ORGANIZE YOUR PHOTOGRAPHS!

Yes, this can be an overwhelming project, if you have not kept up with your photographs throughout the years, but don’t let that stop you from getting started.

Your photographs are a valuable family heritage to be treasured and PRESERVED by you and your loved ones not only for now, but for years to come.  If you keep putting it off, your piles of photos will only grow larger and more overwhelming.

Where To Begin:

1. Prepare a working space for your project.

Set up a work table that is out of the way of normal, day-to-day traffic and company.  Your work space should be a place where you can come and go without having to put everything away when you are not working on your project.  It can be in a corner of your basement or work room….a place where it is OK to have a “work in progress”.  This will make it easier for you to work in small increments of time throughout your day/week whenever you may have some spare minutes.

2. Gather ALL of your printed photos that have not yet been organized in a photo storage box, photo album or scrapbook.  Don’t forget all of those loose photos scattered in drawers, as well as the photos that are still in their photo sleeves from the printer.

3. Arrange your printed photographs by year, event (Christmas 2008, 2006 Cruise, Aubrey’s 16th Birthday, etc.), or by individual (Pictures of Grammy).  This will allow you to break up your pictures and work with them in sections.

4. Begin organizing your most recent photographs and work backwards through the years. Begin small by working on your photo organization 15-30 minutes at a time. If you have more time within a given week, the faster your project will progress.

5. Take the time to sift through each photo and discard the photos that are blurry, or are not of importance to you and your family.  It really is OK to discard photos that are of poor quality, unidentifiable people, or photos that are not of value to you.  Think about what your children/grandchildren would like to see when they are older.

6. Once you have organized your photographs by year or event, etc. you can:

– Display your pictures in “photo safe” albums or sleeves;

– Creatively arrange your photos in scrapbooks;

– Store your photographs in a “photo safe” storage box; or

– Scan your photographs to a digital format and share online or on a cd.

Storage

If you are not placing your photos in an album, store each year, special occasion, etc. in a photo storage box made especially for photographs and label accordingly.  Shoe boxes are definitely not a “photo safe” product.

When organizing your photos in an album, make sure the album is lignin and acid-free.  The terms “archival” and “photo safe” are not regulated and therefore pretty much meaningless.  To be absolutely sure your photo storage products are safe, they need to pass the Photographic Activity Test (PAT).  This test basically predicts potentially harmful interactions between your photos and the storage materials.  You can find PAT tested storage products at an archival supply company such as Gaylords and Light Impressions.

Avoid keeping your photos in attics, damp basements, laundry rooms and bathrooms, as the heat and humidity will cause mold and damage them.

DIGITAL

If you have digital pictures on your computer, it is vital that you have a “back-up” on a separate cd and label specifically by year/event.

Keep in mind that computer hardware and software become obsolete about every five years and that cd’s/dvd’s have a lifespan of less than 50 years.  So, eventually you will have to upgrade your digital keepsakes.

 Something Fun

I came across a company that will convert old photos, negative, slides and film/video into digital format.  In about a week, they will convert your photos, etc. onto a digital file where you can easily share your photos with others.

http://www.scandigital.com/affiliate/159/index.php?page=1

FOCUS

Photograph organizing is a process that will definitely take some time.  Keep in mind the end result and focus on small sections at a time, so that you are not too overwhelmed.  The time and energy spent organizing your pictures will be a legacy of love to your family and loved ones that will be treasured for years to come.

ORGANIZE Your Linen Closet!

Your linen closet can tell a lot about you and your family.

The right shelving is the key element in organizing your linen closet and keeping it organized.  Floor to ceiling shelving makes great use of your closet space.  If you do not have built-in shelving in your linen closet, below are some great shelving suggestions:

Simplyorganize.com

Once you have adequate shelving in place, remove everything from your linen closet and sort through the items dividing them by what you use and what you don’t use. The only items that should be in your linen closet are the sheets, towels and blankets that you actually use.

The Shelving Store

Ikea.com 

Organize your sheets and pillow cases either by size or by bedroom.  For easy access, towels and wash cloths should be organized by size, as well as by color.

Your visiting guests should be able to open your linen closet and find exactly what they need, without any embarrassment on your part.

Keep bathroom toiletries on a separate shelf, although a better option is to place these items in each bathroom for easier access.  Always keep extra toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors, and other toiletries available for your house guests to make them feel welcome and comfortable.

Lowes.com

If you do not have adequate space in your linen closet for blankets and comforters, one option is to place them in under-the-bed storage.  This will also give you additional space in your linen closet for everyday items.

Seriously begin thinking about getting control of the CLUTTER in your life, your home, your office!

I realize that December is one of the busiest times of the year…with decorating, gift buying, entertaining, baking and other festivities.  However, if you are feeling overwhelmed, unfocused, inundated, irritable, claustrophobic, scattered, or perhaps desperate with the clutter in your home or office, it is time to take the plunge and actually do something about it.

Start with setting a date to BEGIN.  The first weekend in January might be a good time for you.  You choose.  You may only have time for one hour or one Saturday afternoon at a time.  The important thing is to begin the process.  Give yourself some time to think about which room, area, or space you would like to focus on first.

GET A VISION for what you would like that area to look and feel like. If you are unsure, look in magazines or websites for ideas and inspiration.

START SMALL,  such as a bathroom cabinet or a kitchen drawer.  Set aside at least 15 to 30 minutes at a time to de-clutter and purge through the items that you do not use on a regular basis.  Make a specific place for the items that you do use on a regular basis using bins, baskets, dividers, etc. to organize your belongings.  Keep items that are”alike” together (i.e., lipsticks, winter clothing/summer clothing, king-size sheet sets/twin sheet sets, kitchen plastic storage containers).  Clean as you go, so that everything is fresh.

