I DID IT

Things I Wish I Knew When I Was A Teenage Girl

2012-01-30T16:18:00.000-06:00

Last week I spoke to a group of high school girls on the topic of living your passion as a career. It got me thinking about if I was a high school girl and had it to do it over again what advice do I wish I had been given. So I reached out to my wise network of women on facebook and posed the question. Here is a compilation of everything that they had to say.

That being a teenage girl is the hardest time of your life.
Be curious.
Ask questions.
Vote with your feet (meaning if you support something show up for it).
Be part of the conversation.
It is OK to speak up.
The boy who insults you or the girl who is mean is living a secret life of pain that nobody knows about, so be kind.
Be the change you wish to see in the world (Gandhi).
No adult knows what they want to be when they grow up, we are all still trying to figure it out.
There are many people that create their own job. If you have a passion and others need it, it is a job.
When you feel strong, hold onto the feeling and figure out what it is all about, follow it, trust it.
Know how important it is to just be yourself.
Don't let the expectations of others define your life, as you will then never truly be happy
Give yourself time to figure out what your passion is, as a teenager you probably don't know what it is and that is OK.
Power the mind and you can do anything you choose....go get it!
Every entrepreneurial venture should be equal parts passion and profession.
To follow your heart and your passion ALWAYS!
When your work is joyful, everything else falls into place.
Listen to your heart over your parents, peers, boyfriend, when it comes to a career.
Expose yourself to new cultures and new environments.
Continue to learn.
What other people think of you is none of your business.
Love your body you are in right now as when you look back on pictures of yourself years from now, you are going to think you are HOT!

Do any of these resonate with you? Do you have a teenage girl in your life that needs to read this? Print it, email it, highlight it, share it, mail it....you just never know whose life you can change by starting the conversation!

I am raising three boys. They need to read this as well to help them better understand the girls in their lives. My future daughter-in-laws will thank me some day!

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS.Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business asI Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based outof Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.mssimplicity.com/

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Order featured Clever Container organizing supplies here, consultant ID #18.

Favorite Organizing Tools....Lazy Susan

2012-01-24T05:55:00.000-06:00

Lazy Susans are one of the most overlooked organizing tools. Usually with each one of my clients I can find uses for 2 or 3 of them in their homes. Traditionally when you think of a lazy susan your mind goes to the lower corner cabinet in the kitchen. I want you to use your imagination when thinking of uses for lazy susans.

They are ideal in places that are hard to reach, such as the cabinets above a fridge or microwave.
They work for deep cabinets where there is wasted space.
How about a corner kitchen upper cabinet where the stuff in the back is soon forgotten?

What can you put on a lazy susan? Just about anything that you can think of. Try to keep like items together.

Maybe you have a first aid section in an upper cabinet.
I have my oils and vinegars on two above my microwave. Above is the picture of them in use.
I have my spices in a corner cabinet where I can fit three lazy susans.
How about the top shelf of a fridge for the milks and juices. They make large lazy susans with deep lips just for this use to help keep the spills under control.

Where can you find lazy susans? You can find lazy susans at any of the big box stores. Designers are even hopping on the band wagon and making more stylish and trendy looking ones.

This week I want you to find an awkward space in your kitchen where a lazy susan may work.

Pull everything down.
Wipe down the shelf.
Go through the contents for old, broken or discarded items.
Replace what is left on the lazy susan and you got yourself and organized shelf. (Make sure that you put the lazy susan on the shelf before placing the items on it.)

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.
Order featured Clever Container organizing supplies here, consultant ID #18.

Favorite Organizing Tools.....Wooden Hangers

2012-01-23T19:14:00.000-06:00

Wooden hangers have got to be the one item that you can do to a closet that will make the most difference. Simply putting all of your clothes on wooden hangers instead of mismatched plastic ones turns your closet from drab to fab. Now when I walk into my closet it is like going into a store, rather than a rats nest of clothes.

Why wooden hangers are beneficial:

Your clothes hang better from them. They are more substantial to hold your clothes and to help your clothes keep their shape.
They are wider, so you can fit less hangers in your closet. Less hangers means less clothes.
You want to put only really nice clothes on them. You then are more willing to part with clothes that are dingy or full of holes.
It feels like you are "shopping" in your own closet.

How to transition from plastic hangers to wooden hangers:

As you wear something, put it back in your closet on the new wooden hanger.
After a period of time (for some people this is two months, for other people it is one year in order to go through all the seasons) donate all of the clothes that are left on the old hangers. Only keep the clothes in your closet that are on the new wooden hangers.

Don't believe that it will make a big difference? Look at the before and after photos below!

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Order featured Clever Container organizing supplies here, consultant ID #18.

Confession of a Professional Organizer: Everyone Needs A Secret Clutter Hiding Space

2012-01-16T09:44:00.000-06:00

Hi, my name is Melissa and I am a professional organizer. I have a secret. I have a place in my house where I hide clutter. This place is the floor in my walk in closet. This is the place where I stash things when we have 10 minutes before the guests come and I don't have time to properly put things in their places. Needless to say I have even broken a toe in my closet as I kicked something that should not have been there. However, most of the time what you will find on my closet floor are papers. Yes, that dreaded paper clutter. I too struggle with this. It is my evil nemesis. Embarrassing but true story, I have given myself a paper cut to my eye. While going quickly through a stack of papers one caught my eye....literally. A trip to the ER. Antibiotics for my eye. Embarrassment patch for my ego. But this is what I know, we all have a place where we have to hide our clutter during our clutter emergencies. If you have no clutter anywhere in your house you have severe OCD, or what I like to call CDO (because the letters need to be in alphabetical order). Here are some do's and don'ts of the clutter

DO be okay with not being able to put every single item away.
DO have a system in place for when you go sort and organize your secret stash.
DON'T stash it and forget it. I have seen clients and their secret stash that is taking up room that is causing angst and usually is the cause that they called me in the first place for. What happens is we throw away over 80% of what they had stored.
DON'T store you clutter in off site storage spaces. It is expensive to store things that you may never look at again. Think I am wrong, watch the hit show "Storage Wars" and look what is left behind.
DO set a timer and work in 10 minute blocks of time to get that clutter out of it's secret hiding space.
DO reward yourself when it is all put away.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Order featured Clever Container organizing supplies here, consultant ID #18.

Think Vertical And Use The Cabinet Door For Organizing

2012-01-15T08:41:00.000-06:00

Kitchens are the hallowed ground of organizing. They are the places that give us the most angst when they are messy and full of clutter. But they are also the place where families and friends gather and memories are made. Tears are shed over a cup of tea with a friend at the kitchen table. Bust a gut as laughter erupts over a slice of chocolate cake. Many are afraid to even invite friends into their homes, let alone their kitchens because of clutter. We are always looking for ideas to make more space where there appears to be none. So if you have already cleared the clutter, removed the broken and damaged items and are still struggling for space, here are some ideas to get you thinking.

Use the vertical space on the inside of the cabinet doors for organizing.

Tame the paper clutter: Tape frequently used papers to the inside of the cabinet doors. Tape the school lunch menus, treat schedule and game schedule here.
Paint the inside of the cabinet with chalk board paint: Leave messages for the family here or put the weekly dinner menu list here. Use this as a family message center and stop using paper once and for all.
Install a thin sheet of cork to the door: Tack notes here that often clutter up the kitchen counter.
Sheet metal installed to the inside of the door: Use magnets and organize that paper clutter once and for all.
Containers (consultant ID #18) that can be mounted to the door: See the above picture as it can hold a multiple of things from lids to tin foil and plastic wrap containers.

So take a new look at the inside of your cabinet doors and see how you can take advantage of that new found space. Put on a pot of hot water and bake a cake and invite friends and family to once again sit around your kitchen table because the clutter is gone once and for all.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.
Order featured Clever Container organizing supplies here, consultant ID #18.

Are You Guilty Of Being "Too Busy"?

2012-01-10T06:56:00.000-06:00

I had a conversation with another mother this past weekend. This is a typical conversation that I often have but this time it really struck a cord with me. I was telling her how I could bring food for a team meal but I do not have the time to coordinate the meal. She proceeded to tell me how busy she was. I just listened to her talk. I could have then filled her in on how busy I was. Then it becomes a contest. But what is the point? So I came home and wrote this on my personal facebook page: "Dear fellow women: we need to start to support each other. When we are asked to volunteer to do something and we say we are too busy, we need to respect each other for our word and not try to one up each other in how "busy" our lives are. It is not a contest. Thanks!" Well this comment generated discussion and many "likes". The reason being that it touched many of us is that we are all busy. Busy is a word I don't even like. I like the word my friend Kelly uses, she says her life is full.

I would say that 90% of my clients are women. They all have the common theme that they are busy. One of my mission statements for my business is that I want to help my clients find more time to spend with the people they love doing the things they love.

While much of my organizing work appears to be physical, like organizing papers, much of the work is mental. Women are brainwashed at an early age and told that they can do it all. We were told that we can have the successful career, happy kids, a great body, a home from the cover of a magazine and a pet to match. Well guess what, we can have it all, but not by the standards that we think we need to hold ourselves up to. My job when I come into your life is to make your life less "busy". For some clients it is making sure that the bills get paid on time and creating a system to make it happen. For another client it may be telling her that she doesn't have to coach both of her kids soccer teams. I would say about half of my clients end up crying at some point during our session. It is because I am giving them permission to not have to be perfect. They have never heard that in their lives, especially from another woman.

I suffered from years of "volunteeritis". I was the PTA president twice, PTA vice president, I sat on committees, I was room mom, I was a baseball coach (yeah, that one was funny), I baked bars, I worked the book fair. The list goes on and on. But then one day I realized that I wasn't leading my life. I was so "busy" doing for others that I often wasn't there for myself and my own family. I didn't take time to relax and read a book or take a bath. I was too busy. But then I discovered this powerful word called "no". Saying no freed me of the disease to please. It gave me choices. I now said "yes" to the things I wanted to do. Be a greeter at a play that my son is in.....sign me up! Make two dozen cookies.....I can do that...and if I don't have time I know of a bakery that I can buy some from that taste just like I made them!

So I would challenge you to stand by your fellow woman and support her when she tells you that she is too busy. Accept her for her word. We are all busy, and some of us can do less with our time than others. Let's not judge! I however choose to have a full life where I now say yes to the things I want to do!

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Blame vs. Responsibility

2012-01-09T12:51:00.000-06:00

"A man can fail many times, but he isn't a failure until he begins to blame somebody else." John Burroughs

When I walk into a client's home or office I can tell if we are going to be successful by if the client is taking responsibility or if they pass blame onto others. Here are some examples of blame that I have seen:

My husband is such a slob.
My kids never put their toys away.
My mom would be made at me if I got rid of that item.
My kids will miss that if I get rid of that.
My husband is never home to help me.
I really am an organized person but I can't keep my house organized because because nobody in my house will keep it organized.

The attitude that works best is when you come with the willingness to take responsibility. If you continue to blame those around you, there will be a small chance of you getting organized. Here are some things that can work.

Have a set time in the family calender that everyone will be available to organize or reorganize once the systems are in place.
Give kids responsibility and don't do it for them. Share with them your expectations and have a reward such as family movie night once everything is organized or put away.
Set a timer and everyone take part in the organizing process for the set allotted time.
Use systems that work for each family member. Don't make something so difficult for the 4 year old that they get frustrated and won't help. If you want your child to hang their coat and back pack up, install a hook that is low enough for the child to do it themselves.
Want a place for all of the school papers to go. Place a basket where only papers for school go.
Want your spouse to stop dropping his keys in wallet on the kitchen table every day. Put a basket that is just for him and place it in a convenient spot.
Lead by example. If you want everyone to hand up their coats when they walk in the door, then you should as well.
Set limits on how much stuff can be kept. Have a spouse that has every t-shirt they have ever been given. Limit it to a few of the favorites and see if some can be donated.
Make sure your own sentimental value isn't getting in the way. Sometimes we hold onto things because we think there is a special memory attached to it. Only to find out later that the memory is ours and not the person who the object belongs to.
Learn to let go on being perfect. Your home is not going to look like the cover of a magazine. Realize that real people live in your house. Be OK with certain areas being a little messy. The areas to focus on keeping neat and tidy are the guest bathroom, entry way and the kitchen. If you were to have company, these are the areas that will be commonly seen by your guests.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Run Away to Organize

2012-01-03T09:43:00.000-06:00

How many of you are ready to get organized once and for all? Can I hear a yes? Well sometimes you need to take yourself out of your environment and get away to get organized. One of my favorite tricks is to go to the library.The library is the place that I went to study for the bar exam so that I was not distracted by my 18 month old. The library is where I can truly shut off my brain to all the outside noise and focus on the task at hand. I know this will work for organizing as well. Organizing those dreadful piles of paper that have been slowly gathering height. I tell people they are like geological layers of the earth. You can tell how old something is by how far deep in the pile it is buried.

Here are the basic steps to taming that paper clutter once and for all.

Gather all of the papers in one place and throw them in a basket or box.
Grab post it notes, pens and pretty file folders.
Go to the library and find a big table to work at, by yourself. Leave the children and spouse and pets at home. This is your time to get it figured out.
Start sorting your papers into piles. Look for themes as you go....recipes...car repairs....children's papers...bills to pay....tax papers....things that make me happy, etc.
Keep in mind that 80% of the stuff you file you will never look at again.
Think about information that you can obtain online now. Reference manuals are a thing of the past for me. I can usually find a YouTube video on how to fix my blender if need be.
Throw away anything that you know is trash and sort out anything that has your personal information on it that should go home to be shredded.
Start putting a post it note in front of each pile as you sort so that you know what is in each pile.
Once you have sorted all of the papers you now know what to label each folder by taking the post it notes and creating the files. Use names that make sense to you. Don't label it "Resources" if it is called in your brain "stuff I want to read".
Celebrate as you now have all of your papers
Go home and file you newly made files!

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

How To Create A Portable Home Office

2012-01-02T09:46:00.000-06:00

I work from home. No surprises there. However, I do not have a home office. Crazy I know but I know many of you are faced with the same options that I have. I have a four bedroom house with three children. Everyone has their own room and because of this my office was lost to the privilege of all of my boys having their own space. My oldest is leaving for college in the fall and needless to say I am a little giddy about reclaiming a space of my own. If you were to walk into my house right now you would see me typing away at my island with an extra large monitor and my laptop. Next to me you would find my husband with his large (note, his is not extra large) monitor and his laptop. Next to him you would find my oldest son with his laptop. I sit in a chair that is not comfortable. I look at dishes in the sink and think I should probably get up and wash them. Truth be told...I probably wont.

So in the meantime I muddle my way through and have had to become super organized in what I keep near me when I work. I thought there has got to be other people out there like me who need help with their portable home office organizing so I will share some of the things that I have found to be most useful.

Clipboards: Each clipboard holds a project that I am working on where I need to physically track things on paper. Each project has their own clipboard. When I want to work on that project, I simply grab the clipboard and I can go anywhere in my home or car to work on it.
Metal file basket: This is the home to all of my clipboards. They are neat and organized here and I can easily see where each clipboard is at. The basket is small enough that I can grab it with one hand and move it around or put it away at night. Along with my clipboards I keep a three ring binder, envelopes and stationary for my business in the basket.
Sophisticated File Tote: Disclaimer, I sell these. But even if I didn't I would tell you how great they are. It has a built in hanging file folder system and I have all of my business papers and supporting fliers and documents right in there. If I am going to meet someone for coffee about my business, my tote goes with me. It is cute and makes me feel all girly in the land of teenage boys and testosterone.
Timer: Clipped to the Sophisticated File Tote is a timer. This is what I use when I don't want to work on something but I know it has to get done. I set the timer for 5 or 10 minutes and work on it non-stop until the timer goes off. It is a great way to trick my brain into getting things done on my to do list.

When faced with a situation of having to organize with the confines of a small space, it can be done. Use some creativity and the right organizing supplies and make the best of the situation. Often this is when we have to become hyper organized as our space is so limited. We are able to figure out what we really need to work with and we keep just those things. Faced with a large space, we seem to find items to fill that large space and it is not full of what we just need. So I am going to embrace my tiny working environment but continue to countdown to the fall when I get a space to call my own.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Keeping New Year's Resolutions

2011-12-27T09:38:00.000-06:00

Everywhere you turn people are talking about making New Year’s Resolutions. But how about sticking with them throughout the year and not just the first two weeks of January? Ask yourself the question “what was my 2011 New Year’s Resolution?” Wikipedia states that only 12% of us actually achieve our New Year’s Resolutions. Gosh, I don’t remember mine from last year. Did I even set any? Could it be that maybe it is because I have goals that I set all year long and not just at the beginning of the year? I have a bucket list that I created in 2011 and reviewing it now I got close to some of the items on the list but I certainly added many new things to the list that I didn't even know I wanted at the beginning of 2011. I think having the ability to add to it throughout the year is key.

Here are some steps that will help you improve your chances of success of keeping that New Year's Resolution:

1.Write your goal down, better yet create a vision board to help you see your goals. 80% of us are visual people, so cutting out pictures from a magazine may help you visualize your goals. I have fallen in love with Pinterest which I consider my online ever moving vision board. I have visual reminders of great sayings, places I want to go and things I want to make.

2.Write it in positive terms such as “I will be a healthier me in 2012″ or “I will have financial independence”. Don’t focus on the negative as that will just bring your spirits down.

