I did not realize how significant my last post would be in when I wrote it at the beginning of January, "Survival Mode" was about to hit my family once again.  My husband ended up very sick and even hospitalized for almost two weeks, at the same time both of my kids came down with virus after virus, and throw in an ear infection and we have full blown Family Crisis!!
​  Three solid weeks revolved around hospital trips, high fevers, vomit and laundry.  Two different times I thought the worst was over and the school or daycare would call for me to pick up a sick kid and it would start all over again.  Situations like this are hard on their own, trying to maintain a full time job, our home and personal obligations  at the same time is truly stressful.  I am so blessed that I have a vast support system and have family and friends to call on for help. (a heartfelt THANK YOU to all!!)
​  We are at the end of this crisis now and both kids are healthy and Hubby with hopefully be returning to work next week.  As I reflect back to how we got through this , I realize that a lot of what kept me, specifically, afloat was routines and organizing systems that I have in place.  I have habits that help keep  the house running, maybe not always smoothly, but getting us where we need to be. 
​I plan our family schedule out by day, week and month, by doing this I don't get caught double booked or with no child care when we need it.  For myself, I plan my days in time slots.  This helps me make use of small sections of time that may otherwise be wasted.
​I know this sounds very time consuming, but it is just the opposite.  For every minute you spend planning your day/tasks you can save an hour on execution. It is worth it! 
I also plan for the day ahead the night before, bags are packed, clothes are set out, lunches are made and lists are prepared, this is the only way I can get my family out of the house successfully in the morning.
​If you write down your 'to do' list and designate tasks or errands to specific days you have a much better chance of all your items getting accomplished, if you just try to remember things on the fly things are easily forgotten.  Remember to keep lists simple, don't overload yourself.  you want to keep your days prioritized and as easy to manage as possible.  If you don't get something done, it is ok, you have an entire new day tomorrow.
​I heard an interesting statement in a podcast I was listening to last week, most individuals spend and hour a day looking for things.  Now, I know that may not sound too bad, but if you look at it this way,  1 hour per day=7 hours per week=30 hours per month, etc..... then it is a bit staggering!   If you invest time into creating a  home for everything and returning it there when you are done with it, just think what you could do with all that extra time!

 In the last week  I have had 2 people talk to me about feeling like they are in "Survival Mode"
​This refers to a time in your life where you or you and your family are just simply getting through each day...existing.  When life is overwhelming, you feel beat down and the days are just going by.  Work, kids, home, aging parents, and the many other demands on our time and energy can, and do consume us.  Many times this period in life is situational and we can get back on track.  Loss of a loved one, moving, changing careers, marriage, divorce, merging 2 households are all huge transitions that turn our lives and routines upside down.
​Welcoming a new baby is also huge, this is when  my home and family life slipped into Survival Mode.
​January 11th 2014 at 3;15pm my cell phone rang with a call that was the answer to years of prayers.  It was our Adoption worker form CAS, I can still hear those words "a baby boy has been born".  Life changed forever in that moment.  Within 30 minutes we were on our way to the hospital to meet our son, Sebastian.  36 hours later we were bringing him home.  In those 36 hours we went into overdrive trying to prepare our home for a newborn, calling family and friends to share our wonderful news,  I had to make arrangements with my clients for a few weeks off.  We were, as a family one big emotional wreck! My husband, Mark and I had  tell our three year old daughter that she had a new baby brother, while preparing ourselves that he would not be legally ours until we navigated though a very scary court system.  Those first few weeks as a family of 4 are  a blur, although I do remember that every time someone looked at me or God forbid, spoke to me I burst into tears.  We did our best everyday, some days were better than others, but we got through them all.  Our house was a complete disaster, a friend of mine came over and said I should take pictures to show people what a newborn does to even a professional organizer's home...(I wish I had taken her advice and had pictures to show you now) Eventually life settled down and we had control of our house again.  This did not happen over night, it takes time, energy and a whole lot of effort.  Maybe this is where life is at for you and you feel like you just can't manage it on your own.
​It is during these time in life when we need to reach out for help.  You may just need a friend to come help for an afternoon, or your situation may require more extensive help.  This is when I would love to hear from you, there is never any judgement, I have been there....

I realized shortly after my daughter, Avery was born just how important morning routines can be.  I was a new Mom and I was  used to just getting myself up and out of the house.  When you add a 6lb tiny human to your life, my oh my how things change!  It is so much more than remembering to grab the diaper bag.  First of all someone has to stock that bag with everything you could ever need in a day, and YES that is you, Mommy!
​I learned early on to pack the bags the night before, but sure enough I always forgot something.  Taking your life and adding any significant change to your daily responsibilities or routines can throw you off  like nothing else.  Suddenly you are ill-equipped, forgetful,  and feeling like you are loosing control.
​It is not just having a baby, for me it was with any new transition.  Going back to work, adding in a second child (God, help me now there is 3 of us to get out the door!) Avery starting school, now there are lunches to pack and all of her gear that needs to go with her, anything that changes our timing or usual routine throws me off.
​I am a huge "list maker" so I used that to my advantage.  I prepared a list of everything I needed to do or take with us when we left and taped it by the front door.  This helped tremendously until the new routine became a habit.  I have read several times that you have to do an action 20+ times before it becomes a habit, this is HARD and I find that reminder lists help me and my family  make these transitions.
​We are in a good place at the moment, Avery in school, Sebastian in daycare.  I pack both of their backpacks, my work bag, and our "car/travel" bag (I can explain that in another post) and put them by the front door in the evening.  I have our lunch kits on the counter, anything not refrigerated goes in them the night before, then I finish them off in the morning. 
​On the weekend while folding our laundry I pick 7 outfits for each kid and put them on a shelf on our main level (this is where our bathroom is as well)  Each morning I just grab the next outfit on the pile. 

Avery is 6 and just fine with this, she is very much old enough to pick out her own clothes.  I do this for ME and my sanity.  It is hard enough to stay on track in the morning, if I had her pick out her own clothes we would be a half hour late everyday.  This may not work next year, but I am going to take advantage of it for as long as I can.
​The thing to remember is that what works today may not work tomorrow.  Routines and organization are forever changing, put systems in place that work for you today.  Enjoy it.....

I have had "Start writing a Blog on my website" on my To Do list for 2 years now.  I was not going to admit that right away, but I have made the decision to do this and I want it to be a true and honest portrail of me and my family.  I am a professional organizer, I LOVE to organize, but I procrastinate, forget things and get overwhelmed by life as a working Mom of two very high energy and emotional kids.  This is life! I think I manage it all pretty well, I have  experience helping other individuals and families, I have training through Professional Organizers in Canada and I read and study about organizing as much as I can.  This all helps me manage our family's life in ways that work for us.  My goal is to share some of these ideas, tips and tricks on this Blog.  To share what I know and live, ideas to help you juggle it all and still have your house a home at the end of the day. 
​I will share pictures of systems we have in place to help us get through our days and honest pictures of the messy side of our family and how we deal with it.  I feel that this journey will help me gain tremendous personal and professional growth and I am very much ready and looking forward to this challenge.
​I am sure you will see improvement in these posts over time, please forgive my spelling and grammar errors, I am just one Mom doing my best and I am just learning how to manage a website by myself...YAY ME!!!

Meet Sebastian, my just turned 3 year old.  You will see him alot, this kid can trash a room in under a minute!

Why Organize?
Here is a great link to show how an organized life may improve everything from productivity to harmony in ones life.