My tools for organizing

Fitting a toddler bedroom in a corner of our Master suite. ( hopefully not for too much longer.)


Baskets for toddler/preschool books under the coffee table in the living room.


Tackle boxes for small organizing jobs, put up high on an armoire away from little fingers.


Polly pocket and horse accessories work well
in these tackle boxes.




Divide light brite pieces by colour. Organize a sewing kit. Arrange Lego in large and small divided boxes.




Our daughter's Duplo bus (now passed down to her brother) comes with a cover to keep dust out. The cover also has grooves to accommodate the wheels. (for times when you don't want the bus to move.) The two green play mats are removable as well.

On a Horticultural note: My spider plant (Cholorphytum comosum) has a baby!


Family room toy storage.
IKEA cupboards are great!
They can hide a lot of the mess.
Wheeled storage works well for Thomas train pieces and car tracks. Note the handy IKEA stool near by.





Dining room hutch : books,craft supplies and playdoh storage. Only one drawer actually holds kitchen towels etc.

Organization... we all could use more of it.

I picked up an issue of ORGANIZE the other day. I am always looking for new ways to get more organized. There was an article about a mother of 5 making a toy/media room for her children. The idea was great but, we don't all have that much space! (a custom shelf with plastic storage compartments 3 high by 8 wide to store all the toys.)

In our home play is in many rooms. Game cube and toys in the girls' room, computer in another, shelves and baskets for books and crafts in the dining room. (more in the family room.) A friend's husband once commented that even our bits of clutter are neatly organized. I know that is not always the case but, that is my goal. Paper clutter is one of the worst... Why do we keep so much! I'm slowly reducing the paper volume. Clearing the clutter really does free the mind! I looked at my kitchen this evening after dinner dishes were done and felt relaxed.

One of my favourite tools for organizing is plastic tackle boxes. I like that you can adjust the dividers to accommodate different items. The containers work great for organizing different sizes and colours of lego, craft supplies, polly pocket toys etc... They come in many different sizes to store in craft boxes or on shelves.

Ikea is also great for their plastic containers. We picked up a couple with wheels for road tracks and wooden Thomas train pieces. Now our two year old can roll them
to the mess to help clean up. When our first daughter was 2 we purchased a lego bus to store all the duplo, our son enjoys pushing the bus and will sometimes pick up the blocks. (we need to work on that)

I would like to work on my closets next, I know I can get them more organized. We need more storage shelves in the main hall closet (our misc storage) When we first moved into our townhouse our first daughter was 7 months old. My husband and I put up shelves in the garage as she slept. (it took us 3 hours, she slept right through what a nap!) We filled them and I am happy to say now, purged as well. (to free up some space) Who says you have to park a car in a garage! Do bikes and kids riding toys count?