Help me become organised!

[TheJoxter]

Trying to sort my life out and get on top of things finally. My life descended into chaos when I had my baby and I don’t know what to do about it, I’ve never been an organised person and I don’t know where to start!

What are your best tips for getting organised and staying on top of everything? Can be child related or just everyday life related!

1 use a calendar in a form that works for you. Mine is on the wall so my kids can se it too. But electronic may suit you better.
2 routines. Kids need them, it helps with bedtime and getting them to sleep and makes them feel secure. Work out a morning routine and a bedtime routine that works for you
3 planning. I meal plan every week but also have a few emergency meals stashed in the freezer in case of illness etc. when my kids were tiny and tea time was hard because they were cranky I would start making dinner at lunch time. Planning also includes planning fun stuff into your week
4 focus on what’s important and prioritise that. For me it’s that we eat good healthy meals and everyone gets to where they need to be on time with everything they need

I think the above is really good advice.

I would add maybe focus on sorting out the big stuff before stressing about sorting out the small stuff. You may get loads of good tips on this thread but it would be hard to implement all of them. Focus on a few.

That is good advice, thank you! I’ve been trying to get into the habit of making lists and it does help (when I remember!)

If I didn't put everything in the calendar on my phone I'd be completely screwed. I share it with DH too so at least he knows our whereabouts! A routine is essential IMO. Life just feels way too chaotic otherwise (for your DC and for you). OneNote is great for lists and writing down random things to remember.

Read the Marie Kondo book in decluttering (it’s a quick read) and declutter your house. You will be able to mentally and physically breathe again.
Try to prep things on Sunday for the week ahead (meals, online shops and any school activities).
Delegate things if you can or pay for some help (cleaner), if you can.
Set aside time for yourself so you feel less overwhelmed.

Do the basics first. Dishes, bins, laundry, bills. Don’t let them pile up. Make sure you deal with those things every single day.

(I struggled with this for years because I didn’t understand the priorities. I had high standards but put my energy in the wrong places so always felt like I was trying to catch up. I’d focus on organizing the laundry closet perfectly but forget to change the beds)

Cook twice as much and freeze a portion for an easy meal later. Take the leftovers out of the pot first otherwise you’ll eat more than you intend.

Label everything you put in the freezer, and label the bag/box before you fill it.

Declutter- less to tidy.
Organised mum method
Calendar
Meal plan then shop online
These are my tips

Everything has a place and everything in its place. Makes tidying up quicker and easier

Harden your heart and reduce everything around the house to the absolute minimum.

Excess anything; from sentimental wardrobe items you haven't worn for years, the weird kitchen gadgets that never left their boxes, even furniture - ebay, recycle, freebay or charity shop.

Side tables, lamps, knick knacks, cupboards to store stuff you only look at through the glass - the less cluttered a place is, the less stress you feel when you walk in there.

The key to good organisation is space.

Space to file papers, space to sort out the stuff you do need and of course, space for your Brexit stash.

Whatever filing system you use for all your essential documents, keep it simple.

P for passport, V for vaccinations, B for birth certificate and so on.

Note in your phone calendar, wall planner, filofax or bullet journal the expiry dates for insurance policies, passports, phone contracts and set reminders in good time before the expiry date.

Lots of horizontal space helps you sort through stuff instead of laying stuff out on the floor.

Subscribe to the Organize 365 podcast and set up a Sunday basket. Life changer. It's American but knots all of it is applicable!

If you use a physical diary add colored post it notes that show at the top when you close it.

Something like

Blue - child's appointments - could be dentist, dr or a party
Pink - my appointments
Yellow - bills
Purple - date to cancel subscription to the thing I signed up to because it was free for a month

On your meal plan add note, things like, "take X out of the freezer"

Organise your tin cupboard so you can see what you need to buy, stack duplicates so you know you have 3 of one thing.

Right- decluttering starts tomorrow!

Have looked at organised mum method and will also be getting myself a diary/planner. Hopefully I can keep up with it all!

getorganizedhq is a free online event with various organizational experts and bloggers. Might be worth a look? That’s an affiliate link through the blog I saw it on, not sure how to link without the affiliation.

We do TOMM too and I like it. We have a rota on the kitchen wall so we both know what needs doing each day.

We have a calendar for all appointments, and I try to deal with letters as they come into the house.

I agree with decluttering.

My main one is to make sure that everyone in the house is doing their share.