Decluttering All the Paper – Week 2

Dealing with paper, in general:

Newspapers- If you use the internet, all major newspapers, including many local papers, are available (in their entirety) on line. If you are not computer savvy or prefer to hold the newspaper than be sure to recycle or toss newspapers at least weekly. Piles of old newspapers are untidy and create a fire hazard as well!

Important personal papers- These include your will, birth certificate, social security card, passport, etc. Keeping these in a fireproof box is safest or use a safe deposit box at the bank.

Other files you may have include:

• 401k statements
• Bank statements
• Mortgage statements
• Stock/bond/IRA statements
• Warranties/instruction manuals
• Car information, including car insurance and title

Keep your files organized and accessible according to how often you access them. If you only access certain papers once a year at tax time, then file them in a banker’s box in the attic. Keep files you need on hand in the file cabinet.

If you find yourself with various piles of paper scattered throughout the house, consider a portable file box. When you need to do filing, the place to file the papers will be right there. Easy access makes it more likely that you consistently file what needs to be filed.

How Long To Keep Types of Paper Files

We are often asked by clients how long they should keep various types of paper. These are general guidelines that we use when working with people. But remember, it is always important to check with your accountant or tax advisor about your individual situation before shredding any documents.

• Auto records- Keep these as long as you own the vehicle.
• Appointment books- some people like to keep these as a type of journal, I keep them for a few years as back-up for mileage purposes. Keep them up to 10 years for this type of reason.
• ATM slips- Keep them 6 years for tax related purchases. Store them with your bank statements.
• Credit card statements- 6 years for tax related purchases (such as owning your own business) Otherwise keep until you receive the interest statement issued with by the company annually. Then you can shred them.
• Dividend Payment Records- Until you receive your annual statement.
• Health records- Permanently
• Home improvements- As long as you own the home. Store these with your tax records.
• Household inventory and appraisal- As long as they are current. Update them annually (we will talk more about this next week when we talk about organizing for a transition).
• Insurance policies- Auto, homeowner’s, liability: through the statute of limitations. Disability, medical, life, personal property, umbrella: keep for the life of the policy.
• Investment purchase records- As long as you own the investments.
• Investment sales records- 6 years for tax purposes.
• Mortgage or loan discharge- As long as you own the home or 6 years after the discharge.
• Pay stubs- Until they are verified by your W-2 statement.
• Property bill of purchase- As long as you own the property.
• Receipts- As long as they are current, or as determined by your accountant.
• Safe deposit box key and inventory- As long as they are current.
• Tax records- Current year plus 6 years prior (can be filed away in a bankers box).
• Utility bills, etc.- Until they are paid (your cancelled check is proof you paid and the company keeps records as well).
• Vital Records and documents- Birth, marriage, divorce, death certificates: permanently.
• Wills, trusts, estate plans- Permanently

Catch Organizing with Melissa next Wednesday for “Decluttering All the Paper – Part 3”.  Visit Works for Me Wednesday for more life organizing tips.

Related Articles:

• Decluttering All The Paper – Week 1
• Your Plan for Getting Organized
• Why Get Organized?
• Organized Versus Clean
• Moving Forward From Your Organizing Plan

Housekeeping: The Power of Soap and Water

If you’ve been following along every Tuesday, you’ve probably read my short bio that sits above the article. If you’ve read that, you’ll know that I am all about keeping things as simple as possible when it comes to all things homemaker. That’s how my grandmother did things and probably how your grandmother did things.

So many companies out there want us to believe their product is so much better than the basics. Isn’t there a different cleaner for every type of surface these days? When it comes to cleaning, there is no reason to pay store prices for chemicals that harm people when you breathe them in.

150 years ago, after dealing with mothers and infants who were dying from bacterial infections, doctors used soap and water for simple hand washing. They realized this technique was saving lives.

Soap and water remains one of the best defenses against germ-borne illnesses in hospitals and homes. Believe it or not, antibacterial soap is even less effective than using soap and water! In fact, it may even pose some potential risks.

