I just wanted to let you know that I'm back after a wonderful and exciting maternity leave. Please join ROSEY'S and get in the spirit of Mother's Day at Celebrate Mama!

CELEBRATE MAMA! Saturday, May 3rd. 11-4

Come shop over 100 vendors at the exclusive marketplacefor mamas of all ages & stages!
www.celebratemama.com

Bethesda RowWoodmont Ave, in between Bethesda Ave & Elm St.

FREE Event! Entertainment Raffle Prizes Mother's Day Marketplace Arts & Crafts Bring the Whole Family!

Kick off performance by:Rocknoceros! ~ PLUS ~Jam with Miss Belle Facepainting Story TellingMother's Day Crafts

Learn about over 100 local organizations that cater to mama INCLUDING:

Onesies DC
Stroller Strides
DCMom
Our Kids

Container Store Embraces NAPO Members-Professional Organizers!

The time has finally come and I couldn't be more excited!!

The Container Store will now be offering NAPO (National Association of Professional Organizer)members (yours truly) a 10% discount on regular store purchases and 20% discount on ELFA purchases. I can purchase regular items on my own for clients but if one of my clients wants to purchase anything ELFA, they will need to be present with me. This discount is completely worth it! Let's start making purchases!

Recycling Event in Annandale

You all know I love a good recycling event..

Saturday, April 19th

9am-2pm

Mason District Governmental Center: 6507 Columbia Pike, Annandale

A great chance to recycle COMPUTERS -- all computer & peripheral devices free excepet $10 for each CRT monitor and SHRED/RECYCLE DOCUMENTS -- up to 5 boxes of paper per resident -- NO CHARGE. This is a GREAT opportunity to get rid of all that unwanted/cluttered paper.

ROSEY'S in TODAY's Washington Post

Today I am featured in the Washington Post's Home Section. It is a very exciting piece on getting prepared for multiples. The article is below but make sure to check out the actual paper. There are some GREAT photos of me and my girls! :)

Strength in Numbers More Than One Baby Calls for More Household Planning and Flexibility

By Terri SapienzaWashington Post Staff WriterThursday, March 6, 2008; H01

An organizer by nature and profession, Rachel Rosenthal Strisik's impulse toward order hit full throttle when she learned she was pregnant with twins. Right away she sought out a local support group and started networking with mothers who had twins or triplets. At her Bethesda home, she created folders for medical bills and parenting articles. She set up areas upstairs and down to diaper and dress the babies. She baked and froze lasagnas and chicken casseroles for those days when she was sure to be too harried for cooking. Her operating theory: "You need to bring order to the chaos before it happens."

For most parents, hearing that they are having multiples is "joy mixed with terror mixed with moments of calm," says Patricia Malmstrom, co-author of "The Art of Parenting Twins" and director of Twin Services Consulting, a support Web site for parents with multiples. After absorbing the news, Malmstrom says, many parents-to-be find themselves "scrambling to find balance in the midst of a very unstable feeling." Much of that scrambling centers on how to keep a household running smoothly -- or just running -- with two, three or more babies crying at once.

Multiple births are increasingly common in this country. Between 1980 and 2005, the rate of twin births almost doubled, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Triplet and higher-order multiple births more than quadrupled. Experts say the jump can be attributed to more women delaying childbirth: After the age of 35, women have an increased chance of conceiving multiples, especially if they are undergoing fertility therapies. This trend complicates matters on the home front: Women expecting multiples are often confined to bed before delivery and may have a longer recovery afterward, which can add to a general unraveling of housekeeping.

Rosenthal Strisik, 30, runs Rosey's Urban Style, a personal organizing and shopping service, so she was already skilled at planning. And since the arrival of identical twins Ellie and Marin in January -- the first children for Rosenthal Strisik and her husband, Marshall Strisik Schattner -- she says she has also learned to be flexible. Because her girls are different weights and require different amounts of food, she started labeling bottles with their initials. She makes a habit of keeping Ellie on the left and Marin on the right during feedings, naps and playtime so friends and relatives can tell who's who. "Get your systems in place as early as possible," she says. "But know that the babies will change your system. Things are constantly changing."

Annie Elliott, 37, is a Washington designer and first-time mother of 3-year-old twin girls. When she learned she was expecting, she put up plenty of open shelving in the nursery and hung a clear plastic shoe holder on the wall next to the changing table so onesies and wipes were nearby and visible. "You have to have everything at your fingertips," she says. "Wrestling a baby in and out of clothing is more stressful when you have another baby crying."She devoted an entire shelf -- not just a charming little basket -- to diapers. ("Really stock up. You won't believe how fast you go through things.") And she color-coded the girls' clothing to help others tell them apart: red for Ruthie, green for Georgie. Becky DeStefanis, 34, and John Spirtas, 33, parents of 2-year-old triplets, have some counterintuitive advice for couples expecting multiples: Resist the impulse to move to a bigger house right away.

