Emergency Preparedness

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emergency prepareness

 

Hurricane season has already begun! Ever since Katrina and New Orleans years ago, we are all on alert for the worst.  Our family is vigilant about hurricanes due to Ike as well.  We were without power for 14 days!

With this in mind, here is our family preparedness check list.  Not sure where to start? I suggest baby steps!  Organize your papers first in a fireproof safe. Make a plan depending on whether you are staying or going.  Take it step by step to be ready.

Emergency Preparedness Checklist

Prepare and check when daylight savings time begins and ends!

Communicate your family plan to another family friend or relative.

For paper documents, place originals in safe or safe deposit box and carry copies with you.

Social Security cards Bottled water ( 1 gal per day per person)
Insurance policies (Life, Home, Auto, and Flood) Snacks
Passports Travel food
Drivers License Ice
Immunization records Paper towels
Medical records Toilet paper
Medication Hand sanitizer
Birth certificates Candles
Checkbooks Garbage bags
Credit cards Tool kit
Debit cards First Aid Kit
Will Safe deposit box list and keys
Legal documents Tarp
Valuables (jewelry and keepsakes) Matches
Computer back up/ thumb drive Rope
Cash ($500 suggested minimum) Old quilts and blankets
Photos Pet supplies
Family phone book Kids: Card and board games
Tax copies Battery operated TV
Document carrier or safe Battery operated radio
Batteries Walkie talkies
Flashlights Flips flops/extra shoes
Duct tape Video camera & tapes of home
Propane tanks filled Cooler
Cars filled up Can Opener
Gas in cans
Cell phones and chargers

Here are some amazing websites for preparedness too!

www.redcross.org

www.ready.gov

www.beprepared.com

Organizing for Special Events

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Our family celebrates big and little events in life! Whether a birthday, anniversary or holiday, family traditions mean everything to us.  It is gathering together and enjoying our time that makes an event special.  And we like to keep things super simple! 

Create your team.  Special events are even more fun when everyone has a part in preparing. Set the date together with your family and talk about how each family member can contribute. Decide on all the required tasks, from food preparation to decorations, and divide and conquer.  Write all the dates on a calendar so that everyone knows when to get their jobs complete.

 Use the internet to send invitations.   Both www.evite.com and www.paperlesspost.com offer ways to invite your guests.   This inexpensive solution offers your guests the ease of response and keeps costs down. 

 The little things can make a difference. Get your playlist ready on your ipod and gather new scented candles for the kitchen and bath.  

 Food is an important part of the fun. Keep it simple with easy recipes and ready made goodies.  Fresh simple ingredients make it healthy too!  Prepared hummus and veggie chips, cheese squares, and fruit make for yummy summer treats. 

 Get prepared ahead of time.  Shop a week in advance of your party. Work backwards a day for set up of tables and decorations.  Prepare your goodies a day ahead and refrigerate or freeze.   

 The best part of keeping things simple is that YOU get to enjoy the party!  It is the real reason to gather people together.  Greet your guests as they arrive and encourage them to mingle and help themselves to goodies.   

 In the end, enlist a clean up crew so you are not the only one finishing up with the trash and dishes. Put on some fun music and keep the party going as you clear away the debris. 

Keep from reinventing the wheel for each event.  Start a celebrations notebook that includes a list of food and fun for each event.  What a fun new tradition to keep celebrations going!

Rejuvenation and Renewal

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Taking time to rejuvenate is something I share with all women.  We are constantly nurturing others and need to “put on our own oxygen mask first.”  This is exactly what I did this weekend as I attended my college reunion last weekend.

I am a lover of learning and am always eager to return to school. My Smith College reunion afforded me this opportunity in many ways. On Friday evening I attended a session on Supporting our Children with LD/ADHD as They Launch. Sharing information and learning from moms in the “trenches” was empowering to everyone.  On Saturday we learned from former Smith College President Jill Ker Conway about taking the next step as women.  It is all about thinking outside the box and finding ways and places to make a difference using our strengths and skills.  Our final speaker was writer Katrina Kenison, author of the gift of an ordinary day.   It gave each of us the opportunity to examine our focus as women moving through motherhood and onto the next step. You can tell the growth that occurred as women looked to each other to provide coaching to move forward.  

