Collector Care's 4.5 Tips: Fun Things To Do With Kids For New Years

It's here again, New Year's! Being a parent means being creative. Let your kids take part of the New Year's celebration and make it a time to remember. 

Below are 4.5 fun ideas to do with your little ones tonight.

1. New Years resolutions. Explain what this means to your child and help them find an appropriate "resolution" for the New Year. Whether or not they keep it, encourage their thoughts and ideas.
2. Take a family photo. New Years is always a great time to take a yearly photo. 
3. Watch New Year movies.
   Pop some popcorn snuggle up and watch any of the following:
   After the Thin Man (1936)
   Repeat Performance (1947)
   La Bonne Année (1973)
   Rudolph's Shiny New Year (1975)
   New Year's Day (1989)
4. Start a tradition. There are some GREAT ideas at http://www.fathertimes.net/traditions.htm
5. Make virgin strawberry daiquiri's!

Ingredients

• 1 (14.5-ounce) can pineapple chunks in juice
• 1 (12-ounce) bag frozen strawberries
• 2 tablespoons superfine sugar
• 2 medium limes, juiced
• Fresh strawberries, optional, for garnish

Directions
In a blender, combine pineapple, frozen strawberries, sugar, and lime juice and puree until smooth. Pour into glasses, garnish with fresh strawberries, if desired, and

Have a wonderful and safe New Years eve with your family! See you next year! 
 

Rachel Seavey, Professional Organizer
I specialize in Hoarding Disorder, Chronic Disorganization and helping the overwhelmed with clutter. I love what I do, and I provide realistic expectations and timelines. Don't suffer in chaos any  more. Every breath is a new beginning! Please visit my site at www.collectorcare.com
Tweet me on Twitter : Like my Facebook page : Find me on Pinterest or call me at 925-548-7750

Collector Care 4.5 Tips:A Safe & Happy New Years Eve

HAPPY NEW YEARS COLLECTORS!
Below are 4.5 tips to help you stay safe tonight on New Year's Eve.

1. Don't drink and drive. It's that simple. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, it was predicted that more than 10,000 people would die in drunk-driving accidents in 2011 alone. Some people may argue that they can handle the wheel, even after a few drinks. Although their record may be squeaky clean now, most drunk drivers have driven 80+ times before they actually get busted for the first time.
2. Call a taxi. New Year's Eve is a time when cab drivers are expecting to be called upon. Don't waste the resources for a safe and sober ride home. Add a taxi cab phone number to your phone before you leave so you have a number on hand.
3. Plan ahead by naming a "designated driver." Make this your responsibility! 
4. Love your pets. Keep your pets indoors and safe from loud noises and drunk drivers. Many animals are afraid of the sound of fireworks and gunshots.
5. Love yourself. It's a new year and time to start a

Rachel Seavey, Professional Organizer (and blogger) For Collector Care

Collector Care specializes in hoarding disorder, chronic disorganization and professional organizing. We  love what we do, and  provide realistic expectations and timelines. Please visit our website at

www.collectorcare.com  or call 925-548-7750

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Seven 15 Minute Clutter Busting Ideas

SEVEN 15 MIN CLUTTER BUSTING IDEAS

We’ve all been motivated to de-clutter our homes but don’t have the time.
I believe if you take 15 minutes a day dedicated to clutter busting a specific area - your results will be visible at the end of the week.
Visible results provoke enthusiasm and consistency making you more motivated and less stressed. 

Below are 7 “things” that you can easily get rid of in 15 minutes or less.

1. Hangers from the dry cleaner. Go into your closet(s) and remove all of those wire hangers from the dry cleaners. Most dry cleaners recycle these back - or toss them into the recycle bin. They are awful for your clothing not to mention unsightly. If you have clothing wrapped in those plastic dry clean bags, remove the bags and recycle them right away. According to Mary Marlowe Leverette from About.com “Leaving freshly cleaned laundry in the bag can cause yellowing, staining and weakening of fibers”.
2. Plastic stadium cups. Faded from love, who knows what’s in them. Recycle them. This counts for plastic children’s cups too.
   Are we positive that the BPA standards are being met here?
3. Clothes with stains. These do not double as rags. They are not donate-able. Toss them.
4. Florist’s vases. Great for donating or tossing. Keeping these only take up valuable space in your kitchen or pantry.
5. Expired coupons. As a single mom I coupon a lot. I do not have a binder or a stock room. I have one envelope where I keep the most relevant coupons. No matter how detailed your couponing is you are bound to have a lot of expired ones. Go through them and recycle the ones that have expired or that you really won’t use.
6. Junk Mail. It’s easy to spot, easy to recycle folks and not helpful to anyone! Do not bring junk mail into the house. Immediately put it in the recycle bin if you can.
7. Receipts from the grocery store. If the receipt is over a week old, you’re probably aren’t planning on returning anything. With the price of gas plus time and effort, would that return be worth it?
   Shred or recycle these out of your purse, pockets, drawers etc.

