January 14, 2009

Reorganizing for the New Year

It snowed 7 inches last night (the weatherman predicted 3-5 inches of snow). I woke up a bit surprised, and relieved to find out that the office is closed. I took the opportunity to go outside to take some pictures of how my street looks in the middle of January. This winter seems pretty typical in the amount of snow we have received (judging from what I've seen in my 2 1/2 winters here).



I couldn't get over to the street to take pictures cause I would have had to tromp through the snow and I was only wearing slippers. Real smart, I know. But, right now the street looks similar to the sidewalk - nice and plowed.


Scout was having a really good time. It's funny to see the "puppy" come out of him when he's running through the snow. (It's about the only time I love seeing the "puppy" come out of him - mostly it's kind of annoying) He was racing as fast as he could go up and down the sidewalk-skidding as he turned around at the end to come back the other way. Hilarious. Look at those ears!

It's our second snow day of the season, and I'm already running out of creative ideas to fill up my time at home. Hmmm . . . I should probably start a list of ideas. Anyway, it's a whopping 2 degrees outside today, so I best stay put here in the house.

I sat down to pay the bills and I realized just how badly I needed to organize my files. So, here goes. My first big project of the year - the file drawer. Here's how it started:


You're probably saying "it doesn't look so bad . . . at least you have folders and labeled tabs". Oh no. This will not do in my house. I can't possibly shove another piece of paper in there (hence all of the papers sticking out). It's driving me crazy.

First step, check out the organizing guru Peter Walsh's (oh, how I love him) website to see if he has any tips for organizing home files. Turns out he does have tips on his FAQ page. Just scroll down a bit.
Second step, make a list of the files that I need. Then, create the tabs.


Third step, sort through ALL of the files and refile or shred. Then, categorize the files with like ones together - insurance, student loans, bank accounts, etc. Then, place all materials in correct folders and put them in the drawer. 3 hours later it's MUCH better:



Ahhhh. Now I can think clearly again. Bring on 2009.

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