New Year Organizing

by Martha Matthews

It’s the beginning of another new year. What better time to get organized. Try these helpful tips to get your New Year started in the right direction.

Schedule it

Schedule all annual appointments for you and your family – doctor, dentist and veterinarian (for the animals of course!)

Calendar it

Get a new calendar and transfer over all birthdays, anniversaries and other important events. Don’t forget to add appointments that you have already scheduled for this year. Color-code each event by category using highlighters in different colors so that you can see what’s coming up at a glance. Purchase a calendar wall hanger and hang up your calendar for daily viewing.

Get it on Sale

Purchase Christmas cards, wrapping paper, tissue, bows, ribbon and decorations for next year while they are on sale now.

Make a List and Check it Twice

Make a list of all the people you mailed cards to. Put each name and address into Word’s label feature (under tools, letters/mailings, envelopes/labels) so that next year you so you can save time by printing out address labels. Print them on festive label stock.

Make a list of those you purchased gifts for and make another list to keep as master lists for next year.

You might want to consider drawing names among the adults instead of buying something for everyone.

Write It Down

Write out your New Year’s Resolutions/Goals. See our article “Making Successful New Year’s Resolutions” at http://www.christian-homemaking.com/resolutions.html.

Perfectly Put Away

Organize your Christmas ornaments, lights and decorating items as you store them away. Try using a cardboard wine case for your ornaments. They can be picked up for free from the grocery store and have dividers that are just the right size for most ornaments. Label your boxes as you go so you know what is in them. Try combining all the ornaments that you use on a regular basis. That way you can pull out that box to use right away and then go on to the others as needed. You can also apply this strategy to all your holiday decorations. Group each season or holiday and mark each box accordingly.

Purchase organizing containers on sale at home improvement warehouses for organizing throughout the year. Home improvement stores have great boxes that fold down to a compact size when not in use. They can be stacked and stored for later use. Buy as many as you think you will need for the year.

Budget for Next Christmas

Take a look at your Christmas receipts from last year and plan a budget for next Christmas.

Hidden Agenda

Find a hiding place for Christmas gifts that you purchase on sale throughout the year. Make sure it is “child proof”. Make a list of what you purchase that includes the person’s name, what you bought and how much you spent. Keep this list in your purse or wallet for easy reference.

Filing for the Future

Start getting your files and records in order. Make a list of what you need to update or revamp your filing system. Don’t forget to purge what you don’t need to keep and move other documents, like taxes, to long-term storage.

 

Martha Matthews is a wife, mother, home manager and the Executive Director of Christian-Homemaking.com, a web site with resources dedicated to helping Christian homemakers succeed. She also has a popular free monthly newsletter for Christian homemakers called The Christian Homemaking Newsletter. To subscribe visit: http://www.christian-homemaking.com/newsletter.html