3.Write down the action steps that you are going to take to make these goals happen. If it is financial independence, what are you going to do to make that happen? I would start by buying less would be my suggestion as a professional organizer. If it is to be healthier what are you going to do to make it happen? Don't just join the gym, decide on what days and times you are going to go and put them in your schedule right now.

4.Share your goals with others. Make sure that these are people who will help you and not sabotage your goals. Have this person be an accountability partner. When you have to check in with someone once a week chances are you will hold yourself to a higher standard so that you don't let them down. Maybe you have a friend that is willing to meet you at the gym three days a week and getting up at 5:30 am doesn't seem so hard when you are meeting a friend.

5. Hire someone to help you. Sometimes we need that extra push to get us moving in the right direction. Many find success with having a personal trainer work with them once a month. Or maybe you want to learn to play a musical instrument, you will probably need to find a good teacher to help you on the path. There are professionals everywhere you look that will help you move in the right direction towards your goals....business coaches....financial advisors....health and wellness coaches...professional organizers...dance teachers, etc.

6.Review your goals on a regular basis. I can't stress this one enough. If you keep your goals front and center you will have less chance of forgetting them. Put the dates today on your calender right now as if it were an hour meeting once a month to review your goals. Review your action steps at this time and change what isn't working. Don't just abandon your goals, revamp and try again.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Go Past Your Comfort Zone

2011-12-26T10:44:00.000-06:00

"Life begins at the end of your comfort zone" Neale Donald Walsch

This saying really hit me this morning as I was looking to what I want to do in 2012. I also took the time to reflect on 2011. I seem to think I play it safe and play by the rules, but every once in awhile I bend those rules and play out of my comfort zone. What I have found is that when I take chances some amazing things happen. I never think of the risk vs. reward, I just do it and never look back. Here are some examples of things that I have done that were outside of my comfort zone.

Changed careers when I was in my late 30's. Many people thought I was crazy, but those people were not my friends and deep down I really don't care what they thought. I am faced with new challenges every day and making decisions by myself on what to focus with my business in 2012.
Willing to write and share my heart with the public. I have found that when I write from my heart with tears flowing down my face, it resonates with others and they appreciate it. Some of the comments that I have received this year have been amazing and a true blessing. I am so glad I took that chance and wrote those words.
Saying no to the volunteering that didn't make me happy. I think women have the disease to please and I started saying no to volunteering that didn't make me happy and yes to volunteering with things that did make me happy!
Spending time alone. This was hard as I have always been surrounded by people. Maybe it is the fact that I had 3 babies in 5 years and I didn't know what alone time was anymore. However, in 2011 I traveled alone to conferences where I didn't know anyone. That in the past would have scared the life out of me. I have found in fact that I love traveling by myself. I even had a life changing conversation with a woman sitting next to me on a plane from Las Vegas. If I had been traveling with someone, I would have missed that opportunity. I also made new friends at the conferences. One I visited in New York in October and another I plan to share a room with at our conference in Baltimore in March. What a blessing!
Learned to listen to my instinct and not my brain. My brain always tells me that I couldn't do something while my instinct or gut told me I could. I like the positive way that my instinct thinks and I will continue to follow it!
Loved deeper. I have this thing with keeping friends at arms distance and not sharing my true self with them. I have this fear of being let down and disappointed as well as showing them my flaws and scars. Guess what, sometimes I will be disappointed but sometimes I will be amazed at the love and compassion that can be shown to me. And once I started being open and honest about my flaws and scars, only then could I finally start to heal.
Learned when to walk away. I have this affliction in my heart that tries to help fix people. I want everyone to live an amazing life and I feel like I can help show them. But what I learned is not everyone is ready and that they need to figure it out on their own, without my help. And who do I think I am thinking I can fix them? I will continue to be there as a friend but I will no longer try to fix them because maybe, just maybe, they aren't broken.

So as 2011 comes to an end, start thinking about what you can do in 2012 that takes you past your comfort zone. Because if life begins at the end of your comfort zone, don't you want to see what you are missing? My friend Beth has an "outside the box" goal for every month in 2012. What a great idea and I think I am going to do that as well. Because when we challenge ourselves and really live in the moment outside of our comfort zone, amazing things begin to happen.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Is Your Plate Too Full?

2011-12-20T08:19:00.000-06:00

Let's admit it, sometimes our plate gets too full. I know mine has. But this is what I know for sure, when I take something away I usually find something wonderful has taken its place. Metaphorically the plate can stand for just about everything in your life, work, food and relationships.

My first brush with the full plate was when I working on a project for a company. The project gave me challenges that were fun and enjoyable. However there were things going on behind the scene that my ethics didn't coincide with. I would find myself worrying about it during my awake time and my asleep time. Finally a professional I trusted said to me that I needed to leave, not in a few weeks or a few days but that day. I did and haven't looked back. Because what happened when I no longer worried day and night? I then had that energy to put towards my business and magical things started to happen. I had people enter my lives that wanted to help me grow my business. Instead of me trying to help someone grow their business and all of my energy going towards that, it was now directed towards me. What an incredible gift.

I also have been involved in those friendships that suck the joy and energy out of me. I like to call them toxic friendships. I stick by these people thinking I am helping them through a tough period in their lives. Only to realize that my life is suffering because of the friendship. I find myself worrying about them and I don't worry about myself. Funny thing is, I never realize how toxic it was until I get some perspective of looking back. I wish I had hindsight in my wheel house of skills. I don't. I usually trust that a friendship is going to be healthy for me. But then all of a sudden I find myself not sleeping during the nights and worrying during the day. All of a sudden I have lost my joy and my sense of humor.

Healthy friendships are usually two way streets. If all you ever do is listen to the person complain about how horrible their life is and they never inquire about yours, that is a red flag for a bad relationship. If you feel guilty talking about the great things that are going on in your life for fear of making them feel bad, that is another red flag. Instead, hand them a card for a good therapist and walk away. I truly have handed friends a card for a therapist, but I didn't walk away until months later. If you start thinking that you need to see a therapist because of this friendship, that is another red flag. Maybe I should have taken that therapist card and called the therapist myself? Believe me, this is one of those lessons that I just can't seem to learn! However, this is what I have found, that once I take that friendship off the table I see a rush of new ones come into my life, or old ones that I didn't have the time to nourish before. I am suddenly surrounded with people wanting to ask me about how I am really doing and help me with my struggles as equally as I am helping them with theirs. And once my joy and sense of humor return, my life is again full of joy and my plate is not too full.

Now back to the plate...a real plate...of food. What happens when you put too much on your plate? You eat it! We were told as children to eat everything that is on our plate. I catch myself telling my children that every once in awhile as well. But what if we took too much only to realize that we didn't want it anymore, you know the old eyes are bigger than the stomach thing? I think we need to give ourselves permission to not eat it all. Only then will we begin to realize what we are truly hungry for.

What about our homes? Yes our homes get too full as well. This is usually the point that clients call me. Their homes are bursting at the seams and they typically have piles of papers and other clutter that they just can't seem to find a home for. Guess what we have to do? Yeah....take something away. We can start with clearing out a cabinet, a drawer or a closet. Then we can tackle what is left and we can then find a home for the clutter. But we can not find a home for the clutter until we start to take somethings away first. We even go through the clutter only to find that we get rid of about 80% of what was there to begin with.

So when your plate is too full from work, friendship, clutter or real food, think about what you can take away to make life more manageable. Believe me....life is much better with just the right amount on your plate. It is up to each one of us to figure out the proper amount. I know I am still looking for that proper balance!

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Gift Giving On A Budget

2011-12-19T08:50:00.000-06:00

So you set a budget and now you are having trouble sticking with it. You really want to do Christmas this year without more credit card debt.......I know you do and I do too. Maybe you are exchanging gifts with people that that your have a superficial relationship with. Or maybe your kids want an expensive gift for Christmas but it is over your allotted budget. This is the case for my youngest son last year. I wanted to buy it for him but I don't want to blow our budget on it either. So here are some tricks and tips for sticking with your budget while still giving gifts from your heart, not from your depleted bank account.

First step was to see if other people wanted to go in on the gift with you. So often grandparents, aunts and uncles are stumped as to what to get the kids on their list. But pooling resources is a way for the child to get the gift while still being budget friendly. Everyone can simply put in what they feel comfortable giving.
See if you can cut gifts from your budget. Do you exchange gifts with someone just because you think you "have to". Ask them if they wouldn't mind stopping that tradition, chances are they will be just fine with it. Remember you want to give from your heart not because it is expected of you.
Can you make some of your gifts homemade. I have a secret caramel corn that I make and my friends would love to see a batch of this warm from the oven as their gift. Maybe a loaf of your blue ribbon winning banana bread or a jar of your fudge sauce. People love the sentiment and the fact that you spent the time making it for them means more than just buying a gift card.
You contribute a portion to the gift and have the recipient pay for some. I know this seems not very "giving", but kids need to understand the concept that sometimes they need to help pay for something. My oldest son mowed lawns for a summer and paid for half of his viola. And he has a sense of ownership over that viola, he doesn't loose it, it doesn't get scratched, he in fact takes care of it. If you raise kids with instant gratification they turn into adults who want everything right now and not have to work for it.
Buy "gently used". Have you ever made a visit to a pawn store or a used game store? Kids play a game for a few hours and get bored with it. They then trade in for a new one and so often the shelves are filled with previously played games. Pawn stores also get in used televisions, DVD players and other electronics. Our XBox 360 recently broke and I lamented on facebook about it. I had a message from a friend within minutes saying that he is getting rid of his XBox that is less than a year old and rarely used. The price was low enough that my oldest son was able to buy it all by himself. You too can put the word out there what you are looking for, you never know who has the exact same item they no longer want.

While we are in the last week before Christmas, stick to your budget and give gifts from the heart that don't cause you to cringe when you open the bank statement next month. A thoughtful gift that doesn't cause you angst in your pocketbook is the best gift for yourself and the recipient.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Consider Quality Not Quantity

2011-12-13T11:02:00.000-06:00

I always find my blog post ideas in everyday conversations. This one came while I was at a swim meet on Saturday. I was talking to another mom and we started talking about what our kids wanted for Christmas and when I spoke out loud what I was getting them, it didn't sound like much. And then I started thinking I better go and buy them more "stuff". But then I realized they don't want any other things. I felt the urge to get more presents under the tree for them to open. The problem was with me, not with them. I felt guilty that they would only have one or two gifts to open under the tree. Even though that gift is something they want.

You may not see physical gifts under the tree this year, but our family will see other gifts, such as the gifts of tradition. We now have started going to a Christmas concert as a family. Our community has so many to choose from. We will make a night of it and go out for pizza first and then go to the concert. I make lots of Christmas cookies and the boys love to eat them and they walk in the house and always ask about what I have been cooking that day. That to me is a gift! During Christmas we also fondue as a family making a mess of the kitchen and because it is such a fun activity we spend hours in the kitchen eating and spending time together. That is a quality gift!

So I think I need to avoid the traps of quantity and stick with quality gifts this year. I will avoid going to stores where I am surrounded by aisles and aisles of "clutter" or "crap". I will shop at stores knowing exactly what I want to buy before I go. I will be OK with our family being done unwrapping our gifts in 5 minutes, because we are going to play that x-box dancing game and we are all going to act like fools. When I am old and gray I want my boys to remember the times we had as a family, not the gifts that I bought them. Because that is the real gift.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/consultant-program/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Keep It Simple

2011-12-05T09:00:00.001-06:00

Tis the season of excess......spending, eating, drinking, entertaining, etc. Here are some quick tips to a more simplified holiday experience.

Buy gifts that are filled with care and not price. Maybe you buy a candle for your sister because the scent reminded you of the summers you spent with grandma. Maybe you buy a fuzzy pair of socks for your niece that loved her "softy" growing up and still loves soft things. Don't be tempted to buy someone an expensive gift because you are "expected" to. Wrap a gift with sentiment and it will exceed the recipients expectations.
Ditch the list. Nothing is worse than having your loved one give you a list of things that they want. If that is the case, just give them cash and have them buy their own gift. My 16 year old son reminded me of this when I asked him what he wanted for Christmas and he said "mom, you should know me well enough to know what I want" Right, I do know him well enough! Checking things off a list is not the reason for the season.
Only go to parties you want to go to. It is OK to say that you have other commitments if you don't. Not everyone wants to go to holiday parties. They could have good reasons, social anxiety, struggle with sobriety, they don't have money to buy a new outfit that they think they need or weight issues. Be OK with not going and if you are having a party, be OK when some of your invited guests can't be there.
Only give parties you want to give. My husband and I have been known to throw large parties. I love doing it and he is the good sport who goes along with it. But the older I get, the more time I want to spend with people I actually love to be around. Too often when you have a party you feel the need to invite more people than you really want there. So instead of having the annual shindig that people expect you to have, skip it for a more intimate party.....or skip it all together.
Travel only if you want to. We didn't travel last year and it was heaven. We have three boys that are very involved in activities. So when there is a 4 day period where we have no commitments, we enjoy staying home. When our kids were younger it was easier to travel. Now that they are busy, they love staying home too. My family is always welcome at our house, but for now I am staying put and I am OK with that.
Find time to relax. For me that is sitting alone in my house while the kids are in school and reading a book or taking a bath. This rarely happens but when it does, it is heaven. I think I need to follow my own advice and schedule the time now.
Give back the way you want to give back. I remember the year I was asked to make royal icing for my son's class making gingerbread houses. I was handed a recipe by the teacher and told to make 4 batches. Really, who has meringue powder? But what I discovered was that our local bakery sells the icing and the $10 I spent was well worth my time. So when you are asked to do something, do it because you want to, not because it is expected of you. If you can pay for the icing instead of make it (the cost was about the same, plus I added no more gray hair). Plus, I could help out the class but not kill myself with separating egg whites. If you want to give but can't afford to, think of the cost of your time. Ring a bell, volunteer to wrap gifts, volunteer at a local shelter to help in the kitchen. These are all gifts of time that many organizations need to survive. Your time is worth something that often can not be measured in dollars and cents.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, alsoknown as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it withMS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, NDand her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Give The Gift Of Experiences

2011-11-28T09:45:00.001-06:00

Give gifts that are experiences: concert tickets, a stay at a hotel, spa services or a "gift certificate" for watching your sister's kids for the weekend so she and her husband can have a getaway. Stay away from anything that can create clutter. Keep this tip in mind when shopping, if it collects dust, don't give it as a gift.

Remember back to your childhood, how many gifts do you remember? Maybe a special doll or a game. Despite hundreds of dollars spent, people just do not seem to remember gifts. But buy someone a ticket for a hot air balloon ride, they will remember that for the rest of their lives. Or how about a family vacation that everyone has been saving for. Or purchase horseback riding lessons, that is a gift a child wont soon forget.

Giving gifts to parents always seems hard, because most of our parents already have everything they would want. Here is an idea that I have used, I have given my parents and in-laws gourmet meals that are delivered frozen on dry ice. They simply heat up the meals for a no fuss and no mess dinner.

This year we want to take our kids on a vacation to Hawaii as part of our sons graduation gift. I am thinking cash to be used towards experiences while we are on our trip would be a great gift idea.....shh, don't tell them. My husband is getting the gift of an experience as well this year......shh, don't tell him either! The size of the presents under the tree will be small this year, but our memories will be huge! Remember the reason for the season.....and it is not to give and receive clutter!

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, alsoknown as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it withMS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, NDand her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Paperpalooza

2011-11-27T09:17:00.001-06:00

Wrapping paper is a beautiful thing. It comes and every color and design imaginable. It is sensory overload when trying to choose the papers that you get to wrap gifts in. If you are overwhelmed and have a huge supply of wrap but can't stop from buying more.....just stop. Think about having a signature paper that you wrap all gifts in.

Almost every client I work with has a wrapping paper collection. Most were purchased on the day after Christmas paperpalooza. Most are more than 5 years old. And most will never be used as there are never enough gifts to make the gigantic collection disappear. When I try to get clients to pare down their collection it feels like I am asking them to give up their first born. Why is that? It is because the paper has become the memories associated with the person or the gift that it was wrapped in or purchased for. This is a sampling of what I have heard, "I can't get rid of that. That is the paper that I wrapped Susie's present with in 1998" or "that is the paper that I wrapped Tim's first train in". Or I often hear what a good bargain it was, "I got that for .50 and you just never know when birds in a nest are going to become popular again".

I ask my client's to declare amnesty on wrapping paper (this goes for gift bags as well), forgive themselves for the past digressions and to stop buying those slender tubes of color that appear to be shouting their name from the aisle. Find your signature paper and stick with it.

What is a signature paper? For me it is simple brown paper with a beautiful ribbon. For you it may be gold paper with red flowers on it. A signature paper should be able to transcend all holidays and occasions. Put a different colored ribbon on it for birthday, anniversary or wedding gifts. Having a signature gift will help you with the onslaught of pretty papers on sale calling your name from the clearance bin. Find your signature paper and stick with it.

I have been wanting to get to a signature paper for three years now, but I still have not exhausted my day after Christmas paperpalooza from 2006. I hope this is the year that I use the rest of the paper up and start going to my signature paper!

