Disney's in the Desert

MOM HACK: Kids’ School Filing System

Most of you reading already know I’m pretty obsessed with organizing. What I love about organizing is not just the ‘pretty look’. Yes, this is a huge benefit, but I’m more interested in the functionality and ‘chaos free’ lifestyle organizing brings to a space. I also believe teaching children from a young age about organizing, as it instills important values from a young age that they can carry on with them into adulthood (taking responsibility, initiative, taking care of your belongings, recognizing importance and value of hard work, respecting your belongings, how to be self sufficient and on and on and on – those are just to name a few!) 

This solution is one I don’t have my kids help me with, but I do for them instead – and it also saves my sanity. It also eliminates the mom guilt of, ‘should I save this?….is it okay if I toss this?’ So even if you don’t have kids in grade school, I believe this system is extremely useful for saving their little art projects, crafts they make at home, and things they draw for you 🙂 I started this when my boys were very young, as they went to a ‘PRE pre school’ by age 2.5. They also have played sports and gone to church from a very young age and were getting their photos taken and/or drawing things. I use these file boxes for under $7 along with these file folders for an inexpensive price. I gave them each several folders per box.

Here are a few tips I have with these boxes once you buy the supplies:

-Be intentional about what gets saved and what doesn’t still. I still throw a lot away (and I don’t feel guilty anymore, because I know what I save is what I really want to hang onto)

-It’s okay if you don’t put it away right when they bring it home/make it. What helps me is making a pile every week and then by Friday night it gets put away into their individual box. That way I’m not reaching in every day because that was just getting to be tedious.

-Keep them in an accessible space. Not behind a bunch of heavy stuff or tucked too far where you won’t see them/think about them each week.

-I make several different labels on the file folders themselves. Art, photos (sometimes the teachers will take random photos in the classroom, on field trips, etc), log ins (all of their passwords to apps/platforms/grade access pages they need for each grade), awards/notices (I keep any certificates or ‘good job’ papers, along with any receipts they acquire from school), and finally, their grades. Conner is currently in 3rd grade and I still have a ton of room left in his box to probably get thru elementary school. It’s already so cool to look back when he was in Pre K (where Honey is now!) and see how far he’s come.

I label the outside of each file box (my fave label maker is this one) with their first and middle name and keep it in an area where I’ll have easy access to it weekly. I no longer have piles of paper every week of things the kids made or finished in school or possibly need my attention at a later date. 

If you’re not a parent, this system is great for filing tax papers, medical records, bills, etc! Happy filing 🙂 

Master Linen Closet Makeover + Some Organizing Tips

*this post contains affiliate links.


Inside of our master bath, we have a small little linen closet which has become the second catch all in our home (first catch all is/was our master closet – stay tuned for this organization make over because I’m really hoping to finish it sometime in 2021, haha). Anyway, I’ve kind of been stumped on what to do with it because we have another linen closet right off of our loft that homes a lot of our extra linens and bathroom overflow. I just started piling some of the kids extra medical stuff in there (bandaids, thermometers, etc) and a few of our beach towels and one thing lead to another and it just became kind of a dumping ground for whatever didn’t have a home at the time.
It’s been on my to do’s LONG before Colly was born, but it just kept getting put on the back burner until July! *Yay*. I know C has been a little bit bothered with the state of it too, as he sometimes needs things in there for the kids (said bandaids and beach towels) and it’s just been a mess.  Here’s a little before pic for ya.


The first TIP I want to share for any organizing project – GO! DO IT! Stop putting it off. Obviously, time/money can be restrictions and things that legitimately hold us back, which I totally understand. I have been in both boats over the years. But you don’t need to spend a lot in order to get organized. The dollar stores/spots always have things you can utilize, and Target is a store I can always grab the $2 drawer organizers that come in 2 + 3 packs. Time might be tight too, but look at your schedule and see if you can carve out a day or even 2 hours over a week (or two, if its a big project) to just dedicate to that space. Getting motivated to start any organizing project is key in seeing your space finished! Envision it, and then set the time aside to make it happen! Slowly but surely, it will get done if you just S T A R T!
So once you’ve done that, take my next TIP to heart, as I feel it really hones in on how successful you can be with your organizing goal. Take a look at the space as a whole and ask yourself what you want with it. What kind of purpose can it serve you/your family? What’s the main function it can help you with in your home? 
Back to the closet at hand – for our family, I wanted to focus on the healthcare + bath time stuff in there (I also kept essential oils and other wellness things shoved in as well) so I knew I needed a few organizing products to home those in. I also thought about the towels and linens and didn’t want them all to be showing so I invested in some neutral bins/baskets to hold them.