It was an extraordinary weekend of empowering each other.  I seldom saw others texting or using technology. Women were sharing how to connect on Facebook! We were all engaged in the lives of each other, where we are now and where we are headed.  Engaged women discussed politics, history, economics and the important details of homes, families and current events.  

And most importantly it was a fabulous family weekend.  My twin sister Ann and I both graduated from Smith, so one of the best parts of the weekend was sharing moments together.   Each morning we would take a brisk walk about the beautiful campus together.  It was especially meaningful to walk on campus on Saturday night during illumination.  

I want to encourage you to find ways to nurture yourself through the things you are passionate about! Learning from other women, supporting each other as we move forward, and being in an amazing environment is something we each need.  I would love to hear how you are making this happen in your life!

Six Steps to Summer Success

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Summer is just around the corner!   For our family that means time by the pool, time to relax and time for family fun!  The key to summer is knowing what works for your family.  

1.       Keep a routine that works.  Everyone still needs a good night’s rest and great yummy healthy food!   Delicious summer treats include berries and berry smoothies, low fat high protein hot dogs or burgers on the grill, and ice cold watermelon.  Keep bedtime routines consistent with a little later time, but still with a routine.

2.       Family fun includes fun place to go!

Houston Children’s Museum                www.cmhouston.org 

Houston Zoo                                        www.houstonzoo.org

Berry picking                                        www.pickyourown.org

Nature Discovery Center                      www.naturediscoverycenter.org

Lunar and Planetary Institute              http://www.lpi.usra.edu/

Galveston beaches

Area parks

3.       Let’s continue learning this summer too!  Visit the public library once a week, learn a new educational computer game, play chess, RISK or monopoly board games, plant a garden, or take care of a pet.  There are so many experiences to explore.  And don’t forget to include writing and math too in what you do, from baking a cake to journaling about summer travel.

4.       Swimming and summer are a natural! But also add in hiking, biking, walking, jogging, skating and other outdoor activities. Take advantage of cooler morning and evening temps for outside fun.

5.       Summer is the time for creativity.  Encourage your young artist with sidewalk chalk, water color paints, paper mache, crafty creations, and other artistic mediums. The wonderful aspect of creativity is that there is no “wrong” way to express yourself.        

6.       Include more down time in your week. The summer is the best time to kick back and relax. Take a break from the harried and hurried school routines by having more time for talking and just being around the house.   Have summer be the time for family and friend connections.

What are your summer success stories?

Eva’s Note

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Not sure what this note is? My four year old grand daughter Eva wrote it last week for herself. It says “choir.”  She said to her Mom and me, “I want to be sure I remember that I have a choir performance on Sunday.”  She wrote several of these notes through out the week to herself, each more adorable than the next.

There really is something to modeling organizing! Eva sees her Mom, Dad, Paps and Gigi (that’s me!) write notes to ourselves to remember things all the time. She sees us make lists for grocery shopping, dinner menus, recipes, and dates in our calendars.  It was very natural for her to want to help herself remember in this way.

 Eva and her mom decluttered her closet last week too. Eva brought her outgrown clothes to a friend at school to share.  She was especially excited to share a pink tutu with a dance friend.  Eva is already starting to recognize how to organize her closet!  

 Next time you are thinking about your family and getting organized, remember how powerful your actions are.  Moms often ask me how can they help their children get organized.  It is all about your being a role model for all types of organizing.

What powerful actions are you sharing with your family?

Being Mindful of Multitasking

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multitasking

 

 

Lots of new multi-tasking statistics are bringing into focus this productivity concept. Studies have shown that each time someone makes a “task switch,” or multitasks, their productivity is actually reduced by 20 to 40 percent.   While previously thought to be a great tool, now multitasking  is glaringly not so! 