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, alsoknown as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it withMS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, NDand her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Staycation

2011-11-26T10:37:00.001-06:00

Have you heard of staycations? They are a great way of discovering your local community and seeing it through the eyes of an outsider. Today is "Small Business Saturday" and I celebrate what can be found in my local community. You take the time to discover what your town has to offer without traveling hundreds of miles. You can take this idea to any town you live in. Take the time to discover those local gems where customer service is alive and well!

I was contacted by a friend who was planning a staycation in Fargo with her gourmet wine club. The days were broken up and each couple was in charge of a part of the staycation. She had participated in an "Amazing Race Chicago" for work and wanted to try it in Fargo. If you have seen the "Amazing Race" on CBS, you know it is a race comprised of couples who have to solve clues to find the next location and then perform a task at that location. To pull off the "Amazing Race Fargo", she needed help as she wanted to participate and she knew she couldn't if she was part of the planning. She turned it over to me and I literally ran with it.

They have been a tight knit group for many years now....many have tried to break in and be part of this group, but all have failed. I figured this was my perfect opportunity to really show them what I can do to add to their already fabulous group......here is my audition:

My parameters were simple....stay in downtown Fargo. I knew right away what to do and to what stores I wanted to go and ask for help. Let me start by saying....today is "Small Business Saturday" and every single one of the businesses I contacted was willing to help. No business turned me down. They were all fabulous to work with and they all had fabulous treasures within the walls of their business. Without giving too much of what I did away....as I don't want to ruin the surprise for any other group that wants to do this....I want to thank all of the businesses that were so generous.

Below you will find the list of participating businesses and links to their websites and a little bit of information as to what services they provide.
The Kilbourne Group: Kilbourne Group was founded in 2006 by Doug Burgum with the mission of providing thought leadership on the revitalization, smart growth and redevelopment of Fargo, North Dakota’s downtown core. The Kilbourne Group team shares the vision of retaining and carrying forward the history of Fargo through the restoration of historic buildings and the creation of new buildings that honor the past and inspire the future. Exceptional commercial and residential properties available from Kilbourne Group include downtown Fargo condos, loft apartments, retail, office and commercial space and Minnesota getaway lake properties

Mosaic Catering and Mezzaluna:First and foremost a catering service, but also offering seasonal cooking classes as well as special occasion dinners. They are dedicated to designing menus based on every clients needs & desires. Their menus are composed through the chef’s personal inspirations, utilizing quality ingredients.

Fargo Moorhead Community Theatre : They provide theatrical and educational opportunities to enrich and engage the greater community.

C. Lizzy's: A mother/daughter team who gather inspiration from each other and are following their artistic talents. Together they are creating hand made art work.

The Candy Bar: A nostalgic candy store specializing in old fashioned candy from the 1900's to today.

Josie's Corner: Located at 524 North Broadway, this little gem of a bakery and lunch spot makes everything from scratch and is named after the owners grandmother....what is not to love?

Zanbroz: With the rise of coffee franchises, big box stores, and the internet in the mid-1990’s, the stores’ selection evolved into a wide variety of gifts: bath and body, fine pens, toys, cards and stationery, jewelry, novelty, handmade papers, kitchen gadgets, tea, coffee, home decor ... and we’re probably forgetting something. Oh yeah, books. Why dig through the piles of a clearance dumping ground that the big box bookstores have become, when every book on our shelves has been selected for a good reason? Truly, something for everyone on your list, including yourself.

The Fargo Theater: Built in 1926 as a cinema and vaudeville theatre, the beautifully restored Fargo Theatre is now the premiere destination for cutting edge independent and foreign film. The theatre is also Fargo’s hottest downtown venue for concerts, plays and other live events. In spring of 2009, the Fargo Theatre opened a second screen as part of a multi-use urban infill project. The Fargo Theatre is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit management corporation and was placed on the National Register of Historical Places by the United States Department of the Interior.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, alsoknown as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it withMS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, NDand her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Brick and Mortar Shopping

2011-11-21T08:46:00.001-06:00

In light of my recent blog post where I confessed that I hate shopping, I thought I better share with you how I do like to shop.
Have you heard of "Small Business Saturday"? I like the sound of that better than Black Friday or Cyber Monday. I love the concept of shopping local at your mom and pop stores. The idea is becoming more mainstream as organizations like the 3/50 Project get more and more press coverage. The idea behind 3/50 is simple; find 3 brick and mortar stores and spend $50 a month in them. These could be local candy shops, gift stores, clothing stores, photo development stores or even restaurants.

This is the statistic that sold me....did you know that if you spend $100 at a local brick and mortar store, $68 goes back into the local economy through taxes, payroll and other expenses. Spend $100 at a local chain only $43 goes back into your local economy. Buy online and $0 goes back to your town.

I had coffee with a girlfriend on Saturday (at a locally owned coffee shop) and she was telling me how much she enjoyed Black Friday shopping with her daughters when they were growing up. However, this year she said it seems like the charm has been taken away as many of the sales are starting even before Thanksgiving even arrives. She confessed that she is not going to do her traditional Black Friday shopping and instead do her shopping online.

Then today I saw on facebook the idea of flash mob shopping. The idea is simple, pick a store and text all of your friends and all show up at the store with $20 to spend. Wouldn't this be a great way to surprise your local brick and mortar store? Maybe give them a shout before hand to warn them of your cool idea so that they can be properly staffed. Now this a tradition that I could get behind and support!

So this year when you are doing your holiday shopping, stop at some local stores and spend some money. Want a few other reasons to shop local:

I personally think that I get better customer service. The stores remember me and when I come back and say things like, "Melissa, we got those dog bones back in that you were looking for".
You are often offered a cup of coffee or tea. This allows you to take some time to relax and enjoy your shopping. I bet you didn't know that shopping could be relaxing!
There are never long lines and crowds. No Black Friday rush at these stores. No long lines at the register either. No news stories of people crushed while trying to get a flat screen television at 4am.
They find local artists and sell their wares as well.
You find unique gifts that will make every person on your list smile.

So as you spend you hard earned dollars, think about the impact it will make in your community. You have control over which stores get your money, and as my friend Diane told me "you vote with your feet", and in this case, your wallet.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, alsoknown as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it withMS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, NDand her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Thanksgiving Throwdown

2011-11-20T12:34:00.001-06:00

While searching my blog for Thanksgiving menu ideas I found so many great ones of years past, I couldn't pick just a few of my favorites so I thought I would put them all in one post for you to pick and choose. I have been collecting these for years from sources like Allrecipes.com or The Pioneer Woman.....I love you Ree!

First up is what I am making this year instead of turkey. I recently had this on a trip I was on. Hubby and I both loved it and I thought to myself....this is what we are having for Thanksgiving!

Kosher Salt Encrusted Prime Rib

Ingredients

2 cups coarse kosher salt
4 pounds prime rib roast
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon seasoning salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 210 degrees F (100 degrees C).
Cover the bottom of a roasting pan with a layer of kosher salt. Place the roast, bone side down, on the salt. Season the meat with the ground black pepper and seasoning salt, then cover completely with kosher salt.
Roast in preheated oven for 4 to 5 hours, or until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).
Remove from oven and let rest for 30 minutes. This sets the juices and makes the roast easier to carve. (Note: Be sure to remove all the salt from the roast before serving.)

Slow Cooker Sweet PotatoesIngredients:

6 medium sweet potatoes or yams (2 pounds), peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 1/2 cup applesauce
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped nuts, toasted

Directions:

Place sweet potatoes in 2 to 3 1/2-quart slow cooker. Mix remaining ingredients except nuts; spoon over potatoes.
Cover and cook on low heat setting 6 to 8 hours or until potatoes are very tender.
Meanwhile, cook nuts in ungreased heavy skillet over medium-low heat 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently until browning begins, then stirring constantly until golden brown and fragrant; set aside. Sprinkle nuts over sweet potatoes.

Au Gratin Potatoes

Ingredients:

4 whole Russet Potatoes, Scrubbed Clean
2 Tablespoons Butter, Softened
1-½ cup Heavy Cream
½ cups Whole Milk
2 Tablespoons Flour
4 cloves Garlic, Finely Minced
1 teaspoon Salt
Freshly Ground Pepper, to taste
1 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Freshly Grated

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Smear softened butter all over the bottom of a baking dish.
Slice potatoes, then cut slices into fourths.
In a separate bowl, whisk together cream, milk, flour, minced garlic, salt, and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.
Place 1/3 of the potatoes in the bottom of the baking dish. Pour 1/3 of the cream mixture over the potatoes.
Repeat this two more times, ending with the cream mixture. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 20 minutes, or until potatoes are golden brown and really bubbling. Add grated cheese to the top of the potatoes and bake for 3 to 5 more minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Allow to stand for a few minutes before serving by the spoonful. Delicious!

Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

3-½ pounds Potatoes

½ cups Finely Chopped Onion

2 Tablespoons Butter

2 cloves Garlic, Minced

8 ounces, weight Cream Cheese

½ cups Milk

1 dash Salt, Black Pepper, And White Pepper, To Taste

1 whole Egg

Instructions:

Peel potatoes, chopinto large chunks, and cook until tender in well-salted water.
While potatoes arecooking, saute chopped onion in butter for a few minutes, just to soften andsweeten the onion. Add minced garlic and saute one more minute. Remove fromheat.
Drain cookedpotatoes. Add onions and garlic. Add cream cheese and milk. Whip really wellwith an electric mixer. Season, taste, and adjust seasonings. Let cool to justwarm and add egg. Use mixer again to incorporate the egg.
Put into a butteredcasserole dish. Mashed potatoes can now be baked or placed into therefrigerator for 2-3 days.
To cook: Bake,covered, at 350 degrees for one hour. Remove cover for last 10-15 minutes toget a nice golden crust. Remove from the oven. Cover. And set aside. These willstay hot for hours until ready to serve!

Cranberry Butter

Ingredients:

¾ cups Frozen Cranberries
2 teaspoons Grated Lemon Peel
6 Tablespoons Powdered Sugar
2 sticks Butter, Softened And In Cubes

Instructions:

Put cranberries, lemon peel and powdered sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse/chop until the cranberries are finely chopped, occasionally scraping down the sides.
Add softened butter to the cranberry mixture. Continue chopping/pulsing until everything is incorporated, occasionally scraping down the sides.
Serve at room temperature.

Savory Spinach and Artichoke Stuffing

Ingredients:

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 1/2 pounds spinach, washed (3 cups cooked and roughly chopped)
2 cups chopped yellow onion
1 tbs. rough chopped garlic
1 Tbs. plus 2 tsp. Italian seasoning
2 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/4 tsp. black pepper
3 (8 1/2 oz. cans quartered artichoke hearts
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
2 cups chicken stock
2 Tbs. lemon juice
12 to 14 cups cubed day old French bread
1 pound Brie, rind removed and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and Grease a 9 by 13 inch baking dish with olive oil.
Steam the spinach and wring it out and finely chop it, set aside. Heat 1 Tbs. oil in large skillet over medium heat, add the onions and cook until golden brown (about 5 minutes), add the garlic and 2 tsp. of Italian seasoning, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the artichokes and spinach and continue stirring for about another 2 minutes, set aside.
Combine the eggs, cream, chicken stock, lemon juice, remaining Italian season, salt and pepper to taste in a large bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the bread, vegetable mixture, brie, 1/4 cup Parmesan and parsley. Stir to combine. Let it rest until all liquid is absorbed.
Pour the mixture into the prepared dish and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese and drizzle with 2 tsp. olive oil. Bake until firm in center and golden brown, about 1 hour.

Mystery Pecan Pie

Ingredients:

Topping:

3 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Pie:

1 (8 oz.) package of cream cheese, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg
1 unbaked deep-dish (9- inch) pie shell
1 1/4 cups chopped pecans

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all topping ingredients in a medium bowl, set aside.
In medium bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, salt, vanilla, and egg until combined. Pour into pie shell. Top with chopped pecans. Pour topping over pecans. Bake for 45 minutes. Chill and serve the next day.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, alsoknown as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it withMS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, NDand her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Being Indecisive Costs Money

2011-11-14T07:50:00.001-06:00

Did you ever get a lesson thrown in your face you just have to sit back and say I had better pay attention to this one? This recently happened to me where I saw first hand how being indecisive costs money and more than the money aspect of it, time. Well let me start off by saying this, I am not a fan of shopping. I think it is a big waste of time. I only shop when I need something. When I shop I am in and out of the mall within 30 minutes, if not less. Plus I rarely return something, when I do it is for some random reason. Recently while shopping with friends I watched them meticulously look at items, try them on, purchase them to then only return them the next day. Seriously, the time you spent doing that could have been used so much more efficiently. I heard statements like, yes she buys a lot but she returns a lot too. Seriously, what a huge waste of time.

I see clients struggle with a stack of items that need to go back to the store. They have either misplaced the receipt of they simply have not had the time to return the items. First I ask them to figure out how much their time is worth and to see if it is worth returning the item or simply placing it in the donation box. I am not talking about high ticket items here, just the everyday items of life. It could be the wrong shampoo or laundry detergent.

I have worked with client's who have stacks and stacks of receipts that they don't know what to do with. When asking them why they have them the reason is always the same, "in case I have to return it". In the same breath they always tell me that they can never find the receipts if they do need to return it. We develop a rule of thumb that they only keep receipts for a certain length of time or if it over a certain dollar amount

I have watched people make multiple hotel room reservations for a trip only to have to go through the painful exercise of canceling them the night before their trip. I can barely keep track of the one I made, let alone 3 reservations. That is time they will never get back.

I have watched people exchange tickets to a show only to decide later that they changed their mind and don't want to go to the show after all and then have to try to get rid of the show tickets. Once again, time they will never get back.

I have been guilty of going up and down the grocery isles trying to decide what to have for dinner because I didn't take 2 minutes to plan it out ahead of time. What should have been a 5 minute trip to the store ended up being 30 minutes and costing me several more dollars than I originally intended.

When I worked in a clothing store while I was in law school (aka a long, long time ago) we had a customer that would come and spend hours trying on clothes, buy $500 worth of clothes and then return them all within a week. It was obvious to me that shopping was her hobby.

When I hear people tell me they are busy, are they really busy or could they be making better use of their time? We are all given the same 24 hours in a day, figure out how best to make use of your time. Our time is worth something.

Here are my tips when shopping:

Go with a list.
Buy with purpose, as in I need a new black pair of pants.
Plan on never returning the item and purchase as if you can't ever return it.
Shop when the store is not busy.
Don't buy something just because it is a "good deal", as those are the items that you regret buying the most.
Figure out how much your time is worth and see if it is worth your time to return the item.
Keep receipts for certain amount of time and then throw them.
Keep receipts for high ticket items and get rid of the rest.
Don't take me with you!

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, alsoknown as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it withMS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, NDand her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Think Big in Order to Think Small

2011-10-31T11:21:00.002-05:00

You've got to think about the big things while you're doing small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction - Alvin Toffler

Too often I am caught up in the small everyday things in life that I often forget about the big things. Have you ever heard or seen that science experiment where they have sand, pea gravel, pebbles and larger rocks and they ask you to put them all in one container and make them fit. You realize early on that you have to deal with the big things first and then work your way down to the sand. If you find the room for the big, the small will naturally fit in and everything will work out. But if you forget about the big things and only focus on the small, naturally there is no room for the big things.

So what would be some of the big things in life?

Marriage
Children
Occupation
Home

And what would be some of the smaller thing in life?

Grocery shopping
Watching your favorite show on TV
Reading a book
Returning the movies to the movie store
Mowing the lawn

But if you nurtured and took care of the big things in life, could it really impact the smaller things? For example, if you had a rock star marriage and you communicated so great maybe your spouse would know what needed to be purchased at the grocery store without having to be told. You have a great relationship with your kids and they could take care of the lawn mowing. You love your occupation and your boss thinks you do a great job so he/she doesn't mind if you leave early to attend to your child's activity. If you take care of the big things in life, the smaller things get taken care of. Nurture the relationships that you are in and they will circle back and help you. For example, a good friend will take care of your dog when you are on vacation. Your house is maintained and you change your furnace filters so that your furnace doesn't break down.

This is what I know....take care of those big things in life and the small things will be taken care of as well! Be kind and love the people you are with and your circle around you will help you get those small things done.

To Joyful,Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, alsoknown as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it withMS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, NDand her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Think Before You Buy

2011-10-18T08:43:00.000-05:00

I recently was asked for my number one decluttering tip. It simply boils down to one thing, think before you buy. I am serious about that and here is why. Really look at why you are buying something:

Are you buying it because you are mad/sad/lonely (insert any emotion here) at someone and shopping makes you feel better? It may make you feel better for one minute, but for every other minute after that you may regret it.
Is there a home for it? Do you already know where it is going in your home? Or will you need to get rid of a few things first?
Is the best thing about it that it is on sale or almost free, like at a garage sale? Remember, don't love the bargain more than the item itself.
Is is consumable? I love consumables as gifts as they do not create clutter. Gift cards, bubble bath, a box of chocolates.
If you bring it home, are you willing to get rid of something else? I call this the "one in one out rule". If you buy a new pair of shoes, you then have to donate an old pair of your shoes.
Really love it before you leave the store. Nothing is worse than having to return something that is too small or doesn't fit right. We have to keep track of the receipt and then we have to make that trip back to the store when we are already busy enough. Save time and aggravation and make sure you really love it!
Are you buying it to replace something? This is the best reason. For example, you can opener broke and you need a new one.....buy it.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Speak Your Truth

2011-10-11T10:54:00.000-05:00

"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." - Dr. Seuss. This is a quote that is attributed to Dr. Seuss, but in fact it is not one of his quotes. Looking for the author of the quote left me empty handed, but whoever said it was pure genius.

