{"id":3692,"date":"2011-09-08T07:07:00","date_gmt":"2011-09-08T11:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.glutenfreeislife.com\/?p=3692"},"modified":"2011-09-08T07:25:32","modified_gmt":"2011-09-08T11:25:32","slug":"review-totally-together-shortcuts-to-an-organized-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.glutenfreeislife.com\/?p=3692","title":{"rendered":"Review: Totally Together: Shortcuts to an Organized Life"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wlWriterHeaderFooter\" style=\"float: none; margin: 0px; padding: 4px 0px 4px 0px;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"width: 450px; height: 80px;\" src=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/widgets\/like.php?href=http:\/\/www.glutenfreeislife.com\/?p=3692\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" width=\"320\" height=\"240\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>It is no secret that I have been trying to find ways to get organized for a long time \u2013 perhaps my whole life.\u00a0 Laugh all you want, it is true.\u00a0 Heck, I laugh at it.\u00a0 I have done the \u201cHousehold Notebook\u201d and now have another paperweight thanks to that short-lived project.\u00a0 I just recently bought a composition book\/journal and titled it \u201c<strong>Kim\u2019s Latest Attempt at Trying to Get and Stay Organized<\/strong>\u201d.\u00a0 I can tell you that it isn\u2019t going so well either.\u00a0 So when I heard that <a href=\"http:\/\/stephanieodea.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Stephanie O\u2019Dea<\/a>, queen of gluten-free crock pot cooking, had a new book on getting organized, I figured I didn\u2019t have much to lose and I would be supporting someone I love at the same time.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stephanieodea.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/themes\/odeamaster\/images\/book-ttj-02.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<p>(<a href=\"http:\/\/stephanieodea.com\/books\/\" target=\"_blank\">source<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>The book, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/0425241629\/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=odeasites-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399369&amp;creativeASIN=0425241629\" target=\"_blank\">Totally Together: Shortcuts to an Organized Life<\/a>, seemed to be created just for me \u2013 the calendar starts in September and goes through August, so no time like the present to get started!\u00a0 I love this quote on page 3:<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><em>\u201c<\/em>clean less and play more<\/span><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>My kind of philosophy \u2013 I am liking this book already!<\/p>\n<p>Stephanie makes some excellent points in the first few pages.\u00a0 I am going to highlight some that I found very important to understand before beginning:<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Segoe Script';\">\u201cIn order to start getting your house in order, you need to <em><strong>start<\/strong><\/em> getting your house in order\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Segoe Script';\">\u201cDo not alphabetize the spice cabinet if you have a mountainous pile of dishes in the sink\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Segoe Script';\">\u201cInstead of trying to do too much all at once, let\u2019s focus on establishing a daily routine and enlisting help from the entire family.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>And this about sums it up:<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Segoe Script';\">\u201cWhen your house is on fire, don\u2019t stop to weed the flower bed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Okay, time to get down to it.\u00a0 I liked Stephanie\u2019s approach to attacking the problem \u2013 bits &amp; pieces.\u00a0 Start by trying to working to complete the \u201cDaily 7\u201d.\u00a0 These 7 chores are simple, yet often go undone because I used to feel that if I couldn\u2019t clean the whole room the way I wanted, why bother with a part?\u00a0 Well, it appears that I should have been bothering!\u00a0 LOL!\u00a0 Making the bed, wiping down the bathroom as I am getting ready, picking up for just 10 minutes before bed\u2026.\u00a0 Those things seem so simple.\u00a0 And they are, once they become habit.\u00a0 I love the layout of the calendar with the \u201cDaily 7\u201d checklist and then other suggested chores, along with a spot to write down what is going on for the week.<\/p>\n<p>The way the calendar is laid out, Stephanie gives tips &amp; reminders to start thinking about upcoming dates &amp; events.\u00a0 I can see this really being helpful to me around the holidays when I really tend to get overwhelmed.<\/p>\n<p>While this isn\u2019t a quick fix, and I truly believe that there aren\u2019t any quick fixes, it is a lifestyle change.\u00a0 Lifestyle changes lead to lifelong habits.\u00a0 Much like eating healthy.\u00a0 Eating healthy is a lifestyle change\/choice, not something you do for a short period of time to get to a certain point &amp; then revert to old habits.\u00a0 The method in this book is doable, which is a key component for me.<\/p>\n<p>I have been following the \u201clifestyle change\u201d now for about 1.5 weeks.\u00a0 I managed to complete 75% of the suggested items in Week 1 and about 90% of the \u201cDaily 7\u201d items.\u00a0 Week 2 is going better and instead of throwing my hands up in the air and quitting when I slack, I just get back on the wagon &amp; continue from where I left off.\u00a0 There are days that fall apart, but that is life.\u00a0 Tomorrow is a new day and the beauty in that is starting with a clean slate.\u00a0 We are all human and we all make mistakes.\u00a0 We can dwell on them and criticize ourselves or we can learn from them and move forward.<\/p>\n<p>Now for the best part!\u00a0 One of my lucky readers will win a copy of\u00a0 &#8220;Totally Together&#8221;!!\u00a0 All you have to do is follow the instructions provided by Rafflecopter below.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><br \/>\n<script id=\"rafl-script\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\nRafflecopterSettings = {\n    raffleID: 'MGI1MzViMWRjZGIzMmFlMWUzNTVmYjQxZDI0OTg5OjU='\n};<\/script><br \/>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rafflecopter.com\/static\/js\/widget\/rafl-widget.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<noscript><a href=\"http:\/\/rafl.es\/enable-js\">You need javascript enabled to see this giveaway<\/a>.<\/noscript><\/p>\n<div class=\"linkwithin_hook\" id=\"https:\/\/www.glutenfreeislife.com\/?p=3692\"><\/div>\n<script><!-- \/\/LinkWithinCodeStart\nvar linkwithin_div_class=\"linkwithin_hook\";\nvar linkwithin_site_id = 135270;\n\/\/LinkWithinCodeEnd -->\n<\/script>\n<script src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/widget.js\"><\/script>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/pixel.png\" alt=\"Related Posts with Thumbnails\" style=\"border: 0\" \/><\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It is no secret that I have been trying to find ways to get organized for a long time \u2013 perhaps my whole life.\u00a0 Laugh all you want, it is true.\u00a0 Heck, I laugh at it.\u00a0 I have done the &hellip; 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