Back to school time!

Happy Labor Day!  Thank you for all of you who work the daily grind (even today as many of us were out dining and shopping). 

I realize for much of the country, you have probably already gone back to school.  My husband finished out his first full week  of teaching rather happily.  Thanks to the great sales as of late, school shopping is finally finished for the whole family.  Tomorrow holds the real "back to school" feel in our home; because, you see, tomorrow is the first day of pre-school!

I am not finding it as bitter-sweet as I thought I would.  I am actually glad for this new adventure in our lives.  My three-year-old has been asking to go to school on an almost daily basis for about a month now.  We have watched DVD's about favorite characters (Elmo and Blue) going to school.  It is an exciting time.  All that said, I have put a lot of planning into tomorrow.  The homework assignment "All About Me..." poster is finally complete and in the packed up back pack (lest we forget this very important item!).  The lunch is all packed (except the hot portion).  Everything is Magic Marker labeled.  The clothes are laid out - down to the shoes.  I feel as though I have planned well.

So I ask those of you who are parents, for your first day agendas.  What do you do on that first day with a silent house, you stay at home mom?  What do you do the first day coordinating buses, car-pools, after school schedules?  Working parent, what is your challenge with after school care?

I find myself curious about others' lives at this point.  What are your "back to school" rituals?  I have a dear friend whose husband goes into work late on the first day of school.  He stays home a little longer and cooks a big breakfast for the whole family.  I plan to try to maintain a "life as normal" status quo in the morning so as not to upset the applecart that is my young one.  Yes, Elli, I will TRY TRY TRY to remember to take a picture of him in the morning.  So tell me, what do you do that is different/special for that very first day?  How do you plan?  If you are beyond the point of having school aged children, what did you do for your children when they were small that was special?  What is YOUR best first day of school memory?

For any of you who are interested, there is still space available in the up coming Home Hub Seminar for Monday evening (Sept 15, 5:30-7pm).

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Ferocious Fay? No way.

Tropical Storm Fay (nope my Minnesota friend, it never got to be a hurricane here) derailed some plans around our area this past week.  Thankfully we were never without power and there is no major storm damage here.  I'm hoping that holds true for our water level. 

Thanks to all for the great response to the upcoming Home Hub Seminar.  There are still seats available for Monday evening (Sept 15, 5:30-7pm) if you are still interested.

Next time we will talk about "Back to School"!

 

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An exciting Announcement!

 

Hello organizing friends!  We've been doing some end of summer traveling this month.  School starts in our district tomorrow.  Can you believe it!?!

I have something new in the works for organizewithjulie!  I think you are going to be very excited to hear this news! Many of you have expressed to me that you want to set up a Home Hub or that you just don't know what to do with all of the paper work that infiltrates your home.  No worries!  Coming to Jacksonville, FL in the month of September, I am offering a FREE workshop to help us all Conquer the Paper Chaos! 

You will be able to see what a Home Hub is like in real life action. You will learn how to set up a Custom Home Hub Notebook System… and it is easy!

This is the perfect time of year to figure out: how to schedule your week, how to plan your meals, what to do with all the incoming school papers and the mail. You can get your bills paid on time. You will be able to return calls in a timely manner. Your home life will become less chaotic. This system is designed to give you everything you need at your finger tips.

With school just starting, the paper work you are about to receive will seem endless. This is my proven survival technique.

The Dates are:

Monday Sept 15, 5:30pm - 7

OR

Tuesday Sept 16, 10 am - 11:30am.

The seminar is totally FREE. If you choose to buy notebooks or supplies at the seminar, those materials will be extra.

Send an e-mail to juliebavi@gmail.com or leave a comment here to let me know that you are interested.

Preparing for the worst

 

This is summer in sunny Florida which means only one thing to many -  Hurricane season is upon us.  That's right folks, from June through November we are on alert.  I can remember vividly the summer of 2004, living in Central Florida and having FOUR hurricanes pass over us.  I think the longest we were without power at any one given time was 2 weeks.  That was a blessing by some standards.  I can remember this because #1 I am a Florida native and have never had to deal with anything so bizarre in my many years of life and #2 I was in my second trimester of pregnancy and quite uncomfortable.

So what does one do in the Florida summer to prepare?  I am so glad you asked!  You need to get a kit, make a plan, stay informed.  You can keep your kit (stored in a handy plastic bin with lid) in the safe room of your home or in your car.  Just make sure everyone knows where it is.  For more info, check out www.ready.gov  

Please make an evacuation plan with your family even if you do not think you will be leaving.  It is best to be prepared.

Don't forget about Fido and Fluffy.  Find a pet approved shelter or include their items in your kit. 

Know that lengthy blackouts are usually expected when a hurricane happens.  Combining the information with the "Blackout" section as well as the "Hurricane" section is worthwhile.

If you are reading this and are not located in a hurricane zone, www.ready.gov has information for preparing for all types of disasters - blackouts, wildfires, volcanoes, and flooding included.

It's time to take 30 minutes and ASSEMBLE A KIT/MAKE A PLAN. 

Stay safe!

 

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Summer, It's got me upside-down

Where have I been? Having fun mostly!

There's lots going on in our little corner of the world this summer. Many of you know that Paul was performing with Sax 4th Avenue in Peru for a large portion of this month. I am happy to have him home. It was an awesome opportunity and we are both very glad he was able to serve with such wonderful friends. We look forward to more summer trips like this one. He did leave the day after school was out and returned last Monday, so this was very much a whirl-wind for us all. He is still adjusting to life back in the states; but oh what a blessing!