There’s no longer a need for each surface of your home to have its own special cleaner. Get back to the basics with soap and water! Soap and water can actually take care of cleaning dishes, window screens, hand-washable silk materials, most hard-surfaces, floors, stainless steel sinks/appliances, and porcelain fixtures.

Where soap and water doesn’t do the job, there are plenty of other basic products to use for cleaning. They are all nontoxic, inexpensive, natural, and effective. Most of them are things you probably already have in your kitchen cabinet or pantry. Other cleaning remedies include using vinegar, salt, baking soda, or lemon juice.

I’m sure you know soap and water won’t clean the grime from your oven. Instead, combine 4 tablespoons of baking soda with 4 tablespoons of steamy water to create a paste-like soap. Apply it to the inside of your oven using a soft bristle brush – such as a toothbrush. Let it sit for one minute and then scrub it with the brush. Wash with water and a sponge until no traces of baking soda remain. For really tough grime, mix 1 cup salt, 1 cup baking soda, and 1 cup of water. Apply to inside of oven and then heat oven to 500 degrees and let it sit for 1 hour. Then wipe clean with a moist sponge and rinse well.

For a good all-purpose cleaner, combine 2 tablespoons of Borax, ¼ cup of lemon juice, and 2 cups of water. Dissolve Borax in the lemon juice and water. Then put it into a spray bottle and use it like you would a conventional all-purpose spray.

IMPORTANT: Don’t mix homemade cleaning products with conventional cleaners. Keep these and all cleaning products away from children. Keep large batches of cleaning products in tightly sealed containers or reusable spray bottles.

Find more helpful hints at Works for Me Wednesday.

Disclaimer: Treatments and cleaning methods are recommendations only from personal experience and research.  Please use common sense in using these methods and understand that damage may occur to certain materials.  HB World Media is not responsible for any damage that may occur due to the cleaning methods described.

Related Articles:

• How to Clean Your Garage
• How To Clean A Rug
• House Cleaning: Love Your Carpet (Part 2)
• House Cleaning: Love Your Carpet (Part 1)
• A Little Cleaning Goes a Long Way

What Do I Do With All the Paper?

I get asked this question all the time by readers and clients. Even with all the technological advances in the world I don’t think our society will ever truly be paperless.

In fact, the recent technological advances seem to have created more paper to deal with in many cases. We have receipts, bills, insurance policies, certificates, investment statements, health records, and more. Then added to that is the daily influx of junk mail- magazines, catalogs, sweepstakes entry forms, etc.

Over the next three weeks we will learn how to overcome paper clutter and learn what to do with paper that is necessary.

Decluttering Mail

Your mail needs to have a designated spot. When you pick it up from the mailbox each day, bring it into the house and put it in the same spot. This can be a basket, a designated space on the kitchen counter, or on your desk in your home office.

Your goal should be to handle mail as soon as it enters your home. But at the very least try to have a set time each day that you go through the mail and deal with it, so you don’t end up with piles of mail and magazines spread throughout the house.

• Magazines- Only keep the current month’s issue. If there are articles that you want to keep for future reference or for a recipe, etc., then invest in a 3 ring binder with plastic page protectors. Tear out the article that you like and throw away the rest of the magazine.
• Catalogs- When a catalog arrives at your home and it is not one that your regularly order from call the 800 customer service number on the back and request to be taken off the mailing list.
• Junk Mail- This should be immediately thrown away. If you like the coupons from the ValuPak, etc., then clip the ones you like and throw the rest away. This will cut down on the amount of paper clutter lying around the house. To stop junk mail from coming in the first place, do a Google search for a way to get your name off company mailing lists. When you receive a catalog in the mail there is usually a number on the back to contact if you don’t want to receive any more.
• Bills- Have a place for all the bills that need paid to be filed until it is time to pay them. This can be a plastic shelf divider, a basket, a file folder, an accordion file, etc. Whatever works for you is the best system to have.
• Invitations, fliers, etc.- We all get the invitations to weddings, special events at the senior center and family goings on. Have a place that you put all these and weekly go through and sort out what has already happened and throw it away. As soon as you receive any type of invitation or reminder with a date in the mail you should check your calendar and if you plan to attend go ahead and write it on the calendar so that you don’t forget in the future.

