Want to know more about #Mom? One #Mother’s Day #gift that won’t take up much space and deliver mountains of memories is a journal. Journals such as Mom, I Want to Hear Your Story and Burn After Writing offer prompts to help Mom reflect on her own childhood and impart her knowledge, even if she isn’t a seasoned writer or storyteller. “Once mom starts filling out [a] journal book, you’ll be surprised by how much you don’t know about her life,” Wirecutter says. Another idea is a gift certificate for a framing service — which can cut the household #clutter by getting a few of those treasured family photos out of drawers and on display. #MothersDay
Tag: charity donations
Give Mom a Gift That Won’t Create Clutter
Looking for the perfect #Mother’s Day #gift for the #mom who has everything — or maybe two of everything? Give a gift that won’t add to #clutter! These might include consumables such as chocolates, healthy snacks, wine and spirits, or a gourmet dinner in or out. Active moms might appreciate a fitness class, yoga session or massage; magazine subscriptions, apps and classes won’t add to the physical #stuff if you go all-digital. Better still, take mom on an excursion or make a #donation to a #charity in her name, Abundant Life With Less suggests. It’s the memories that matter most! #MothersDay
Observing Boxing Day Traditions
The Organizing Blog’s favorite holiday is nearly here, and it isn’t Christmas, Hannukah, Diwali or Kwanzaa. It’s the day practically everyone pays attention to how much stuff they have and where they’re going to put it — Boxing Day!
Observed on the day after Christmas, Boxing Day got its start as an occasion for wealthy English landowners in to present servants and tradespeople with #holiday #gifts. The box — filled with seasonal delicacies and trinkets — was a gratuity recognizing their contributions over the year.
Boxing Day continues to be a holiday in many parts of the former British Commonwealth such as New Zealand, where anyone working gets time-and-a-half. And retailers in the United States use the occasion as an excuse to mark down merchandise and shore up holiday sales figures.
We regard Boxing Day as having a meaning that’s arguably closer to the original and more literal: a day to box up your holiday decorations and extra merchandise and give it to a worthy service provider or charity.
You can observe Boxing Day on Dec. 26th or any day of your choosing. Have some empty boxes ready to collect extra decorations and household goods, clothing that didn’t quite fit this season, books that have been read — whatever you no longer need.
Sort those things out as you bring a close to the holidays. As you see the boxes fill up, set them aside in a special location. As the boxes start to pile up — and this will happen faster than you might imagine — #schedule a #free #donation #pickup at ClothingDonations.org.
Put anything you will continue to use back into their proper, designated places in closets, drawers and bins. And know that you will be getting rid of some of the #clutter that has built up and be able to start the new year more #organized.
Your #donations go to a good cause: supporting programs that help the nation’s #veterans. And thanking #veterans — those who served — by giving merchandise is about as close to the original meaning of Boxing Day as you can get.
Donate Stuff to Veterans in Honor of Their Service
The easiest way to #honor those who served this Veterans Day is to #clean out and #declutter a drawer, #closet, room or #storage space; find still-useful clothing and household items that you no longer need or want; and #donate them to ClothingDonations.org. A driver will arrive at your home on the scheduled day and whisk away that extra #junk, leaving you with a tax-deductible receipt and all the extra #space you rediscovered. It won’t take long to gather several bags or boxes for #pickup, so you can still make the Veterans Day #parade, memorial or banquet after you purge. #VeteransDay
Observe Veterans Day With a Good Movie
Want to honor the nation’s #veterans with a little entertainment and education? Have a veteran-themed movie night. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences suggests 10 iconic films that depict the #military experience that are widely available through streaming services, including The Grand Illusion, The Best Years of Our Lives, Platoon, The Thin Red Line and Born on the Fourth of July. Forbes adds Full Metal Jacket, Apocalypse Now and Patton to the list, noting that “supporting veterans can take many shapes, including charitable #donations, hiring veterans at your business and supporting sober foreign policy.” #VeteransDay