Do you say what you feel? For me 99% of the time I do, and when I don't I later regret it that 1% of the time. There is a big difference of speaking what you feel with love and without love. As long as it comes from a place of love, you rarely can go wrong. If you know me, you know that I speak my truth. But lately I have been holding some of it back and it is not going well. I need to reclaim saying what I feel 100% of the time, and ASAP!

For the most part, I surround myself with people who matter and who speak what they feel 100% of the time. This makes for a much easier life, be with the people who you love. Give attention to the people you love and most importantly who love you back. Once you start doing that, you will start to experience life in a whole new way. New people will come into your life. Some friends will go out. The ones who go out, were never really true friends in the first place. The ones who stay are the ones who really matter and the ones that you want to spend your time growing old with. They are the ones that you have the conversations with that reach to the depths of your soul. They are the ones who are there to pick up the pieces for you when everything seems to be falling around you. I have spent way too much time with people who take from me emotionally and don't give back. If I had said what I felt earlier in the relationship, things would have gone differently. Lesson learned. Sometimes this is a lesson learned by me over and over......I am a slow learner I guess!

When you say what you feel, it is different from saying what you think. It is all about having a proper filter on. Here is the difference: "I deserve to be treated better by you" versus "I think you are a horrible person". One really gets to the heart of the matter, the other is just name calling. Reach in the depths of your soul and really get in touch with what you feel. So often,we as women keep what we feel to ourselves. When we do this, it causes us to do unhealthy things. We stuff our feeling down with food, shopping, alcohol, drugs or affairs.

Free yourself of all of that and say what you feel and find out what I mean. Someone calls you and asks you to chair the book fair at your kids school, you may say yes out of guilt. But what if you really said what you felt? And don't use the lazy answer of "I am too busy"....this is a topic for a whole other blog post! Say instead, "I would rather not". Keep it simple and don't give excuses. I know I will respect you far more if you were up front and honest. When I ask someone to do something, I want them to do it because they want to, not out of guilt or as a favor to me. Don't you want the same? So do the same thing and speak the truth.

And guess what, I can handle the truth and I will say what I feel and I bet you can too!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Goal Setting

2011-10-06T06:22:00.000-05:00

I want to invite you to meet a friend of mine; Coach Carolyn. She is not a coach in the traditional sense of improving your physical game with your physical body, but rather your mental game with your mind. We all need someone like this in our life to help us to figure out how to get from here to there. We all don't have people in our life to help guide us on our journey. Our friends or family may not understand what it is we want out of life. We might hear our closest friends or spouse tell us we are crazy to try new things. But do you even know what you even want out of life? Coach Carolyn is offering a unique opportunity to help you figure it out. Please join her in her goal setting workshop being held on October 13 in Fargo. Below is listed more information and you can also go here to register. Make the end of 2011 count!

You're invited to change your views on goal setting!

What are you working toward? How clear is your long-term vision? Have you thought about how your current activities are helping you achieve your long-term goals? Maybe it’s time…

Get ready to roll up your sleeves and work on your future!

In this workshop you will change how you think about goals and unlearn what you’ve been told before about goal setting. How smart is a S.M.A.R.T. goal? Do New Years resolutions work?

You will learn about the very latest research on goal setting including the importance of having long-term goals, how to set a truly motivating goal and how many goals should be pursued at once.

Opportunities will be presented for you to power through exercises that will result in defining a long-term vision for your life. You’ll then work on setting goals to bridge the gaps between where you are and where you want to go. You’ll do this by realizing how key support systems influence your goals: people, career, finances, environment, education, health and your extra-curricular activates as well.

At the end of the workshop, you’ll walk out with new goals and a framework for setting goals in the future.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Functional Fabulous Fall: Part 2

2011-09-28T11:17:00.000-05:00

Flip the mattresses: A great way to extend the life of a mattress is to make sure that it gets even wear and tear by flipping it. Doing so ensures that your bed doesn't all of a sudden become one where you have an outline of your body when you get out.
Change or Clean your Furnace Filter: Some filters need to be replaced monthly and some less frequently. Save money on your heating and cooling costs by making sure you have a clean filter as your furnace and air conditioner will run more efficiently.
Schedule the carpets to be cleaned: Carpet will last much longer if you schedule regular cleanings. Did you know that a majority of household dust comes in from the bottom of your shoes. So if you want to cut down on dust in your home, have everyone leave their shoes out of the house.
Check the smoke detectors: A reminder is often given that the changing of the time in the Spring and Fall is also a good time to check those smoke detectors batteries. Grab a step stool and make your rounds around the house.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Functional Fabulous Fall: Part 1

2011-09-21T11:10:00.000-05:00

Fall really is my favorite time of year. I love the crisp air. I love the colors that mother nature has on display and I love getting organized. Maybe it is because I live in the upper Midwest where we often have to hunker down for winter. It is like a nesting urge takes over. There are things that I want to get done and taken care of before the snow flies and I realize that I bet other people feel the same way.

So if you want a Functional Fabulous Fall join in on the organizing challenge that I have in store for you for the next 5 weeks. If you complete the challenges, make a comment on facebook on in the comment section of my blog. Each time you comment you will be entered to win 1 hour of my services. If you live within 10 miles of Fargo, ND I will come to your home. If you are the winner and live out of the area we will chat via Skype or on the phone about organizing. Want extra chances of winning, share my blog and facebook page with your friends and family and tell me that you did it.

Kitchen: Set the timer for 5 minutes and find at least 10 things that you no longer need in your kitchen. This could be cook books, kitchen utensils that have duplicates, unopened canned goods that you will never use, broken or damaged dishes. Either donate the items if they are in good shape or discard. You may want to grab a box to gather all of the donated items as we go through the weeks. While you start to grab 10 things you may be inspired to keep going and do the whole kitchen. If you want to do that, take one drawer or cabinet at a time. Maybe one a day until it is done. This is not part of the homework however, just extra credit. When you are all done, leave a comment as to how many items you discarded!

Now collect 10 recipes that your family would like to eat this fall that you make in the slow cooker. These are going to be your go to recipes this fall so that you can have dinner ready when you get home after a long day. Who doesn't love having the house smell great when you walk in the door? I love using the slow cooker so much that I don't even miss the grill! Do you have a great one that your family loves? Leave it in the comment section. Do you have a website or a link that has slow cooker recipes? Leave it in the comment section.

Here is one to get you started as I made this last night. My kids love it. To make it extra special, I toast the buns with a littler butter before putting the meat in it. You could also top with a piece of cheese.

French Dip Sandwiches

4 to 6-lb beef roast any cut
1 can beef consomme
1 can water
1 pkg Italian dressing mix (dry)
1 pkg au jus mix (dry)

Place all ingredients in a slow cooker and cook all day (8-10 hours) on low. Pull meat apart and place on hoagie buns and dip in juice

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Seeing Who You Really Are

2011-09-16T10:47:00.000-05:00

My life has been full of reflection the last couple of months and it is an amazing process to go through. Knowing that life, while great can get even better is such a fun place to be. I dream now knowing that what I dream will become a reality. While I see my life as one thing, I see myself often as something else. While my husband reminds me often of his feelings towards me, I don't really hear him. I have that little voice in my head say things like, he is just saying that because he is thinks that is what he is suppose to say to me. But since I have been going through this time of reflection I realized that I need to validate all of his words, and if he tells me I am beautiful, I need to believe him.

And on top of that, today I was called by a client and she told me she saw my picture in a local magazine and she told me I was "beautiful". This time I heard, I mean really heard what she said and from a place of gratitude I thanked her.

When I see pictures of myself I am often disappointed as I think to myself, "that is not what I look like". But what has happened in the last few weeks is I am been willing to have my photo taken and there are photos that I actually like of myself. Ones that reflect who I am on the inside and the outside. Here are two of my favorite.

Above: My older two boys after their first Varsity football win for their school. This picture means so much to me as my oldest son, on the left is smiling (and he never smiles showing his great teeth.....even for his Senior photos, he is a serious kid) and on the right is my middle son who is not smiling (and he always smiles)

Above: My handsome hubby and I at a company party.

So what this is teaching me is a few things that I know other women struggle with as well:

To sometimes get away from behind the camera and have some photos taken of myself is a good thing! Maybe you will see the real you in the photos.
That I really should not be so hard on myself and my body image. My husband reminds me often of how attractive he finds me. After 21 years of marriage and being together since I was 16, that is a miracle! I have friends with great bodies with horrible body images of themselves. CRAZY! We all need to get over it and love ourselves right now in the body we have.
I learn about life through song lyrics, here is one that speaks very loudly to me.

That when you really love the person who you are having the photo taken with, love will also translate onto the photo.
That giving up control is a good thing. It is ok for others to lead you for awhile.
It is ok to be flawed, in fact rejoice in it. I am a bad speller....so bad that I have people in my life that point it out to me. Guess what....my name is Melissa and I am a bad speller, get over it. Because I can't spell does not mean I am dumb. Because I can't spell does not mean that my voice should not be heard.
That I am now ready and taking action on losing this weight that I have had since my first year of law school, 20 years ago. Taking the time to now feel and release what I had pushed down 20 years ago. I have cried and felt more in the last 2 months than I had in the last 20 years.....and it is a good thing.
I feel like I have been a caterpillar in a cocoon for the last 20 years and I am now ready to come out of my cocoon and be the butterfly that I know I am....and that others remind me of....but I have not really heard. But first....I must love myself.
Oh....that I must really love my new animal print shirt!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Office Organizing 101

2011-09-14T08:46:00.000-05:00

Last night I had the privilege of speaking to a group on Office Organizing. If I was going to boil it down to one takeaway it would be this. You never look at 80% of the papers that you file away. So really be tough with yourself and determine if you really need that piece of paper. If you aren't sure, think about scanning it in and keeping it on your computer. Here is my real life example, as a lawyer I would attend CLE classes and I would always be given a binder at every class I took. How many of those binders did I ever look at after my class, you guessed it....just 20%!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Clutter is Postponed Decisions

2011-09-06T12:35:00.000-05:00

I belong to several chat groups within the professional organizing industry and I always learn so much from our discussions that we are having. A new discussion on the saying "Clutter is Postponed Decisions" really hit home for me.....as I am looking at groceries that need to be put away....but I don't have space in the pantry....so I know I have to clean out my pantry.....but I need to time to clean out my pantry. See, I don't have my act all together and I need a professional organizer to come into my kitchen right now and get me organized!

But I want you to think about that saying and start to look at your clutter in a different way. Look deeper at your clutter. Ask yourself what is stopping you from having the clutter. Here are some common answers and see if these resonate with you.

My house/closet/kitchen/drawer/garage is too small and I don't know where to put anything. Maybe you have too much stuff. Really ask yourself what you can get rid of and what you really need to keep to be happy.
That item was given to me by someone special. I give you permission to get rid of it. Ask yourself if you gave a gift to someone would you want them to keep it even if they don't like it? Just because you get rid of an item does not mean that you do not care for that person.
I paid "good" money for it. Didn't we all pay good money for something. Get rid of that guilt of spending "good" money and donate the item to a good cause and you will feel so much better.
I may need it some day. Do you have clothes in your closet that don't fit....get rid of them. You are giving yourself the message that some day you are going to gain weight and may need it. Yuck, that is a horrible message. Do you have a food processor that you use once a year? Maybe you could borrow one from a friend instead of taking up prime space in your kitchen.

So today, look at your clutter with new eyes and ask what type of decisions are you waiting on!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

For the Sake of Your Children; Learn to Throw Stuff Away

2011-08-30T08:54:00.000-05:00

So often when I work with client's they are terrified to throw* anything of their child's away. I am not sure where this fear comes from, but parents everywhere I give you permission to start to throw your kid's stuff away. I am talking about gum wrappers, broken bracelets, one earring without a mate. torn books, pieces of half scribbled on paper and toys they no longer play with. I am not telling you to get rid of their prized possessions, simply the junk and clutter in their room that surround them.

This is my concern, if you don't teach children now while you are living with them what is of value and what is not of value when will they learn it? Will you be visiting their first apartment and have to move the pile of clothes that they don't wear off of the couch before you can sit down. Will you go into a bathroom filled with beauty products where only a handful are used?

Interesting enough when I have the children working with me, guess who is okay with getting rid of the stuff? It is true, it is the child. What I often hear is a mom saying, "but that this the stuffed animal that uncle Alan got you on your first birthday?" I hear the parent trying to talk the child into keeping the object. Who has the problem with clutter I wonder....the pack rat kids or the sentimental parent?

This lesson became laser focused on me when my husband and I were watching a youtube video from one of my boys' favorite videos when they were young. My husband and I were laughing and saying how we couldn't believe how much our boys loved that video. Both of our older boys looked at us and said they didn't remember it at all. Then it dawned on me.....it was my memory of the video and the good times we had while watching it....it was not their memory.

So ask yourself when helping your children declutter, whose memory is it anyway? Learn how to give with purpose and show your children that when they drop off a load of clothes and toys to a battered women's shelter it is going to have a direct impact on a child. Chances are your kids will step up and do the right thing....will you?

*I use the term throw loosely here. Please know that I encourage recylcing in every form and I encourage my clients to do so as well.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes and does public speaking, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Grilled Chicken Shoyu

2011-08-29T08:31:00.000-05:00

I love to grill outside....I love to grill inside.......I love to grill Sam I am. Okay, maybe that doesn't really rhyme, but you get the idea, I love to grill. Grilling is one of those things that can get a home cooked meal on the table in minutes....depending on what you are grilling. Plus I think the flavors are heightened when grilled. Asparagus on the grill....yummy! Shrimp on the grill....yummy! Lobster tails on the grill....yummy!

I really think you could take this recipe and dump it all in the crock pot for the day as an easy crock pot meal as well. I used boneless chicken breasts instead of the thighs in the bone and I will say that the chicken was a little dry. So unless you like dry chicken, you may want to use chicken meat on the bone.

The source of this recipe is at Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

1 cup soy sauce
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup water
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger root
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper (optional)
1 teaspoon ground paprika (optional)
5 pounds skinless chicken thighs

Directions

Whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, water, garlic, onion, ginger, black pepper, oregano, red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, and paprika in a large glass or ceramic bowl. Add the chicken thighs, and toss to evenly coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat, and lightly oil the grate.
Remove the chicken thighs from the marinade. Discard the remaining marinade. Grill the chicken thighs on the preheated grill until cooked through, about 15 minutes per side.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Part 3: Back To School

2011-08-15T05:42:00.000-05:00

Back to school not only means new clothes and school supplies, but it also means a list of other items that parents have to check off their to do list. Try to schedule all of these appointments on one day in order for the work outside the home parent to only have to take one day off of work. Maybe you could even tackle the school shopping as well! Plus getting them scheduled now and completed in the next few weeks will lessen the last minute scramble.

Doctor Appointment: I like to schedule my kids for well child checkups in August of every year. At this appointment I also have the doctor fill out the sports physical as well. If I don’t do it every August, undoubtedly one of my kids will come home with a sports physical and say I need this returned by tomorrow or I can’t play in the game tomorrow.
Eye Appointment: How often should children get their eyes checked? You guessed it every year. When children grow so do their eyes. I remember as a child one year I needed glasses, the next year I didn’t. Then a few years later I needed glasses again, and then I didn’t. Now I am 42 and guess what, I need glasses!
Dental Appointment: Most dentists recommend a visit 2 times a year. Schedule one of the visits in August so that your child doesn’t have to miss any extra days of school.
Hair cut: What would the beginning of school be without a fresh haircut. My boys have their school pictures taken before school starts so that their ID’s are ready to go when school begins. We usually schedule the haircuts a week or two before the pictures so as to not get the “new haircut” look.
Passport: This is on my to do list for my kids (all right, let's be honest....it has been on my list for 2 years now!). Passports are becoming a requirement for travel into Canada as well as Mexico. Remember to check the requirements before you take off to get the passports application. Did you know that both parents need to come with for the passport application? Why not get this taken care of now before it is January and you are planning a sunny vacation in the next few weeks because you just can’t handle another week of negative 30 weather. Just think your kids would even have a new haircut and presumably a tan from playing outside.
Christmas pictures: Ok this is for you over active parents who are super organized. If you like having your families photos taken by a professional photographer, book that time now before they get too busy. We like to have our pictures taken in September while the kids still have a hint of summer on their cheeks and I can then have 2 months to ohh and ahh over my choices of holiday card designs.
Senior Photos: This one was a new one for us this year, but yes, we have my son's senior photos already done. He is a busy kid with sports, school and work and to us it just made sense to get them done before school started. One less thing for me to worry about this year.