Rachel Seavey, Professional Organizer
I am located in Pleasanton Ca, and serve the San Francisco Bay Area.
I specialize in Hoarding Disorder, Chronic Disorganization and helping the overwhelmed with clutter. I love what I do, and I provide realistic expectations and timelines. Don't suffer in chaos any  more. Every breath is a new beginning! Please visit my site at www.collectorcare.com
Tweet me on Twitter : Like my Facebook page : Find me on Pinterest

5 Tips On Keeping Your Car Organized As A Single Mom

Whether you are a single parent or not, we all know that having kids means
having to bring a lot with us.

Added expenses such as snack stops, and entertainment add up. Below are five tips that I use personally to stay organized and prepared when my little one is in the car. Don't get caught spending time or money on items that you can have right at your fingertips. I like to keep one bag in the trunk full of all of the following. Before we embark, I grab what I need for that specific outing.

1. Snacks. Bring snacks that travel well and won't spoil. I like to bring a box of crackers (the box will protect), fruit snacks (lasts about two months) and bottled water is a must. Keep a handful of small garbage bags in your glove disposal box to have on hand for trash.
2. Games. Interactive games like "eye spy" or singing together is a great way to kill time in the car. I have been known to bring an iPad on long trips. There are a lot of free educational apps to chose from. Bring a book your child hasn't read yet. This will either keep them engaged or put them to sleep (depending on your motive).
3. Music. Satellite radio has Kids Place Live and Radio Disney. Bring music that both you and your child like. Don't get stuck listening to Barney over and over. It's okay to mix in music that you like as long as it's appropriate.
4. Wipes. No matter what brand, antibacterial or not, please don't forget the wipes! Your children's hands are disgusting, let's face it! Whether it be a juicy strawberry mess or a nose picking frenzy, having wipes at hand is a beautiful thing. I just wish they made a size that fit in your car cup holder.
5. Safety. Always take your car in for maintenance to avoid annoying situations. Make sure you have at least a half of a tank of gas. Your child is in the car, there is no reason why you should run out of gas. Adjust your child's car seat and harness each time they get into the car. Bulky sweaters can make for tight squeezes as swimming suits can leave straps loose and dangerous. Always have your cell phone charged and with you. When is the last time you saw a working payphone in the Bay Area?!

Another great thing I do is "pump and dump"! Every time I go get gas, I purge all garbage out of the car. It' s an extra bonus if I have time to run it through the car wash. I am on a ROLL if I can vacuum it out at the self serve there too. Try it out folks. It will make your drive and life much more pleasant.
From my car to yours folks!

Rachel Seavey, Professional Organizer
I am located in Pleasanton Ca, and serve the San Francisco Bay Area.
I specialize in Hoarding Disorder, Chronic Disorganization and helping the overwhelmed with clutter. I love what I do, and I provide realistic expectations and timelines. Don't suffer in chaos any  more. Every breath is a new beginning! Please visit my site at www.collectorcare.com
Tweet me on Twitter : Like my Facebook page : Find me on Pinterest

3 Tips To Avoid Excessive Clutter After The Holidays

Does your house look like a holiday explosion?

Here are three simple tips to help you tidy up your home before the New Year.

1. Pick up and recycle all wrapping paper and boxes immediately. Do not save used wrapping paper to use for next year.  My great grandmother used to ever so carefully open her presents so that she could reuse the gift wrap for another gift. Rip your gifts open folks, enjoy yourselves! Tearing the wrapping is part of the fun. Keeping used wrapping adds to clutter. Do make sure you recycle responsibly.
2. For each item brought in, take one item out. This includes you, your kids, your spouse and your pets - every family member has there own equal amount of "stuff". 
3. Put away those decorations.  Remember your tables when you could see the surfaces? Yup folks it's time to put away those nutcrackers, snowmen and bling. Aim to have your house "holiday free" by January first, embracing the New Year with less to worry about and less to put away!

