June 12, 2025 • 25 mins
Hey friend,
If you’re feeling like your summer could use a little more breathing room, this episode is for you. Today we’re tackling some easy, actionable steps to declutter your space, streamline your schedule, and make summer a lot less stressful!From optimizing your car to refreshing your outdoor spaces and wrangling kids’ schoolwork (because honestly who knows what ends up in those backpacks!) we’re diving into all the places where clutter can sneak up on you.
I’ll also share some tips on how to get ahead of your summer calendar so that you can actually enjoy the season without feeling like you’re running on empty.
Oh and if you’ve been thinking about turning your organizing skills into a business, I’ve got some exciting news about an upcoming mentoring cohort I’m running!Let’s get organized together!
Links mentioned: https://simplyborganized.com/for-professional-organizers/
If you’re feeling like your summer could use a little more breathing room, this episode is for you. Today we’re tackling some easy, actionable steps to declutter your space, streamline your schedule, and make summer a lot less stressful!From optimizing your car to refreshing your outdoor spaces and wrangling kids’ schoolwork (because honestly who knows what ends up in those backpacks!) we’re diving into all the places where clutter can sneak up on you.
I’ll also share some tips on how to get ahead of your summer calendar so that you can actually enjoy the season without feeling like you’re running on empty.
Oh and if you’ve been thinking about turning your organizing skills into a business, I’ve got some exciting news about an upcoming mentoring cohort I’m running!Let’s get organized together!
Links mentioned: https://simplyborganized.com/for-professional-organizers/
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to This Organized Life. If you're a mom, wife,
or coffee lover seeking advice on how to reduce clutter
and reclaim time, look no further than your host, Luri Palau,
Founder Simply Be Organized and author of hot Mess, a
practical guide to getting organized. For a lot of people,
clutter is their dirty little secret, but it doesn't have
to be. Each week, we will share practical tips, chat
(00:22):
with experts, and provide strategies on how to keep you organized.
I hope that by sharing our stories you feel a
little less alone and more empowered to tackle the areas
that are holding you back. So let's get started.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
And Hi everybody, and welcome to today's episode of This
Organized Life. I'm your host, Lori Palau, so happy that
you're here. If you're watching me on YouTube, you see
me wearing a sweatshirt because although I'm recording this at
the end of May, it feels like November outside and
(00:58):
I I'm not happy about it.
Speaker 3 (01:00):
I'm not gonna lie.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
And I wanted to try to play the part because
we're dropping this episode. It's all about summer, and we're
talking about summer routines, and it is currently June.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
But at the time of this recording, it's not.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
And I could not even play the part because all
I want to do is put the heat on in
my house. And I just had to peel back the
curtain and share that with you guys.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Why, but I did, and so there you have it
right now. But I am channeling my summer warm weather
energy for this episode. And the topic for today is
five things to declutter that are actually going.
Speaker 3 (01:40):
To make a difference.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
And if you listen to last week, I had my
friend Lizakerley on. We were talking about kind of that transition,
that mom transition or parent transition with having your kids.
Speaker 3 (01:54):
At home and shifting routines.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
And we're going to get real more tactical in this episode,
and I'm going to.
Speaker 3 (02:02):
Give you, guys some tangible things that you can do
around your.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
House to switch officially into that summer mode or to
get you organized for that summer mode. Let's dive right
into it. First thing, and I'm going to go through
five different things. First, one is your car. Now, I
don't know about you, but my car is.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
Basically like a second home. Now I get it.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
There are people that live in cities or that are
in walkable towns and maybe aren't in their cars.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
As much as somebody that's lived in the suburbs or
in a rural area.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
But for me, car is our lifeline, especially when my
kids were younger and we were traveling all around. But
even now when I'm not schlipping them to camps and
back and forth, I'm still back and forth to clients.
