Verse of the Day: Proverbs 31:15-20 -- "She gets up while it is still night; she provides food for her family and portions for her female servants. She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night. In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers. She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy."
Happy Thursday! Can you believe it's almost Memorial Day weekend?!? Happy Graduation to all the seniors and college grads! And to those who serve our Country in the military and their families -- we thank you, appreciate you and salute you for your sacrifice - and to the ones who have fallen - our deepest gratitude and sympathy to your families...may you rest in peace in the arms of God. Please don't just vacation, grill out and play this weekend -- take the time to remember those who serve to protect the freedom we have to enjoy those things.
Today is Tips and Tricks Thursday -- wow this week has flown by! Today's tips and tricks have to do with organization. I have to tell you - I'm really not much of an organizer but I have friends that are and I read a lot about it and over the years, I've adopted some of these and they really do work...so if you're an "organized wannabee", like me, maybe these tips and tricks will be helpful.
Clothing: When organizing clothing, it's so easy to hang items by color rather than by style. If you use general color coding, then you'll have a much easier time seeing your clothes, putting them up after laundering, and then knowing on a more regular basis whether you have pieces that are rarely known because they will continually hang in the same spot, with the same color. This can be done with all articles of clothing whether folded or hung. I've used this system for over a year now, and I has really made a difference in the time it takes to decide what to wear, keeping a neat closet and discarding unworn items.
Holiday Decorations: I don't know if you have noticed, but the big box stores (Walmart, Target, Home Depot, etc) have begun selling storage boxes that coordinate with common seasonal colors. The plastic containers are either all the seasonal color or the lids are. I love this! If you are in the process of re-organizing your holiday decor, try purchasing your new storage containers during each season of decoration -- for instance -- we now are in spring/summer. The plastic totes are bright colors of greens, pinks. blues and purples...these would be wonderful for organizing Easter, birthday, summer outdoor decor. If you only purchase new containers during the season when you use the decor, then when it is time to change, you'll have fresh new containers and you can label them according to contents and next time they'll be easy identify. You might want to purchase a red or blue one for Independence Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day decor. Oranges, Browns, Greens and Blacks are available in the Fall - so harvest, Halloween, and Fall decor would go in those and then for Christmas, red and green are readily available. Purchasing them during the month when these items are being used offers you the opportunity to get rid of the unused items, and the old worn out containers and have the new ones ready when it's time to put the decor up for another year. Just be sure to label your contents.
Linens: It seems that there's always a dilemma when it comes to organizing the linen closet. Here's a practical solution -- put the linens in the room where they will be used rather than in a central location. If you can designate one drawer in a dresser for sheets in each room or an area in the closet, then you'll free up space in your linen closet for other things like cleaning products and tools as well as blankets, quilts, extra pillows and sleeping bags. Storing sheets is much easier when folding the flat sheet, fitted sheet and one pillow case and put all in the remaining pillow case. All parts are there and ready for changing the bed in one self-contained package that stores neatly away. Ironing sheets isn't really necessary anymore either -- take them out of the dryer immediately and fold -- hand pressing as you fold -- store warm and the wrinkles will naturally fall out -- lightly pressing the pillow cases will give a crispness and is much quicker if you simply must press! :)
Kitchen: Knives will stay sharp longer if they hang on a magnet strip rather than storing them in a drawer. They aren't as prone to bump other utensils, thus dulling the edge. Magnet strips may be found at kitchen specialty stores, import stores and larger department stores or online -- they are called Kitchen Magnet strip or Knife magnet strips. Storing utensils in crocks or jars in the areas where they are used make them so much more accessible when cooking. They won't get junky looking if you only keep the tools used regularly -- put the lesser used items away in the drawers. Small appliances can get in the way and take up so much counter space. Seriously consider how often they are used when deciding whether they need to take up such valuable space and only keep the MOST used items out. Put the others away in an area where they can be easily accessed when needed and send the rarely used items to another home. Most small appliances have multiple uses, so feel free to pare down to fewer when you can.
Fridge and Freezer: Make use of zip storage bags as much as you can. If you buy items in bulk, such as meat and produce, and plan to freeze much of it -- place individual pieces on parchment lined trays and cover with plastic wrap. When frozen, remove pieces and place in zip storage bags and label and date them. If you'll stack the items neatly, you'll have a lot more room in your freezer than you can imagine.
For the health conscious - I read an article on AOL recently that said by moving produce drawers up to the middle of the refrigerator, people will be more likely to choose fruits and vegetables for snacks and meals and likewise, placing the more fattening foods on the upper or lower shelves will put them out of eye view and thus people are less likely to snack on those items.
I hope these tips/tricks have been helpful today. One last common sense tip to consider. Today's gas prices are so high - but seriously consider how far you need to drive to get a bargain. If your hometown has gas for $3.66/gallon and the closest large city has gas for $3.63/gallon and you need to drive about 35 miles to save that money -- on a 15 gallon tank -- you'll only save about 45 cents...but you'll use up a lot more than 45 cents worth of gas to save that money. Do the math, it may not be a real bargain!