DeStefanis and Spirtas, who live in a small Cap Cod in Silver Spring, say it's easier to monitor children in a smaller space, where there are fewer places for them to get hurt in. "And when things get lost, there are only a few rooms where they can be," DeStefanis says.When the triplets were newborns, the couple put a mini-fridge and crockpot filled with water in the upstairs nursery so they could easily warm bottles in the middle of the night. They created a chart to track when each baby was changed, and when and how much they ate. "It's easy to forget who's doing what when," DeStefanis says.

To contain daytime activities to the first floor, the couple turned the den into a nap room when Ben, Ella and Marie were infants. A little-used end of the kitchen became a changing and dressing area, and the dining room became a playroom, complete with bright-colored rubber floor mats to cushion unsteady toddlers. They also put a clear plastic shoe holder to clever use: They hung one on a kitchen door to store bottles and, eventually, sippy cups. "Everything is about ease of use, seeing what you need and getting to things quickly," Spirtas says. "Especially in the beginning, because you're asleep all the time."

Parker Rea, 33, and her husband, James, 37, are expecting twin boys in June. They plan to stay in their Capitol Hill townhouse for the time being. Though space will be tighter, they've decided to rearrange things rather than move. "Right now we're looking at our space and thinking about how to make it more efficient," Parker says. Bulky antiques will be put in storage and replaced with smaller, less precious storage pieces, and the boys will share a room with two small-scale cribs. "I think it's about getting creative about how you're going to make it work."

Another good piece of advice: Avoid buying too much baby gear. Kate Hood, 35, a Reston mother of 1-year-old twins and a 3-year-old, says it's a mistake to think that a home with multiples needs multiple swings and multiple bouncy seats. "Two babies does not automatically mean two of everything," she wrote in an e-mail. "And the gear will take over your house regardless, so try to keep it as minimal as possible." Try borrowing baby gear before purchasing it, several parents advised. Some babies are lulled by motorized swings, and some aren't; some delight in doorway jumpers, and some don't. If possible, try before buying one, two or three of anything. And though part of the fun of having a baby is designing and dressing the new nursery, getting caught up in the decor may not prove to be the most productive distraction. Take it from a design expert. "If you worry about every small decorating detail, you'll go crazy," Elliott says. "Take that time and energy and go buy diapers."

Multiple Resources

National Organization of Mothers of Twins Clubs: http://www.nomotc.org/Montgomery County Parents of Multiples: http://www.mcpom.org/ (The group's next semiannual consignment sale and equipment exchange takes place Saturday in Rockville. See the Web site for details.)Northern Virginia Parents of Multiples: http://www.nvpom.com/Twinslist: http://www.twinslist.org/Twinsight: http://www.twinsight.com/Mothers of Supertwins: http://www.mostonline.org/Triplet Connection: http://www.tripletconnection.org/Center for the Study of Multiple Birth: http://www.multiplebirth.com/Twin Services Consulting: http://www.twinservices.org/ Twins Magazine: http://www.twinsmagazine.com/1-800-DIAPERS: http://www.diapers.com/ Online freebies: http://www.storknet.com/cubbies/freebies/twins.htm

Rosey's Two Little Identical Organizers Have Arrived!

Iwanted to let you all know that my two new identical "organizers" in training have arrived! Thank you for all of your support and thoughts these past few months. I will be on maternity leave for now but will be back shortly! In the meantime, I will keep on blogging!!


January 18, 2008

Ellie Isabel Strisik (4.15 lbs. /6:51 pm) & Marin Ava Strisik (4.2 lbs./6:52 pm)

Get Organized Now:Start the Year Off Right!

I stumbled upon one of the latest issues of Parenting Magazine and as a woman who is about to become an instant mother of two (any day now!), the article on organizing with children really caught my eye. I wanted to share it in it's entirety, so it is below. It is the perfect blend of how to tips on how to get your house organized when you have children. Happy Organizing!

