Hey there.  Time for Part 2 of my lessons learned organization tips.

• Mail Station – We used to have a pile of mail and that turned into a pile of mail for me and another pile for my husband.  Then if we weren’t able to get through our little piles and we picked up more mail, there was another unsorted pile for each of us.  It was a mess.  So I bought this vertical file from the Container Store and we have the following folders:
  • Incoming – rarely use but it comes in handy when there is a stray pile and you just want to get it off the counter
  • Outgoing – rare again, I like to act on whatever needs to go out as soon as I get it.  Or it gets taken directly to the car or my purse so I have it on me to mail when I’m out and about.  We only have one place that needs a check, everything else is auto-pay baby!
  • Stamps/Labels – lifesaver, they are all in one place and easy to find
  • One folder for each of us, even the kiddo - perfect so we each handle our own mail.  Addy's wellness check paperwork and other things go in there and then we go through the folder together.
  • To File - Remnants of our mail that needs to be filed and we don't have time right that second.  Usually I just like to put those items where they need to go so it doesn't pile up at all.  I am a pile killer in training.
  • To Pay - rare again, just use this as a home just in case.

• “Everything is impossible until it is done” – Nelson Mandela. - This is my favorite quote at the moment.  I am turning into a project manager extraordinaire and I am tackling everything as such.  One of the things I hate is working all week and then cleaning up all weekend.  No thank you.  So everything is tackled in bite size chunks and manageable pieces.  If I have a free moment to clear out the sink of dishes and put away the clean ones, just take the time out and do it.  If I keep this up through out the week, when it is time for the weekend it is 85% chill time and that is key to recharge and get some rest.

• Meal Plan first, grocery shop second - Both of us don’t like the “What’s for dinner?” question so we figure it out ahead of time and go from there during the week.  Salmon is a given so one day is taken care of, we have a Trader Joe’s (yes!) and we’ll get frozen meatballs, marinara and angel hair pasta for another easy meal. So on and so on.  Has worked wonders.

I have an iPhone and I am a sucker for a good app.

• Mint is AMAZING.  I tried the budget method of different folders and loads of cash, didn’t work.  But this app is the best, you just plug in your accounts and set up budgets.  Then you maintain categories for everything, it lines up with your budgets and you can let this beautiful interface show you trends, savings, etc.  It is wonderful!
• Wunderlist – I can make my own lists, which I only do right on the fly, like a mall trip or an art store trip when I inevitably forgot to buy Cerulean blue watercolor paint.  Always happens.  Or you can make team lists where 2 or more people can read/write to a list.  We use it for grocery shopping so we can “watch” the other person shop and quickly add something to the list we might have forgotten.  It’s so futuristic, love it.