Hope you have a lovely day today!! Be blessed...not stressed! Amy
Happy Thursday! Can you believe it's almost Memorial Day weekend?!? Happy Graduation to all the seniors and college grads! And to those who serve our Country in the military and their families -- we thank you, appreciate you and salute you for your sacrifice - and to the ones who have fallen - our deepest gratitude and sympathy to your families...may you rest in peace in the arms of God. Please don't just vacation, grill out and play this weekend -- take the time to remember those who serve to protect the freedom we have to enjoy those things.
Today is Tips and Tricks Thursday -- wow this week has flown by! Today's tips and tricks have to do with organization. I have to tell you - I'm really not much of an organizer but I have friends that are and I read a lot about it and over the years, I've adopted some of these and they really do work...so if you're an "organized wannabee", like me, maybe these tips and tricks will be helpful.
Clothing: When organizing clothing, it's so easy to hang items by color rather than by style. If you use general color coding, then you'll have a much easier time seeing your clothes, putting them up after laundering, and then knowing on a more regular basis whether you have pieces that are rarely known because they will continually hang in the same spot, with the same color. This can be done with all articles of clothing whether folded or hung. I've used this system for over a year now, and I has really made a difference in the time it takes to decide what to wear, keeping a neat closet and discarding unworn items.
Holiday Decorations: I don't know if you have noticed, but the big box stores (Walmart, Target, Home Depot, etc) have begun selling storage boxes that coordinate with common seasonal colors. The plastic containers are either all the seasonal color or the lids are. I love this! If you are in the process of re-organizing your holiday decor, try purchasing your new storage containers during each season of decoration -- for instance -- we now are in spring/summer. The plastic totes are bright colors of greens, pinks. blues and purples...these would be wonderful for organizing Easter, birthday, summer outdoor decor. If you only purchase new containers during the season when you use the decor, then when it is time to change, you'll have fresh new containers and you can label them according to contents and next time they'll be easy identify. You might want to purchase a red or blue one for Independence Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day decor. Oranges, Browns, Greens and Blacks are available in the Fall - so harvest, Halloween, and Fall decor would go in those and then for Christmas, red and green are readily available. Purchasing them during the month when these items are being used offers you the opportunity to get rid of the unused items, and the old worn out containers and have the new ones ready when it's time to put the decor up for another year. Just be sure to label your contents.
Linens: It seems that there's always a dilemma when it comes to organizing the linen closet. Here's a practical solution -- put the linens in the room where they will be used rather than in a central location. If you can designate one drawer in a dresser for sheets in each room or an area in the closet, then you'll free up space in your linen closet for other things like cleaning products and tools as well as blankets, quilts, extra pillows and sleeping bags. Storing sheets is much easier when folding the flat sheet, fitted sheet and one pillow case and put all in the remaining pillow case. All parts are there and ready for changing the bed in one self-contained package that stores neatly away. Ironing sheets isn't really necessary anymore either -- take them out of the dryer immediately and fold -- hand pressing as you fold -- store warm and the wrinkles will naturally fall out -- lightly pressing the pillow cases will give a crispness and is much quicker if you simply must press! :)
Kitchen: Knives will stay sharp longer if they hang on a magnet strip rather than storing them in a drawer. They aren't as prone to bump other utensils, thus dulling the edge. Magnet strips may be found at kitchen specialty stores, import stores and larger department stores or online -- they are called Kitchen Magnet strip or Knife magnet strips. Storing utensils in crocks or jars in the areas where they are used make them so much more accessible when cooking. They won't get junky looking if you only keep the tools used regularly -- put the lesser used items away in the drawers. Small appliances can get in the way and take up so much counter space. Seriously consider how often they are used when deciding whether they need to take up such valuable space and only keep the MOST used items out. Put the others away in an area where they can be easily accessed when needed and send the rarely used items to another home. Most small appliances have multiple uses, so feel free to pare down to fewer when you can.
Fridge and Freezer: Make use of zip storage bags as much as you can. If you buy items in bulk, such as meat and produce, and plan to freeze much of it -- place individual pieces on parchment lined trays and cover with plastic wrap. When frozen, remove pieces and place in zip storage bags and label and date them. If you'll stack the items neatly, you'll have a lot more room in your freezer than you can imagine.
For the health conscious - I read an article on AOL recently that said by moving produce drawers up to the middle of the refrigerator, people will be more likely to choose fruits and vegetables for snacks and meals and likewise, placing the more fattening foods on the upper or lower shelves will put them out of eye view and thus people are less likely to snack on those items.
I hope these tips/tricks have been helpful today. One last common sense tip to consider. Today's gas prices are so high - but seriously consider how far you need to drive to get a bargain. If your hometown has gas for $3.66/gallon and the closest large city has gas for $3.63/gallon and you need to drive about 35 miles to save that money -- on a 15 gallon tank -- you'll only save about 45 cents...but you'll use up a lot more than 45 cents worth of gas to save that money. Do the math, it may not be a real bargain!
Hope you have a lovely day today!! Be blessed...not stressed! Amy
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