be returned is in the package is a BT TV box and hub, but because BT had messed us around with getting it all installed this is to be sent back, as we now have sky TV and broadband.

 

 

 

 

Then lastly here is our sitting room some furniture we have kept, but again is a working progress but slowly but surely getting there.

Once I have done this room up better I will go into more details of what we store in each place and have it a bit more organized.

 

 

 

When moving into a new home don’t worry about doing it all up at once, as long as you have the essentials then these will get you by and then you slowly create the rooms how you want as you go.

Many thanks for reading,

Carrie X