STAY FOCUSED…Keep your thoughts on the end results.  Having your home and belongings organized will free you from the stress you feel when you walk into that area that is currently chaos.  You will feel better about yourself, you will take pride in your surroundings and you will have a sense of well-being.

COMPLETE THE PROJECT!  Don’t give up half-way through the process.

Below are some great websites that will hopefully inspire you to begin to organize your home ONE ROOM AT A TIME!

Closetfactory.com

Custominserts.com

Garagewerks.com

Neatco.com

Organized.com

Organizedliving.com

Pendaflex.com

Rubbermaid.com

Schultestorage.com

Shelfconversions.com

Smead.com

Stacksandstacks.com

Storables.com

Get ORGANIZED for the upcoming holidays!

* Make your gift list and begin to SHOP EARLY so that you are not so stressed during the month of December. This will allow you time to enjoy the season with family and friends instead of with all of those shoppers.

* PLAN your specific Thanksgiving, Christmas and/or Hanukkah meals now.  Decide which food items can be made ahead and placed in the freezer.  Stuffing, cookies and my yummy squash casserole are just a few of my favorite foods that can be made ahead.  Choose a couple of days to focus just on baking…let the kids help too!  Baked goodies are great gift ideas around the holidays for friends, teachers, neighbors, mail carriers and co-workers.

* If you are like my family, we usually have way too much food over the holidays.  Choose to ELIMINATE one, two, or even three food items from your big holiday meal (that extra pie or dessert, or maybe choose between mashed potatoes or yams, instead of both.)  This will cut down on time in the kitchen, as well as cooking stress and calories too.

* As you decorate for the holidays, DELEGATE a decorating responsibility for each member of your family.  For example, Dad can be in charge of retrieving all of the holiday decorations from the attic or basement;  older kids can be in charge of the outside decorating; someone can be in charge of setting up the tree and getting it ready for decorating; younger children can choose a place for the snow village or other tradition that you may have in your family.  Of course, everyone can help with the tree ornaments!

*DIVIDE up your decorating days instead of packing it all into one or two.  Pull out all of the boxes/decorations from your attic, basement or other storage place so that you can visually see what you have (hopefully, all of your boxes are labeled to ease this process).  Use your basement or garage floor space to divide up your decorations into groups; i.e. outside decorations, tree decorations, inside garland, table decor, bows and ribbons and other decorations that will be used in the rooms you will be decorating.  Plan a day for each specific area that you will be decorating.

*If you send out Christmas cards, create a letter from your family highlighting what has transpired over the past year with your family.  Print your letter on festive letterhead (found at office supply stores) and send to family and friends.  Include pictures and fun family times.  Plan to write your letter in November and send it out within the first couple of weeks in December.  To save time, you can type the names and addresses of friends and family and print out on festive labels from your computer.  Save and update the addresses each each year on your computer.

*And finally, in the midst of what is usually a very hectic time of year, SCHEDULE time to enjoy your favorite holiday event… Thanksgiving dinner with friends and family, a baking day with your kids, a Christmas play or musical, a family get-together, a tour of the holiday lights in your town, a Christmas Eve church service, serving at a local shelter, volunteering your time and services for a family in need.

ORGANIZE your personal and family financial information.

This is one of the MOST IMPORTANT things you can do for you and your family.  If you do not already have your financial information available and organized for your family, make plans to have one in place before the end of the year.

It is important to have:

– A Will: A legal document in which a person declares to whom his or her possessions are to go after death.

– A Living Will:  A declaration to the world, your family, your doctors, anyone who may be interested, that describes or lists the care that you wish to receive or do not wish to receive if you are in an end-of-life situation such as a coma, or if you have a terminal condition.

– A Health Care Power of Attorney: This designates a person to make health care decisions for you if you become incapacitated, not only in an end-of-life situation, but if you are just living and cannot make your own decisions for yourself.  This should also include what is called a “Health Care Directive“, which is similar to the language that is in a Living Will, that in a Health Power of Attorney it does not dictate to anyone what they must always or what they must never do.  It gives the designated person in the Health Care Power of Attorney the ability to make decisions for you and to instruct doctors or the hospital on what they should or should not do.

Below is a great document organizer that has everything you need to organize your affairs and prepare for the unexpected.  It contains a bestselling workbook, document organizer and Forms CD containing electronic copies of all the forms found in the workbook If Something Happens To Me, written by a Financial Planner and an Estate Planning Attorney.

The workbook takes you through step-by-step information you need to have in place and available for your loved-ones:

– Personal information (Social Security numbers, home addresses, children info., who to contact if something happens to you, etc.)

– Financial information (Assets, bank accounts, brokerage accounts, your IRAs, if you have a retirement plan at work, if you own a business, your cars, your house, etc.)

The kit includes:

– Worksheets to record details relating to your financial, legal and insurance affairs

– Professional insights on a host of legal and financial issues

– Step-by-step guidance for your heirs

– Worksheets to record funeral preferences and obituary information

– Comprehensive document locator system

– Websites and contact information for relevant government agencies

– Document organizer to store your most important documents

– Forms CD to make electronic copies of your information

and a lot more!

To obtain a kit, you can go to familylife.com and purchase online, or you can call 1-800-358-6329 and request the If Something Happens To Me 3-piece kit.

Yes, this will take some time and effort, and some $$ to make it legal (through an attorney), although you will be leaving a lot of questions up to the laws in your state if you do not plan ahead.

Take the time each month (before the end of the year) to complete a different portion of the necessary information needed until ALL of your financial and personal information is documented and organized for your family.  Plan to review and update these important documents at least once a year.