Tag Archives: Organizing

DIY: Drinking Glasses As Whiteboards–You Can Write On Them!

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If your house is like ours after a full-day there are a dozen cups laying around the house. My kids get one out in the morning. I get one out. That’s three. But then friends come over. Say we add a few more cups. But then they all forget whose cup is whose and in an instant there are another 4 cups out. I pull my hair out with this issue. But thanks to the blog, theimprovisedlife.com, I have found a solution.

Sharpies. Sounds crazy, but they tested it out and you can write on glass [or mirrors] with a sharpie and it simply washes off. So get a great selection of Sharpies [you can pick up colorful packs at Costco reasonably] and have the kids, their friends create a work of art [or just write their names] on their glasses. So simple. So creative. So easy to do. Saves time running around after your kids’ glasses all around the house and opens up room in the dishwasher for more important things. You can also remove the writing with warm, soapy water.

Photos from the improvisedlife.com which is a great blog!

Additional uses: wine glasses instead of those dorky wine rings, write love notes to your kids/partner on the mirror, or take notes.

Pinterest for Families: Why Join In?

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I am always looking for a way to simplify my family’s life! I have enjoyed getting to know the blogging world, Facebook, Twitter, Evernote as well as some others. To nurture my creative side and keep my creative ideas organized I use Pinterest. This website is used by individuals and businesses alike and is growing in popularity at an incredible rate!

“Pinterest is a social media network based on images. If you find a recipe, a blog post, a pair of pants, a livingroom set, you can “pin” it to a board and share it with your followers. Similarly, if you see something someone else has “pinned” you can “repin” it to your board. Picture an enormous blank wall with individual bulletin boards organized by your interests.” As said by Social Velocity  I personally keep “pins” in categories such as: Crafts, DIY, Recipes, Design Ideas, Rainy Day Projects, Organizing, etc. But you can keep it in whatever form works for you. Be very careful because this “pinning” can get addicting!

Here’s why I love it:

1. It’s Easy: It allows me to organize my creative ideas and inspirations easily. I keep ideas of crafts to do with the kids, design ideas for our house, things that inspire me, etc… These are all kept on separate “boards”. I can find the ideas on Pinterest or elsewhere and simply “pin” to a board. [You can download a simple app that allows you to “pin” things to your account.]

2. It’s Creative: I can browse for ideas & follow people who have ideas & projects I like. I can take a look around Pinterest and find others who are posting things I appreciate. I can then “follow” them to find out what else they are doing.

3. It Helps Me Keep My Ideas Organized: I can organize recipes. There are tons of yummy recipes on Pinterest. You can get great ideas and keep them well organized on their own board.

4. It’s Always With Me: I can access Pinterest wherever I am. I like that I can pull up or share my boards any time.

To get started: Go to Pinterest.com. You have to request an invitation. If this doesn’t work just email me and I will shoot you an invitation. [When I tried to join without an invitation from someone already on it took weeks to get an invitation.] Then start to browse around. Before you start “pinning” ideas to boards you will want to consider what categories you want [just sketch it out before you get going]. Now make new boards and when you see something you like you can “pin” it to a board. You can also download a “pin it” app for your computer or phone so you can “pin” things you like outside of Pinterest.

If you have any questions shoot me an email or comment. Enjoy!

Evernote is a Great Tool for Families!

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I love collecting resources & knowledge, but where do I keep all those random bits of information? Someone mentions a great camp, I think of a new blog idea, my kids tell me something really funny, or I have an idea of a project I want to do–I just send the website, link or idea to Evernote and voila I have it whenever I need it. Since I have gone digital [thanks iPhone!] I need a place to keep all my websites, ideas, whims, questions, etc… organized. Welcome Evernote!

Evernote is my favorite website right now. I signed up for an account wondering what the big deal was, but now I’m hooked! You can add a bookmark so your computer will send sites or links to Evernote with just a click or you can manually add them. Try it! I can categorize things by tags and always look back and find what I want. Right now I divide my life into: work, blog, family, kids, recipes, school [kids’], summer camps, house projects, & design. If I am at a meeting and I forget my notebook I just use whatever device I have in front of me and make a page on Evernote. This is the real deal and it’s helping me stay sane!

Get an Evernote account.

Why use Evernote?

  • Write down your thoughts or notes anytime, anywhere. It’s better than a notebook/journal because it is synced through the cloud and therefore it is on every device you have. I use this feature for blog post ideas, funny things the kids say, etc.

  • Clip websites and/or pages right from any device & keep them organized. No more remembering to write something down, bookmarking it, or having to hunt it down at the bottom of you purse. It’s right in one place. I use this for projects, summer camps, blog posts, etc.
  • Recipes or other things you can photograph rather than entering. An old recipe, someone just sent it to you, or its not on line? Just take a photo of the recipe and send the photo to Evernote. Now when you are at the store you can access all your recipes. I use this feature at the grocery store constantly.
  • Email your Evernote “notes”. You can simply share your Evernote pages with whomever you want. I use this for work, meetings, etc.
  • Voice notes. I have not done this yet, but I have it on good authority [Thanks, John!] that you can leave voice messages and Evernote transfers your message to print and leaves it in your Evernote notebook. I need to get to this one! No more trying to get in one last email while driving!

Some sites to search for more info on how to use and optimize Evernote:

What do you use to stay organized? How else have you used Evernote? Please share so we can all learn how we can keep our families and ourselves more organized!