Get Organized Now: Start the Year Off Right! The step-by-step plan to finally get your house in order—so it stays that way, by Melody Warnick

Goal: Get everyone out the door on time and tantrum-free
Now: Turn a plastic dishpan into a home-base bin to hold everything your child needs for school or daycare: backpack, lunch box, snacks to share. If she decorates it with stickers and markers, she may actually dump her backpack there instead of on the floor. And if you remember to stock it the night before with lunch and that signed permission slip, you'll make it out the door with only minor delays.In two weeks: "Instead of several little routines every day, consolidate," says Amy Brady, the Austin-based owner of The Clutter Consultants and mom of a 2-year-old. For instance, she says, "If your child takes lunch money to school, don't give it out every day; divvy it into five different envelopes on Sunday night." Use a white board to track what you and your kids need to remember on different days of the week, like library books on Monday and show-and-tell treasures on Tuesday. Then stash them in a hanging clothes organizer (one compartment for each day of the week) so you can grab and go. In a month: Okay, you're still running late sometimes. Make mad-dash mornings less hectic by stocking a bin with breakfasts your kids can eat on the go, like cereal bars, whole-grain toaster pastries, and baggies of trail mix. Stockpile napkins in your car's glove compartment.

Goal: Simplify the laundry, and keep it from taking over the house
Now: No room for shelving? Use a lazy Susan on your dryer to corral everything from detergent bottles to stain removers. Keep smaller necessities—the bleach pen, the dryer sheets—in a clear shoebag. (It's also perfect for holding popped-off buttons and the crayon stubs you've fished from your preschooler's pockets.) In two weeks: Assign each family member two mesh bags for laundry, one for whites and one for darks (look for different colors to help everyone keep track of what goes where). Kids 3 and up can haul their own to the washing machine. Plus, when time runs short, you can throw the whole bag in and wash and dry as is, no sock sorting required. In a month: Cut down on folding. Use a separate basket for each bathroom to hold clean towels that aren't folded, says Sara Fisher, a certified professional organizer and owner of A Simple Space, in Atlanta. "When towels come out of the dryer, they can go straight in the baskets." Same goes for undies and a baby's one-piece suits: Stick them in a shoe box in a drawer, no folding or sorting necessary. And if you come across clothes that don't fit your kid anymore, don't put them away thinking you'll sort them later. You won't. Keep a giveaway bin right in the laundry room.

Goal: Pay the bills on time and never forget another permission slip
Now: Throwing paperwork in a basket is quick, but horizontal surfaces turn into pile-up zones. Instead, think vertical, says Jackie Kelley, a professional organizer with Clearing House in Bethesda, Maryland, and a mom of two. Hang a multipocket wall file near where you sort the mail, and get a different brightly colored folder for every member of your family. As soon as you get the soccer schedule, write the game dates on your calendar, then slide the paper into your daughter's file. As long as you check the calendar each day, you're golden. In two weeks: If the sheer volume of papers is overwhelming, make it easier on yourself to get rid of the junk. Put your recycling bin right where you sort the mail—in the kitchen or even by the door—so you can get rid of credit card offers and catalogues as soon as you get the mail. That'll make the pile to sort and file much smaller.In a month: Reality check: Filing may not happen every day. So place a magnet strip or a bulletin board near your files and tack paperwork there that you have to act on right away, like book order forms or donation requests. If you set aside five minutes before bed to tackle the paperwork, it won't turn into a mountain.

Goal: Get the junk out of your trunk (and the rest of your car)
Now: Add a few collapsible mesh bins to the cargo area to round up everything from ballet bags to extra diapers. Next, slip a clear plastic envelope between the front seats so you have a place to stash loose scraps of paper, like coupons or Mapquest directions. When you're waiting for the gas tank to fill or to pick up your kids after school, sort through the envelope and toss anything you don't need anymore.In two weeks: Put a basket or crate by the door as a catchall for anything that's en route somewhere: rental movies to be returned, clothes to be dry-cleaned, packages to be mailed. When you're ready to run errands, simply put the crate in the car. It'll keep your stuff looking neat—and you won't have to pay late fees for the DVD that disappeared under the rear seat. In a month: Start this routine: Before your kids get out of the car, pass around a sack and have them put in whatever trash they see, suggests Brady. That little maneuver will keep detritus from piling up on your floorboards (as long as you remember to dump the paper bag!).

Melody Warnick, a mom of two in Ames, Iowa, relies heavily on baskets, cork boards, and a gigantic calendar to stay organized. Just don't look in her car. Parenting, February 2008

ELFA at Container Store now 30% off

The Container Store is now holding its annual ELFA sale. All ELFA is 30% off. It is a GREAT opportunity to take advantage of their amazing ELFA system. ELFA can be used in any closet, any room and for any purpose! Make sure to check out the sale.