Mail & Paper organization
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Do you have a paper problem? I do. If you don't, you're in denial or too perfect to be my friend.
Between kids churning out art "master pieces" like maniacs, all the school papers coming home #preCOVIDproblems, and the mail piling up, it's easy to find yourself drowning in paper.
I've found by implementing these simple mom hacks, our paper sitc is dramatically better (always room for improvement much like my figure).
If you read my blog on playroom organization, then you already know that arts and crafts are HUGE in our house. My kids will make dozens of creations a day; each one is more precious to them than the next. To manage all that paper, I created an "art gallery" in the playroom (see photo below). The "Every child is an artist" decal, https://amzn.to/2Z6c8VQ, and gallery style display wire, https://amzn.to/2OglnwN, are a fun addition to the playroom decor and serve a very functional purpose. After art bonanza concludes and clean up commences, the kids pick their favorite creations to be put on display (and occasionally I pick a couple as well, normally I'm not terribly wowed by their work -- maybe we have a couple of future engineers in this house). Then every day or two, we clear it off to make room for their latest treasures.
The physical gallery is only a part of this hack. You need to have an open dialog with your kids; art is fun to make and some of it is better than others. In our house, we display the best work that we're truly proud of, and the rest of the "fun work" goes in the garbage. I don't sneak around trashing their work. We have a family value of honesty and sharing critical feedback with each other to grow and evolve. It's ok; I know this is a little scary for some of you (don't close the browser window yet). My four year old embraces the process. She'll hold up two creations side-by-side and honestly share her opinion of her work. "Yeah, on this one.... I really rushed making her hair. She looks more like a scarecrow than a mermaid; mermaids have hair that flows. Let's throw this one away and add the other one to the gallery, Mommy." It's a proud moment, mamas. Give it try; it will make your art papers reduce by over 50% immediately, promise.
Between kids churning out art "master pieces" like maniacs, all the school papers coming home #preCOVIDproblems, and the mail piling up, it's easy to find yourself drowning in paper.
I've found by implementing these simple mom hacks, our paper sitc is dramatically better (always room for improvement much like my figure).
If you read my blog on playroom organization, then you already know that arts and crafts are HUGE in our house. My kids will make dozens of creations a day; each one is more precious to them than the next. To manage all that paper, I created an "art gallery" in the playroom (see photo below). The "Every child is an artist" decal, https://amzn.to/2Z6c8VQ, and gallery style display wire, https://amzn.to/2OglnwN, are a fun addition to the playroom decor and serve a very functional purpose. After art bonanza concludes and clean up commences, the kids pick their favorite creations to be put on display (and occasionally I pick a couple as well, normally I'm not terribly wowed by their work -- maybe we have a couple of future engineers in this house). Then every day or two, we clear it off to make room for their latest treasures.
The physical gallery is only a part of this hack. You need to have an open dialog with your kids; art is fun to make and some of it is better than others. In our house, we display the best work that we're truly proud of, and the rest of the "fun work" goes in the garbage. I don't sneak around trashing their work. We have a family value of honesty and sharing critical feedback with each other to grow and evolve. It's ok; I know this is a little scary for some of you (don't close the browser window yet). My four year old embraces the process. She'll hold up two creations side-by-side and honestly share her opinion of her work. "Yeah, on this one.... I really rushed making her hair. She looks more like a scarecrow than a mermaid; mermaids have hair that flows. Let's throw this one away and add the other one to the gallery, Mommy." It's a proud moment, mamas. Give it try; it will make your art papers reduce by over 50% immediately, promise.
Gallery Wire Display
https://amzn.to/2OglnwN
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Wall Decal
https://amzn.to/2Z6c8VQ
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Painting Display Rack
https://amzn.to/3gzImif
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If your kids are into painting canvases or doing dimensional pieces like clay or upcycled pieces, this display rack, https://amzn.to/3gzImif (look up on the right for a preview) would be super cute to showcase their work.
Now what do you do with all the "best" art pieces that were on display and move out of rotation? I like to pick one each month and add it to my kids' binders. Binders, you ask? YES! Check out the pics below to get the idea.
Now what do you do with all the "best" art pieces that were on display and move out of rotation? I like to pick one each month and add it to my kids' binders. Binders, you ask? YES! Check out the pics below to get the idea.
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This binder represents aprox. two and a half years of my son's art collection (it's pretty packed for a 3" binder (here's a nice four pack deal on this size binder, https://amzn.to/2CbctxC). I like to feature one art piece and a school photo montage on each spread (try to knock this out real time, but frequently have a couple months of backlog). This is a great way to preserve the mediocre daycare app photos or your distance learning Instagram feed. I slip each page into a clear protector, https://amzn.to/2VRfTws, to ensure they don't get damaged (often I'll have to cut down the art size as construction paper is bigger than 8.5x11" -- don't worry, the integirty of the piece is still there folks). This amazing Fiskars cutter is clutch for the trimming, https://amzn.to/2ZfMfTC.
I'm sure some of you are thinking, "CRAP! That's a lot of work and there's a trendy company that says I can send off the art and get these beautiful hardbound books mailed right to me..." uh, yeah, that shiz is friggin' costly - not here in coupon clipper house, not ever. This is our hack; take it or leave it y'all.
