Start the new year out strong.  Make a resolution to be less stressed by planning better.  Look at the year ahead and see what occasions call for celebration. Make a list and head to the store to get all the cards/gifts needed so you have them on hand.  I tend to buy gifts for people as I find them throughout the year, then I wrap and place them in a closet I have for gifts and supplies.  I find I am never running out at the last minute to get this done and it is such a stress reliever. 

If you have any upcoming parties or events you want to plan, start that early as well.  Vendors are better able to accommodate all your needs/wants the longer you have to plan.  This helps to alleviate any disappointments while planning.

Another idea that helps with stress relief is planning any trips for the year ahead.  It can relieve stress by helping to be financially smart as there are no last-minute rate hikes or shortages when booking.  I find a year to six months is long enough out to get good rates and desired accommodations at a reasonable price.

*TECH TIP* 

Planning travel, use sites like Expedia and Hotels.com to price compare accommodations, you want to search as early as possible for the best accommodations and pricing.

*ORGANIZATION TIP* 

Keep a digital and a paper calendar.  It is helpful to write out the monthly paper calendar halfway through the month prior, that way you can plan out any celebrations with friends/family, and it serves as a reminder for you as to who you need to send cards/gifts to so that they arrive on time.

HAPPY PLANNING!

As Thanksgiving week wraps up and the end of year holidays rapidly approach, I thought it was important to stop and give thanks.  I feel very blessed that I have been able to turn hobbies and talents into a thriving business and am hopeful that those who only read this blog gain some useful tips that help make their life easier.  I am thankful that my clients are always willing to learn and grow with me in the learning process, and I appreciate all that they have taught me that has gone on to become a part of my daily life.

I also want to thank all of you for being a part of the Just Ask Jen community.  I have been very fortunate to gather a wonderful group of clients and vendors.  This holiday season find what and who you are thankful for and let them know how they make your life better. 

Happy Holidays from my family to yours.

I’m an avid believer in constant self-improvement and learning. It keeps you sharp and staves off brain deterioration.  When new projects come up it is my job to familiarize myself with everything, assess a plan and then get to work.  Sometimes that means I need to learn something new.   I do not let it get me discouraged, instead I look at it as an asset and apply my new knowledge or skill to existing projects or it may even lead to finding new clients who need help with this newly acquired talent. 

I am constantly applying this in my personal life as well.  I am terrible at art, so last year I decided to start doing a family art class.  I would get 20 minutes into the project and want to throw my brushes down and storm off, but I resisted that urge and am usually quite happy with the result.  Something that used to frustrate me now brings me joy.  Pictured above on the left was our first class a year ago and the picture on the right is from last month.  I stuck with it and now I have an entire collection of art hung all around the house.

Try something new today to keep your brain and heart growing.  If you are not sure where to start, pick up the phone or fire up the computer and Just Ask Jen to assist you in the process and make learning more fun.

What are your plans this fall?  It has always been my favorite time of the year and I love the change of seasons.  It is such a busy time and starts off the months of holidays ahead.

Picking apples and pumpkins seem to be two of the more traditional things to do in fall.  When planning think of what you want to do, when and with who. 

You could pick apples at the beginning of September.  Apples are a ceremonial item for the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, you could bake and take mini apple pies to a dinner or freeze them to eat in the future.  Something I just tried was the Fall Apples cooking class at Sur La Table.  All the dishes used apples, were delicious and easy enough to make at home giving us a bunch of ways to use up our apples we picked.

You should plan on getting pumpkins at the end of September, so they last until Halloween, but you get to enjoy them for the month leading up to it.  Do not plan on carving for Halloween until a few days before the holiday if you want them out for Trick-or-Treaters to marvel at.  And then you can cook the pumpkin seeds and enjoy them for the holiday.

If these are not things that interest you and your family you can find holiday plays or lightshows, the internet is full of ideas that will satisfy everyone.  Enjoy fall y’all.

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Look on-line for Pumpkin patches and Apple Orchards to visit and then search for a cooking class at a place like Sur La Table to find new ways to incorporate those seasonal items into your meals.

*ORGANIZATION TIP* 

To make sure you are prepared for picking season be sure to plan and organize your trunk with boxes and/or garbage bags and towels to keep the items together and from creating a mess.

School is starting and it can be daunting to prepare for, making a to do list can save you both time and money.

Your list should look like this (add or subtract items according to your needs).

• Books
• Backpack
• Clothing/Uniforms
• Lunchbox/Snack-pack
• Supplies (pens, pencils, notepads, etc.)

All of this can add up quickly, so pick up items on sale throughout the year. 

A nice way to say goodbye to summer and hello to the school year is by taking a vacation the week before it starts.   You come back refreshed and ready to tackle another year. 

*TECH TIP* You can look on-line to find sales for the school items you need and for vacation deals.  It is also a good way to locate hard to find items/supplies.

*ORGANIZATION TIP* Label a box/bin and place it in a closet. You can place the items you pick up throughout the year in it making it easier to locate all your supplies when school starts.

Party/Event planning has always been a favorite thing of mine to do.  Especially when I am given the freedom to plan on my own as I believe in not overlooking a single detail.  It may be overkill to some, but to me it would seem incomplete without all aspects planned.  Here are some steps to get you planning:

Initial Brainstorming & Gust List:  Be creative, begin by coming up with a fun and catchy theme.   A play on words is usually the way I go here.  For example, for a kid’s birthday party you could go with “Young, Wild and Three”.  This is also a good time to put together your guest list and make sure you have all contact information.