I'm back and forth to our house in Nahipton's, I'm
back and forth to wherever it is, running errands and
(03:00):
having my car be efficient for me in this particular
season is really important. So whether you go to the beach,
whether you go in too the lake, whether you're whatever
it is, you want to have your car have all
the essentials for you. So what are some things that
you can do? First of all, I like to go
in there and do it actual deep clean of my car.
(03:23):
Actually I don't like it, but I do a deep
clean in my car.
Speaker 3 (03:27):
I come travel with.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
My dog, so there's always dog here, and there's crumbs
from eating in the car. And if, like I said,
if you're at the beach, there's sand in your car.
On top of that, you may find that you've got
random things that your kids left in the car, whether
it's toys or games, or chargers or headphones or water
(03:49):
bottles or have them forbid, food, sports equipment, wrappers, papers
like receipts that you get. All kinds of random stuff
just ends up in the car. I know for us,
there's always hairbands around. There's just a lot of crap
that ends up. And so just to get in there
(04:10):
and do a clean sweep of all of those things.
And then once you have decluttered your car and you've
wiped it down and got all the dust out and
vacuumed in all of that stuff, then you can decide
what do I want to put back in that is
going to help my car be organized and have the
(04:30):
essentials for summer. So here's some of the things that
I like to keep in there. First of all, in
the summer, I always like to have a little travel
size of sunscreen. That way, if I'm out and about
and I feel like, oh, I went to a park
and I need to I forgot my sunscreen or I
need to reply or reapply, or maybe it's warmer than
(04:53):
I thought, or somebody forgot it or I picked up
somebody's kid. I like to have that there, So I
always get a little thing a travel suns screen that
I keep in the car. The second thing that I
like to keep in the car is bug spray. So
we are a family that gets eaten alive by bugs,
and so having a bug spray to.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
Try to prevent that.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
Have that handy with me is something I like to
keep with us at all times. And in that same vein,
I usually like to keep like a spray, bena drill
or some sort of anti itch spray, because if you're
sitting in a car, and especially if you're sitting in
a car for a long time and you're itching your
bug bites, I want to be able to treat that.
So those are those essentials that I have there. Always
(05:40):
like to make sure that my first aid kit is
stocked with band aids and antiseptic in case you're again
out and about, somebody falls, scoops themselves, gets a blister,
you name it.
Speaker 3 (05:53):
You just have that.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Little travel first aid kit handy. Another thing in your
car that you might want to keep our towels. Sometimes
the seats get hot and you want to not sit
your shorts have your skin go right onto the seat.
So having a towel or blanket is great. Also, depending
on if you're out hiking or whatnot, you might be
(06:17):
dirty or muddy or wet, and you might not want
to be sitting directly on the seats. So again, having
towel that you can lay down and then just throw
that in the wash is super helpful. So I always
like to keep some towels in there. Again, maybe some
hand wipes or baby wipes in case you're out playing
and then you want to eat something, you want to
(06:38):
have that right there, and then this you may or
may not want to have, but I've seen people do it,
and that just keep.
Speaker 3 (06:45):
A little cooler in your car.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
I'm notorious for leaving water bottles in the car, which
I know are not good to do for a variety
of reasons. But they get gross and they get warm.
And if you're somebody that spends a lot of time
in your and you want to have snacks or beverages accessible,
or maybe you're going on a car ride, on a
car trip, you're going to be in the car for
(07:08):
a while, having a little bin with an ice pack,
a little cooler that you can just keep some waters
on ice so they don't get hot and gross in
the summer, in the temperature. That is another great organizing thing.
Don't necessarily have to have that live in there full time,
but just something that you want to cycle in and out.
(07:31):
So that is tip number one for organizing and decluttering
your car for the summer. Okay, second thing is we're
talking outdoor spaces.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Now, depending on where you live, that could look different.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
It could mean your backyard, it could mean a porch,
it could mean a balcony.
Speaker 3 (07:49):
It doesn't have to be a huge sprawling area. But
whatever your outdoor.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Space is, you want it to be inviting, you want
it to be clutter free.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
And it's funny.
