On Tuesday, June 10th, The Organizing Junkie is giving away a “real neat” menu planning system: the Hearty Meals for Hungry Families Starter Kit created by Lily On the Fly!

So, don’t delay… enter the contest today!

Family need something new to try? Use Lily’s meal cards and Plan On the Fly. Keep your Lily Meal Planning deck in your purse or glove compartment so you are always ready to shop “on the fly.”

It’s so easy to know what to buy. Just turn the cards over and Shop On the Fly. When you have time to stop by the store, simply use the color-coded meal deck to select the main dishes, side dishes and treats you would like to prepare. You can easily choose recipes right in the store as you think through your plans for the next few days, and see what is on sale!

Slide the chosen recipes into the magnetic card holder, then turn the holder over and you’ll see that a completely organized shopping list has been created for you. Follow the color coding straight down, and you’ll see the ingredients are organized in one of seven general grocery store areas. You can easily gather all the ingredients—on the fly!

Need to cook in the blink of an eye? Keep your recipes handy and Cook On the Fly. Once you’re back home, place your magnetic card holder on the refrigerator. You can easily locate the recipes when you are ready to make ’em, and your family has an easy reference to see “What’s for dinner?”

After preparing a meal, remove the card from the holder and place it back with your deck. No recipes left in the holder? It’s time to go back and Plan On the Fly.

Changing The Present, a nonprofit website, offers a unique gift-giving model for those of us seeking to simplify our lives and improve our world.

So, if you haven’t yet purchased a gift for your mom, take a few moments to browse the site’s many causes to find an inspiring gift that will suit your budget, make a difference, and mean a great deal to your mom. With over 1,000 gifts, from $2 to $5,000, from hundreds of leading nonprofits, you’ll have no trouble finding just the right gift!

You can even send a customized printed greeting card to your mom, right from the site, with an inspiring photo and description of the gift that you’ve chosen to donate in her honor. She’ll love receiving your gift of charity! (Plus, your donation will be tax-deductible… an added bonus!)

Can you imagine the overall impact that, together, we could make as this new kind of gift-giving catches on!?! So cool!

What an extraordinary informal gathering of NAPO’s bloggers, hosted by the well-renowned and highly rescpected John Trosko, Lori Marrero, and Monica Ricci!

It was so exciting to finally meet, in-person and face-to-face, all the professional organizers whose blogs are on my daily reading list!

Take a gander at the plethora of organizing blogs…

Australia

• Lissanne Oliver, Sorted!

California

• Sandra Carroll, Creative Changes
• Jeri Dansky, Jeri Dansky Professional Organizer
• Margaret Lukens, New Leaf + Company
• Katherine Macey, Organize to Excel
• Claire Thompkins, Clutter Coach
• John Trosko, OrganizingLA
• Emily Wilska, The Organized Life
• Joshua Zerkel, Custom Living Solutions
• Beth Ziegler, neato

Georgia

• Allison Carter, The Professional Organizer
• Monica Ricci, Catalyst Organizing

Illinois

• Aby Garvey, simplify 101

Massachussetts

• Joan Kosmachuk, Simple Effects

Missouri

• Janine Adams, Peace of Mind Organizing

New Zealand

• Wendy Davie, Totally Organised

Oregon

• Megan Spears, Disorder2Order

Tennessee

• Julie Bestry, Best Results Organizing

Texas

• Lorie Marrero, LivingOrder

Utah

• Marilyn Bohn, Marilyn Bohn Creative Organizer

Virginia

• Lauren Halagarda, The Organization Connection

Washington

• Krista Colvin, Organize in Style
• Brandie Kajino, The Home Office Organizer

Courtesty of ParentHacks.com:

I had the kids make tags for Christmas gifts out of plain cardstock. We store all the gifts under the tree until they’re ready to leave the house (it looks so pretty!). To minimize time spent scrutinizing names on tags to make sure the staying / going gifts aren’t mixed up, all the gifts that stay at our home have green tags and the rest are red.

Additional Ideas:

1. Use a different colored tag for each family member: red for Mom, green for Dad, and white for Baby.
2. Add a photo of the appropriate family member to each gift tag to help young children quickly identify each gift’s recipient.
3. Customize printable gift tag templates that you find online @ Microsoft.com, Parents.com, or elsewhere.

Gift distribution on Christmas Day will be a snap!

Courtesy of Nina Restieri, creator of momAgenda and mom of four:

What if, in the last week before Christmas, you decided to cast off all the stuffy responsibilities, and commit to trading tedious obligation for carefree celebration? Intrigued? For a truly joyful holiday finale…

• First, go through your day planner and cross out anything that looks more like a chore than a chance to celebrate. Spend the time with your family instead. Holding your children close and feeling the sloppy kisses bestowed reminds you that the best holiday spirits are found at home.
• Second, instead of worrying about how you’ll look in this year’s trendy holiday dress, skip the style-slaving and opt for something soft or sparkly instead: a snuggly cashmere scarf or a shimmery pair of heels will have you feeling festive in no time.
• Next, forget about turbo-cleaning before the out-of-town guests arrive, and focus instead on adding a few welcoming touches to make them feel right at home: orange-scented incense on the mantle, extra-luxurious towels, a cozy fleece blanket. For such elf-like touches, your guests will surely forgive the fairy layer of dust on the window sill, or the broken toy from last year’s booty adorning the floor.
• Remember, sometimes the best Christmas present you can give your family doesn’t come in the intricate Martha-Stewart packaging your husband and kids could care less about anyway. The gift they’ll truly cherish is a mother who is well-rested, beaming, and has enough energy to get down on the floor and play with their new toys. On that note, why not give yourself an extra hour of beauty rest to compensate for all the busyness of the last few months? You can thank us when the holiday pictures arrive.