The fourth was a very laid back time for us with NO PLANNING going into a casual block party. It was one of the greatest parties I've ever been a part of and I hope that we are able to do many more. I guess when you have neighbors as caring and fun as mine, there's no way to not have a great time!

Summer is a fun time for us as a family. We are able to spend about 3 months together making plans for daily events and big vacation adventures. Our schedule has, unfortunately, gone out the window. I know there will be a rude awakening come August, but it is light so late and we are just ready for that family fun.

As far as the organizing realm is concerned... Many of you are in the process of trying to assemble your own Household Hub Binders. If you need personal assistance, I am free to workshop it with you. Here is a general guideline and FAQ.

~What is a Household/Home Hub Binder? Its essence is that it should be a manual for your daily life. This is the place to keep your - weekly schedule, grocery lists, take out menus, sales ads/coupons, financial information, school fliers, business cards, contact info.

~How do I start? Gather all of your paper and see what it is that you need to put into your binder. Make stacks of like items (finances all together, school stuff all together, etc). Use stickies to label each broad category. Write labels for sub categories as well.

~Now what? Assemble your binder by using the categories you've created. Use pocket dividers, sheet protectors, and business card sleeves where necessary. Include a pencil pouch in the front of the binder to hold extra pens, stamps (for bill paying and correspondence), a mini calculator, and other small items.

Other uses for a Home Hub Binder:

~ New Home Owner Manual - paint colors, service companies, age of appliances. (Great Gift!) ~ Vacation Home Manual - emergency contacts, operating systems, local favorites. ~ Finance Only Binder - track investments, bank statement, and account info. ~ Health Hub - Medical/Shot Records, Insurance Info, Explanation of Benefits/Dates of Service. ~ Decorator's Dream - Fabric Samples, Paint Chips, Magazine Inspiration Pages, Measurements. ~ Correspondence with your nanny/childcare - notes, schedules, plans of action, emergency info.

I know that we don't want to think about it yet, but summer is just about half over. Wouldn't it be nice to have a system in place for all of that school generated paperwork before it begins to filter into your home?

So tell me fellow Home Hubbers, what are your questions, concerns, points of advice? If you are interested in a workshop session, leave a comment or send an e-mail. I'd love to help you bring order to your paperwork chaos.

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www.organizewithjulie.com

Crafty Organization

I did not fall off the face of the earth. I just had a Birthday, packed up hubby's classroom, and have been enjoying summer! And look at the cute things I've been crafting... all for the sake of organization, of course! First of all, I have been looking for some sort of hanging bin or basket for the "on the way out the door" items. I need to get the sunscreen, bug repellent, and baby powder (for the beach sand, ya know?) off of my kitchen counter top and out of the reach of little hands. Did I mention that little hands like to find "goo"? I have not been able to find the perfect hanging basket. But then I remembered that there was a lovely French Provençal tin bucket holding an arrangement of silk Spring flowers that needed a new purpose in its life. I was unaware of the sad shape it was in. When I found this lovely article, the paint was cracking badly. The grey areas are from the paint that chipped off as I was washing the outdoor/garage grime off with a soft cloth. The brown spots are rust. I actually liked the rust when this was hanging outdoors with the flowers tucked inside. It gave it a nice country feel. Now that it is going to be in my kitchen, I find that I am not so fond of the rust. It didn't take my brain long to decide that something beautiful could be made from a resource I already had right here in front of me. What was my answer? Decoupage! (The art of decorating with cut outs of fabric or paper.) I just happen to have this swanky scrappy paper that fits the bill perfectly! So (with the help of my three-year-old son) this is my finished product! TADA! That's it! Just two different patterns of paper, a little water, and lots of glue made that rusty, paint-chippy bucket into this little work of art! May I also mention that this was a very "Green" choice? You know... the whole reusing what you have thing. And since I am on such a crafty roll.... I took a frame, which I bought for the purpose of getting the basket of keys up off of the same spot on my kitchen counter, and spruced it up and actually got it up on to my wall! YAY! Pretty and ingenuity in one fell swoop! See how the papers are all matchy-matchy? Isn't is fun!? I know that some of you are far craftier than I. share with me your crafty organizing solutions! You know I'd love to see them! Even if it has nothing to do with getting organized, take some time this week to do something creative! .

Lost and Found

My dear friends, do you know what is in your wallet? Sure there's the normal credit card/ID type of stuff. What about membership cards? Insurance cards? Account numbers? Social security numbers? Because of a small mishap I had this week, I am going to encourage you to do something you may consider a bit odd. It is not something I would have ever considered before this past week. First, I will share my story. What happened this past week? We had a holiday. (Yay Memorial Day!) My family met up with some friends at the local zoo. (Yay jaxzoo.org!) And come Tuesday morning (aka grocery morning) I could not find my purse. (Boo!) I did have my Driver's License and my annual zoo pass, (Yay!) which were in the stroller pocket, not my purse. So what did I do? After a cursory search through the house and car, I grabbed my spare credit card and headed to the grocery store. By Wednesday afternoon, after checking my accounts status and calling the zoo's lost-and-found, I had concluded that my purse was lost and gone forever. (Boo.) Thus, I canceled the cards that were in my purse and panicked about what other info may have leaked into the wrong hands. (Double Boo.) Wednesday night, by God's grace (and probably some tiny little hands), my purse materialized. (Super yay!) All of this really got me thinking... It's time to take 15 minutes and.... inventory your wallet! I will implore you to write or type a complete inventory of your wallet. File it with your other personal information or add it to your HOUSEHOLD HUB binder. Update it regularly. .