Speaker 2 (08:02):
I just had my girlfriends over for drinks the other night.
Every Tuesday night, I do an open house and I
have my friends over. It's called Tuesdays with Lori. And
they come over and we just drink and gossip, not gossip,
but vent about what's going on in our lives and
celebrate the winds and talk about things that are stressing
us out. And it's just like an open, really chill
(08:24):
way for us to get together and just share, you know,
make time for one another. Anyway, they were my friends
were coming in and they were all commenting on how
pretty the outdoor space looked and I had spent a
little bit of time just freshing up like my planters
and weeding and just getting things in order, and it
(08:45):
really does make a difference. But again, the first thing
you want to do is make sure you declutter your space.
I know, for me, I'm not always good about bringing
stuff in the winter, so sometimes things will crack and break.
Sometimes all planters that are no longer good and I
just need to get rid of them. Something may if
(09:08):
you have a lawn ornament or something that may need
to go. If you've got toys that have broken or
missing pieces that's got to go, some storage items, evaluate
what you have.
Speaker 3 (09:22):
What needs to be replaced.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
This is big when it comes to outdoor cushions and pillows.
Sometimes even if they say that they're weather resistant, they're
really not. And so if they were left outside, evaluate
is this something that we want to keep or do
we need to replace it. If you bring your cushions
in for the season, hopefully by now you've probably brought
them back out, but just make sure everything is been
(09:48):
rinsed and washed and is in tip top shape for entertaining.
And then from there you want to make sure that
you're planters are filled, and if you're not, if you're
in a busy season, you're like, I don't have time
to do them, then just take your planters away.
Speaker 3 (10:07):
It's fine.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
They don't have to live there. Sometimes an easy hack is,
you know, we have a lot of flower nurseres near us,
and so if I don't have time to make a
whole big arrangement, I'll just buy a big potted plant
and put it in there. And it's a great way
for me to fill that spot without having to take
a lot of time. Other things like we have bird feeders,
(10:28):
and so making sure that I have refilled them for
the season, constantly refilling them or buying new bird seed,
or if something's broken, getting rid of it. I also
restock things like our citronella candles. I have a bug
spray that I leave out on our porch because, as
I mentioned earlier, we get eaten alive.
Speaker 3 (10:49):
So I have our bug spray out there.
Speaker 2 (10:51):
I also make sure that we have all those We
have all those mosquito repennant mosquito repellent container thingy that
sit on I don't know what they're called. Josh buys them,
but they sit out there just these little things that
he bought on Amazon, and they have rechargeable I guess
it's like a rechargeable battery or something, and I just
(11:13):
make sure that they are recharged so that when we're
sitting outside we can turn them on.
Speaker 3 (11:17):
And it's supposed to keep them mosquitoes a day.
Speaker 2 (11:19):
I don't know if it really works or not, but
you want to make sure that you have all of
your supplies whatever that looks like, all prepped and ready
to go, so that you have that if you're buying
Welcome to This Organized Life. If you're a mom, wife,
or coffee lover seeking advice on how to reduce clutter
and reclaim time, look no further than your host, Luri Palau,
Founder Simply Be Organized and author of hot Mess, a
practical guide to getting organized. For a lot of people,
clutter is their dirty little secret, but it doesn't have
to be. Each week, we will share practical tips, chat
(00:22):
with experts, and provide strategies on how to keep you organized.
I hope that by sharing our stories you feel a
little less alone and more empowered to tackle the areas
that are holding you back. So let's get started.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
And Hi everybody, and welcome to today's episode of This
Organized Life. I'm your host, Lori Palau, so happy that
you're here. If you're watching me on YouTube, you see
me wearing a sweatshirt because although I'm recording this at
the end of May, it feels like November outside and
(00:58):
I I'm not happy about it.