Catch Organizing with Melissa next Wednesday for “Decluttering All the Paper – Part 2”.  Visit Works for Me Wednesday for more life organizing tips.

Related Articles:

• Decluttering All the Paper – Week 2
• Your Plan for Getting Organized
• Why Get Organized?
• Organized Versus Clean
• Moving Forward From Your Organizing Plan

Housekeeping Heaven: How To Clean A Rug

Over the past few weeks I have discussed how to take care of your carpet and begin loving it again. I realize not every home has carpet flooring. Wood and vinyl flooring has become a popular trend in new homes because it’s easier to take care of.

That being said, many people who choose wood or vinyl flooring often buy rugs to decorate the living area, bathroom floors, and sometimes even bedside to keep their feet a bit warmer in the mornings when crawling out of bed. As a homemaker, I have been in home décor stores often enough to know that rugs are not cheap. If you choose to spend good money on a rug, you need to know how to properly take care of it.

There are three simple rules for taking care of your rug.

1. Do not beat your rug! You may have seen your grandmother or mother take a rug out back and beat it with a baseball bat to get it clean. Please do not do this to your rug! This can cause the woven threads to loosen and damage the back of the rug. If poorly made, your rug could separate completely from the backing with only one whack. The only rug that can tolerate a beating is a doormat.

2. Do not use carpet shampoos or sprays! Shampoos usually attract more dirt than they take away. Plus, the brushes from a shampoo machine can damage your rug. Never drench your rug with water as it could damage the backing of the rug and any floor surface underneath the rug. Carpet sprays have a tendency to discolor rugs. To spot clean, use a gentle stain solution when necessary. Your best bet for deep cleaning your rug is to have it professionally cleaned.

3. Vacuum your rug! Vacuuming is key to keeping your rug clean. It’s best to do it once a week and no less than once every two weeks. To vacuum your rug, you will need to vacuum the top side to remove excess dirt. Then flip over the rug and vacuum the backside. Finally, flip the rug back over and vacuum the top side once again. If your rug has fringe, do not use the beater bar on your vacuum! This will suck the fringe into the vacuum causing it to get caught around the beater bar and damaging the fringe and possibly even damaging your vacuum. If your vacuum comes with a curtain cleaning tool that allows you to adjust to a low setting, use this.

Of course, the best way to keep your rugs clean is to avoid stepping on them. Remove your shoes. Wearing socks or going barefoot is easier on the carpet than hard soled shoes or heels. Following these tips will help give extended life to your rug and allow it to look good year after year.

Next week, check out Housekeeping Heaven for “The Power of Soap and Water”. Make sure you don’t miss any of Courtney’s housekeeping and cleaning posts by getting our free updates now!

Disclaimer: Treatments and cleaning methods are recommendations only from personal experience and research.  Please use common sense in using these methods and understand that damage may occur to certain materials.  HB World Media is not responsible for any damage that may occur due to the cleaning methods described.

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• House Cleaning: Love Your Carpet (Part 2)
• House Cleaning: Love Your Carpet (Part 1)
• A Little Cleaning Goes a Long Way
• How To Treat Pet Stains

Why Your Organizing Plan is Important

(If you missed Your Plan for Getting Organized, please go read it before you continue on.)

We have already talked a lot about planning but I want to point out what the Bible says about having a plan, having a road map for where you are headed. Proverbs 15:22 says “it takes careful planning for things to go right.”

The wife in Proverbs 31 has carefully established routines and a plan for her family. We today can continue to learn a lot from these ancient principles. A day that lacks intention and purpose will quickly be gone and you will be wondering where the time went!

Moving Forward From Your Organizing Plan

I have a plan- now what?