Mindfully focus on one task at a time.  Start by prioritizing to be sure this task takes highest importance.  Purposefully stay on task by creating a “power period”, a 45 minute time you work on a single project.  Successfully working on one project  makes you feel accomplishment, lowers  your stress and lessens the load of the total projects.   

 

Eliminate distractions by creating an effective environment.   Turn of the computer, stop texting, and turn off the tv.  Really give yourself the opportunity for undistracted work.  If a call comes, use your technology to the fullest and let it go to voice mail.  Create your optimal environment with soft music, scent in the room, and a clear desk.  A clear desk invites creativity, productivity and efficiency. 

 

Make phone connections and relationships count.  During a call, be sure to be “on the call” not just on the phone. We are always trying to do one more thing while talking.  Make that person and the call more important than the distractions.

 

Are there positive uses of multitasking?  Double time two low priority tasks and get them done!  This includes pairing folding the laundry or putting away dishes with background television or having administrative time while listening to music.  These little incentives can help you finish up a less than interesting task.      

 What are your favorite ways to get just that one thing done?

 

Delegating and Team Building at Home

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delegating and team building

You come home after work and start the 2nd shift.  There’s always more to do than time to do it.  Gather your family around you and think delegate, a.k.a. team building!

 

There are a few ground rules that apply at home, that don’t apply at the office.  The complexity of family relationships makes delegating at home more challenging than at work. But it is not impossible.  Truly applying team building makes this happen!

 

Begin with the family motto of “we’re all in this together!”  Start with a family meeting to talk about what this means.  Keep it simple but think through all the responsibilities at home and create a list of the options.  There are lunches and dinner to make, groceries to buy, laundry to do, lawns to mow, toilets to clean and more.  So getting a list together that hits on the most important tasks is a starting point.  Here is where we start being creative!

·                 Works from family members’ strengths. Who is great at what? Give your family jobs they do well rather than struggle with.

·                 Give the chores different point values by “difficulty” of completion.  Bathroom and toilet 3 points, kitchen clean up 2, dusting 1.

·                 Create partnerships to complete the chores, such as mom/sister make the dinner, dad/other daughter do the dishes.  It is always more fun with a partner.

·                 Set a time everyone does the same task.  Set the kitchen timer, turn on the high energy music, or sing the clean up song. 

·                 Set a standard of completion everyone agrees on.  What does it mean to have the dishes “done” or the laundry “complete”?  Set a time frame for completion. Emptying a dishwasher after the dishes are piled in the sink defeats the purpose. 

·                 Put aside your perfectionism.  Encourage your family to do their best job, even if it is not to your standards, the manner in which you would do it or at the speed you would do it.   

·                 Affirm each family member’s contribution each week.  Praise goes a long way in getting things done.

·                 Create a chores chart and post it in a common space.  It is the chart that reminds the family, rather than the parents.

·                 Incentivize your family’s work.  Incentives can be whatever works for you, but the simpler the better.  

·                 Use this method for every day responsibilities and upcoming family events, including holidays, birthdays and special occasions.

·                 Make it fun!  Everyone wants to work together when the atmosphere is relaxed and happy. 

 

 Great resources are available on www.familymanager.com including lists, charts and more!  How does team work happen in your family?

Top New Year Resolution for 2010: Spend more time with your family

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According to ABC13 in Houston, the top newyear’s resolution is to spend more time with your family.   As a Certified Family Manager Coach, my passion is making families cohesive, communicative, and nurturing.  However, as with all goals, this can be overwhelming and end us with less than stellar success. Let’s break this down into some baby steps to be sure you accomplish this goal!

1.  Spend more dinner time together. Whether the goal is one dinner a week or seven, create a plan that works for you and your family. Dinner together can be sandwiches or spaghetti, create a plan that is simple for you and enjoyable for your family.   The plan can be a grid of 3 weeks of easy to make dinners with your family input, a technology tool with thescramble.com or e-mealz.com, or assigning family members a night to cook. 

2.  Spend more quality time together.  Create a team and strategically plan for time together. Our world is crazy busy and if we wait for spontaneity our family time may not occur.  Set aside a family meeting time once a week with a short meeting and plenty of fun time.  During the meeting be sure to chat about upcoming family events.

