Cleaning vs. Organizing

The theme of this week's "Works for Me Wednesday" over at We Are THAT Family is cleaning. Which is perfect for this blog, since for me, cleaning and organizing are one in the same. Yes, there are some things that are purely cleaning - washing the dishes, swiffering the floor, etc. (and, by the way, how great is it that Swiffering is a verb?) But I don't think that there are things that are purely organizing - even tasks like filing the bills or organizing my sock drawer help to keep my house clean. I do know that it takes me ages to clean my house because I am so unorganized. And I also know that as I complete each of my missions, keeping the place clean also becomes a bit easier.

So, in the midst of my longest mission yet (seriously, why is my desk taking so long??), I share a combination cleaning-organization tip with you. It has to do with the mail. I love getting mail. Even junk mail makes me happy - there is just something about going outside and finding a full mailbox. So sorting through the mail (and paying the bills) is a chore that falls to me. I sort my mail every day - waiting only makes it harder. I can go through it quickly and throw the junk mail that doesn't have my name on it in the recycle bin. Stuff with my name on it, especially credit card offers, get shredded (and yes, the shredder bin gets emptied into the recyling too). I pay bills each day - doing it online takes less than a minute. And anything that my husband should look at goes in a big green poly folder on our kitchen table. It keeps us organized, keeps the paper clutter down, and makes it easy for my husband to know what he actually needs to look at.