Thanks for taking the time to comment on my first post. Thanks also for being patient with me as I'm not really into the habit of this yet, but I know I will be soon :) I wanted to paste a comment here from Kathryn that I thought was great:
"These two activities came from a Valerie Bendt newsletter I got this week...
Set Up Activity Centers for Your Preschoolers:
Wash the Doll Clothes
Preschoolers love to imitate Mom and Dad. Here is an activity that is sure to bring hours of fun. Be certain to place a towel or two on the floor! Once your child has washed the doll clothes, or other small items such as socks or wash cloths, he or she can blot them on a towel and then hang them on the line!
Beans, Beans, Beans!
Here is an inexpensive and fun-filled activity. Buy several packages of dried beans such as black beans, garbanzo beans, and kidney beans. Pour them into bowls and provide your preschoolers with measuring cups and scoops for lots of fun! A small plastic tub or pool helps keep dried beans in one place. Store beans in a plastic container to use again. Kids love the sound and texture of the beans. (Not intended for small children who may put the beans in their mouths, noses, ears, and so on!)
Also this tip I love because I always seem to be in the middle of working with Layton and everyone decides they are hungry...While preparing breakfast, pack a lunch box with healthy snacks for your preschoolers. Then when they say, "I'm hungry!" you can tell them to go and get their lunch boxes and have their snacks. This helps to prevent interruptions while you are working with an older child."

I'm glad she mentioned "dried beans" because I would have been getting my can opener out. Ewww...

OK, this weeks topic is organization. Sometimes I can think deep, really, I can, but most of the time I just want something practical that makes my day go smoother. I know I would love some VERY simple organization tips that are easy to implement, so I'm sure other women would also. Here's my tip and I can't wait to read some from you!!

I found that out of all the tasks involved with getting the children ready to go somewhere, the hardest was socks. Remember, I have four girls which means that hair fixing should have topped the list but nooooo, it was those socks that would always make things difficult. I would send them to their rooms to get socks on and they would come out with mix-matched socks. I would tell them to get socks that match each other. They'd head back to their rooms and then 10 minutes later some out with bright green socks. I guess I needed to be more clear. "Put on some socks that match each other and that match your outfit." OK, so I would send them back upstairs and 10 minutes later they would yell down, "I can't find any socks that match!!" And so it would go. So, in desperation, I created the sock basket. It's a basket. It's sits by the door. It holds ALL the kids socks. Simple. I LOVE IT! The kids love it. It works because it's putting the socks at the place where we put them on anyway. I used this basic principle in other areas of my home as well. I couldn't believe how many item I kept in a certain place just because it went there not because it was where I used it. Once a week, one of the kids has the chore of organizing the sock basket which simply means they pair up socks that have been separated and toss any that somehow found their way in the basket without a match. It seems that most friends that come to my house say something positive about the sock basket, so I thought I'd share that. How 'bout you? Got some simple home organization advice that you can share? Let's hear it...