Birthday Cards - 2012

I come from a big family. Being chronically disorganized, I wanted to come up with a system that worked for the 11 nieces & nephews that I have so that I could remember to send them a card on their birthday, since I live far enough away that I might not see them close to their birthday. I came up with this system last year, and it worked great, so here is a rundown of how it works for me.

1. total up nieces and nephews - I gained 2 more this past year!
2. Purchase a card for each one (I like the 99 cent Target cards - they are cute, cheap, and they have lots of designs)
3. Write a short message in each card
4. Include any "extras" - we put in $1 for each year they have been alive, and usually some stickers for the younger kids.


5. Write their birthday in the upper corner, where the stamp will cover it when its mailed


6. put them in order of when they need to be sent out - and put them in a clipboard.



Now - I have all their birthdays on my calendar - so remembering them was never the problem. It was remembering them at the same time as I was in the store to buy a card, and having the other necessary items. This way, I have everything ready to go, and when I remember or see that their birthday is w/in the next week I immediately go grab the card, put a stamp on it, and drop it in the mail.

Jumping on the Bandwagon

Hi :)  I'm Melissa, and lucky to be Sarah's sister-in-law.  She sent me the 2010 Declutter and Organize Calendar (link below) and I was ecstatic!  This is just what I've been looking for.  SO, I decided to join her on a journey to declutter and organize my life!  I'm a working mom with three small children (5yrs, almost 4yrs, and 9 months).  We love our home, but it is definitely cluttered.  Our friends and family are so generous with their gifts to the kids, and we are pack rats!  OK, by we I mean ME.  My husband would rather just pitch it all and move on with life.  I am a control-freak and cannot let that happen!  So, hopefully this journey will help me get motivated to get it done!! :)

Inspiration - About Me

My name is Sarah - I am 31, and a full time working mom, with 2 young boys (ages 2 and 2 months). My husband works from home with his own business. Life is hectic. Life is disorganized and cluttered. Recently I came across a calendar posted by "My simpler life" with a simple task to complete each day. What I plan to do is follow these tasks as best as possible, and post simple before / after pictures. I will invite other people to also post on this blog as they follow the calendar - and hopefully we will all see a huge improvement in our household organization by the end of the year!