Plan ahead and ease into the back to school rush with a smile of confidence that you are sending your child prepared both mentally and physically.

o Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Part 2: Back To School

2011-08-09T08:26:00.000-05:00

The start of school is right around the corner. For many families, it can be a chaotic time of year. It doesn’t need to be! Here are five easy steps for getting kids organized for school:

1. School supplies: The stores are now stocked with all the school supplies they’ll be getting in for the season.

When to go: Now is the time to go while the selection is the greatest and the sales are hot. Avoid – at all costs – shopping on weekends or weeknights during the supper hour. The best time to go is an hour before the store closes. This forces you to get in and get your shopping done without the hassle of crowds. Another great time to shop is right when the store opens. If you have a kid who must have the latest and greatest, you have to go now – do not delay! Try breaking your child of the habit of always having the latest and greatest because if they always receive the latest and greatest, they come to always expect it. Here’s an idea: how about buying their school folders and notebooks in their favorite color instead of what is trendy?
Backpacks: I buy good quality backpacks for my kids at Lands’ End (http://www.landsend.com/), and they last for three to four years. Granted, I have boys, and they don’t always require the hippest trends, but the backpacks I bought for $40 each haven’t cost me anything for the past four years because…get this…the backpacks don’t fall apart, they aren’t trendy, and they’re built with good back support.

2. School clothes: When I was a kid, I got my yearly clothes budget at the beginning of the school year, and that was it. I had to make it last unless I picked up extra money babysitting. Now kids are inundated with clothes year around: Christmas, birthdays, Easter, fall clothes, winter clothes, summer clothes…clothes, clothes, clothes! My best advice is to not buy any new pants until at least October. With the way kids grow, you want to make those pants last as long as possible. Until October, most kids can still wear shorts or skirts to school. Buy a handful of new shirts that gives them the feeling of getting new clothes. By waiting to do the majority of your clothes shopping until October, you’ll be able to find those “post back to school” bargains that the stores are trying to get rid of in order to make room for…you guessed…more clothes.

3. Create a system for the paper clutter now: Do you know where you are going to put the lunch menu, papers you want to keep for their memorabilia box or put in a scrapbook? How about ALL those cute art projects?

School menus, treat schedules, team practices and other schedules: Tape them on the inside of a kitchen cupboard. This allows easy access without the clutter on the fridge.
Memorabilia box: Purchase a large Rubbermaid container that either can contain one year’s worth of papers or all of the elementary years’ worth of papers. When the keepers come home, you now will know exactly where to put them.
Art projects: Have an area of your house where you display the art projects. Keep them on display for a few weeks, and then “rotate” them out, putting in new ones. What to do with the old ones? Either place them in a memorabilia box or purchase a large art portfolio to place them in. Another great idea is to create your own art portfolio out of tagboard with three of the ends taped shut. You could create one for every year.
Worksheets and tests: Use this easy test to determine if you should keep the daily papers that your child brings home: if it brings a tear to your eye, keep it; if not, toss it. For example: your child gets an A+ on a spelling test after he/she has been struggling all year to learn the spelling words. This is a keeper! Your child brings home coloring sheets or other busy work that is assigned; toss it. The first time he/she wrote his/her name: that is a keeper. The good news is that by the time they enter middle school, the paper clutter dwindles to a trickle, and then by high school it suddenly becomes nonexistent… and then you wonder if your child is really going to school each day or hanging out at the mall.

4. Establish a homework zone: Where does your child best study at? As a kid, I liked doing my homework in front of the TV. My mom did not understand that, and we battled constantly on that issue. If your child gets good grades and doesn’t struggle in school, let him/her do homework in front of the TV. Maybe your child needs absolute silence to study. Find a quiet place in the home where homework can be completed without the distractions of siblings and other family members. Maybe your child needs to be moving all the time. Find a good rocking chair or stability ball for him/her to have movement while completing school tasks. Just remember that each child is different, and just because it works for one child does not mean it will work for another. Be flexible and patient so that both you and the child can have a good school year.
5. Set expectations: Let you kids know now that when they walk in the door, they should hang their coat and backpack up and bring you all of the papers to sort. Do you have a child who needs to do homework as the first thing upon arriving home? How about the child that needs to eat as it seems like school lunches were not that appetizing that day? There is also the child who just needs to let his/her brain unwind by doing nothing but veggin’ in front of the TV. I heard there is also the child who comes in and practices his/her musical instrument every day….I have not seen such a child so I do not believe this to be true. Some children do better waking up early and getting the homework done or practicing the musical instrument in the morning. The key is to figure out what works best for each of your children and then communicate what you expect so that the routine can begin as quickly – and run as smoothly – as possible.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Part 1: Back To School Paper Clutter

2011-08-01T09:23:00.002-05:00

August is upon us and the school bells will be ringing way too soon! It just felt like summer arrived, but now is the time to get that paper monster in check! Here is just a brief description of some ideas to help you make that influx of papers more manageable.

Paper Clutter:

First realize that you can’t and they can’t keep everything, plus your children need to realize that you can't keep every scrap of paper that they ever wrote on.
Keep important testing scores and other papers in its own file.
If a child has an IEP, place the testing papers in with their medical information
Everything does not have the same value:

A child’s first drawing does not have the same sentimental value of 100th or 200th drawing
Use the test, “Does it bring a tear to my eye”? if not, get rid of it.

What to do with all of the paper:

The amount of paper coming into the home decreases once a child hits middle school.
Use a vertical file to keep the papers either monthly or yearly. Purge on a regular basis.
Have a system in place for papers for mom/dad to look at and keep and ones to sign and return.
Have a VIP (very important papers) area that gets looked at every day.
Create an In/out system so kids know to look in the file as well.

What to do with all that art work:

Have an “art display”.
Keep the art for a period of time.
Have an “art show”.
Scan in the art and make a slide show to send to family.
Take a photo of the art.
Mail to grandparents and call it a traveling art show.
Laminate: turn it into a place mat at the table.
Make those really special works of art into note cards for gifts.
Make sure to date the art and why it is meaningful.
Purchase an artists portfolio to keep all that over sized art in.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Steak Salad

2011-07-31T12:22:00.000-05:00

Nothing says summer like a good salad. But sometimes you live with men who like some substance on their salad. I found the perfect combination of boy meets girl in this steak salad. Real Simple August issue is packed with some great salad recipes this month. This is one of the first of many that I will be making this week! I have had a salad similar to this at a steak place in Seattle....I am blanking on the name now. Just know that with this salad you can control the calories by how much bacon and dressing you put on the salad. Sometimes, just having a hint is all that is needed.

The three of us without a palate of a baby loved this salad.....the middle son had a bowl of cereal and the youngest just ate some steak. The point was, we all ate at the same time and at the same table....which is huge considering how busy we are. I am happiest when we are all together laughing and sharing our day together. If only you knew what we talked about at dinner!

Steak Salad with Bacon, Crispy Potatoes, And Blue Cheese Dressing

Ingredients:

4 ounces sliced bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
8 ounces potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 tsp. oil
3 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup sour cream (we used low fat)
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1 green onion, chopped
Lettuce

Directions:

In a large skillet, cook the bacon until crisp and drain on a paper towel.
Add the potatoes to the bacon drippings and season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing occasionally, until browned and tender. Transfer to a paper towel to drain.
Meanwhile, grill the steak with seasoning until it is cooked to your desired doneness. Let rest a few minutes before serving.
For the dressing, combine the sour cream, buttermilk, vinegar, green onion and 1/4 tsp. salt and pepper. (we left the blue cheese out of the dressing and simply put it on top of the salads for those who liked blue cheese)
Place lettuce on each plate and top with steak, bacon, potatoes and drizzle with dressing....and if you like blue cheese, blue cheese crumbles.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Thank You Harry Potter: A Letter From A Mother

2011-07-18T08:34:00.001-05:00

So many memories are tied to my boys' childhood with the Harry Potter series. We had car trips where we listened to audio books in the car while driving to the Black Hills. We had vacations where I had the latest Harry Potter book in my hands and ignored my children as we drove miles and miles. My husband would sit in the hallway in between the boys' bedrooms and read them the books as they fell asleep each night, a couple of chapters at a time. But it also was a part of some big happenings as well. It was because of Harry Potter that we discovered that my son was being bullied.

You see, my husband and I were volunteering in his classroom and reading the second Harry Potter book aloud to his class while the teacher did paperwork. We did this a couple of times a week. This was the year that my son went to a new school. This was the year that we moved into a new house. This was the year that I would pick up my son every day from school and he would start to cry, just a little bit when he got in the car. This was the year that he would escape his reality and pour his mind into the pages of Harry Potter. We discovered the bullying because I happened to be in the class room to read Harry Potter and an adult pulled me aside and told me what was happening to my son. Should this adult have told me, nope, this adult broke some rules. Am I grateful that this adult broke the rules, you bet because sometimes you have to do what is right even if there is a rule that tells you don't do it.

The effects of the bullying lasted for years.....visits to counselors, calls to the police, visits to the principal, calls to the head of the schools. I was a very protective mother bear! Through all of this my son would read, and read, and read. Reading became his coping mechanism. Reading became his escape from reality. Every school conference the teachers would tell us what a problem student our son was.....because he was always reading. Did he get good grades, you bet. Did that piss off some teachers, you bet. Most teachers understood when we explained what happened to him and why he was reading. But there were those few (one) that did not get it.

How bad did the reading get? In junior high he would read while walking down the hallway and while he ate lunch. I wish I had done that in junior high and could escape the mean things that fellow classmates would say. But then something happened and the reading became less and less. He discovered sports and he discovered that he had a body that was athletic and it felt great to run and jump and leap. Put aside were the Harry Potter books and picked up were the football cleats. But he survived and triumphed over the bullying and found his way in the world. Harry Potter made that journey for him an easier one for him. As a mother, I am eternally grateful!

I count my blessings as to what Harry Potter has done for our family. As I watched the last installation of the movie this weekend, I sobbed. I sobbed when Lilly Potter told Harry that she has always been there with him. I sobbed when Mrs. Weasley stepped up and took care of business. You see Harry Potter is not just a movie about a boy, witches, wizards and magic, it is also about the power and love of mothers!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

I Declare War on Socks

2011-07-13T10:17:00.000-05:00

Having 3 boys I go through plenty of socks and with my oldest 17, you know how many years of experience I have with socks. So this blog post is built up from years of hostility that I feel towards socks. My way of dealing with the issue is to ignore it. How do I ignore it....I refuse to fold and sort our whites load of laundry. Matching white pairs of socks makes my head spin. I would rather have dental work done than sort and match socks. Luckily I am married to a man who enjoys puzzles. He has the patience to sort the socks and he puts the missing ones in the missing sock basket. So you know who gets to sort and fold the sock basket!

As a professional organizer, I can't tell you how often I go to a client's home and we find random socks all over the house. Usually I hear, "I know I have seen the mate somewhere recently". Chatting with professional organizer friends of mine, we all have clients like this and one organizer has declared amnesty on socks. I say take it up a notch and declare war on them!

Pet Peeves:

They get thrown in the laundry basket! Often they are found beside the laundry basket, by the couch, by the front door, in the garage but rarely in the laundry basket.
They are always found in a ball. How easy is it to get something clean if it is balled up? And believe me, it is not my favorite thing to un-ball those nasty socks as I throw them in the wash.
The missing mate basket. In my house this basket use to be much larger and it would always be full. I have gone to a smaller basket and it does not fill as fast.
Socks with holes. So often we throw the sock with the holes. But when you have one sock with holes, doesn't it make sense that you would have two socks with holes? So find the mate and throw that one as well.
I can tell what my kids have been up to by the color of their white socks. Red means they did a work out on the running track at the high school that has a red substance on it. Green means they were running outside without shoes on.....a pet peeve of mine. Seriously, take the socks off and put them in your pocket! Or throw them on the ground....see pet peeve #1 above. Brown means their football coach made them practice in the rain. Good thing my sons' football coach lives down the block as I am now putting them in his mailbox!

Tips:

Throw all the socks in one basket and let the family have the game of "search for matches" themselves.
Buy just one type of socks for each member of your family. In our house my oldest and husband have the same type, white. My middle son has black socks (I love these as they are always look clean.) The youngest son has black socks with gray bottoms, these too always look clean!
Stop buying socks to match an outfit. This is true for those moms of young children. Yes they make really cute socks to go with all those cute baby and toddler clothes out there. It is a marketing genius move. Just hand the cashier $5 and tell her to keep your money because your child will wear the socks one time and then you will never be able to find the mate again!
Buy one type of sock for the whole family. This works really well with tip number one of having all the socks in the basket...you just grab and go! So what if your 5 year old and spouse are wearing the same socks. Buy socks with spandex in them and they will stretch!
Number each sock on the bottom with a sharpie marker, so that they always get matched up with the proper mate. I seriously knew a guy who did this.
Embrace the teen style of wearing different colored socks. I personally think an exhausted and frustrated mom started this trend when yelling at her teenage daughter to just wear what was clean.
Make a craft project. I am as green as the next mom out there and I hate to throw socks, so instead think of ways to re purpose them. Hello sock puppets and sock monkeys! I also use to save them for dry erase board erasers for when my boys were in elementary school and had a dry erase board as one of their school supplies. The problem is they didn't need 50 socks....so why did I feel the need to save them all?
Just start getting rid of the mismatched socks and declare all out war on the missing ones and get them out of your house.
Stop wearing shoes and just wear flip flops or sandals. Who cares if we have harsh winters and you could get frost bite (disclaimer: that is a joke, please wear socks in winter as I don't want to be blamed for people loosing toes!)
Use a hosiery bag to place them all in the washer and dryer as a group. This keeps the washer and dryer monster away. I swear they sometimes get lost just int he process of being washed and dried!

Use sock keepers like these that I received at my professional organizer conference I went to in April.

Who is with me and ready to declare war on socks!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

German Kuchen Bars

2011-07-12T09:32:00.000-05:00

Every once in awhile you come across that recipe that you make again and again because people wow over it. This is one of those recipes. If you grew up with any sort of German heritage, you have had kuchen. This is unique that it is in bar form and not in pie form. To me this is a super easy one to make to feed many people. Try different fruits or fillings. My favorite is peach but I think raspberries or blackberries would work as well. I received this recipe from my husband's aunt Betty. She is a fabulous cook and I treasure each of her recipes. Thanks for sharing Betty!

Kuchen Bars

Ingredients:

Crust:

1 cup butter
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking powder
2 cups flour

Custard:

2 cups cream
4 beaten eggs
2 tbsp. flour
½ cup sugar

Directions:

Mix and spread in a 10 x 16 greased jelly roll pan and arrange fruit on top of the dough. May use apples or canned peaches. If you use canned peaches, drain off the liquid. Add custard. Top with a little sugar and cinnamon.
Bake at 350 degrees until custard is set and no longer runny. 40 minutes

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Paper Clutter

2011-07-11T10:13:00.000-05:00

So this weekend we decided to tackle the elephant in the room, or should I say closet. We had accumulated way too much paper and we had decided to declare war on it! I waited until Sunday to get going on the project. I picked a hot and sunny day. My distractions were huge but I had spoken my goal out loud to a group of friends. I am true to my word and up for the challenge!

We keep most of our papers in our walk-in closet where we keep two filing cabinets, that needed to be sorted and gone through. Those files needed to be sorted and organized a better way.

We set the stage:

Large flat surface to sort papers- in our case that would be our kitchen table. A place to sort and organize
One willing helper - in my case that is my husband. This is the person to help you stay focused and to help you make decision as to what should go and what should be saved. This is also the person who puts things in the proper place around the house while you stay focused. As a professional organizer, I am often that helper that is brought in. As one organizer said at our national conference in San Diego, "sometimes it takes an expert to hold the trash".
Distractions at a minimum - well this didn't work so well. We had kids at home that wanted to be fed. But for the most part they were able to fend for themselves.
Supplies - for this task that meant files and recycling containers as well as my trusty label maker! I also had a container where everything that needed to be shredded was placed. This is a task for our younger son or will be burned in our fire pit this week. The important thing is to make sure that all sensitive information will be destroyed in a safe way.
Ask questions - I really thought hard before I placed something in a file to see if I really would need it in the future or if I could get it from another source. Manuals for small appliances were recycled. Ones for major appliances that would go with the sale of our house were kept. I had a box of papers that I hadn't touched in 3 years. Do you know how many of those papers I kept? Exactly 20%....out went the rest! Sometimes time is a blessing. I had less emotional attachment on the papers and they were easier to get rid of.

This week I challenge you to attack that stack of organizing that needs to be done. Do what I did and set the timer for 10 minutes....and before you know it....6 hours has gone past!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Million Dollar Cookies

2011-07-10T10:48:00.000-05:00

I first had these cookies at my grandma's house probably 35 years ago. I think the recipe was one of my aunt's not sure but all I know that when I take a bite of these cookies I am back in my grandma's small kitchen in Hebron, ND. Where I would wash the dishes with scalding water....if you weren't burning your hands the water just wasn't hot enough! This is the same grandma whose famous caramel corn recipe I make. That is a recipe I don't give out. You may have to bribe one of my cousins or sisters to give it to you.....because I am not talking about that one!

For a quick cookie fix I love the fact that they have shortening in them, because I don't have to wait for the butter to soften. I can have these cookies mixed and out of the oven within 20 minutes.

What you need to know about these cookies is that they have anise (the flavor of black licorice) seeds in them. The last time I went to buy anise seeds, they were out so I bought anise flavoring instead. The flavoring worked just as well. The three foodies in my house love these cookies. The two food fussies, passed on them.....their loss.

