HEALTHY HABITS◽ YOU
Did you know…that staying or becoming organized in the chaotic messes of your life…can be health to your mind and soul? I know that for me it’s true. When there are piles and messes around me, I too feel piled up and messy in my mind, and it weighs on me! There are some things I’ve learned over the years to help with organization that might help you too…just little practical ways to create order where there is none. Not in every corner, because that’s overwhelming, but in little spaces one at a time…
Messy bathroom counter – It’s frustrating when it’s time to get ready and our counters are full of clutter and chaos, and when it get too full – we just throw up our hands and give up. However, taking time to organize and grab containers and drawer boxes really helps the day start out right, and therefore we feel good.
Go through every item and toss things that are out of date, empty or you haven’t used and won’t. (It will be a lot!). Empty and wipe out every drawer. You will already feel better when this is done.
Place in piles or groups your morning routine and makeup, your evening products, your hair things, all the categories of the stuff you have left.
Using organizers doesn’t have to be expensive. Old candle jars can corral makeup brushes and tubes and spritzers of perfume. And they look pretty! Drawer dividers are affordable and they can organize so well! You can use mason jars, or…buy an organizer if you wish…in a color that makes you smile.
Now start filling and sorting. And soon it will be actually a pretty sight to behold. And you’ll feel elated, you’ll smile, and you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment. All good things for your body!
Messy lingerie drawer – If your socks, your sleepwear, and your underwear are stuffed in a drawer all together, and you have to dig to find what you need – empty that drawer completely!
The Dollar Tree has bins that will fit in most drawers. Get some! I’ve used the same bins from the Dollar Tree for years, and they work great. Fill the drawer. Place socks in one, underwear in another, and fold and stack your sleepwear on its side like folders. Or however you wish!
Write on your calendar once a month to reorganize; and again, the drawer will be a fun thing to open instead of a jack-in-the box where you never know what will pop out!
Messy car – My hand is up! One would think that when your kids are grown your car would be clean all the time. Not so! I’ve found that routine is the key.
Again, we can use our calendar to mark a day a week to actually get the car washed and vacuumed. Oh. The. Joy.
Place small trash bags in your door, and fill one at least once a week with all the gunk and paper and cups, and remove it all.
If you’ve carried and toted and taken all week, chances are your car has bits and pieces of those things still on the seat, on the floor or in the back. Again, once a week, take it all in and put it where it belongs.
Then…go for a drive, maybe for an Icee, and enjoy your clean car.
Messy pantry – This is my favorite thing to organize and it makes me feel a sense of joy the most, more than other places in the house. Bags with clips, cardboard boxes and sacks – be gone! If the pantry is happy, so is the pantry keeper!
Take it all out, toss and then sort. This is a pattern we repeat!
If you have bins, use them. If not, get some. Again…they don’t have to be expensive. Or just purchase a few at a time:
Place chips, cereal and anything else in bags into clear bins. You can cut off the expiration label and just place it inside the bin.
Ingredients in boxed items or small sacks or plastic boxes can also be placed in smaller bins: raisins, rice, coconut flakes, lentils, all of these things – throw the bags away and opt for bins!
Gather all of your foil, wraps and rolls or paper and turn them on their ends in a plastic bin, or place them in a drawer, OUT of the pantry.
This organization is best done every time you go to the grocery store. And believe me, the 10 minutes it takes is worth it. You’ll want to open the pantry door and stare at the beauty, and you’ll feel your blood pressure drop immediately.
These are just a few areas that are actually healthy to keep uncluttered. And once you’ve established a habit in one of these areas, move to the other. A little at a time. It’s honestly soothing and satisfying, like nothing else. And you can then take a bath, read a book…and relax….