Picture the one space in your home or the one area of your life that just makes you cringe or that you avoid because it is so overwhelming. The thing that you really want to change but just don’t know where to start. The space in your home that bothers you the most. Start there.

Set the timer for a half an hour. Do what you can, assess what you have accomplished and go back later.

Don’t be afraid and overwhelmed by the organization process. Taking it one task at a time is the easiest way to dive into a disorganized space. Once you see progress you will be motivated to continue. Also, don’t be fooled by the glossy pictures in magazines. Those magazines often have great ideas but organizing is not one size fits all. They are generic.

The problem is that we can just give up if we fail after trying to implement some of those ideas from the magazines or HGTV. Just remember that those shows represent hours and sometimes days of work with seasoned professionals edited down to a half hour time slot. I typically spend 8 hours on a home office, 10-12 on a kitchen. It all depends on your situation. One size does not fit all.

Have a Maintenance Plan

Don’t give up!  Once you have started investing the time and effort to become more organized, you have to work at maintaining that progress or you will slip right back into old habits. This is just like losing weight, having a daily quiet time or any other new habit you try to form. Maintenance is key to keeping your life organized.

I develop a maintenance plan when I work with clients, that is how important maintenance is. It would be a shame to invest your finances and your time in a project and then three weeks later walk into the same mess that was there before. All it takes is being aware of what created the situation in the first place and being committed to changing the pattern.

Take fifteen minutes at the end of the day to clear the clutter off the kitchen counter or pick up the mismatched gloves that have accumulated in front of the door. If you put everything in its place tonight, you will have a better start to your day tomorrow and you will not face an accumulation of clutter.

And remember, you are not an island! Enlist help! You don’t have to go it alone! If organization is not your strong suit, chances are you know someone who has the knack. Swap babysitting or cook them dinner for a week in exchange for helping you tackle your cluttered family room. Hire a professional organizer- it is not as cost prohibitive as you may think!

Remember, having an organized life means less stress and more time!

Catch Organizing with Melissa next Wednesday.  In the meantime, check out Organized Versus Clean.

Related Articles:

• Your Plan for Getting Organized
• Why Get Organized?
• 5 Problem Areas – What Keeps Me From an Organized Life?
• Decluttering All The Paper – Week 1
• Organized Versus Clean

Housekeeping Heaven: How To Treat Pet Stains

Fact: Most puppies are cute. Fact: Puppies are suddenly less cute when you get them home and find out they aren’t potty trained. Fact: That’s gross. How do you control the stains and smells? Never fear! I have tips!

Try an enzyme product. You’ll find enzyme products at pet stores, RV or marine stores. They are used in the holding tanks to dissolve solid material. Pour enough over the stain to saturate the pad and the entire area twice as large as the stain. Just because you don’t see it, doesn’t mean it’s not there. The urine hits the pad underneath the carpet and spreads. This is why you want to make sure to cover an area twice as large as the stain you do see from the surface. Let that sit for a couple of hours.

To work on the odor and any part of the stain left behind after the above treatment, baking soda and peroxide should take care of the rest. Mix 30/70 solution of peroxide to water adding ½ teaspoon of baking soda per cup of mixture. It will bubble and fizz, but it will also remove the stain and smell. Blot what you can with an old towel and rinse well with a 1/3 cup vinegar per quart of water.

Remember, peroxide is bleach and may discolor the carpet. Be sure to test a small hidden spot of carpet for colorfastness.

Wood and vinyl floors are generally easier to care for. This is why most people put their dogs in the kitchen or bathroom when they aren’t home and the puppy can’t wait for them to get home before needing to “go potty.”

For wood floors, gently scrape the floor to remove the solids. Wipe the area with a cloth dipped in warm sudsy water and then rinse with a cloth dipped in clear cool water. Wipe dry. Wax or polish as usual. Treat vinyl floors the same way.

Next week, check out Housekeeping Heaven for “How to Clean a Rug”. Make sure you don’t miss any of Courtney’s housekeeping and cleaning posts by getting our free updates now!

