Fall Donation Challenge

Clear the clutter and help those in need!

It is time to get your home ready for those holiday decorations, overnight guests and parties. To get ready, I am challenging you to go from room to room in your home with a bag or box, collecting items you no longer need and passing them along to those in need during this holiday season. 

In the kitchen, get rid of those appliances and gadgets that promised to make you the best cook in the world in half the time but you have never used. Go through your clothes and get rid of those you no longer wear or never wore (yes, even if the tags are still on them). Pull the linens out and get rid of the ones you have not used recently. Have the children pick out toys and games they no longer love to give to children who may not have toys. Pull books off of the shelf you will never read or refer to again. If you feel surfaces are too clutter, pull off items that no longer inspire you. 

You will feel so much lighter and it will make the memories of the season so much more enjoyable when you have less clutter to work around when getting the home ready for guests. In addition,  you will know you have helped those who consider your discards treasures!



Here are Cathy, the owner's, donation. This comes from an already organized house so we know you can find something to donate and probably easily top this. Post yours on social media (see links on our home page) or email it to info@psorganizing.com now through November 30, 2015. Everyone who submits a picture will received a free in-home consultation or $50 off a regularly priced 4-hour organizing session so share yours today. November 30, 2015 we will select the largest pile of donations and that lucky winner will win a 4-hour organizing session.

Simplify Dinner

Eating as a family is so important, but hard after a long, hard day. Sometimes it seems easier just to run by the local fast food restaurant and eat on the run. However, with a little advance planning on the weekend or slower day, dinner time can be easy and healthy. Here are a few tips to making dinner easier and definitely healthier:

• Buy meat in bulk and cook it all at once, freezing the extras to throw into a recipe during the week when things are busy.
• Buy precooked meat like rotisserie chicken or frozen grilled chicken strips or shrimp to save time when preparing your favorite dish.
• Chop veggies ahead or buy prepared veggies to throw into your favorite dish.
• When cooking something like rice or quinoa, double the recipe and use it in another dish later in the week.
• Double the entire recipe for whatever you are making and freeze the second portion for a night you know you will not have time to prepare a meal.

Here is a quick fall meal, that your family is sure to enjoy:

White Bean Chili

Rotisserie chicken shredded

2 cans white beans

8 ounces salsa

32 oz chicken broth

½ cup shredded pepper jack cheese

½ bag tortilla chips crushed

Mix it all together and cook on low heat until thickened.

Garnish with Sour Cream and eat with tortilla chips or garlic cheese biscuits.

Garlic Cheese Biscuits

2 cups bisquick

1 cup grated cheese

2 teaspoons garlic salt

1 cup milk

Mix together and bake at 425 in muffin tins for about 20 minutes.

Pumpkin Crunch Cake

1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin

1 can evaporated milk

3 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

3 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1 box yellow cake mix

1/2 cup melted butter

Combine first 6 ingredients with a whisk. Pour into greased 9x13 dish. Sprinkle cake mix on top. Drizzle with butter. Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes. Cake should look set and top for golden brown. Cool completely.

With these recipes, you cannot go wrong. Invite family or friends over for a delicious meal and make some memories! 

The 10 Phases in Preparing For and Adjusting to College

It's that time of year...kids are headed off to college. As parents, we want to make their transition successful and have them enjoy this experience. I received this in the parents newsletter of the college my freshman is attending in Texas. I thought it might help other parents who are trying to figure out the best way to support their children as they transition. If you do not have a college student pass it along to those you know who do.

Phase 1: Early Summer Anticipation

High school senior graduates and looks to the future.  Mixed feelings of sadness, accomplishment, and anticipation.

Phase 2: Midsummer Anxiety

Realize they will soon leave home, family, and friends, and those feelings of security.

Phase 3: Late Summer Panic

Student is plunged into the college environment complete with roommate, university red tape, classes, and a foreign social world.

Phase 4:The Honeymoon

Student meets many new friends during Welcome Week and there are no tests for three weeks!  It’s play time! Or so it seems…

Phase 5: End of the Honeymoon

“Where did all of this work come from and where did the time go?”  Homesickness may appear at this stage as the student feels somewhat overwhelmed.

Phase 6: The Grass is Always Greener

“There’s no doubt I would do better somewhere else.  Can I transfer?”  These feelings are common and usually subside.

Phase 7: You Can’t Go Home Again

This happens the first time a student goes home.  They realize that life for the rest of the family goes on without them.

Phase 8: Primitive Coping Behavior

Well into the first semester, they have finally learned to use the library and hold a reasonably intelligent conversation.  They are excited about learning.

Phase 9: Realization

Usually right before finals, they see the great amount of study time ahead of them and realize their future depends on their academic success.

Phase 10: Putting It All Together

Sometime during the second semester (hopefully), they see college as a total experience.  They realize that hard work and fun can go together.