Million Dollar Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup shortening
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. soda
2 cups flour
1 tsp. anise seed

Directions:

Make into balls; flatten with glass dipped in sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

S'mores kit

2011-07-08T08:03:00.000-05:00

In North Dakota we have this small window of when the evenings are finally getting to be nice, where we can be outside and the mosquitoes are not going to carry us away. Now is the time for that window so it is best to make good use of your time outside! Well.....you still may need to take precautions from those pesky mosquitoes! One of the ways our family likes to spend outside is to make s’mores and we increase our fun when we invite our friends and neighbors over to join us. What is happening now is our kids get older is that they invite their friends over for a night by the fire. What a great thing to know that teenagers can still sit by the glow of a fire and not by the glow of their cell phones!

We now keep all of our fixings’ in a bucket and when the time is right, we just grab out bucket and head outside. We no longer have to scramble around the house to make sure that everything is ready. What often would happen is that we realize that we are out of one of the crucial ingredients….keeping them all together solves that problem as I can glance in the bucket and see what is missing so that I can add it to my grocery list. (This also makes a great hostess gift if you are invited to someone’s lake home for the weekend!)

Ingredients:

Candy bars: Hershey bars are the traditional ones but how about reese's peanut butter cups or gourmet chocolate bars?
Marshmallows: These now come in various sizes and flavors. My favorite are still the traditional ones!
Graham Crackers: How about trying fudge striped cookies or some Pepperidge Farm gourmet cookies?
Roasting Sticks
Fire starter or matches
Fire starting log (not pictured)
Plenty of firewood
Baby wipes (not pictured….to wipe off those sticky fingers)
And a bucket ( I am going to email a friend who sells vinyl lettering and have her make me a "s'mores" to properly label my bucket.)

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Notes To My Boys: Be Kind

2011-07-06T08:37:00.000-05:00

Does it seem like there is a lack of kindness that is going around? I want to turn that trend around and bring civility and manners back in fashion. In a time where the characters from "Jersey Shore" get more media following them then the kinds deeds of volunteers from around the world, please join me as we try to change this one child at a time.

Here are a few things that I want my boys to remember about being kind:

When someone is having a bad day and yelling at you, it is rarely about you and more about them. Smile, show them love and patience and see how you can improve their day. Don't engage in a battle with them, because nobody wins in that situation. When I am yelling at you, just hug me and say "I love you mom" and that will make everything better.
Hold the door open for everyone. When you walk through a door, always pause and hold the door open for the person who is following you, without exception.
When someone says "thank you", look them in the eye and reply "your welcome", don't grunt.
When you are a guest at someones home, make sure that when you leave the home is in better condition than when you arrived. This may mean helping with dishes, taking out the garbage or sweeping the floor. Be a gracious guest and always ask what you can help with, unless you don't want to be invited back.
Show people you love them by words, deeds and action. Cook a meal for a loved one, sit and listen with a friend when they are having a bad day or volunteer for a charity. These are all good ways to show love.
My favorite Gandhi quote is "be the change you wish to see in the world". If there is something you don't like that is happening, you must take a stand and try to change it. For example if you see a lack of leadership in something that you are involved in, start volunteering and put some sweat equity in and try to show you care by your hard work. You vote with your feet, so show up and work and show that you care.
Remember special occasions and give a gift from your heart. This does not mean spending a lot of money on someone, but rather finding out what makes that person happy and doing it. For example, someone might just like you to spend time with them, so make time for them.

Love Mom

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

"Let Us Strip Off Every Weight That Slows Us Down"

2011-06-30T08:47:00.001-05:00

“[L]et us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress ….” Hebrews 12:1b (NLT)

I was sent this passage from the Bible from a good friend yesterday. So let's break it down to the first part of what "every weight that slows us down" could be. I have some things pop in my head very quickly.

Physical Body Weight: If you are holding onto those extra pounds what is it keeping you from? Can you not be active with your children? Do you stay home and not go out with friends? Do you not fly to visit family for fear of not fitting in an airplane seat?

Emotional Weight: Does the voice in your head keep telling you that you are inadequate. Maybe it is the voice of your mother, maybe it is the voice of your father or maybe it is your own voice in your head? You may look all put together and perfect on the outside but inside you are struggling.

Weight of your Job: Do you work in a dead end job that does not pay you what you are worth? Or maybe you are paid well, but hate your job and it is causing you to be sad and angry in other areas of your life. Does the idea of finding your dream job scare you?

Weight of the People Who Surround You: Did you know that you can be defined by the people who are closest to you? What do they say about you? Not verbally to others, but by their actions. Are they honorable people? Do they keep their word? Do they help others? Do they make racist jokes? Do they talk badly about others behind their back? Do they show love towards strangers?

Weight from an Addiction: This could be drugs, alcohol, gambling and many other addictions. Addictions can keep you from enjoying so many areas of your life. What are you missing out on because of addictions. Not only can money can be lost and spent but you can also loose a spouse, friends and family members.

Weight of Clutter: Yes clutter is weight. There are entire books written on this subject. I see my clients when I enter their home to help and I see the look in their eyes. I see their body language. They are stressed out. Their home does not rise up to great them when they walk in the door. They do not relax when they cross the threshold of their home. When clutter gets under control people see their home as a refuge or a retreat.

Financial Weight: Are you living outside of your means? Are you spending more than you are making? Are you trying to buy the love of others?

So what can you do? Take action and advice from my blog post earlier in the week and just do it!

Here are some actions steps that you can take:

Find an accountability partner: This could be a good friend or family member that you know loves you or someone who wants to see you succeed. When you have someone that you have to report to on a frequent basis chances are you will see forward progress.

Enter a 12 step program or treatment: It is better to face your problems with a professional by your side to help you through some of your struggles. There are people out there to help, just ask some people you trust for a recommendation.

Talk to a spiritual advisor: Find someone that you can trust about the weight that is holding you back. This person should come from a place of love and not from a place of judgment. We are surrounded by people who judge us (just listen to that voice in your head), so find a person who can bring you light and love into your life.

Get help from a professional: This person could be a therapist to help you with the mental health aspects, a personal trainer to help get you physically fit, this could be a nutritionist that weighs you weekly, this could be a business coach to help you figure out where to go with your career, a finacial advisor, an attorney or a professional organizer to help you with the physical clutter.

So what sin is holding you back? What is slowing your progress? What is that sin that is keeping you from being the best possible you? Take a good look at your life and identify what is making you unhappy and see what you can do to make it better. You only have control over your own actions. For example, I can't be hired by a wife to organize a husband without the husband being a participant in the session. You are in control of your happiness, free yourself of that weight and live the life that you always imagined!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!

• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.

• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!

• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

4th of July Menu Ideas

2011-06-29T16:33:00.000-05:00

Another holiday and another reason to eat! The plan should be to plan the day before and set things out when it is time to eat. Don't spend the day cooking, spend the day celebrating! Well let's just cut to the chase and give you a few of my favorites and what I plan on making this weekend.

Bean and Hamburger Hotdish
(This is a great one to put in the slow cooker to simmer away all day)

Ingredients:

1/2 pound bacon - cooked
1 pound hamburger - cooked
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 large can pork and beans or 2 16oz. cans
1 can kidney beans (drained)
1 can lima beans (drained)
1 can butter beans (drained)
1 large can Bush's baked beans
1 cup ketchup
2 Tablespoon dry mustard
2 Tablespoon vinegar

Directions:

Mix and add to beans and hamburger mixture. Put in slow cooker for as long as you wish on low or in oven at 300 degrees for 2 hours. May need to add a bit of liquid from the drained beans if it is getting dry.

Vegetables Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

1 cucumber
3 carrots
1/2 cauliflower
1/2 pound fresh green beans
1 pound sliced mushrooms
6 tablespoons tarragon vinegar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon dill weed

Directions:

Chop vegetables and mix vinaigrette and let sit for several hours before serving. Toss before serving.

Select Deli Salad:

1/2 pound dry rainbow rotini cooked and drained
Jar of marinated artichoke hearts, drained
5 ounces sliced pepperoni
1 cup fresh cauliflower
1 cup fresh broccoli
1 cup diced Monterrey jack cheese
1/2 cup sliced green onions
3/4 cup vegetable or olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Directions:

Prepare rotini and drain. In large bowl combine rotini and remaining ingredients, toss to mix. Cover; chill and toss before serving.

Beer Marinade for Beef
(I always had this as a kid with t-bones, it is yummy)

Ingredients:

Can of beer
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground ginger
3 Tablespoon soy sauce
1/8 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
2 Tablespoon sugar or honey
4 Tablespoon marmalade
2 minced garlic cloves

Directions:

Simply mix and marinate with meat of choice and then grill meat to desired doneness.

Dirt Cake
(an olide but goodie)

Ingredients:

1 package crushed Oreo cookies
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar
16 ounces of Cool Whip
2 packages instant chocolate pudding
3 cups milk

Directions:

Blend together the cream cheese and the 3/4 cup powdered sugar.
Mix the pudding and the milk.Blend in with cream cheese mixture and Cool Whip.
Put a layer of crumbs, then pudding the another layer of crumbs. Let stand for 4 hours in a cold place.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Just Do It

2011-06-28T10:22:00.001-05:00

We all know that slogan "Just Do It" by Nike. Probably one of the best branded slogans in the past 20 years. If you ask anyone what Nike's slogan is I bet the majority of people could tell you. Those three little words mean a lot to me but I just never realized how much. You see, I am a just do it type of girl. I don't let fear hold me back. I don't let the thought of failure keep me stuck. I just do it. Starting a professional organizing business after being an attorney? Crazy to some, but to me it made perfect sense! Working with a start-up direct sales business? Crazy to some, but it made perfect sense to me. Starting a blog and putting my life on display for people to judge and criticize? Crazy I know!

This past weekend I had a great talk with a close friend. I was told that what she admires most in me is that I just go for it. Really? I am so use to just going for it I don't even think twice about it. To me, it is a way of life. Have I failed at things? You bet, and big time! Do you know what I failed at? I doubt it, because I don't focus on it and I have moved forward. I have chosen to take the obstacles and have them make me stronger. If you have an obstacle, think about the good things it has brought into your life. Maybe you met a new friend? Maybe you gathered a new skill?

This is what I have found to be true. When you make the choice to just do it, the path will be shown to you if you have your eyes open as well as your heart. Life has put people in front of me who have supported me in this path. Books have fallen in my hands that support me in this journey. The people who are discouraging to me, I don't have time for and they just are not in my life anymore. I surround myself with people who support me in my journey of just doing it!

How many people do you know that just do it? What is stopping you from just doing it?

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/ .
• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

New Direction And 4 New Recipes

2011-06-27T09:40:00.000-05:00

So if you subscribe to my 365 Clever Cookbooks blog you may be wondering why no new posts. Well, let me tell you, life got in the way. Simply stated my life in the last three weeks involved 2 great vacations and not a lot of time to cook home cooked meals. But isn't that the problem with all of us.....too much to do and not enough time. Normally I would just suck it up and get it done however I had a second problem. The second problem was it just wasn't fun for me anymore. The blogging every day of new recipes, the trek to the library, the cooking because I felt I "had to" just got to be too overwhelming. So I took a break, told my children, announced it on facebook and listened to everyone's reactions. The most important reaction was from my children, they were disappointed. My youngest and middle, who are the fussy eaters wanted me to keep going. I said, "but you never ate what I cooked". The response was simple and profound, "but we liked you making it and trying just a bite to see if we liked it". Wow....blow me over with a feather. I did not expect that at all!

So I have had a week to regroup and this is what I came up with. I will cook like I have always done and just post my recipes. Sometimes you will get photos, sometimes you will not. But the important thing is, I will post recipes that our family loves. What I would love from you is to help me along the way. Do you have some recipes that your family goes ape wild over, if so be a guest blogger for me. Write a blog post and I will post it to share with all my friends. Because lets face it, we all need help in figuring out what is for dinner!

So back to the basics; I am a creature of habit and they way I search for recipes is simple, online. That is the source that I will go back to. It is part of my mission of getting less dependent on recipes found in books and on cards and ones found on-line. I love to search my favorite sites for new and inspiring recipes. So back to my habits of finding a good one online and less on the trek to the library....where frankly I was going to run out of cookbooks!

Here is what I made this weekend with the complete recipes for the ones out of my recipe book and the links from the ones that I found on the internet:

Cafe Rio Pork Salad (my adaptation as I have made it much simpler than the version I had found online)

Cafe Rio Pork Ingredients:

pork roast, one that is great for shredding
1 cup of chunky salsa
1 can coke
1/2 c. brown sugar

Directions:

Place pork in crock-pot. Mix together ingredients, salsa, coke, brown sugar and put on top of pork. Cook for 6 hours on low. Shred pork with forks, taking out the fat. Leave it on low until ready to serve.

Creamy Tomatillo Dressing Ingredients:

1 packet hidden valley ranch buttermilk dressing
1 c. buttermilk
3/4 c. of light sour cream
3/4 cup tomatillo salsa
¾ bunch fresh cilantro
juice from 1 lime (about 2 tsp.)

Directions:

Blend all ingredients in the blender. Refrigerate.

SERVING:

There are two options for this, either serve it as a salad or eat it as a taco. I eat it as a salad and my younger two boys eat it as a taco. For the salad I add whatever fresh vegetables I have around the house such as tomatoes, peppers,cucumbers and avocado. I don't even add cheese as I think the salad has enough flavor and you really don't miss having the cheese. For some who are making the tacos, they may like cheese.

Lemon Thyme Bars

Ingredients:

Butter, for greasing dish
Flour, for dusting dish

Bar Ingredients:

1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves (I have lemon thyme that I grow every year just for these bars)
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Glaze Ingredients:

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Directions:

Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and flour an 8 by 8-inch glass baking dish.
In a small bowl combine flour, thyme and salt. Set aside. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together 1 stick of butter and powdered sugar on high-speed until light and fluffy, about 30 seconds. Beat in the lemon juice and vanilla. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture. Using damp fingers, press the dough into the prepared pan. Bake for 30 minutes until golden. Cool for 30 minutes.
In a medium bowl, whisk the lemon juice and powdered sugar together until smooth. Spoon the glaze over the cooled crust. Allow the glaze to harden, at room temperature, for at least 1 hour.
Using a metal spatula, remove the crust from the pan. Cut into 1 1/2-inch square bars and arrange on a serving platter or store airtight in a plastic container at room temperature.

The Pioneer Woman Taco Pizza

The Pioneer Woman Red Velvet Cake with The Best Frosting Ever

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.
Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Note To My Boys: Laundry Tips

2011-06-26T10:46:00.000-05:00

So I am coming off of the busiest couple of weeks that I have ever had. I am busy all of the time, but I had two trips that had me travel away from home and that added a different level of busy for me. My plans are to add more travel to my life and it got me thinking about what do my kids needs to know in order to make things run smoother. I started doing my laundry at a young age, and my kids are all of the age that they can do it themselves. If we don't train our children now, who is going to train them? Train them right and your future daughter and son in laws will thank you!

So let's start with laundry, it is obvious that they need some tips to help them get it all figured out. Kids are now taught in the FACS (in my day called Home Ec that only the girls took) class in junior high how to do laundry. But what I think they miss are some of the nuances that 30 plus years of doing laundry has taught me. I also had input from my friends who have issues with their kids and step kids doing laundry. So with this in mind I pass on these tips to my boys. Feel free to send to your children or cut out and tape in your laundry room!

Check your pockets. The note that you need me to sign, does not wash and dry well. Your chap stick does not love the dryer as it will melt and put grease stains on all your clothes.
You should do laundry every couple of days. Don't save it up to do once a month as you will waste your whole day (or two) inside washing clothes. Don't assume your parents are going to do your laundry for you. We will not live with you for the rest of your life and you do need to know these skills before you leave the nest.
Don't just throw your clothes on the floor in your room. Dirty clothes go in a basket/hamper/laundry room and clean clothes get put away after they are washed. That is the order of the universe and if you mix it up you are asking for trouble from the laundry gods!
If it is red, wash it with like colored items until it stops bleeding into other clothes. Or my tip, don't buy red clothes.
Sort like clothes into loads. Washing jeans and towels works well because they dry at about the same rate. If you use bleach, wash all white clothes/socks/towels together in one load.
If you mother's clothes are in the washer, don't just automatically throw them in the dryer. Take a minute and ask her what can and can't go in the dryer. You may be surprised at what you find out.
Don't leave the clothes in the washer for more than a few hours....that is gross and will start to grow mold and your clothes will soon smell like blue cheese.
Don't leave the clothes in the dryer for more than a few hours. Hang and fold the clothes as soon as possible so that you never have to iron.
Don't throw your socks in as a ball, they won't get clean. They stay a dirty stinky mess unless you un-ball them.
Make sure each leg of the pants is going in the same direction (I have one son who takes of his pants which causes one leg to always be inside out....what is with that?)
If you have a stain on your clothes, treat it as soon as possible. Don't wash and dry it and then treat it. That is not the natural order. First treat....then wash....then check to see if the stain came out.....if not, go back to step one.....if stain out, dry.
When placing clothes in the dryer, fold the load that is already in the dryer, and don't just throw it on the floor or in a basket.
When using the dryer, empty the lint filter before each load, unless you are working on a lint art project.
Use the proper amount of soap. Read the bottle for amounts. Watch the original Jodie Foster version of "Freaky Friday" to see what happens when you use too much soap. (this clip does not have the laundry scene in it, but I highly suggest you watch this movie, because it is great!)