Rachel Seavey, Professional Organizer
I am located in Pleasanton Ca, and serve the San Francisco Bay Area.
I specialize in Hoarding Disorder, Chronic Disorganization and helping the overwhelmed with clutter. I love what I do, and I provide realistic expectations and timelines. Don't suffer in chaos any  more. Every breath is a new beginning! Please visit my site at www.collectorcare.com
Tweet me on Twitter : Like my Facebook page : Find me on Pinterest

4 Things You Should Know When Preparing Your 2012 Taxes

Here are 4 things you should know for this upcoming tax season:

 1. Fiscal Cliff – If the fiscal cliff and the corresponding late tax legislation issues are not resolved soon there can be a delay in tax season for some or all taxpayers. The IRS is currently scheduled to start accepting tax returns on January 22, 2013.   

2. New Taxpayer Refund Timing – The IRS Refund Cycle Chart, which showed expected dates for tax refunds, will no longer be available. Replacing it will be a new standard message that “most taxpayers will receive their tax refund in less than 21 days”. The IRS predicts that 90% of refunds will be delivered within 21 days like they were last tax season. 

3. New IRS “Where is my refund” tool. – The IRS has improved their “Where is My Refund” tool on IRS.gov.  The displayed tax return statuses will include Tax Return Received, Refund Approved, and Refund Sent.  It will also show the taxpayer the expected date of the refund.

4. Education and Testing – Starting this year all paid tax return preparers must have 15 hours of continuing tax education for every tax season.  They must also pass an IRS standardized basic skills competency test by the end of 2013.

Source: Western CPE

Keep checking this blog for more helpful tips on organizing your taxes!

Rachel Seavey, Professional Organizer
I am located in Pleasanton Ca, and serve the San Francisco Bay Area.
I specialize in Hoarding Disorder, Chronic Disorganization and helping the overwhelmed with clutter. I love what I do, and I provide realistic expectations and timelines. Don't suffer in chaos any  more. Every breath is a new beginning! Please visit my site at www.collectorcare.com
Tweet me on Twitter : Like my Facebook page : Find me on Pinterest

Local Self Help Group For Clutterers - Pleasanton and the Entire BayArea Ca

Hello Locals! Join me as I present "Clutter Busting - 15 minutes a day" on January 14, 2013 at 7pm. I will provide information, tips and ideas all using the Time Timer. Hope to see you there!!!

I have had the pleasure of attending the Clutterless.org group of Pleasanton several times this year, and feel they deserve a very special place on my blog.

This group has been going on for many years, as an anonymous hoarding and clutter self help group.
They follow very strict guidelines on confidentiality, and the facilitators are genuine and helpful.

Being overwhelmed with stuff is a tough place to be, we all know it. It's great to know there are others out there that suffer from the same challenges. Some of these folks have become friends for years. The group is inviting, honest and their expectations are reasonable.

The group started out by author Mike Nelson at www.clutterless.org. This is the only group like this in the area. Specific information such as dates and times are listed on my homepage as well as below.

PLEASE NOTE: CLUTTERLESS OF PLEASANTON WILL BE CLOSED FOR THE HOLIDAYS AND STARTING UP WITH FULL FORCE ON JANUARY 7TH 2013!

Local Self Help Group for Clutterers!

ClutterLess (CL) is a nonprofit, peer-based, self-help, support group for people with difficulty discarding unwanted possessions.

Room 7 at 7 pm. 
NOTE We meet EVERY MONDAY 
(Except some Holidays  like Labor Day - Please come before or after)

7:00 to 8:30 pm at the: 
St Mary & St. John Coptic Orthodox Church 
RM 7, 4300 MIRADOR DR.
PLEASANTON, Ca. 
(The building was formerly the Pleasanton Presbyterian Church)*
Feel free to download these 10 commandments which the group goes over each meeting!

 

Hope to see you there folks!

Rachel Seavey, Professional Organizer
I am located in Pleasanton Ca, and serve the San Francisco Bay Area.
I specialize in Hoarding Disorder, Chronic Disorganization and helping the overwhelmed with clutter. I love what I do, and I provide realistic expectations and timelines. Don't suffer in chaos any  more. Every breath is a new beginning! Please visit my site at www.collectorcare.com
Tweet me on Twitter : Like my Facebook page : Find me on Pinterest