Venue:  Find a place that fits your theme, or just a favorite place.  Some places will do most of the work for you.  Once you confirm they have the date available you can begin planning all the other details. 

Invitations:  Get them out 6 weeks prior to the party so that you guests can plan ahead.  I prefer the old fashion way of mailing out paper invitations (my age is showing here), but there are plenty of on-line options that will help you to create an invitation as well as keep track of your guest count.

Décor & Food:  All things theme related.  If you get stuck, search on-line for ideas.  Flowers and food can be used in a creative way and incorporate the theme.  Be sure to think of your guests’ preferences and allergies when planning the menu so that everyone has something to eat.  Have fun with the cake, I always like to tie that to the theme as well.  Most grocery stores these days make incredible cakes or search online for a local bakery and see what they have.

Party Favors:  Try and do theme related favors that will be used and looked at fondly as a memory of the event.  For example I love using frames for event gifts so guests can put a picture from the party in it and remember the good time they had.

*TECH TIP*  Zazzle, Evite, Paperless Post, Punch Bowl, Shutterfly & Minted are a few of the sites I go to for invitations.  They have paper invitations as well as digital invites with a ton of free templates.

*ORGANIZER TIP*  Start to plan early.  Like 6 months early.  One month select a theme, next month a venue, invites the next month, party favors and the cake the next month, and any other details in the remaining time prior to the party.  Planning this way, you will never feel rushed, and you will have time to plan every last detail.

Travel has always been a way to recharge and reinvigorate the mind, body and spirit.  However, with costs skyrocketing and airlines becoming less dependable it is causing more stress than refresh and travel habits are changing.  At least they have for our family.

In the past travel has always been via air for us, but these days we are traveling mostly by car.  It gives us the chance to see more and it is a much happier, calmer experience.  Driving provides us the flexibility to plan last minute trips and to deviate from our itinerary if so desired.

Our travel destinations have also changed.  We used to prefer International travel, these days we are opting to travel within the United States.  We pick a destination, and if it is far we make stops in other towns along the way. 

This new way to travel is a wonderful bonding experience for the family and a wonderful way to become more educated about the world around us.  So pick a destination, plan your route, then hit the road and start making memories while seeing all that America has to offer.

*TECH TIP* 

Before booking travel always price compare. I use sites like Expedia, Kayak and Travelocity for Hotels, Rental Cars and Flights. 

*ORGANIZER TIP*

To make packing easier invest in packing cubes. Especially helpful when packing children or smaller items.  You can organize each cube by category. Shoes in one, undergarments and socks in another, tops in one, pants in one and on and on. 

Lately I am finding my computer in need of a good cleanup.  A cleanup similar to what I do for my clients.  I organize their physical items as well as their digital items.  

Let me share some of my tips here so you can create your own process. 

Start small.  Breaking things down into steps makes it less daunting and more manageable. Less chance to intimidate you away from doing the project. 

1. Start with a folder, for example your “Documents” folder, then your “Downloads” and so on and so on. 
2. Look at all of the files you have and start by sorting. Create categories that make sense to you. 
3. As you are sorting you can delete old and unnecessary files.  I am always amazed at how much can be deleted. 
4. Once you have all of your items sorted you can move the files to their designated folders. 
5. If you find the “Documents” folder is not good for your files you can create a new Main folder for those documents.  Be sure you put the folder in a familiar location so it is easy to find. 

*TECH TIP* 

I add my most used folders to the desktop for easier access.  Be careful to not let the desktop become cluttered.  The cleaner the desktop looks the more productive you will be at completing your tasks as you will not be distracted. 

*ORGANIZER TIP*

Have fun and remember to enjoy the process, listen to some music while doing this if it makes it more appealing. 

One thing I have learned in my adult life is how important movement is.  When our bodies become stagnant so does our brain.  In turn, this creates new aches and pains as well as a more lethargic existence with less creativity.

A lot of movement seems to be happening these days, whether it is getting out of the house more, taking a vacation, or literally moving somewhere else.  Moving seems to be a good time to reenergize what may seem stagnant in your everyday life.  It can stimulate your brain to think of and look at things differently, or it can be an incredible mood booster to be out, productive and communicating with others.  Packing to move is a great time to declutter your closet and look into trying out some new products or clothing. 

As activities become countless in summer months we will enjoy a renewed spirit full of new ideas and more energy.  If you want to get out and leave the work to someone else just fill in your information and needs here http://www.justaskjen.net/contact-us and we will be in touch soon after to get you on the schedule.  Get out and enjoy life.

In an effort to stay organized and have fresh ideas I am always looking for new inspiration to give me that creative mindset to tackle a project.  This motivation came to me at the most unexpected time…while putting away the holiday lights.  

Do you find that you only organize at a certain time of year?  Moving from the Midwest to the South, I am finding that I do not notice seasons as much and therefore I am doing my decluttering in the winter months instead of the typical “spring cleaning”.  This is causing me to look at items differently.  What once seemed so useful is now seeming to be more limiting than helpful. 

Let’s take clothing for example.  When I look at clothing it is usually only for the season I am in.  When doing this at a different time of year I am looking at things in a different light (literally and figuratively) which in turn makes me see different purposes for things, or if something is really no longer useful or necessary in my life.  You can do this with your closet, desk, kitchen, laundry room, garage or really any where.  Freeing up space and keeping only what is relevant in your current life is such a mood booster, and we can all use that.

Go open up your closet, cabinet, room door and then contact Just Ask Jen to see what she can do to help make a happier space for you.