When you’ve got young children, you’ve got to be as efficient as possible in the kitchen. Every second counts when you are trying to get breakfast on the table, make school lunches AND get yourself off to work.
Here are a couple of ideas for kitchen storage that may help you out:
 Storing the kids dishes where they can get them. Store the kids dishes where they can easily get to them. This usually means a lower cabinet or drawer. It gives them the opportunity to get their own dishes, set the table, and even unload the dishwasher and then put their dishes away after they are washed.
Don’t worry about how neat the collection is, a jumble of plastic that is separated by type, is just fine since nothing is breakable. This Rubbermaid pull out system was easy to install and came from The Container Store.
 Grab and go lunch box
Keep kids lunch boxes together in a lower cabinet where everyone can grab them and go.
Looking for the perfect kitchen sink sponge holder is like searching for the holy grail. I’ve been on this quest for as long as I’ve been on my own in the kitchen.
My mother and grandmother used dishrags, which I used for many years. We just hung them over the facet when not in use. However, with the advent of the dishwasher, I don’t wash dishes much anymore and dishrags unsightly, so I’ve dumped them in favor of sponges which I can toss regularly. (Please note that sponges are NOT recommended for use in the kitchen. I buy biodegradable sponges at Whole Foods, microwave it after every use, and trash it weekly.)
Additionally, I’ve added a long handled scrub brush, and there in lies part of the problem…I used a mesh basket for a long time, but I’ve gotten tired of it always being in the way in the sink. I tried a variety of suction cup holders, but the suction never lasts and they’d constantly be falling off . I just found a metal box holder, with divided sections, that sits above the sink. It’s not perfect, but I’ll work with it.
 A mesh basket takes up a lot space.
 This metal holder has some promise.
I always like to set up a charity “donation” box in my client’s homes. Generally located in the garage, it allows everyone in the family to place in items which they no longer use. When the box is full, it gets taken to their favorite charity.
My families with children love this. We have even put a donation box in the children’s room, to get them in the habit of sending off toys they no longer play with. Be sure and take the kids with you when you drop off the box, at your favorite charity site, so they can experience the process and see where their toys are going.
 Whose bathroom is it?  This bathroom serves the resident and guests.
Usually, we think of our bathroom as our own private space. However, if you live in a one bathroom home, as I do, it is also a public space.
Therefore, keeping a clean, presentable and functional bathroom is a must. Here’s my short list of dos:
- Have clean hand towels for guests. I use paper napkins I keep in a holder labeled “Guest Towels” from Bed Bath and Beyond.
- Have clean soap available. I use liquid soap dispensers from Williams-Sonoma.
- Have plenty of toilet paper where guests can find it. I use a basket from Pottery Barn.
- Have a bathroom spray available (not to be confused with your expensive perfume). I get mine at The Gardener.
- Keep the bathroom clean at all times, all towels neatly folded and all personal items in drawers or cabinets.
- During entertaining season a few fresh flowers in the bath are a wonderful addition.
If your guest bath is also your children’s bathroom, have the kids put all their personal items in plastic buckets and keep them inside the shower or bathtub with the curtain drawn.
My friend, interior designer Toni Berry, has written a wonderful article “Make Home Office a Productive Space“. It got me thinking about the number one problem I see with home offices…they share space with every other room in the house, and usually not very well…
 This home office is shared by the entire family. This home office is in the far corner of the family room. My client found it nearly impossible to work with the kids playing games on their computers and/or her husband watching TV or playing his guitar.
 Just where does the guest sleep? This home office is shared with their daughter who comes home on the weekends from college…
 Dinner anyone? I see this all the time…the home office/dining room…
 When one room spills into another... And then there’s the home office that shares the space with everything else in the house.
How can we be creative, efficient and productive when our offices look like this? Yes, most of us don’t have the luxury of a whole room to devote to our home office, but really, is your coffee maker paying the mortgage every month? Something to think about…and take action about, I hope!
