A Review of ‘Rite of Passage Parenting’

by Lorraine Brock

I am currently reading a book about how to raise responsible, capable adults in a culture where our children are not exposed to the experiences that allow them to succeed. Rite of Passage Parenting: Four Essential Experiences to Equip Your Kids for Life by Walker Moore, explains the traditions that are lacking in our society today and suggests ways for parents to give their children what they need. The book focuses on two basic themes and in this article I will be touching on one: Grandparents.

The ABCs of Organizing CDs and DVDs

Tips on organizing, cataloging and storing your CD and DVD collections

by Lorraine Brock

Often when we are hired to organize living or work spaces, we find large numbers of CDs and DVDs. Traditionally our clients store them in CD towers, on bookshelves, underneath coffee tables, or piled in baskets in the corner of a room.

How to Organize and Store Kids School Papers

Organizing everyday school work, report cards and other achievements

 

by Lorraine Brock

This post is Part 2 of a series on organizing and storing your kids’ school papers. Read Part 1: The Art of Organizing Kids Artwork.

School has officially ended and since we covered the organization of a year’s worth of your child’s artwork last month, this post will offer tips for organizing all the rest of those school papers. You probably have boxes of report cards, awards, certificates, poems, family stories, papers with awesome grades and excellent comments, and for your older kids (8th grade and above), letters of recommendation and college information.

The Art of Organizing Kids Artwork

How to Organize and Store Kids School Work – Part 1 of 2

 

When I receive a phone call from a new client wanting organizing help, invariably the discussion leads to a confession of “I am overwhelmed by my kid’s school papers. They start on my kitchen counters or table and spread all over my home.” Other clients admit that they throw everything away.

Somewhere in between these two thought processes is where I would like our clients to exist. The chosen organizing solution must be simple and low maintenance; otherwise, it won’t be used.

Open the Door to an Organized Closet

   

How to organize a closet to create

extra storage space

 

by Lorraine Brock

We all have areas in our homes we call storage space, but not all storage spaces are created equal. Some of us have an abundance of these hidden spaces that contain the things we need and value, while others torture themselves by trying to squeeze too many things into tiny storage spaces we call closets. When designing a home, many home builders focus more on the visual spaces such as a large kitchen or big bathrooms, when in fact the more important feature is the availability of closet space to allow families to store items they identify as valuable. On the other hand, many home buyers do not recognize the lack of storage space when making a home purchase. They see large bedrooms, high ceilings, and beautiful kitchens as their vision of the perfect home. When they attempt to put away their belongings and create functional spaces, they realize there is not enough storage space.

Your Wedding Dress: Keep it or Not?

How to Decide Whether to Keep Your Wedding Gown or Not

Weddings are beautiful and so are the wedding dresses worn by the brides. Every bride dreams of her wedding day and often spends untold hours and money to find that perfect dress. A few years ago I went shopping with my niece for her wedding gown. She made it a family event, inviting her sisters, her parents, and me, her crazy, fun aunt. In fact, now that I think about it, I went shopping with all three of my nieces to find the perfect dresses for their wedding days.

Now that a few years have passed, I visited with each of my nieces about what their plans are for the wedding dress they will never wear again.  I posed three questions to them: How are you currently storing your wedding dress; why are you keeping it; and if you inherit your mother’s wedding dress, what would you do with it?