The Monthly Organizer, Issue #032 -- April 2009

I don't know about you, but I am itching for Spring! Not only am I looking forward to the warmer temperatures, but I just love the feeling I get after Spring cleaning my house. The air smells fresher when the windows have been opened and all of those little dust bunnies that have managed to hide from you in the darkness of Winter get swept away. Everything feels fresh and clean. That's why this month The Monthly Organizer will focus on getting organized for Spring cleaning.

Monthly Motivation

As a little incentive to get you energized to Spring clean your homes, I am giving all of you a free copy of my mini e-book Tips to Organize Spring Cleaning. It is a simple guide with checklists to walk you though Spring cleaning every room in your home!

Download it now, save it to your computer and use it year after year to keep your house fresh, clean and organized.

Monthly Organization Tip

I am thrilled to announce that I have officially launched the Tips to Organize Life YouTube Channel where I will continue to add new videos to help you organize your life! If you would like to be notified each time I add a new video you can click the yellow Subscribe button in the upper left portion of the screen.

My first video focuses on a little trick that you might be able to use to help you organize your kitchen cabinets. While you are Spring cleaning your kitchen, you may want to take a few extra minutes to put together a Baking Box. Here's how...

If you can't see the video here, just copy and paste the link to my YouTube Channel into your browser so you can watch it.

Monthly Money Saving Tip

I don't know about you, but laundry detergent is one of the things that I always try to stock up on when it is one sale because it can be so expensive. I also think that we have all become so busy in our lives that we are willing to pay for convenience without even batting an eye. The problem is that convenience tends to come with a hefty price tag.

I was watching television the other day and an episode of 18 Kids and Counting came on. If you haven't heard of it, it is a reality show following Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar who live in Arkansas with their 18 biological children. This particular episode was about their budget. They shared information about how they manage to support 18 children and live simply and completely debt-free (even before their television show).

One of the things they did that I found very interesting was making their own laundry detergent. They have shared the recipe on their website and I would like to share it with you. The recipe is not difficult. You can buy everything you need to make, including the 5 gallon bucket, for around $5.00.

This month, I challenge you to give this recipe a try. It may not be as "convenient" as simply grabbing your expensive store-bought detergent when you want to wash a load of clothes, but when you consider that for $5.00 you can make 10 gallons of detergent compared to the price you pay for a much smaller amount of store-bought soap, a little extra effort in making your own will save you an unbelievable amount of money.

This month, let's all try getting back to basics and putting forth a little extra effort to save big. I know I am going to give it a try! If you try it too, let me know what you think.

Recipe of the Month

I made the most delicious soup the other day. The recipe made a great big batch that I portioned out into individual plastic storage containers and froze. A few minutes in the microwave and I had a delicious, satisfying and healthy lunch for several days.

This recipe is perfect to make on a Sunday and have lunch to bring to work with you for the entire week and right now is the perfect time of year for this recipe because it is still cool enough to enjoy a bowl of soup for lunch, but this soup is filled with fresh Spring veggies. It's like the best of two worlds.

Spring Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

2 Tblsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 carrots, choppedr
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 leeks, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 slices turkey bacon, chopped
6 cups chicken broth
4 cups green cabbage, chopped
1 (15 oz.) can white beans, drained and rinsed
3 Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup lentils
2 Tblsp. tomato paste
3 cups baby spinach leaves
1 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat.

Add the onion, carrots, celery, leeks, garlic and bacon. Saute, stirring frequently, until the bacon begins to crisp and the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes.

Add the chicken broth, beans, tomatoes, lentils and tomato paste and bring the broth to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot and let simmer for 30 minutes.

Add the spinach, peas, parsley and basil. Stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

Monthly Entertaining Tip

Easter is April 12, 2009. If you will be hosting this year, here are a few tips to help you plan the perfect Easter celebration.