3 M’s of Homemaking

Organizing a home can be overwhelming. Without the right plan in place, you might give up before you start.

Begin with creating a storage area where you can put things you need to keep but don’t use often. Then start small, like a bathroom drawer or a linen closet. Empty the space out completely and clean it. Then sort through the contents. Keep what you need, store what you don’t use often and give away or throw away the things that are not useful.

Little by little you will see progress.

Minimize, manage and maintain

Use these tips to get your home organized.

Minimize

• Reduce clutter
  • Get rid of stuff you don’t use – donate, give away, have a yard sale, recycle, throw out anything that is garbage.
  • Keep things you use regularly accessible and organized so you can find them easily when you need them.
  • Store things you rarely use in a storage area that is accessible when needed. These things might include your canning kettle, turkey roaster, deep fryer, cookie cutters, etc.  Label clear bins with brief list of contents on the outside.
• Buy what you need, not what you want
  • This will save you money and keep your house from getting full of stuff you don’t use.
• Mail 
  • Sort your mail into three piles right away – a “to do” pile, a “to file” pile and a “junk mail” pile.  Deal with each pile accordingly so you aren’t going through the same papers over and over.

Manage

• Plan
  • Identify areas in your home that need to be worked on.
  • Identify challenges and how they might be solved.
  • Set goals that work for you.
• Organize
  • Develop schedules and systems such as cleaning plans (daily, weekly and monthly), meal plans, etc.
  • Organize the spaces you declutter in a way that makes sense to you (alphabetize, size, like items together).
  • Always put things back in its proper place.
  • Filing – alphabetize into main groups, then subgroups (Insurance – Auto, Insurance – Health, Insurance – House, Insurance – Life)
• Lead
  • Get the family involved. Assign age, skill or interest appropriate chores to the kids.
    • Take the time to show them how to do a chore. Have them demonstrate back to you and explain to you why this chore needs to be done.
    • Motivate them with allowance, treats or contests.
  • Follow-up
    • Make sure chores are completed as expected.
    • Reinforce positive results.
    • If needed, revisit the training process.
• Evaluate
  • Are you making progress?
  • Do you feel overwhelmed?

Maintain

• Once you have a system in place that works for you, stick with it.
• Once you have a space that is clean and organized, maintain it.

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