I grabbed what I needed to at Target (…last year…. I know, I just preached about getting started but we had a bunch of curveballs, as did most, in 2020) so I had everything I needed when I started this project a few weeks ago. 
Another HUGE tip of mine would grab your ear buds, portable speaker, Alexa, Google Home…whatever!…and listen to something that inspires you. Music, a podcast, an audible book, anything! I always get in the groove to get working and the time goes by so fast when I put on my fave 90’s alternative station on Amazon music.


TIP: I always take everything out of the space (closet, drawer, cabinet, room) and give it a good wipe down. Magic erasers, all purpose spray (Thieves!), and some rags or paper towels. When you start with a clean slate, you’re on the right track to your project already.


After everything is cleaned out and wiped down properly, here comes the next TIP: start grouping. I always have one pile for donation/trash and then the other piles are what I plan to use in the space. For example, when I cleaned out my mom’s desk drawers recently I had a pile for: tools, pens, glue sticks, reading glasses, scissors, etc. It is so much easier to put away once you’ve done this. 


TIP: In addition to functionality (easy to access/find) and purpose (being able to help our family), another perk of being organized is (YES) the aesthetic. We all love a clean, pretty to look at space, right? To achieve this, I’ll also use a scaling system. I try to do this in every space I fix up if possible. So what do I mean by this? Creating some dimension across the shelves. I do this with incorporating different heights and textures with the baskets/containers and adding a pop of color and decor with a small plant (did this in my mom’s linen closet refresh too!). If you’re reorganizing a surface space, think about adding photo frames of different heights and throwing in a textured or glass piece of decor to offset it. There are tons of ways to do this, but these are my most simplified/cost effective ways.


TIP: Mixing and matching is great, but when it comes to actually hanging up clothing or organizing all of the same items in a row, I really like uniformity. For my mom’s linen closet (see below), she also had a side with a clothing rod that was holding up jackets and winter wear. It didn’t take much to make it look a LOT better, by just adding some hangers I had at our house that were all the same style and color. 
You may need to rearrange as you go and start filling in your containers, baskets, etc. with your “piles”.  

Last tip: once you have everything organized how you want – remember arrange + maintain.


Everything I used in our linen closet is linked HERE.


Everything I used in my mom’s linen closet is linked HERE.


I hope this helps! Go tackle that project!!!!

Drawer Organizing Tips

Today I’m sharing all about the DRAWERS! I feel like sometimes these seem tricky to tackle, we’ve all been there with a junk drawer (or two!)

In the kitchen, I recommend having one of these for sure for all of your household items that you reach for often (pens, tools, Scotch tape, etc). We actually have two junk drawers for more utility type things (extra chargers, cords, light bulbs, etc). I love these organizers/holders as they come in a set and can be locked into place. They’re really versatile to move around in your drawer, too! The tiny ones we use for erasers, chalk, knobs, and keys.

For my office (and my mom’s office space which I just recently shared!) I love the drawer organizers from Target. They come in several colors and I’ve shared these a few times too because they are so simple and inexpensive. Depending on size, they come in packs of 2 and 3 for around $2!!

My mom’s
ours

The organizer we use for our every day eating utensils is sturdy and also expands for more storage. I shared this on IG and had so many requests and questions about where to get it. It has a couple matching smaller insert pieces too that are around $7. Personally, I LOVE these! I think they’’re really chic looking inside of a nightstand drawer (see Honey’s below).

For Colly’s nursery, I found these inserts a while back. They store everything from pajamas, to sleep sacks, to socks, to tiny pants + shorts, to onesies. Again, would highly recommend especially for little ones dressers!!

For big utensils (like BBQ tools, large serving ladles, and knives) I really like these drawer dividers from Amazon. They come in a pack of 4 and for the price, it’s a great deal. I used them in two different drawers at my moms and we have them in our kitchen too. I also use them in Honey’s pajama drawer (roll up the jammies Kon Mari way) to keep things neat and easy to see. I find that when you can see what you have for clothing, you can rotate through everything evenly (this also helps with wash wear – everything is washed more proportionally and you get more use out of your garments!)

Last, for my boys underwear drawer, I use a little bit of a different system. I use 2 of these bins and keep their socks in one, and their underwear in another. Pretty simple, but it keeps everything from merging together and easy for ME to put away daily. Clean underwear goes on the bottom and they take from the top. Again, this helps me make sure everything is washed/worn proportionally. I also use these bins (2 in a row, just like the underwear and socks) in a separate drawer for each of them up top – I affectionately call it their ‘junk drawers’. They can put whatever they want to in there (cards, small toys, their watches, and other personal items). They love it and think its cool 😉

I truly hope this helps and inspires organization for one area of your home! I feel like once you have these organizing inserts in place, it becomes so much easier to see/use what you have and also keep the drawers clean and easy to clean for quick wipe downs (less dirt + bacteria!) If you have anything specific you need help with or have a question on, leave a comment for me and I’ll reply!! Happy organizing!

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