Disclaimer: Treatments are recommendations only from personal experience and research.  Please use common sense in treating household stains and understand that damage may occur to certain materials.  HB World Media is not responsible for any damage that may occur while treating your pet stains.

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On to the next chapter of becoming more organized! Are you excited? I hope you are. There is nothing more freeing than ridding yourself of clutter in your environment and in your life. This brings us to my favorite phase of the process- making a plan. Any one that knows me well will tell you I have a mantra- “You gotta have a plan”.

Why Have an Organizing Plan?

You have to have a plan. And that organizing plan will look different for each one of you. It will look different for every household but it will work, if you work it. Having a plan is your road map for change and if you try to make changes to the way you have been doing things (changes to habits) and you don’t have a clear idea of your destination, you will have a much more difficult time staying on course. So, here are some tips for making and sticking with your plan.

4 Tips to Make an Organizing Plan

1.  Create daily routines and stick with them. Some people get their feathers in a ruffle when we mention routines. Some personality types crave flexibility and spontaneity and think routine will stifle that. Routines do not detract from that. Actually they increase the efficiency of your time.

Well established routines mean that if mom has to be in the hospital for a while, the washer/dryer and dishwasher still run, people still eat and the home maintains a semblance of order. Why? Because everyone knows their place and what happens next. Routines become the glue that keeps a busy family functioning in an organized manner. Routines are the threads that keep all the balls being juggled in your family from being scattered to the high winds if one gets dropped.

2.  Get a master calendar that has room to accommodate the plans for all those areas. You cannot stay organized having a work planner, a home calendar, etc. There has to be a central planning space that everyone can refer to so all can be headed in the same direction. And color coding by family member is helpful for those that don’t think that is taking it too far.

3.  When planning, remember the priorities that we are called to live by. Build in one on one time with your spouse. It will not just happen. For all the good intentions in the world, things will come up and get in the way if you are not intentional about your time. And do not forget time for you. A tired, worn out mama or auntie or grandma isn’t good to anybody. Spend daily time with God, allowing Him to fill your cup so you have something inside to pour back out to those around you. Get a manicure, take a walk, whatever is good for you. Loving your neighbor as yourself doesn’t mean quite as much if you are not making yourself a priority.

4.  Enlist support from your spouse and others in your home. Becoming more organized is just as much a change of mindset as it is a change in the appearance of a space or room. The more involved your family is in the project, the more accountable they will feel towards the outcome. Limit activities that do not support your family’s priorities. Pray or think about activities and commitments before letting the slippery “yes” come through.

And believe it or not you can make organizing fun! Let the kids compete for who can come up with the best solution for keeping track of Mom’s keys. Remember, you often set the mood and tone for the entire environment (as if we didn’t have enough on our shoulders!) so be enthusiastic and creative as you adjust to new routines. If you are excited about becoming more organized your family will be too!

Catch Organizing with Melissa next Wednesday for “I have a plan- now what?”  Visit Works for Me Wednesday for more life organizing tips.

Related Articles:

• Why Get Organized?
• Moving Forward From Your Organizing Plan
• 5 Problem Areas – What Keeps Me From an Organized Life?
• Decluttering All The Paper – Week 1
• Organized Versus Clean

House Cleaning: Treating Carpet Stains

Are your carpets loving you back yet? Still have some stubborn stains? Try some of these tricks!

Most food stains can be cleaned by spraying shaving cream over the stain and letting it sit for 15 minutes. Rinse with a vinegar and water solution. For more stubborn food stains, pull out some brake cleaner. Yes. Brake cleaner. Brake cleaner contains the same chemicals professional dry cleaners use to clean the stains on your clothing. Dab some on a clean cloth and blot the stain. Rinse with soap and water. Do NOT pour brake fluid directly onto the carpet.

Did someone spill red wine during that awesome party last weekend? While club soda generally gets rid of red wine, to remove any red stain (popsicles, juice, etc), mix a 30/70 solution of peroxide to water. Peroxide is a bleach so be sure to test it out on a small area if you have colored carpet. Wait 30 minutes after applying the mixture and then blot to remove as much moisture as possible. Rinse with a vinegar/water solution. If needed, apply a little more peroxide to a new mixture and try again.