In addition to art, there's a ton of school memorabilia you want to save. I was the kid who's parents moved my senior year summer / freshman college fall, and had to look at all they saved when our old house sold. A word of advice, please don't save it all for your kids - please. Your adult children do NOT want to go through boxes upon boxes of treasures. Try to pick the best pieces, only save report cards, class/team photos, newspaper clippings, awards, honors, disciplinary write ups (seriously, my detention slip detailing my "excessive talking" in 6th grade is a friggin' Classic Christy #talkingaboutmyselfinthethirdpersonyikes). I love these little School Memories books, https://amzn.to/2VXbOqz (see my redacted snapshot of Bennett's booklet and folder below). They're small and require you as the mama to be selective with what you save (as you know I'm not a machine... I can't limit myself to this tiny booklet and the larger folder... I also have my art binders... and I also started saving some of Bennett's school journals, but not all of them, seriously - I'm really trying to purge as much as possible). Also, these memory books ask similar questions each year for your child to document which provides a nice memento to see how their personalities evolve. As I teased, I have to augment the small pocket folder with the FREE oversized folder (for some select homework and other documents). This awesome and cute folder is from the school photo company; they give it away with their order form #yesplease. Whatever doesn't fit in one of these vessels.... has to go - toss it already. I pack everything away in decorative pressboard chests (I always get mine from TJMaxx, HomeGoods or Tuesday Morning for a couple bucks -- here's an ugly, overpriced example of what I'm talking about online, https://amzn.to/3edsGj3).
I'm sure some of you are thinking, "CRAP! That's a lot of work and there's a trendy company that says I can send off the art and get these beautiful hardbound books mailed right to me..." uh, yeah, that shiz is friggin' costly - not here in coupon clipper house, not ever. This is our hack; take it or leave it y'all.
In addition to art, there's a ton of school memorabilia you want to save. I was the kid who's parents moved my senior year summer / freshman college fall, and had to look at all they saved when our old house sold. A word of advice, please don't save it all for your kids - please. Your adult children do NOT want to go through boxes upon boxes of treasures. Try to pick the best pieces, only save report cards, class/team photos, newspaper clippings, awards, honors, disciplinary write ups (seriously, my detention slip detailing my "excessive talking" in 6th grade is a friggin' Classic Christy #talkingaboutmyselfinthethirdpersonyikes). I love these little School Memories books, https://amzn.to/2VXbOqz (see my redacted snapshot of Bennett's booklet and folder below). They're small and require you as the mama to be selective with what you save (as you know I'm not a machine... I can't limit myself to this tiny booklet and the larger folder... I also have my art binders... and I also started saving some of Bennett's school journals, but not all of them, seriously - I'm really trying to purge as much as possible). Also, these memory books ask similar questions each year for your child to document which provides a nice memento to see how their personalities evolve. As I teased, I have to augment the small pocket folder with the FREE oversized folder (for some select homework and other documents). This awesome and cute folder is from the school photo company; they give it away with their order form #yesplease. Whatever doesn't fit in one of these vessels.... has to go - toss it already. I pack everything away in decorative pressboard chests (I always get mine from TJMaxx, HomeGoods or Tuesday Morning for a couple bucks -- here's an ugly, overpriced example of what I'm talking about online, https://amzn.to/3edsGj3).
Now on to the real culprit, grown up paper #theWORST.
Implement the rule we have in our family; if you can't deal with organizing it, don't go to the mail box. I am so over a friggin' pile of mail on my kitchen counter or in my mudroom.
"Dear Family, don't get the mail unless you want to sort it, please, pretty please? "
I love this unopened mail sorter, https://amzn.to/3gzEYnx. Perhaps it would eliminate our mail rule if we only had the wallspace to add it in the mix.
Right now in our house, we only have a two compartment "opened mail" sorter. It is really helpful in our mud room to categorize "mail to do something with" (pay, read, change something) or "mail to file" (aka scan) - everything else goes in the recycling bin. I love this three tier sorter for opened mail, https://amzn.to/2ZhztnK; don't even know what the machinations of my mind would do with a third bin #sexymomstuff.
Implement the rule we have in our family; if you can't deal with organizing it, don't go to the mail box. I am so over a friggin' pile of mail on my kitchen counter or in my mudroom.
"Dear Family, don't get the mail unless you want to sort it, please, pretty please? "
I love this unopened mail sorter, https://amzn.to/3gzEYnx. Perhaps it would eliminate our mail rule if we only had the wallspace to add it in the mix.
Right now in our house, we only have a two compartment "opened mail" sorter. It is really helpful in our mud room to categorize "mail to do something with" (pay, read, change something) or "mail to file" (aka scan) - everything else goes in the recycling bin. I love this three tier sorter for opened mail, https://amzn.to/2ZhztnK; don't even know what the machinations of my mind would do with a third bin #sexymomstuff.
Unopened Mail Sorter https://amzn.to/3gzEYnx
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Three Tier Sorter https://amzn.to/2ZhztnK
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Expandable Folder
https://amzn.to/3fjo5xi
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I hope you noted the "mail to file" category.... so now it's time to get your very own receipt scanner. We got our NEAT Scanner so many years ago, and according to the Internet, apparently this slim version is cooler now, https://amzn.to/326OVEY. I love our NEAT scanner because it has a document feeder to allow multiple pages to scan with no babysitting. I allow like that we can search for documents (the NEAT application has an OCR reader that scanner for search terms). Perhaps there's a more modern scanner or version or brand that y'all love? Let me know; my techgeek hubbie said this thing sucks now. Let me wow my hubs with your recommendations.
Since we now only physically file IRS forms and other key documents (everything else is digitized), I like getting a pretty expandable folder for each year's important physical papers. This floral one is lovely, https://amzn.to/3fjo5xi.
I hope you found a few valuable ideas to help keep your paper problems managed! Read the rest of the Organize My Life blogs for more more hacks in home organization!
Since we now only physically file IRS forms and other key documents (everything else is digitized), I like getting a pretty expandable folder for each year's important physical papers. This floral one is lovely, https://amzn.to/3fjo5xi.
I hope you found a few valuable ideas to help keep your paper problems managed! Read the rest of the Organize My Life blogs for more more hacks in home organization!