3. Spend more time learning together.  What interests and activities do you want to share?  Choose open ended activities that every one can be successful at, including art work, walking, or going to a museum.  Celebrate everyone’s strengths by affirming each other and encourage new interests.

I look forward to learning from you how your resolution is coming together!

 

10 organizing ideas for 2010

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The beginning of a new decade brings big goals! Just thinking about one goal is a big step, but 10 goals are …. ?  What 10 areas are you focusing on to organize this year? Take one step at a time, organizing one room or thing at a time, and make a BIG difference in your life!

1.  Organizing your closet.   We put ourselves LAST in making a difference! Take time to organize your closet to feel ready to go in the morning and  confident.  Keep only the clothes that make you feel FABULOUS, no matter what the size tag is.  Once this is eliminated, order your clothes in a way that makes sense to you, by outfit or by pants, tops, etc. 

2.  Organize your bedroom.  Our space is intended to be serene and restful. Is it? This year make your bedroom your serenity zone with no paper, no clutter, and just items that are peaceful and promote great sleep.

3.  Organize your laundry room.   It make a big difference to get this chore done.  Having the right laundry sorter makes the difference.  Use a 3 compartment sorter for white, color and towels. Do one load a day, ask for help from your family, and keep it simple.

4. Organize your pantry.  Getting dinner done is about having the right ingredients.  Toss what is outdated (nothing is worse than food poisoning.)   Arrange like the grocery store.  Add a magnetic list to the frig so you can add what you need when you need it. Keep staples on hand to make dinner in 30 minutes. 

5. Organize your car.  Our cars are our offices!  Do the pump and dump (thanks Geralin www.metropolitanorganizing.com) and toss trash as you get gas.  Ask your kids to help you distribute what comes out of the car right away.  Create a landing strip for returns.

6. Organize your purse.  You can tell how organized a person is by their purse!  Have a command center for papers so you can empty these right away each day.  Keep items grouped together, use a wallet you can move to alternative purses, and place your cell phone and purse at an easy access spot in your home.

7. Organize your papers.  Create a command center to make your papers easy to access for action, easy to file for retrieval and easy to archive. Need help? See the tips of the season section!

8. Organize your kitchen.  We all want time together as a family. The magic of meal time is to gather to communicate and have fun. Organizing your kitchen makes this happen.

9. Organize your calendar.  Choose a calendar you love, either paper or technology.  Use it daily – refer to it, enter items right away, carry it all the time.  Once a week have your weekly planning time to get proactive!

10. Organize your time.  Life is about our priorities.   Think through what you are committed to and be sure you are able to fully commit.  There are zillions of options so live a meaningful and purposeful life by making decisions.

Take one idea and carry it through for one month! You will be amazed at the difference for yourself and your family.

Let me know your first step on organizing!

Putting off Procrastination Class on Jan 27th

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Celebrate National Get Organized Month with a week of great organizing classes!  This budget-friendly seminar series is for all levels of organized and disorganized.  Check out more at http://theprofessionalorganizer.com/organizingclasses/wednesday/

Putting Off Procrastination
with Ellen Delap, CPO and Certified Family Manager Coach, and Leslie McKee, CPO and Certified Family Manager Coach

♦ For those who want to get organized
♦ For Professional Organizers

DESCRIPTION:
Ellen Delap and Leslie McKee are both Certified Professional Organizers® and Family Manager Coaches. Together they will address the challenges and causes of procrastination and how to overcome it. Remember, procrastination is a habit not a flaw and Leslie and Ellen will teach you will address the challenges and causes of procrastination and how to overcome it. So if you are putting something off that is getting in your way join their call and be on your way to a more productive 2010!

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
Remember, procrastination is a habit not a flaw and Leslie and Ellen will teach you to

·     Recognize the challenges of procrastination

·     Learn strategies to overcome procrastination

·     Create new habits you can maintain

·     Design an action plan for one task you are putting off

 

Register at http://organizingclasses.com. Don’t procrastinate! Register today!