Clean and Organized

In summer, garage and yard sales blossom like wildflowers all over our neighborhood. I bet it's the same in yours. If you're thinking of getting in on the action, go for it! It's a great way to clean out your house and make a little money on the side. Here are thirteen steps to garage sale success:

Feel like your brain is missing? Welcome to parenthood! Or possibly menopause. I forget which. Oh wait! Both. And then there's brain fog. I have fibromyalgia, so sometimes it's even worse than usual.

Luckily, there are strategies we can use when the ol' hard drive fills up. Here are ten. Don't forget them!

Ever wish you had two extra pairs of hands to help with the dishes and the dusting? You do have them! They are not attached to your body (at least not now) and they do not belong to your husband.

They are your children! But how does one get them to pitch in?

Get them used to it early
The first rule is to start young. Children are born wanting to explore every facet of life, even the mundane ones. They are wired for learning to become independent. Learning to care for their bodies and their surroundings is part of that.

It begins to creep in slowly and then seems to overtake you--stacks of books, math manipulatives in the bathtub, colored pencils in the silverware drawer. And the papers...ALL of the papers. Your kitchen begins to look like a mad scientist invaded it and you can't find the door to the fridge because of the layers of Art Projects and A+++ reports on "Birds of Prey." (Thank heavens they outgrew that topic!)