I’ve always been envious of people who organize their life in a day timer. It must feel very relieving to know what you are doing in advance each day and not have to worry about forgetting an important commitment. Both my sister and my mother live this way to some extent, and even my husband keeps his handy dandy pocket schedule in his car at all times. Clearly this is a trend I am missing.

I have NEVER been able to use a day timer, calendar or other time-based organizer. It really does not fit my personality. I don’t love scheduling things in advance, I prefer to do things based on mood, and I have a good enough memory to not lose sight of important events.

Enter motherhood. Living minute to minute? Extremely challenging. Doing things based on mood? Out the window. Depending on your MEMORY? HA!

Upon returning to work after maternity leave I quickly diagnosed myself with a moderate to severe case of mommy ADD. I don’t know if this exists medically, but in my world it’s a reality. My mom mentioned before Christmas that she needed to buy her “2013 calendar” and a light bulb went off in my head. It’s time to FORCE myself to learn to live by a calendar.

So obviously I’m going to do this bigger and better than my mom and I decided to entrust my Google calendar and (ready for this?) link it to my husband’s Google calendar and live in perfect sync, skipping into the sunset for eternity while “Here Comes the Sun” plays in the back ground.

Wishful thinking. I did set up my Google calendar and even had my tech-savvy brother sync it with my husband’s. I filled up the first month and was feeling like I had everything under control. The problem is I never opened it again. My husband never even looked at it to begin with. And alas, I went on for another 3 months like a wandering nomad.

On the 3rd month I got so sick of hearing myself ask my husband what his schedule was (I can only imagine how sick of hearing me HE was) that I threw the hope of the electronic calendar out the window (sorry Google) and decided to employ the trusty paper wall calendar. If this isn’t time-tested I don’t know what is.

I went on Microsoft Word and found great templates for month-to-month calendars. Perfect and free. I printed out this month and next month and away I went at unleashing my mental schedule down on paper. Relief.

I finished and proudly hung the 2 months next to my refrigerator. Next thing I knew, I blinked and a week went by and I didn’t consult my calendar once! WHAT is wrong with me?

As I stared at my wall I realized what the problem was. I need a magnifying glass to read this thing. And really, who has time to read a calendar?? I need to make this something I can reference.

I tore down the faulty calendars and printed 2 new templates. I busted out a yellow highlighter and a red, blue and black pen. Better than nothing. And in my kitchen, with baby in front pack, I had my own little arts and crafts fair. (Yes this is considered arts and crafts to people, like me, who work in finance).

I highlighted the days my husband is working because he has an unconventional schedule. I then wrote obligations in black and underlined what I had to do in red, and things my husband had to do in blue.

It’s no piece of art, but the colors make it easier to understand at a quick glance. And I feel mentally at ease not having to rely on my memory. If I ever get more on the ball I think I could perfect it more, but for now this is infinitely better than nothing, and considerably more useful than version 1.0.

I’m learning as I slowly get my life in order that it’s as important to be mentally organized as it is to be physically organized. Mental organization is mental freedom, which magically makes room for more productivity. And after all, productivity is where it’s at for a working mother in the 21st century, right?

Any and all tips on mental organization are welcome!!

Ohhh, organization. It’s a funny word, isn’t it? I think it is THE official go-to adjective on every resume. It’s such a general term that everyone can relate to in some way. After all, what employer doesn’t love an “ORGANIZED” employee? A disheveled mess doesn’t exactly have the word success plastered on it.

I’m pretty sure my current resume houses this fancy little word. Actually, who am I kidding, I’m positive it does. Funnily enough, if you looked at my desk right now you would probably stamp the word “LIAR” on my forehead. I am a post-it note freak. That should tell the whole story.

In my defense, I DO consider myself organized. I am mentally organized. I can juggle many tasks at work, prioritize them in my brain, mentally check what has been done vs. what is outstanding AND give a DETAILED (another resume classic) account of where we stand. My desk does not mirror my brain however, and my house? It’s a close relative to my desk.

I will be the first to admit that my disorganization is a result of sheer laziness. I leave my clothes on the bench at the end of my bed. Why? Because walking to the closet, opening it, finding a hanger and scooping my pants on to it is a mental Mt. Everest. Can’t do it. Not in the moment at least. Instead, I let the clothes pile and every 3rd day or so I can’t take it anymore and I go on a hanging spree.

I thank my mother for instilling in me the hatred for a messy space. This gives me hope that SOMEDAY I can overcome my disease of disorganization. And in the meantime, keeps my house decent and livable.

When I moved into my house when I got married, I was in over my head. Organizing 2,000 square feet? Are you kidding? I could BARELY keep my head above water in my 10×10 bedroom. My mom gave me this tiny bit of advice, on which I have decided to base my very first blog post: Everything should have a home. Simple. Enlightening.

Now, if you are a truly organized person, you’re probably thinking this girl has a lot to learn. But if you are like me, and your pants from yesterday are still lingering at the end of your bed, and the mail that is important but not really THAT important is hanging out on your kitchen counter, then I’m sure you feel a little enlightened.

This is, and continues to be a work in progress. A year and a half later, I am still slowly working at giving everything a proper “home,” and items that I can’t seem to appropriately place, I try to give away or throw away. As for the kinda-but-not-really-important mail- that is currently in my pantry in cute metal mail bins, one with my name on it, the other with my husband’s (yes, written on post-it notes. Some habits die hard).

I recently decided this practice will be best employed if taken one room at a time. Genius, right? I started with my living room. Why you ask? Because that’s the room most outsider’s see, obviously, and because I almost killed myself about a month ago falling over a baby toy. Code red hazard.

My mom bought my daughter a pink canvas bin that is embroidered with “baby things” that perfectly houses my daughter’s little collection of toys. She also helped me organize her changing table, and I devoted a half hour to placing items on my mantel that compliment each other.

The little drawers in the front of my TV stand are filled with NetFlix envelopes, stray DVDs, my Apple TV, and other TV related nick-nacks. How creative of me!

My husband refinished the china cabinet I inherited from my great aunt, which MADE me remove everything from its shelves. It was so beautiful when he finished that I was motivated to put everything back nice and organized.

The “lower level “of my coffee table (what is that called?) is full of books and photo albums that are currently in circulation, and I even bought a pretty dark wicker basket that stays on the coffee table to hold magazines and clickers. Let me just say, it’s truly amazing when you can find the clicker.

Last but not least, my husband’s laptop that was living on the coffee table with the power cord strung over the back of the couch for 15 months (embarrassing but true), is now in the corner of my living room, on his grandmother’s antique sewing table, at our own personal “internet café” as my brother named it, complete with an adorable ottoman as a seat that I found in the home section at Marshall’s.

One room down, seven to go. And I am motivated to move on to room #2- my kitchen, because I LOVE the feeling of this organized and clean space called my living room. And the best part about it is that it’s so quick and therefore EASY to clean (easy is a word us lazy folk love). I can put everything away in under 5 minutes and somehow, when my space is clear, my brain is clear.

Thanks, mom, for this tiny yet brain clearing, mood improving piece of advice, and for inspiring my first blog post. Keep the wisdom coming!