Smarty Giveaway: Living Simply will Simplify Your Life!

As the holidays are fast approaching, you may want to start organizing your old toys and make room for the new loot that will inevitably arrive very soon. If your child is anything like my oldest, Ansley, who is most definitely a hoarder by nature, this can be a daunting task! She saves everything from the Chick-fil-A If You Give A Mouse a French Fry book to all 4,000 lipsticks and Chapsticks that she has acquired over her 7 short years of life! So every new year, we set the goal of packing up toys every three months to store them in the attic for a rainy day or donate to charity. But then January turns into May and May turns into November and here I am faced with the most incredibly unorganized and unappealing-to-any-child playroom. Just for fun, I took a snapshot of my playroom and Ansley’s homework area in it’s current state of disarray. I am constantly trying to convince Ansley that we need to clear the clutter but she just can’t part with any of her things! I’m pretty sure we need some professional help since these spaces are just not functional. Enter Carson Tate with Living Simply, our newest Smarty Sponsor whose motto is this: Life can be easier with Living Simply. Yes, yes – I totally need my life simplified! I’m in for sure!

Living Simply is a professional organizing company dedicated to making their client’s lives easier – simple. Carson and her staff believe that organization is not about how a space looks, but how it functions. Phew, I may be ok then!! Carson’s staff looks at what you have and what your needs are and makes sure that your workspace/playspace/whatever space is functional according to your lifestyle. Organization is about creating environments that reflect who you are and how you want to live. Amen to that one – I need some serious help here!

Following is some advice on playrooms from the Living Simply team. Playrooms should be organized in activity centers, exactly what you see in any school classroom. Think puzzles, dollhouses, train tables – they all need a designated center. Each center should contain all the toys your child would want to play with while at that center. Once you have established your centers, the next step is to contain the toys within each center. Clear bins work well so children can easily see the toys. Label your bins and shelves so your children and your sitters know where everything should go when playtime is over. Avoid large baskets because it’s hard for children to get to the toys and these will turn into dumping zones. Most importantly, make sure your children are a part of this organizational process every step of the way. They need to feel a sense of ownership in this room they spend so much time in.

Living Simply offers services to organize your home, your move, your children and will undoubtedly change your life! To acclimate our Smarty readers, Living Simply is giving away 5 hours of on-site organizational services with 2 Living Simply consultants in any room or area of the home. The winner of the giveaway will be given a guest blogger day on CSP, (woohoo – this is your time to shine!) where she will blog about her Living Simply organizing experience. This giveaway is valid for 6 months upon receipt.

You can find Living Simply at www.livingsimply.net.
Click here to enter! Good luck, Smarties, and let’s get organized!