Does the idea of having all your family photos organized seem like an impossible dream that might take a lifetime to achieve, or would require hiring a team of experts for a month?

I know it can seem like an impossible task, but it can be done.  I’m not saying it will ever be finished, as you’ll always be adding new photos, but you can get all your old ones sorted out so that you can enjoy them more and have them stop bugging you.

I’m not a scrap-booker, and I’m no kind of photo expert.  All I have done is scan all my family photos, and all my parents’ family photos.  That included photos in albums with the sticky backing which were fading fast and old black and whites with peeling corners.  There were about 10 of my parents’ family albums, about 9 albums of my own before digital cameras, lots of packets of unsorted photos and lots of strays.  There were also photos in frames and cardboard folders.

There is more work to be done with labeling, looking for the negatives for ones we know are missing, choosing pictures to print and so on, but the feeling of achievement at getting this done was wonderful.  I did it while I was pregnant with my middle child and was not working, and it took several months of doing several hours per day.  Believe me you get better at it as you go along, but it is tedious.

In Australia we say “doing the washing” when we are talking about washing our clothes and linen.  “The laundry” is the room where the washing machine goes, which is usually a separate room here.

How good would it be if you never had to worry about your washing again.  I hate being hassled by the kids about items which I “should have” washed by now, lack of school  socks and so on. 

Like anything, having a system and a routine is the answer.  You find a way that works, and stick with that, not altering it if possible unless a better way presents itself.

It’s that quiet week between Christmas and New Years.  What should we be doing?  Should we:-

a) Go shopping in the sales and max out our credit cards if we have not already done so?
b) Clean the house like a maniac because we need to be perfect by the end of the year?
c) Write a massive list of things to do, or maybe a series of massive lists of things to do in order to be perfect for the New Year?
d) Flop down exhausted and eat potato chips and watch DVDs?

That’s right, there is no correct answer, but I do have a few ideas.  Perhaps like me, you do have a few things you’d like to get done this week to start the New Year feeling like you’ve got it together.

Readers have noted my previous admissions that being organized is not something which comes naturally or easily to me. 

This is why I enjoy writing about it.  I’m interested in the reasons I struggle with it, and how to be organized anyway.  Despite my lack of natural ability, my desire to be organized has always been strong and I have generally been reasonably successful in my efforts.

The fact that I have to work at it and struggle with it just makes it easier for me to write about it.  As several readers have observed in emails, who wants to hear advice from someone who finds everything easy and doesn’t share the same struggles as the rest of us.

Regularly Editing Your Wardrobe

Unless you have a particular career or hobby related to fashion which means it really does matter to you and give you pleasure to keep a great deal of clothes you are very unlikely to wear, you’re probably better off limiting the total amount of clothes you keep for yourself.

In order to not run out of space, be able to find the clothes you’re after, make it easier to choose outfits, keep clothes in good condition and feel positive about your clothes, you need to regularly edit.  This means clearing out as many clothes as you add, so that you keep to a reasonable amount.