Yes, I’d rather be blogging, but I am doing my end of year paperwork, filing 1099′s, filling our forms and paying all my city, state, business licenses and fees…and, last but not least, prepping for federal taxes.
See you on the other side!
 Just changing out a few things makes my home feel fresh and new. After all the reds and greens of the holidays, I love to bring out the winter whites for January. It reminds of the snowy January days of the mid-west. It also fills my home with a peaceful and restful presence. Perfect for starting a new year.
A white fleece table runner covers the ottoman and a white throw goes over the arm of the sofa. I bring out the “silver” candleholders, put my silk paper whites in silver bowl, and I am ready for January. Table runners, faux silver and silk flowers have all been collected from Pottery Barn.
 I put out all "silver", which is a great compliment to white.
I wish you all the very best of the holiday season and beyond…
Here’s my newest assistant…little Nellie Bean.
My friend, interior designer Toni Berry, has written this great article on winter decorating…
 The holidays start at your front door. Photo from Martha Stewart.
When the days are short make your rooms long on comfort and style. Look to create rooms that drive out the chill. And if you haven’t finished decorating your home for the Holidays yet, here’s a few of my warm and cozy ideas that you can implement right now.
· I love white fabrics and sparkling accessories, they are natural choices for winter decor because they add much-needed light to a home’s interior. Softer than the bright whites of summer, winter whites come in a variety of pale colors. Winter whites will cover a bed’s dark shapes the way snow blankets the landscape of the outdoors. Sink into the layers of winter with lavender, pale pink, mint green and white flannel linens, a fluffy featherbed, a winter-weight duvet, and a transparent bedcovering of icy voile.
· Candles — and lots of them — cast a warming glow to every corner of a room, especially when company’s coming for dinner. Keep a stock of white candles, mirrored, silver and sparkling accessories, and frosted glasses on hand to keep the look fresh and inviting; simply create new groupings from your stash every time you set the table.
· And don’t forget the Hearth. In the winter, rearrange the seating group in your living room so it faces the fireplace. Winter white lampshades maximize the wattage of every bulb without creating glare. Add a string of votives to the mantel and a group of pillars on the coffee table to multiply the warmth and power of the fire to ward off the chill.
· The celebration of the season starts at the front door. Greet family and friends with a wreath that suits the whole season, greenery, sparkling ornaments (inside or out) and the ever-present candles on a console table in your entry/foyer are just as suitable all months as they are for December.
· Greenery is always visually appreciated, but choose branches of leaves rather than pine boughs. Or, put pine boughs out for the holidays and switch to eucalyptus leaves in January for a fresh change of pace. A sprig of greenery, such as evergreens, on the nightstand is a gentle reminder of nature’s cycles
If you keep colors light in winter, your spirit will maintain its lightness longer during the stretches of time that the sun takes its leave. I know this first hand as I live in a canyon. In the winter months our sun sets here behind the hill at about 2:30 in the afternoon. So I’m practicing what I preach.
If you are looking for decorating assistance…find Toni Berry at Marie Antoinette Interiors , 925-862-9064
Ho! Ho! Ho! One of my client’s favorite things is her collection of Department 56 “Christmas in the City” villages. However, she dislikes the process of taking it all out of the boxes, clearing space on her dining table, and setting it all up. Once it gets up, she has equal trouble taking it down and getting it back into the boxes after the holidays. Instead of looking like holiday cheer, it looks like holiday clutter.
Besides the loss of the use of her dining table, storing these pieces takes up one very valuable closet. So, we suggested permanently displaying the village on top of her entertainment center all year long. We asked her to pick out her favorite pieces and we devised a “city plan” for the display.
 We did the complete layout and electrical for the village. We layered a “snow” blanket over the three sections of the bookcase and then designed the village, complete with cars and people. We also devised an electrical layout that allows the village lights to go on every evening.
 It's Christmas all year long on top of the entertainment system.
Now she can sit on the sofa and admire her collections all the time. At night, when the village is lit, it adds an extra something special to her living room.
As a bonus, this display now limits “urban sprawl”, as the display space dictates that no more pieces can be added.
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