There is an over the counter product called Desolvit that works wonders on other carpet trouble. It works great for grease, oil, ink (including magic marker), and even gum. For gum, I recommend freezing the gum with ice cubes and break it away from the carpet with the dull side of a knife. Then Desolvit will take care of the rest.

Dripping candle got you down? Freeze the wax spill with ice cubes and chip it off using the dull side of a knife. You will need heat for total removal. Test a small area before using heat as some newer carpets are sensitive and can scorch easily. I recommend using a hair dryer on the hottest setting. If using an iron, set it to a low to medium heat. The less heat you use, the less scorching to your carpet. Take a white paper towel or paper bag with no writing on it (the dye can bleed into the carpet). Put the towel down on top of the wax and iron the towel for no longer than two seconds. Move the towel and redo if necessary. Generally once is enough.

Next week, check out Housekeeping Heaven for “How to Treat Pet Stains”. Make sure you don’t miss any of Courtney’s housekeeping and cleaning posts by getting our free updates now!

Related Articles:

• House Cleaning: Love Your Carpet (Part 1)
• How to Clean Your Garage
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• Housekeeping: Cleaning The Bathroom Pt 2
• Housekeeping: Cleaning The Bathroom Pt 1

Changing your air conditioner’s filter regularly will:

• keep your air conditioner functioning properly
• keep the air in your home clean and free of dust, spores, and allergens
• and help you save on utility bills by not making your air conditioner work harder than it has to.  

Thanks to Tim Gibson for making this great how to video for how to change an air conditioner filter.  (Subscribers will need to click through to this article  to watch the video.)

Related Articles:

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What Keeps Me From an Organized Life?  The 5 Problem Areas

1.  Schedules- Never have we tried to pack more into the day than in our current time. Many families say they feel like ships that pass in the night.

That is not to say that having your kids involved in activities and volunteering is a bad thing, not at all. But if those things replace or get in the way of your connection or cause friction in your marriage then you need to take another look at the schedule.

2.  Household Responsibilities- Betty Crocker and Mrs. Clean I am not. Nor do I encourage my clients to try to live up to these crazy expectations. There is a difference between your house being organized and clean and it being picture perfect!

3.  Needs- Each of you reading this article has unique life situations- whether it be parenting small children, taking care of older loved ones, living with a chronic illness, working outside or inside of the home, having a special needs child, etc. Those are all things that can become barriers to being organized.

4.  Obligations- Oooh, shudder at the word. When I went to the Women of Faith Conference last year, a little lady named Patsy Clairmont introduced me to the concept of the “holy no”. I just loved this idea. That just because someone asks you to do something, be a part of a committee, donate your time, money, whatever DOES NOT MEAN YOU HAVE TO SAY YES or the earth is going to open and you are going to go on the sliding board straight to hell. How can we abide in the Lord if we are so busy doing things that run us ragged and make us cranky? Let’s be real, ladies. There are things we enjoy doing and are in line with the gifts Christ has given us and there are the things we do because we didn’t have the courage to say “I would rather not”.

5.  Being Overwhelmed-  The things we have just talked about lead to the next four obstacles on the list- being overextended leads us to feel overwhelmed, our family becomes resentful, we are exhausted and the idea of adding another project, like “get organized”, to our to-do list makes us want to curl under a blanket and hide. But, it is worth it!

As women we have a responsibility for modeling character and priorities to our family. We can lead by a good example or by a poor one based on the decisions we make about how we spend our time and manage our lives. So, let’s get organized!

Catch Organizing with Melissa next Wednesday for more organizing help.  Visit Works for Me Wednesday for more life organizing tips.

Related Articles:

• Why Get Organized?
• Your Plan for Getting Organized
• Moving Forward From Your Organizing Plan
• Decluttering All The Paper – Week 1
• Organized Versus Clean