These are a Few of My Favorite Things

I know Christmas is over, but this post isn't about presents, despite its title.

This post is about things in my life that make life a little easier for me. Things I have discovered from Pinterest, friends, coworkers etc.

So I share them with you...

1. An over the door shoe organizer. At first glance this may seem like a duh choice but let me explain. I don't use it for shoes. I have two of these babies. One is used for gloves, hats and scarfs. The nifty little pockets are just the right size to keep up with them and I can see all my choices at once in the morning. It has really helped get me out the door on time in the winter, and I don't end up wearing the same scarf everyday, just because it's on the top of the pile!

The second one is on the backside of our basement door, right off from our kitchen. And it has recently replaced the dreaded "junk drawer." Twenty-four pockets gives you a LOT of room to be a hoarder when you feel the need to save every rubber band, birthday candle and battery charger. And then all those trinkets are there when you need them (because you will need them, Matt!) but they are not thrown willy nilly into a precious drawer in your kitchen, and no one has to ever look at your junk!

2. My next favorite thing is the Target REDcard.  Y'all, I avoid credit cards like the flu. Seriously, I got burned right after college, when I thought I was making money and so I figured I could just charge away and pay it later...oh what's that...an interest rate of 31% AND a late fee every month. Yikes. So when checkers at any store ask I always quickly say NO Thank you. 

But checking out right before Christmas with a particularly productive Target run, I gave in to that first time 10% off (or whatever it was). I figured I would just use them for their discount this one time and then cancel it.  Well, while I was "signing up" the friendly young man (who won a free soda for signing me up, and he was super pumped about it) said I had the choice to link it directly to my debit account, so when I used it it came out of my checking automatically. NO CREDIT CARD BILL! Score! So I did that. Then he further explained I would always receive the 5% discount when I used my REDcard. Sweet! And, I saved the best news for last, FREE SHIPPING for online orders. Hallelujah! That means anytime I think of something I forgot at Target I just hop online and have it sent on over to the door, free of charge (well, you know what I mean). I mean they are basically paying me to shop there at this point.

Matt may not appreciate this new development in my life, but it has rocked my world. The UPS man stops by our house a lot more nowadays. So if you have more self control then me, I highly recommend grabbing a REDcard.

3. My final helpful discovery is the use of the three shelf laundry system. I bought this simple metal shelf (at Target of course) and then grabbed 3 laundry baskets of the proper dimensions for each shelf. It hangs out in our laundry room, and when we throw laundry at the baskets we can easily separate whites, colors and towels.  And when I go to do laundry I don't have to sort, just grab a basket and throw the whole thing in. I will be the first to admit this doesn't always happen, lots of times the top basket (for towels) ends up a catch all.  But it works most of the time, when we are not just throwing laundry at the laundry room when company is walking in the door. 

We have also recently thought of sorting it by person instead of colors. I mean lots of times I do loads of laundry with a little bit of everything in them anyway and everything comes out all right, because I always wash on cold. And maybe if we did it by person it would make folding and putting away (which is the WORST part of laundry) easier?!?!

So what about you? Have you discovered anything life altering lately? Or just a quick tip to make things run smoother in your home. Do I have to sort laundry anymore? Do tell!