Wash towels at least once a week, because even though you are clean when you get out of the shower, they still need to be washed!
Wash bed sheets at least once a week,because you are not always clean when you fall into bed at night.
If washer does not complete the spin cycle for some reason, re-position the clothes and have the spin cycle go again. Please don't put soaking clothes in the dryer for 5 hours.

(Disclaimer: Some of my boys do a great job at laundry, some do not. They know who they are....this was written for that boy/s)

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

• Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
• Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
• MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
• For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

New Organizing Product for Runners

2011-06-23T09:21:00.001-05:00

So every once in awhile you find those products that make you say, "how cool is that?". I just returned from a conference in Chicago where I was given this neat little product called the Phubby. Weird name, cool product. It came in size small and I gave it my family to try on....too small. But then I thought of a friend of mine who is a runner....a serious runner, and asked her to try it out for me. She had mixed emotions of even wanting to try it, as runners are pretty particular what they use when they run. Some may even call them creatures of habit! But she said because she was my friend, she would give it a try.....what a loyal friend. She called me the next day and said she loved it! Here is what she loved about it:

When she does her long runs she has not taken a phone with her as it would go in a fanny pack and jiggle around while running. For her safety, she realizes that she needs to start carrying her phone with her but just wasn't sure how to make it work for her.
She was able to feel the vibration of the phone when a call came or text message. She could simply lift up her arm and see if she wanted to take the call or reply to the text.
With the mesh on the phubby, it left no mark on her arm while some arm bands do.
The phubby stayed in place while she was running and didn't move up and down her arm.
When her fingers were wet from sweat, she said that she was not able to use the touch screen on her phone, but she simply dried off her finger and it worked just fine.
One downside may be the tan line that it leaves on your arm if you are an outside runner in the sunshine. I see this as the same problem that golfers have with their sock tan lines. If you are able to run and golf in the sun, that is a great problem to have!
Download your music on your smart phone and eliminate your MP3 player while you run.

I am getting one for my husband in a larger size as he rides his bike to and from work. I like knowing that if I need to get a hold of him during his 20 minute ride, that he will know that I am trying to get a hold of him. He will be able to feel the vibration and decide to take my call or text of choose to ignore it. My two older boys are also getting ones for when they are lifting weights and have no pockets in their shorts in the weight room. My son will get one while he mows the lawn so he doesn't need to stop the mower each time he gets a new text message.....yeah, I can't believe he does that too!

Peace of mind is a great thing!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Full disclosure: Melissa is a consultant with Clever Container and this product is carried by Clever Container. All information gathered both good and bad are included in the review.
Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Father's Day Grilling Menu

2011-06-15T09:59:00.000-05:00

There seems to be a rule that if you are a father, you love grilling. Maybe it is just if you are a man, you love grilling! So what to make for that man who loves to grill on his special day? I have been grilling a lot lately, so I will share with you what I think would be a great menu to show that special father how much you love him! Note to my dad....come and visit and your grandsons will make this for you! Note to my kids....make this for dad as I will be on an airplane flying back on Sunday. I will be sure to make sure my kids read my blog today!

Appetizer: Grilled Shrimp, Scallion and Bacon Quesadillas with Smoky Guacamole
Side Dish: Grilled Potato Salad With Crisp Bacon
Salad: Grilled Asparagus Chopped Salad
Main Dish Chicken: Curried Chicken Breasts
Main Dish Beef: Grilled Steak With Blender Chimichurri
Dessert: Grilled Chocolate Raspberry Burritos

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Week in Review: May 14, 2011

2011-06-13T08:24:00.000-05:00

I love doing these reviews as it gives you links to all of the recipes I made for the week in one spot. So did you miss any of my family meal posts from the last week (maybe two weeks ago or maybe a month ago)? Once again, never fear, as I will give you quick links to them and you too can make some fun family meals this week. My top two would be the Croque Monsieur as well as the Steak with Chorizo Baked Beans! You have got to make these! Promise me you will make them!

Saturday: Cinnamon Pudding Cake
Sunday: Croque Monsieur
Monday: Steak with Chorizo Baked Beans
Tuesday: Pear Clafoutis
Wednesday: Beef and Noodles in Thai Peanut Sauce
Thursday: Peking Wraps
Friday: Summer Panzanella

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Week in Review: May 7, 2011

2011-06-11T08:10:00.000-05:00

I love doing these reviews as it gives you links to all of the recipes I made for the week in one spot. So did you miss any of my family meal posts from the last week (maybe two weeks ago or maybe a month ago)? Once again, never fear, as I will give you quick links to them and you too can make some fun family meals this week. My top two would be the Shish-Ka-Bobs as well as the Asian Turkey Pot-Stickers! You have got to make these! Promise me you will make them!

Saturday: Pineapple Party Pork
Sunday: Chocolate Macaroon Ring Cake
Monday: Green Olive and Artichoke Tapenade
Tuesday: Spicey Sausage, Bean and Cheese Nachos
Wednesday: Simple Asparagus Tarts
Thursday: Shish-Ka-Bobs
Friday: Asian Turkey Pot-Stickers

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com.
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

But Then The Lilacs Bloomed

2011-06-10T10:12:00.003-05:00

It has been a busy week for me. Not just busy with the hands on work of everyday life, but the busy of the emotional stuff in my head. This week a friend would have celebrated his 50th birthday with his loving wife and daughters.... this week I had some heart to heart talks about the important things in life and finding happiness while really looked inside of me to what I am made of....this week I celebrated being married for 21 years to the perfect man yet realizing that I am far from perfect..... this week I leave for a long awaited girl friend reunion yet I am saddened that one has to stay home because of important family issues......but then the lilacs bloomed!

Growing up my grandma's house was surrounded by tall lilac bushes and I have great memories associated with that smell. When we moved into our house the first tree I planted was a lilac bush followed soon by a lilac hedge. I remember my grandma with each passing smell of my lilacs. But two weeks ago we had a bad storm that cracked my lilac tree and took a 1/3 of it away. If you must know, I grieved for more than a loss of part of that tree. But really it is just a tree. So now I am turning positive with the hope that the remaining 2/3 will survive and grow even stronger because despite losing a 1/3 of the tree, what remained has bloomed!

Today I take the day to get out of my head and into my heart. The lilacs are in bloom and the windows of my house and soul are open for me to rejoice and remember all that I love!

I leave you with this quote:

"Our life is frittered away by detail... simplify, simplify." Henry David Thoreau

You see this quote is also ironic as I was given two gifts by friends this week....both engraved with the word simplify. I am truly blessed!

Find the lilacs in your life and embrace what brings you joy and happiness!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at http://www.ididit-fargo.com/.

Interested in starting your own Professional Organizing business, visit http://www.mssimplicity.com/ to learn about how Melissa can help you!
Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@mssimplicity.com .
MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings!
For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

Coconut Cake

2011-06-03T14:04:00.000-05:00

Little known fact....I was born in Georgia....so maybe that is why I was attracted to the name of this cookbook? Have you ever had good Southern cooking? I mean really good Southern cooking. It is some of the best in the world, full of down home goodness and will fill your belly and make you feel all warm and fuzzy, like a big hug.

Atlanta is filled with fine eaterys and restaurant critic and food writer Krista Reese found some of the best recipes to include in her cookbook. I think if my kids would have seen the picture for the Vandross Burger they would have demanded that I make it. I will describe it as a bacon cheeseburger on top of a Krispy Kreme doughnut.....insane, right?! The cookbook is filled with homestyle comfort foods like fried chicken and fried okra but also recipes for the fancier palate such as truffled white bean soup....yumm.

The Ruling: We made the coconut cake. All I can say is.....insane. Please come and get it out of my house before I eat the whole pan! It is a cross between Tre Leche cake and a pina colada! Make this for your next event that you have to bring a dessert....your friends will thank you....give it away as fast as you can so that your waistline can thank you too!

Coconut Cake, pg 202

Ingredients:

Cake:

1 (18.5-ounce) box yellow cake mix
3 large eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
¾ cup pineapple juice
1 small very ripe banana, chopped
1 teaspoon coconut extract
½ (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
½ (14- ounce) can condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:

1 (8-ounce) tub Cook Whip
1 teaspoon coconut extract
½ cup butter, at room temperature
8 ounces (or ½ package) confectioners’ sugar
Shredded coconut, to garnish

Directions:

Preheat the oven according to package directions and prepare one 9x13-inch baking pan or two 8-inch round pans according to the cake mix directions.
To make the cake, combine the cake mix, eggs, oil, pineapple juice, banana, and coconut extract in a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for 3 minutes. Pour into prepared pan(s).
Bake according to the package directions. While the cake bakes, combine the evaporated milk, condensed milk, and vanilla in a saucepan and heat until warm to allow the condensed milk to mix well.
When the cake is done, remove it from the oven. Poke holes all over the cake with a fork and pour the milk mixture over the cake. Let cool in the pan(s).
Invert the cake onto a cake dish if you are making a layer cake, or leave in the baking dish if you are making a sheet cake.
To prepare the frosting, combine the Cool Whip and coconut extract in the bowl of an electric mixer with the butter and confectioners’ sugar. Beat until smooth. Frost the cake. Sprinkle with coconut.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings! For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Not So Extreme Couponing

2011-06-02T08:48:00.000-05:00

Have you seen the show Extreme Couponing yet? I have not but boy have I been hearing a lot of buzz around town about it. I go through phases of clipping coupons but I have some preconceived notions on clipping coupons. So two weeks ago I sat down with local coupon diva FM Cheapskate and I talked with her about some of my concerns. Because of my concerns or misconceptions I decided we needed to hold some lunch and learns to educate more in our area on the ways to save money, and this is where I come in....and to help them stay organized. Here are some of the things that we will be discussing during our scheduled lunch and learns on June 4 and June 9.

It is too much work: Reality, spend the time doing it and practice and you will start to be faster at it. Figure out how much time it takes you and how much per hour you save. If it takes you 2 hours to save $100 would it be worth it? But really, if I could save $100 off my grocery bill I would be thrilled!
Our local grocery stores don't triple coupons here: If you are smart there are still ways to take advantage of the coupons when combining them with the local adds and markdowns in the store.
I don't have time to go to every local store to find the best deals: Did you know that there are local facebook pages dedicated to the deals in your area? They do the leg work for you and then tell you where to shop for the best deal.
I don't want to buy crap: Did you know that there are sites that are dedicated to organic food coupons? I didn't know that either. I am going to learn how to buy organic milk or dairy free alternatives at a discount as I have 3 boys who need their own proverbial cow in our backyard.
What about organic beef? Did you know that you can buy from local farmers and pay less by cutting out the middle man, aka the grocery store?
How do I keep all the coupons organized and use them before they expire? I think we can show you a thing or two about staying organized while saving money!
What about trading services? Could you mow someone's yard for them to babysit your kids. Could you write a your hair salons newsletter for getting free haircuts for your family? Find ways to think outside of the box when trying to save money.

So grab your sister, mother, girlfriend, spouse and get ready to learn how to save money. Click on the links below for more details! Hope to see you saving money with us!

Did I mention that the cost of the class includes a delicious lunch from Mosaic Catering?

Did I mention that their are door prizes vlaued at $115?

June 4 Not-So-Extreme Couponing

June 9 Not-So-Extreme Couponing

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings! For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Organizing on the Cheap

2011-06-01T10:53:00.000-05:00

I am asked by people who don’t have the budget to hire a professional organizer, what can they do. First of all, make sure that you are signed up to receive my blog postings as well as become a fan of my facebook page. I post often about tips and tricks……that are FREE!

I also offer classes in the community that cost under $30! In June I am offering 3 classes and the links will take you to the registratin page and details:

■June 4 Not-So-Extreme Couponing

■June 9 Not-So-Extreme Couponing

■June 22 Meal Planning For Busy Families: Grilling

Another thing that you can do is to read books on organizing. I wanted to point you to a recently released organizing book that is very comprehensive. If you are determined to become organized, this book will help you. Buy one for you and one for a friend and the two of you can work together and hold each other accountable. I guarantee that if you do the work and the exercises, you will be an organized person upon completion!

The Ultimate Life Organizer was written by Lisa Montanaro, a professional organizer and lawyer out of New York. On a personal note, I have had the pleasure of working with Lisa as a business coach and she knows what she is talking about!

You can order you book here.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes! For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Before The Lights Go Out

2011-05-31T11:08:00.001-05:00

Our local community had our first summer storm where many in our community lost power and are still waiting for power to be restored 12 hours later. I had a request on facebook to make a list of the top 10 things you should do prepare in case you are without power. I am not a sky is falling type of person, but there are precautions that you can take to be better prepared. I do take precautions and I do have other members of my family give me the eye roll when I do these things. But the youngest child of mine and the dog are happy that I am taking the precautions!

When we have the threat of losing the power in the spring and summer, it is usually because we have a bad thunderstorm with straight line winds and possible tornados. In the winter when we loose power it is because of ice on the lines and wind blowing and snaping power lines and trees that fall on the lines. Either way...these are some basic tips to consider.

Try to turn off as many lights and appliances as possible in your home. Give the power companies a break to help get the power on and they don't need a huge surge of power going through the lines when they get them turned back on.
Not only turn off, but also unplug your computers and televisions that are not in use. I like to take the extra precaution of unplugging the computers and flat screen televisions. If your house were to be struck by lighting, it could go through all of your outlets and destroy those items.
Now is not the time to wash clothes or run the dishwasher. If you were you lose power you do not want a dishwasher full of water and a washing machine full of clothes sitting in water. Wait a couple of hours until the storm threat is over and then wash your clothes and dishes.
Bring in your lawn furniture or anything else that may fly away. This is kind of an odd tip, but I like to try to bring in as many things as we can. This will avoid some of these items to become air born and take out a power line, break a window or damage a house or fence.
Find your flashlights and make sure they have batteries another alternative is to Gather candles and find the matches. With flashlights I like to have one and a spare. Your cell phone can also be used as a source of light in a pinch.
Gather cell phone chargers. I like to make sure that my cell phone has a full charge so that if the power goes out you can still use your phone for a couple of hours. I have a car cell phone charger that I keep in my car so I can go to my car and charge my phone if need be. I did use my iPad to watch the local radar. This only works until we lose power and the modem goes out in our home. But the iPad has a lot of games loaded on it that we can play in the dark. The battery when fully charged will go for many hours. If you cell phone battery is running low, it takes less power to send texts than to make calls.
Wear your shoes. We typically do not have shoes on in our house, but during storms it is a good idea to have them on your feet. If you have to leave your home with seconds notice and have to walk over broken glass, you will be glad to have those shoes. I keep my slippers (that have hard soles) by my bed every night. If you have to run out of your house in the dead of winter, the last thing you are going to think about is finding a pair of shoes.
Get some blankets and pillows together. We make what my youngest son calls a nest. He takes his blankets and pillows and lays them in the hallway in our basement. The dog lays down with us and we are nice and comfy. If you have a night of storms, you can fall asleep in the nest and get a good nights sleep. Make it fun and bring down some snacks and bottled water to help the time go by.
If you loose power, eat the food contents in the fridge first. Do not be tempted to open the freezer. Those items can be kept frozen if you don't open the freezer. Open the freezer after you are ready to start eating everything in it.
Have a good generator. Make sure that if you need a generator you have a good quality one that is gassed up and ready to go. If you have a sump pump that runs, you need a generator. If not, you will be bailing out the water by hand.

The most important thing to do is to remain calm and stay safe. Take some extra precautions for peace of mind. If you panic and have young children, they will learn to panic during storms. Make it an adventure and not a time to live in fear.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. MS. Simplicity offers monthly classes, click here to find out the latest offerings! For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

How To Organize Your Parents: Part 3

2011-05-20T09:25:00.000-05:00

This is the final part in the three part series on "Organizing Your Parents", here is where you can find parts one and two. I can not stress it enough how important it is to have all of your important papers in just a few locations, not scattered around the house. Your papers should be kept in just a few places. All important papers should be kept in a safe place where they do not fall into the wrong hands.

1. Orginals should be kept in a fire proof/water proof safe, safety deposit box or in a professional service providers office like a lawyer, accountant or financial advisor.
2. Papers that are not the originals but are needed on a frequent basis should be kept in a portable file box.

So now that you know the locations that the important papers should be kept in, now you need to know what types of papers should be gathered together.

WHAT TO PLACE IN THE FILE

Copy of your will with instructions as to where the original is kept– Original should be kept in a safe place.
Medical history with all of your current prescriptions and any known allergies or medical conditions or even surgeries.
Any password information to log on to websites or accounts for financial information. This information should be kept safe and away from prying eyes.
Information as the location and keys to any safety deposit boxes.
Written wishes, such as burial, funeral, organ donation and the like?
Information that you want contained in your obituary.
Current picture you want placed in your obituary.
All the titles and deeds or information as to where they are located.
Medicare number along with any supplemental insurance and any contact information.
Information as to current physician, lawyer, financial planner, accountant and clergy.
Contact information to important friends or family members.
Think about adding someone to your mortgage or deeds so that they can easily make changes in the property if needed. Contact your banker for advice.
All insurance policies with the agents name. Don’t forget car, home, life, health and items of value that are insured.
List all bank, savings, IRA, Retirement accounts, insurance policies, etc. and contact information.
All papers needed for filling taxes.
Proof of marriage, divorce or adoption.
Any military papers or service numbers.
Social Security Number.
Loan papers with all contact information and most current statement.
Living Will, Power of Attorney for Health Care and Power of Attorney for Finances. Everyone should have these...no matter what your age. Copies should be sent to your children or family members as well as on file with your health care provider. Many of these are available at your local clinic and you are probably ask during each appointment if you have them.

