I think we can all agree everyone needs to have a home maintenance plan. If you aren’t sure what it is or why you need one, read this recent post: why everyone should have a maintenance plan. Just because you believe you need such a plan doesn’t mean that you know how to create one. There are four distinct steps involved in creating a home maintenance plan. Everyone’s plan will be unique to them but will incorporate these four steps. Now let’s look at the steps to take to develop a home maintenance plan that will work for you. You’ve…
I love to give a party and have I ever been missing them this past year! There are 5 components to planning a party so that you will have a fun time along with your guests. Now, I am feeling hopeful that I can once again plan a party but on a smaller scale (for this year at least). When planning a party, the five components I embrace are the guest list, date, theme, menu, and location. Guest List: This is a key component. I love to invite a diverse group of people who will enjoy each other’s company. Usually,…
Valentine’s Day is this coming Sunday. You would love to experience a romantic evening, but you look around your love nest and notice the piles of shoes by the front door. Then there are the piles of papers and magazines cascading off the coffee table and the CDs and DVDs scattered on the floor. The living room needs to have some serious work done to look romantic. You don’t have a lot of time to make this work. Maybe just scoop it all up into a box that you stash in the spare bedroom and deal with it later. But…
Gift season is almost upon us. It is hard to imagine the holidays without giving and receiving gifts. Giving gifts makes us feel good as we imagine our loved ones opening our gift with delighted smiles or squeals of joy. As a fairly new grandmother, I want to find the perfect gift for my grandson. I also want to shower his parents with thoughtful presents. Besides family, we also like to give gifts to friends and to people who have gone out of their way for us. But before we pull out our credit card and start scrolling through items to…
Let’s face facts. If you have children, you have toys. Toys always end up in the living room because that’s where the family hangs out. While it’s wonderful for the family to spend time together when the children go to bed the last thing you want is to be surrounded by toys. I’m sharing 3 fabulous tips for organizing toys in the living room so that you still feel like you have an adult living space. Adult living space Your lovely living room doesn’t feel or look so lovely when you are surround by toys. Toys on the coffee table,…
The smaller the laundry room the more important it is to have a specific place to put everything. This makes it is easy to retrieve and put things away. It is also important to remove any unnecessary items so that you have room for the essentials . Say goodbye to wire hangers, mismatched socks that have been around forever, and any products you don’t use in this area. Let’s start with the essentials. The most important tool in your laundry room is the washing machine. Only slightly less important is the dryer. If your space is small, stack the washer…
When I think about a command center it conjures up images of a central command station. There is the person in charge and then lots of helpers running around dealing with various aspects of the project or mission. What is a Family Command Center? A family command center is just like that, it serves as the hub for all the important information. It is also the processing point for information that comes into your home. Repairs are scheduled for the home. When we are comfortable doing so: babysitters are booked, playdates are arranged, carpools are coordinated with neighbors, and vacations…
You are a highly organized person. Your family loves to have you around because you keep everything in order and your household runs smoothly. Your friends call you for advice because they know you and your talent for planning and organizing. You have terrific planning and organizing skills. Since they are your family and friends, you know how to approach them. Then one day, you get a request to help organize and de-clutter a home. This request comes from Sally who had to screw up a lot of courage to make the request. Sally feels that she has never in…
I love to give a party. Usually in July I give a party for 20 – 25 people. I start my plans at least 6 weeks in advance to make this a fun experience for everyone. Well, obviously this didn’t happen this year. But as we begin to accept the reality of the Covid-19 pandemic, we adapt. Here are my Covid -19 party planning tips. So, let’s throw a party the Covid-19 way! Depending on where you live and your comfort level with the restrictions in place there are two ways to do this. The virtual party Use these party…