Organization - Wheaton,IL

Hi J.,
WIth my kids we use 2 things...TONS of rubbermaid/sterlite type plastic bins. This helps keeps things organized and neat and also teaches them to clean-up after themselves. Our "rule" (some of the time) is that they need to put the toys away in 1 bin before opening another. Another thing we have is a bin rack...Target/ToysRUs sell them. It's a wooden shelving thing with open shoebox like bins. It's also great b/c each box gets a "type of toy." One downside is the kids used to dump the bins and stuff would be everywhere. The bins with the tops seem to keep things much neater, but we use both.
1 other thing I do is to keep 1 basket in our family room for toys that weren't put away or toys thay they are "into" at the moment. I try to clean this out every week or two and "sort" the toys and have the kids out them back into the right bin.

The playroom and family room are pretty neat using these things....now if I could only keep the rest of my house clean! Congrats on #2!

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Good luck and congrats on your baby!
D.

My favorite find this year has been the One Trip Tote by Neeblink, Inc. I think the site is www.onetriptote.com or you can google "one trip tote".
It is a beautiful large multipurpose tote great for organizing your things and your kids things on the go or at home. Load everything you need and make one trip out the door. I don't know how I did without it now. I use them at home for toys, closet storage, and laundry. Visit the site for great ideas on how to use it. I've given so many as gifts. Everyone asks me where I got it. Good luck!

For your pantry, all I can say is each time yu go in, straighten up one foot of space. I did this last year. Of course with the kids and everything getting thrown in like a junk closet, it is hard to keep up. I have started doing this again. Breaking it to small jobs makes it seem like I can get it done.
For your daughter's room, it is easy to imagine a huge mess. I cleaned my kids' room out. I Had bags for garbage, bags for clothes and a box for toys. I could not believe how empty that box was. I love Ikea's ideas for storage, especially for kids' rooms. They are the perfect size and affordable. If I had the room I would be running over there often. As someone else posted, sometimes it is too much stuff. But other times, it is stuff in the wrong place. Labels and bins work well once you get them in place and get her to use them. The best thing about bins and baskets is that you can take the bin away if she doesn't pick it up. Another great thing to have is a small basket in each room. Each time you see something that does not belong there, you put it in the basket. At the end of the day, or if possible beforwe you leave the house, put the things in their proper place. You can teach your daughter to do this as well. You may also want to get a samll file box or cabinet and some files. When you get bills, you can keep them in the front of the file. After you pay them, you move them to the right folder (credit bills/utility). I also have a file for product manuals and instructions. Every little bit helps. Once you don;t feel overwhelmed, it will be easier.