All papers should be kept in a safe place so that any information could not fall into the wrong hands.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

How To Organize Your Parents: Part 2

2011-05-19T07:47:00.000-05:00

Last week I had the privilege to speak in front of a group of about 150 Senior Citizens about the topic of downsizing. I veered away from the topic and talked about some really important things that may be happening in their lives. In part 2 of the series I am talking about taking the step of actually donating or purging of items and recording of memories.

Give with purpose

So how do you know what to donate and what should just go in the trash or given to family members? I always talk about the phrase "Give with Purpose". Many of my clients are happy to donate their items if they know that they are going to be appreciated by the person that receives them. Find a charity that works with what your values and interests are. There are ways to make charitable donations to church organizations and certain thrift stores are run by organizations that benefit certain non-profits. When you know that you are benefiting a cause that you believe in, it is easier to part with your items.

How to do this:

When getting rid of items, think about the good that they are going to do in someone else's life.
Many things do not have value like you thought they may have.

Contact a local collector of antiques and see if anything has value

Try to think outside of the box when making donations. Think about your state or local heritage center or museum.

Record your memories

To me the most valued thing is not actually possessions but rather memories. I want to know who the people are in the picture. I think it is nice to know that the pony you had as a child was named "Paint" and you got him as a gift when you turned 6. Finding out that your mom went picking chock cherries to make jelly in a certain pan every year is a fun thing to know.

How to do this:

Take a video camera and set it up on a tripod and sit and ask questions. Most people love to talk about themselves and you may be surprised what you learn.
To give you some talking points, go through a stack of photos and talk about the people in the pictures.
I have set out photos at a family reunion with a sheet of paper by each photo and had people write down what they remembered about the photos. That is where we found out that what my cousin thought was a picture of her dad was actually a picture of my dad.
Maybe other family members have the childhood photos. Have a tech savvy family member scan them all in and put them on an external hard drive and give an external hard drive to each member of the family. This is a great way to preserve those memories for everyone to enjoy.

Decide what is of value to you now and let your thoughts be known

Take the time now to let your family know what is of value either financially or sentimentally. You may need to have the conversations that are uncomfortable. If you are the parent, communicate it with your children what you find value in. If you are the child and you have some love of an object, let your parent know in a kind way.

How to do this:

You can work with your estate attorney to list certain items in your will.
My grandmother hand wrote on masking tape on the back of items who she wished them to go to. The family respected her wishes and it worked. This is a good example of how things can work out.
A bad example is the aunt who visits from out of town and puts her name on everything. That is showing greed and not love or concern for other members of the family.

Make decisions now while you are in good health.

Having dignity and being in a good place mentally is such an important piece when aging. Make the decisions now while everyone is in good health. Nothing is worse than having an emergency happen and having no plan in place. Make that plan and stay in control and make sure that wishes are honored.

How to do this and things to thing about:

Make the decisions when body, mind and spirit are in the right place. Everyone should have a plan in place, even those under the age of 50.
If a health emergency happens and a home needs to be sold in order to go to live in a retirement community, you do not want the task of getting the house ready to go on the market and sort through everything in a limited time frame. Take the time now to start going through everything and deciding what should stay and what should go. Begin the process of decluttering. Take one area of the home at a time and apply the organizing principals that I have been blogging about. Do you need help? Did you know that there are professional organizers who work specifically with aging services?
If something were to happen to you, would your children or family know what is of value to you and what is not? Would they know that the china cup saying made in "Prussia" was the one your grandmother received on her wedding day?
Would they even know who is in photos? Take the time to get that information recorded in some fashion be it by video or by writing about the photos.
Don't just assume that if you told Susy that she can have something that Betsy isn't going to contest it. Write it down or better yet, give the items to the people who you want now so that they can start to enjoy them.

Join me for the final piece tomorrow where I will be discussing how to organize the important papers of our lives.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out

How To Organize Your Parents: Part 1

2011-05-17T07:02:00.000-05:00

Last week I had the privilege to speak in front of a group of about 150 Senior Citizens about the topic of downsizing. I veered away from the topic and talked about some really important things that may be happening in their lives.

Because of the show "Hoarders" we all know what one looks like. The term hoarder is now a common word that I use in my everyday talk with client's. They all start out by telling me they are not a hoarder, and most are not. If you want to learn more about hoarding you can visit my blog post here. Most of our parents are collectors and not hoarders. If you are worried that your parent my be a hoarder my first advice would be to get the help of a mental health professional. To determine if your parents are a collector or a hoarder, look at the level of shame. If they have people over, they are more of a collector. If they are a hoarder, chances are nobody ever comes over and visits their home. There is so much information on this topic that I could blog about, or even write a book about. However the only point I really wanted to make on hoarding, is with the first step which is asking for help with a trained professional. There are many good books out there about hoarding and I would encourage you to search them out if you are in need. I turn to Judith Kolberg as the guru of teaching professional organizers about hoarding. There are also many good organizations that can help you if you think that your parents may be a hoarder.

The next point I want everyone to understand is; Just because the children do not want their things, does not mean that they don't love their parent! This is so important for our parents to understand. We are not rejecting them, we are rejecting the stuff that we do not have emotional attachment to. The items I do have emotional attachment to are things such as pictures or handwritten recipes. The things most children do not want from their parents would be furniture, china and clothing. Parents need to ask their children if they want any of the stuff and if the children say no.....the parents need to be okay with that decision. We live in a different time. We can go to a big box store and buy 5 shirts for $25. Our parents were maybe given a couple of new shirts and pants or a few dresses a year and that is all they got. Our parents probably had one couch that they saved for and paid cash for. Now we can buy couches with financing by making a snap jugment purchasing decision and have it in our home by the time supper comes around. I am not saying that this is right, I am just saying that the children have a different set of circumstances with their purchasing power. Have the conversations now. Come from a place of love, not judgment.

So maybe your parents homes are full of things that you see as junk. You need to understand the many reasons that they may still be holding on to many of the items.

Reasons People Keep Things:

They paid a lot of money for something

Memories of how they saved and saved to buy it

Because they may need it one day

Ask these questions

Can I replace it quickly
Can I replace it for little money
When was the last time I used it?

Because it is still in good shape

Ask ths question

When was the last time I used it?

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Week In Review: April 30, 2011

2011-05-16T08:29:00.000-05:00

I love doing these reviews as it gives you links to all of the recipes I made for the week in one spot. So did you miss any of my family meal posts from the last week (maybe two weeks ago)? Once again, never fear, as I will give you quick links to them and you too can make some fun family meals this week. My top two would be the Egg, Canadian Bacon and Cheddar Biscuit Sandwiches as well as the Caesar Pita Pizzas! You have got to make these! Promise me you will make them!

Saturday: Crispy Smoked Mozzarella with Honey and Figs

Sunday: Slow Cooker Oatmeal

Monday: Lemonade Cake

Tuesday: Olive Stuffed Meatballs with Yogurt Sauce

Wednesday: Caesar Pita Pizza

Thursday: Scoopable Chinese Chicken Salad

Friday: Egg, Canadian Bacon and Cheddar Biscuit Sandwiches

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Week in Review: April 23, 2011

2011-05-15T09:46:00.000-05:00

I love doing these reviews as it gives you links to all of the recipes I made for the week in one spot. So did you miss any of my family meal posts from the last week (maybe two weeks ago)? Once again, never fear, as I will give you quick links to them and you too can make some fun family meals this week. My top two would be the Broccoli, Avocado And Pistachios as well as the Spanish Chicken with Chorizo and Potatoes! You have got to make these! Promise me you will make them!

Saturday: Penne Alla Papalina

Sunday: Broccoli, Avocado, And Pistachios

Monday: Bananas Foster

Tuesday: Spanish Chicken with Chorizo and Potatoes

Wednesday: Southern Pulled Pork

Thursday: Artichoke and Potato Turnovers

Friday: Wild Rice Salad

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

Register today for “Meal Planning for Busy Families: Grilling Part 1″, if you are in the Fargo/Moorhead area. Class is scheduled from 6:30 to 8:30 and includes handouts, recipes, family meal planner and sampling of the food. Cost is $25. Please email MS. Simplicity at Melissa@ididit-fargo.com for more information.

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Planning Graduation Parties: Part 3

2011-05-09T08:24:00.000-05:00

The final part in my graduation series is all about the food.

Things to keep in mind:

People are not looking to be fed a meal. Many have already been to several graduation parties during the day already. The only ones that are looking at being fed are your out of town family and guests. The majority of the guests are just there to stop in and say hi, drop off a card and leave.
Don't serve alcohol. It is just asking for trouble. First, alcohol gets expensive and can add hundreds of dollars to an already stretched budget. Second, alcohol could get into the hands of minors or the relative that really should not have anything to drink because they get even more loud and more obnoxious.
Have plenty of bottled water. If it is hot out, people will need the water to stay hydrated. My green tip is to have recycling bins placed so that it encourages people to recycle the plastic water bottles.

Trendy graduation food:

Anything that is a finger food and easy to eat.
Most people come already full to a graduation party. Why not serve just desserts or have a make your own ice cream sundae bar?
Cotton candy machine rental? Yes, it can be done. But please remember it is a sticky mess and if you are the one making the cotton candy, you will be covered in that sugary floss for the day.
Pick a theme with the food, such as Mexican and stick with it. For example, have a salsa bar with different kind of chips and salsa. And a walking taco is always a good choice. What is the graduates favorite type of food? Maybe Italian, then you could have a pasta bar with garlic bread and different pastas and sauces for a heavy meal if you have a lot of those out of town guests coming.
Anything on a stick is always fun to eat. Think fruit kabobs with dip.
Cupcakes instead of cake. Cupcakes are easier to eat, no cutting required and no utensils. Have the cupcakes in different flavors…what is the graduates favorite cake flavor?

Favors:

I like the idea of candy in the school colors as centerpieces. M and M’s come in so many colors, place the school color M and M’s in candy dishes, or simply scatter them down the table on a white tablecloth. Take it to the extreme and order M and M's with the graduates face on it. Nothing says we love you like candy with your face on it!
I was at one graduation party last year that had a "candy buffet". A table full of every kind of candy imaginable. My 11 year old loved it as he picked up enough bubblegum to get him through the summer!
The best option, keep it simple and skip this part all together.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Planning Graduation Parties: Part 2

2011-05-08T09:40:00.000-05:00

The pressure is always on to have the perfect combination of photos of the kids at the graduation parties, but to not make it look like a shrine to the child....we have to keep those egos in check!

Memorabilia Tips:
• Have a framed and matted 8 x 10 of the graduate and have a pen available for the guests to sign the mat. This is a great keepsake for the graduate. I have seen these in Target in the frame aisle (they usually have a wedding couple in the picture)

• Poster board with fun pictures of the graduate through their life are fun to look at. Once again, keep it simple and find a friend who loves to scrap book, they could finish this project for you in a couple of hours. Tip, scan the pictures into a computer or make copies before cropping as some of the photos may be one of a kind. I like the photo boards that have a theme to them. Try to group them together into areas like their interests in school. Group the sports ones.....special friends......if they are in drama or music.....you get the idea.

• Take all of the grade school pictures and display them in chronological order. It is fun to see the progression of the graduate. I am sure you have a family member that has been collecting these for years for you all jammed into one frame!

• A graduation party I attended two years ago had a book that was assembled on line by the dad with the child’s quotes and pictures throughout his life. You do not need to tell the life story, just a few humorous stories here and there. For example, maybe they had a favorite shirt that they wore all through 3rd grade, or maybe the graduate hated math in elementary school and now they want to be a math teacher. Make it personal. I like the fact that the dad did this!

Please keep in mind, don't stress and have fun!

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Planning Graduation Parties: Part 1

2011-05-07T08:52:00.001-05:00

So I am a year away from having my first child's graduation party but I have been planning it for years. You see, I have been going to graduation parties that my friends are having for their kids and I am seeing what I love and seeing what short cuts would work to make my event that much more simpler. His scrap book for elementary school is done. I know who I am hiring to make a video. I know who I am hiring to cater the meal (my son happens to work there.....so we know the food will be great). Now I just need to get my husband all excited to get the garage ready.

Yes the garage.....as that is where we will hold the party. It is a place where my organizing skills will shine. The garage is the last part of our home that needs to be organized. I have left it up until now as we have been busy with home and yard projects....up until this summer. This is the summer that the garage will be finished and organized. I am sure people drive by my open garage and say to themselves, I can't believe she is an organizer, look at that mess. Well guess what folks....I am a real person with three kids and a dog....oh and a husband. I love to keep it real as it shows that I am human. I have been dreaming of my garage being organized for the last 5 years and I can not wait for the transformation to begin.

We do have a head start as the garage is already sheet rocked and insulated. All we really need to do is get it taped, textured and painted......and then organized. I have been researching garage organization trends out there and I am ready to go. Our first step was just the other night when we took all the old lumber (from building the deck) and bikes that were no longer being used and set them on the curb for clean up week. Almost everything was picked up. I am so glad that the stuff we no longer use went to a home and not a landfill.

So back to the graduation party ideas for you to use. I am going to give three sets of tips in the next three days. I would love to hear if you have any that you would like to share.

Tips for planning a graduation party:

• Keep it simple.

• Focus on what you enjoy. For example if you hate to cook, enlist some friends and family to help or if the budget allows, hire a caterer.

• If you are stressed about your house not being “picture perfect” focus on these areas; the kitchen, entry way, guest bathroom and whatever room the party is going to be held. Now is not a time to clean out your closets and organize your medicine cabinet. If you are having the party in the garage sweep the garage and hang up sheets to hide the messy areas.

• Keep the beverages simple, bottled water and maybe 2 soda choices, one diet and one caffeine free.

• Don’t have your party be weather dependant, have a backup plan!

• Ask for friends to serve as hosts at the party for you. Put a friend in charge of food, one in charge of drinks and one in charge of garbage. You need to enjoy the party too!

• I have seen a lot of graduation open house invitations on Facebook this year, what a great and easy way to send out the invites to friends. Most family still expect a paper invitation.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Organizing Bed Sheets

2011-05-04T17:08:00.000-05:00

I was asked the other day by a client how to best store bed sheets. For the answer is simple, I have one set for each bed and that is it. When I wash sheets I simply take off the sheets, wash them, dry them and make the bed. No having to fold those silly fitted sheets. When I get a tear in my sheets, I simply buy a new set of sheets (the fitted sheet seems to be the one that wears out first) and give the rest of the set to my mom who makes quilts with her church group! I have had the same set of sheets on my bed for about 2 years (I do wash them frequently). They are in the stage where they are super soft. I bought them from Target and they are made from bamboo. I do think this set of sheets is wearing better than any other type I have bought before.

Obviously when our children were small we had another set of sheets as we did have kids that would wet the bed or vomit. I have been known to sleep on towels while our sheets were being washed when we had an active night of vomiting children. You know the type of night I am talking about. At that point I would be happy just sleeping on anything just so I can get an hours of sleep!

If you do have to store sheets, use this simple method. Fold the flat, fitted and extra pillowcases and slip inside one of the pillowcases. This keeps everything in one place and together. How not to store your sheets: in the plastic that bedding is often sold in. It gives off chemicals that believe me you do not want to be sleeping in. Keep your storage fresh and natural. How about a homemade lavender sachet?

Take a look at how many sheet sets you have and see if you can do without some. They are just taking up space. When donating, make sure you donate with purpose and give to a shelter if the sheets are in good shape or a quilting group if the sheets are in good shape to be cut into squares.

Have extra pillowcases? I saw this post on making really cute dresses out of pillowcases.

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.

Family Meals For The Week

2011-05-01T20:54:00.000-05:00

In case you think you are seeing double....I posted 7 different recipes yesterday under the same title. I love doing these reviews as it gives you links to all of the recipes I made for the week in one spot. So did you miss any of my family meal posts from the last week (maybe two weeks ago)? Once again, never fear, as I will give you quick links to them and you too can make some fun family meals this week. My top two would be the Grilled Shrimp, Bacon, Scallion Quesadillas with Smokey Guacamole and the The Pioneer Woman's Pulled Pork! You have got to make these! Promise me you will make them!

Saturday: Macaroni and Cheese

Sunday: Grilled Shrimp, Bacon, Scallion Quesadillas with Smokey Guacamole

Monday: Julia Child Roast Chicken

Tuesday: Quick Lemon-Chicken Soup

Wednesday: Bittersweet Chocolate Mousse

Thursday: Creamy Asparagus Soup with Roasted Asparagus

Friday: The Pioneer Woman's Pulled Pork

To Joyful, Simplified Living,

MS. Simplicity

MS. Simplicity, also known as Melissa Schmalenberger operates her business as I Did it with MS. Simplicity. She is a Professional Organizer based out of Fargo, ND and her website can be found at www.ididit-fargo.com . Need to contact MS. Simplicity privately, you can email her at melissa@ididit-fargo.com. For daily organizing tips find the MS. Simplicity fan page here.

If you try any of my suggestions, I would love to hear from you. It helps me to understand what my readers want me to write about and what they think is a waste of their time….thanks for taking the time to help me out.