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Tina C

Tidying up - hints and tips please!

By Tina C, in The Nesting Box

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Tina C Chatty Chicken

Tina C

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Having been working too much so far this year, I finally have a few hours of 'free' time this week.

 

I have already done some very overdue cleaning/tidying :oops: and am now trying to sort out the mountains of paperwork that have built up - I am working on a system of deal with now/file/bin.

 

(I say mountains because I have more than one pile - its a sorry mess indeed)

 

Anyone got any 'get your life in order' tips?

 

Edited - hmmm, some more work just came my way, earlier than expected.

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Keanie Bean Frequent Layer

Keanie Bean

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My way of dealing with these things is always, if you havent touched it for a year then you probably never will so get rid of it. Exceptions are obviously things like certificates for electrics, deeds, birth certificates the really improtant stuff only.

 

I very rarely wish I hadnt thrown out anything so it works fine for me but can be a bit harsh for some.

 

Sarah.x

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Olly SUPER CHICKEN!!!

Olly

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Sounds very geeky, but setting up a proper filing system is worth its weight in gold! Doesn't have to be in a filing cabinet, but have a separate folder for the important things. Mine, for example, has folders marked 'Choir, Cat, Chickens, Car' - then there is one marked 'Utitlities' which gets all the bills, 'Storecards' for things like Nectar, John Lewis card ... you get the picture. Use box files for stuff with lots of paper like bank statements. Pretty them up, put stickers on, label them - make it as much fun as you can!

 

It is a pain, but it makes life so much easier when you can find things. I'm not perfect by any means, and at the moment I'm really behind with the filing!

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Lesley Eggsistentialist

Lesley

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The Omlet Forum version of a tidy up involves use of a shovel and black bin bags :lol:

 

.... my house used to be so clean and tidy :roll::oops:

 

Good filing systems are wothr their weight in gold. We let all that slip when we moved 2 years ago and I'm still trying to get things back into order

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Tina C Chatty Chicken

Tina C

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Oh Lesley, I am glad I am not the only one. In our case its 2.5 years... but then we were at the last house for 6 years and I never got on top of it either :roll:

 

I am definitely not of the 'bin it' school of filing, unlike my OH - you can imagine the 'discussions' we have :roll:

 

That is why I have so much paperwork to sort out. But I am trying to be ruthless, honest. Its already making me feel better and I have only got rid of one pile so far.

 

Olly - I have a filing cabinet so I am part-way there. Its just that my filing system started to crumble 9 years ago when OH came on the scene. Then Layla arrived and I started having to do the admin/filing for three of us.

 

I can't believe how much paperwork one child can generate - as well as the health stuff, the school stuff and her investments (lucky girl) there is stuff about activities, friend's contact numbers, passwords (she can set up an account but forgets the passwords, we are working on it). She is starting to keep her own records in a diary but she is only 7 and easily distracted.

 

Funny thing is that I always know which pile important pieces of parp are in (oh I love that typo I am going to leave it in) - unlike my OH with his neat little concertina file :lol:

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chickencam SUPER CHICKEN!!!

chickencam

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I have a filing cabinet with thin drawers for all the stuuf like insurance, utility bills and bank statements etc. I then have 'a neat concertina file' :lol: with pending bills this months statements and other pending stuff.

 

We keep instructions in another little set of drawers but can never find the ones we actually need :oops:

 

It sort of works, but paperwork is the curse of the modern age. What ever happened to the paperless office? :?

 

You will feel great when it is done, but you can guarentee that no one will ask you for anything whilst you know where it is :roll:

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The Dogmother Eggsistentialist

The Dogmother

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Olly, you should start your own de-cluttering business.. I'd hire you!

 

I have files and sections and everything, but I'm not as organised at home as I am at work, so the filing tends to build up before I get it put away :oops:

 

I have a day off tomorrow because Rosie's school is closed for the elections. If the weather is like this, then we will be indoors, sorting out storage and filing!

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ajm200 Chatty Chicken

ajm200

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My post used to get filed the day it arrived and shredded after 2 yrs unless it was important. All bill used to go in the desk drawer to be paid at the weekend. It all worked wonderfully until I got married, now there's paperwork everywhere.

 

When my son was born I took the opportunity to evict hubby from the study as it was just a dust and fire trap with about 40 piles of unsorted post dumped around the place. I was off sick for 4 months and opened, sorted and binned the paperwork as appropriate. Got the whole lot down to one large plastic box of sorted post that just had to be filed but he couldnt find the keys to the cabinets. :roll:

 

It back-fired as that post still isn't filed. He's taken over the spare room and now has twice as much clutter.. :x He's supposed to clear it by June doing 30 mins per night so that we can decorate ready for the new baby.. but it'll only happen if I bag it up and burn it.

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Tessa the Duchess Chicken Addict

Tessa the Duchess

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I'm not going to be much use here. DH is anal about his paperwork and has special plastic filing boxes all marked accordingly. I am the exact opposite... I am a great believer in 'piles' :roll: for paperwork, there is nowhere for them to go or be filed into. It works for me, because I know the peice of paper is in there somewhere :roll: I dislike excessive mess and clutter, but really tidy houses make me feel very uncomfortable.

 

Tessa

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Guest

Guest

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You could go to www.flylady.net for all kinds of helpful hints on tidying and de-cluttering. I did, then spent that long reading the site, I couldn;t be bothered to tidy up after..... :wink::lol:

 

A good site full of useful tips and advice but a bit nauseating at times.

 

And strangely obsessed with lacing up shoes. :lol:

 

And don't forget to shine your sink.... :roll:

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Guest

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And don't forget to shine your sink.... :roll:

 

It is the first thought on my mind when I spring out of bed in the morning Shona....as I'm sure it is yours! :lol:

 

Not at all - I do as Flylady instructs and shine it last thing at night, after I've filled my kettle and set out clothes for the children in the morning.

 

:liar::liar::lol:

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Lesley Eggsistentialist

Lesley

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eeeuurrgh! If you fill the kettle at night, the water will be stale by morning :? I did used to set out children's clothes the night before...a nd make sandwiches.....

 

.... and plump the cushions.... :D

 

Wasn't it Anthea Turner who made a TV prog, about tidying etc.?

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Rona All Knowing Superchicken

Rona

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eeeuurrgh! If you fill the kettle at night, the water will be stale by morning

 

..... and it might have something in it!

 

I once made a cup of coffee at work and when I got to the bottom of the cup there was a dead cockroach in it :shock::vom::shock: . I always empty the kettle and refill in the morning now.

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Olly SUPER CHICKEN!!!

Olly

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:shock::vom: *makes mental note NEVER to use half-filled kettle again*

 

I too find Flylady a bit sickening - but you can extract a few useful tips from it. Er, moving slightly back on topic - and I've now lost track of who posted for advice in the first place! - how about storing some of the stuff for your daughter on the computer (with backup, of course). Certificates and so on need to be kept as original copies, but passwords and other stuff could be stored in a folder. I keep meaning to scan some things in and store them, but never get round to it. You would have to be sure you'd backed your files up, though!

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hillfamily Effusive Egg Layer

hillfamily

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I have to say, I've only managed to watch Anthea being a perfect housewife once and annoyingly I felt compelled to adopted one of her ideas...........I now put my duvet cover/pillowcase/sheet set inside one of the pillowcases so that you can just pull a complete set out of the airing cupboard rather than spending ages finding the matching pillowcase and sheets :D

 

oh how I wish she wasn't right that this is easier :wink::roll::lol::lol:

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