THE NEW YEAR IS TIME TO CHECK EXPIRATION DATES
As clean and organized as you may keep your home, there’s one sneaky thing we always forget to check…household products’ expiration dates! Even the most well kept home can contain expired products without anyone realizing! We always remember to check the expiration dates of food items, or keep track of how long we use certain beauty products but unfortunately, there are many more household items that we end up keeping around the house longer than we realize we should.
Checking your kitchen cabinets and refrigerator for expired food products is a given, but a common place we forget to check is the spice rack. Although you may have some powerful seasonings in the spice rack, their potency is short-lived and should be replaced after a few months. A good time to remember to change out spices and dried herbs is around the holidays, like Thanksgiving and Christmas, when there‘s a lot of cooking happening in the kitchen. Another good tip to remember to switch out spices is to purchase the smaller containers. That way, they get used up accordingly and not much gets wasted if you don’t use them often.
The kitchen isn’t the only place that holds important expiration dates! Review this quick list of a couple more rooms in your home that may contain expiring products!
Bathroom:
• Shower Sponge – Two week limit on the shower sponge! Bacteria grows quickly if these sit in moisture, but if you’re against wasting bath products, boiling the sponge can kill the bacteria and make it good as new again!
• Toothbrush – If your worn bristles haven’t hinted that you might need a new tooth brush, make sure to remember to throw out old toothbrushes after 3 months.
• Deodorant – Use no longer than a year. Depending on the deodorant or antiperspirent, there may be certain chemicals in there that can turn toxic. Pay attention to the expiration dates on these!
Laundry Room:
• Bleach – Bleach’s effectiveness actually starts declining 3-6 months after opening, but should always be replaced after a year.
• Laundry Detergent – Both liquid and powder’s effectiveness declines after 3-6 months as well!
Bedroom:
• Pillows – Two – three years should be the limit of your pillow. Not only could it become a magnet for dust mites, but could also start causing neck pain from losing form.
• Slippers – Fungal infection can actually spread through wearing slippers for too long. Six month limit on these guys, unless you wash them frequently!
Want to see more on the household product expiration list? Click on the link below for 70+ surprising products around your home that you may not have realized you need to keep up to date!
https://www.realsimple.com/home-organizing/surprising-expiration-dates
WHERE TO START ORGANIZING YOUR HOME
Reorganizing the home can be an overwhelming process if there’s no plan or little time in your day to dedicate to it. Most people feel like if they start a reoganizational process, that it will snowball into something larger than expected, but that doesn’t have to be the case! Below is a list of ways to organize a space on step at a time, to avoid becoming overwhelmed from the beginning.
1. Early Bird Gets the Work Done!
Start your day by focusing on the first cluttered section of your home. If your first activity is to pick out your work outfit for the day and you notice your closet could use decluttering, focus your time on that space. If you start your day in the bathroom, take the time to clear out unorganized cabinets. If you run errands first thing in the morning, the garage may be the first space you see that needs a little cleaning up. The idea is that the first thing you see in the morning can affect your mood for that day, so making sure your morning spaces are clean and clutter-free can help you have a peaceful and relaxing beginning of the day!
2. After-Work Decompression!
The worst way to end a long day at work is to come home to a messy space. A good way to unwind though, is to tackle a space in your home that could use reorganization. If you drive into the garage and see a mess of tools in the corner or unorganized shelves, take care of those as soon as you exit your car. If there is a mess of leaves on your front door or your entrance decorations are out of date or messed up, reorganizing this space could be therapeutic and fun to redecorate or clean up.
3. Stay at Home Organizer!
Working from home? A great way to take breaks in-between phone calls or project production is to get out of your desk chair and clean! Not only can you attack small portions of your home to clean and reorganize throughout the day, but it’s a great way to move around and get the blood flowing.
4. One Day at a Time!
Sectioning off the rooms in your home to work on daily is a great way to get the work done, but break it up if you have little time during the week to commit a couple of hours to. Monday work on the kitchen, Tuesday work on the bathrooms, Wednesday work on the living room, etc. By the end of the week, you’ll have a reorganized and clean home!
Keep in mind as your working that small steps can always lead to the bigger picture! There’s no use in getting overwhelmed if you keep in mind that the job WILL get done, just as long as you take your time and put in committed effort. Good luck with your organization!
BENEFITS OF BEING ORGANIZED
As we begin a new year in 2018, it’s great to have a focus or goal for the new year, especially if it involves living stress free. Whether it’s your workplace or your home, staying organized in your space will benefit your emotional and physical state. Here are some things to look forward to if you stay committed to an organized life!
Stress-free Living.
It is proven that a messy environment can cause a lack of motivation and production in your daily activities because of the constant feeling of being overwhelmed. The more organized your personal space is, the more focused your mind can be!
Relaxation.
Having a space that is already organized will not only keep your mind at ease, but allows you to spend more time on things that are important to you. This can be anything from working on personal craft projects you haven’t had the time or space to work in, or reading a book that you’ve been wanting check out.
Committing to Others.
Spending less time worrying about a messy home or unorganized office space will give you more time to think about others in your life. Instead of worrying about inviting someone over to a messy living room, you can have company over with ease and focus on what’s going on in their lives.
Ready for the Unknown.
Life is always there to throw you through a loop! Whenever you’re in a state of organization and control, you will be able to handle any surprise situation much better than if you’re feeling unprepared or cluttered.
Benefits your Health.
Stress can be a huge detriment to your health, whether you know it or not. Having a clear physical space, can assist a clear head space to avoid high-stress situations or making these situations worse.
Increased Productivity.
More organization can lead to better production and motivation to get the work done.
An organized life takes time and energy, but will always benefit in the long run. It can take time, energy and may not always work out in the ways you plan for it to, but staying motivated and organized in your daily life will give you the benefits listed above! Take charge of your spaces and start this fresh year o in the best organized way you can!