Finding the Kitchen Table in a Busy Home

Clutter seems to come into our home at such a rapid pace. When we get busy with work, family or just trying to manage life clutter can quickly and easily take over.

While helping a busy family regain control of their house, we decided to take advantage of a summer day where the kids were home from school and put them to work. Everyone was working on a corner of the room, clearing clutter while finding lost items they had been looking for in the dining room/living room. The daughter, who can not remember seeing the surface of the dining room table or eating a meal with her family there, came in as we were finishing up and excitedly said "Mom, that looks great. Can we actually eat dinner on that table tonight?" The family sat down to a meal at their dining room table that evening.

These are the moments that make all of the hard work worthwhile!

Want to bring back the family meal to your table? We would love the privilege of helping you clear the clutter and bring the fun back to your table.

Helping a Senior with Dementia Transition

Dementia is such an awful disease and almost every family I know has a loved one that is affected. Our family lost my husband's mom this year to dementia.

Each week we are moving clients who can no longer to live independently due to dementia. We like for everything to go smoothly and for the client to transition into a home they feel comfortable in. Here are some tips we have found to make the move easier:

• Use their favorite items from their home in the new apartment. They are familiar, making them feel at home and able to easily find what they need.
• Take attention to detail to set up a very similar environment in the new home, including furniture placement and the location of the things they will be looking for.
• Wait to pack boxes and change the environment until the last minute because seeing boxes will just confuse them.
• Have a family member or friend take the client out for the day so that they do not see all of the work that goes into their transition and bring them back when it is complete so they can just walk into a new home where they recognize their belongings.
• Label new spaces in the home so that they know where to find things because they will not remember if we just tell them.
• Make lists of daily processes, like what they need to do to get ready for the day or what they need to do to get ready, and post them in the apartment.
• Make notes on the door to remind them of things they need to do or take with them before leaving.
• Set up a calendar where they can keep track of what day it is (crossing off days as they are complete) and what they have scheduled for the day.
• Walk the client through the new apartment, orienting them to the new space, and have a loved one spend time with them in the new apartment for the first couple of days to help them get acquainted with their new space.

We would love the privileged of helping your loved one transition into their new home.

The Problem with Space for Hoarders

Recently we received a call from a frantic family member. Adult Protective Services had "red tagged" the client's home due to extreme clutter and they were being released from the hospital the following day. The home needed to be cleaned out before they could come home.

We scrambled to put together a plan and a crew to clear the home. We were unable to meet with the client and work with them as we normally would so we did the best we could do, getting his permission to remove certain things that were clearly trash/recycling. We had to box up remaining clutter in clearly labeled boxes he could see, hoping he would have the capacity to find what he is looking for.

We were able to meet all of the standards of Adult Protective Services and the hospital giving him what everyone thought would be a welcoming surprise. However, we knew it would not be.

I asked to meet with him upon arrival to give him a tour and assure him that we took care of his belongings, but the family did not think that was necessary. When he walked into his home, he told his family that this was not his home. He got very angry over the work done and felt we had taken his things (because he could not see them). Eventually, I was able to go in and reassure him that I have the same respect for his belongings as he does and that they were there but just in clearly labeled boxes. He was set at ease and is adjusting to the new environment.

When someone is used to a certain environment and struggles with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder/Hoarding, a clear space is not something they are comfortable with. Someone may think they are doing them a favor, however it may not be a welcomed favor. The hoarder immediately feels they need to fill that space created.

Because of this, our most common practice in working with those who struggle with hoarding and chronic disorganization is to work directly with the client and move at a much slower pace, getting them used to the new cleared space and training them to maintain the clutter free environment one space at a time. It allows us to work through the emotional and psychological issues as well as the physical ones.

Every once in a while we do a quick clean up like this because Adult Protective Services has gotten involved or the client has passed away and the family just wants the house cleared out. If you or a loved one needs help gaining control of their surroundings, we hope you will let us share our expertise with them.

Never Lose Those Keys Again

Tired of spending time looking for your keys, cell phone, purse, wallet, remote, sunglasses or even a child? Clients are always saying they wish they could put a tracking device on some of these items. Well, their wish has come true.

There are many devices on the market now that you can use to quickly and easily find these lost or even stolen items using an app on your phone or if you have lost your phone, you can sign on to the app using a computer or someone else's phone.

Here are a few:

• thetileapp.com
• the trackr.com
• linquet.com
• kickstarter.com
• Smead also offers the stick N find available at most office supply stores

If you don't want to invest in an app or even spend the time it takes to use the app trying to locate them, it is always best to have one place where you always put that item. Whether it's a pocket in your purse you always put the phone, a hook at the door where you always hang your keys, or a spot in your car where you always put your sunglasses, having a standard place where items are stored just makes life easier.