Speaker 3 (01:00):
I'm not gonna lie.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
And I wanted to try to play the part because
we're dropping this episode. It's all about summer, and we're
talking about summer routines, and it is currently June.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
But at the time of this recording, it's not.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
And I could not even play the part because all
I want to do is put the heat on in
my house. And I just had to peel back the
curtain and share that with you guys.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Why, but I did, and so there you have it
right now. But I am channeling my summer warm weather
energy for this episode. And the topic for today is
five things to declutter that are actually going.
Speaker 3 (01:40):
To make a difference.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
And if you listen to last week, I had my
friend Lizakerley on. We were talking about kind of that transition,
that mom transition or parent transition with having your kids.
Speaker 3 (01:54):
At home and shifting routines.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
And we're going to get real more tactical in this episode,
and I'm going to.
Speaker 3 (02:02):
Give you, guys some tangible things that you can do
around your.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
House to switch officially into that summer mode or to
get you organized for that summer mode. Let's dive right
into it. First thing, and I'm going to go through
five different things. First, one is your car. Now, I
don't know about you, but my car is.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
Basically like a second home. Now I get it.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
There are people that live in cities or that are
in walkable towns and maybe aren't in their cars.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
As much as somebody that's lived in the suburbs or
in a rural area.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
But for me, car is our lifeline, especially when my
kids were younger and we were traveling all around. But
even now when I'm not schlipping them to camps and
back and forth, I'm still back and forth to clients.
I'm back and forth to our house in Nahipton's, I'm
back and forth to wherever it is, running errands and
(03:00):
having my car be efficient for me in this particular
season is really important. So whether you go to the beach,
whether you go in too the lake, whether you're whatever
it is, you want to have your car have all
the essentials for you. So what are some things that
you can do? First of all, I like to go
in there and do it actual deep clean of my car.
(03:23):
Actually I don't like it, but I do a deep
clean in my car.
Speaker 3 (03:27):
I come travel with.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
My dog, so there's always dog here, and there's crumbs
from eating in the car. And if, like I said,
if you're at the beach, there's sand in your car.
On top of that, you may find that you've got
random things that your kids left in the car, whether
it's toys or games, or chargers or headphones or water
(03:49):
bottles or have them forbid, food, sports equipment, wrappers, papers
like receipts that you get. All kinds of random stuff
just ends up in the car. I know for us,
there's always hairbands around. There's just a lot of crap
that ends up. And so just to get in there
(04:10):
and do a clean sweep of all of those things.
And then once you have decluttered your car and you've
wiped it down and got all the dust out and
vacuumed in all of that stuff, then you can decide
what do I want to put back in that is
going to help my car be organized and have the
(04:30):
essentials for summer. So here's some of the things that
I like to keep in there. First of all, in
the summer, I always like to have a little travel
size of sunscreen. That way, if I'm out and about
and I feel like, oh, I went to a park
and I need to I forgot my sunscreen or I
need to reply or reapply, or maybe it's warmer than
(04:53):
I thought, or somebody forgot it or I picked up
somebody's kid. I like to have that there, So I
always get a little thing a travel suns screen that
I keep in the car. The second thing that I
like to keep in the car is bug spray. So
we are a family that gets eaten alive by bugs,
and so having a bug spray to.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
Try to prevent that.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
Have that handy with me is something I like to
keep with us at all times. And in that same vein,
I usually like to keep like a spray, bena drill
or some sort of anti itch spray, because if you're
sitting in a car, and especially if you're sitting in
a car for a long time and you're itching your
bug bites, I want to be able to treat that.
So those are those essentials that I have there. Always
(05:40):
like to make sure that my first aid kit is
stocked with band aids and antiseptic in case you're again
out and about, somebody falls, scoops themselves, gets a blister,
you name it.
Speaker 3 (05:53):
You just have that.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Little travel first aid kit handy. Another thing in your
car that you might want to keep our towels. Sometimes
the seats get hot and you want to not sit
your shorts have your skin go right onto the seat.
So having a towel or blanket is great. Also, depending
on if you're out hiking or whatnot, you might be
(06:17):
dirty or muddy or wet, and you might not want
to be sitting directly on the seats. So again, having
towel that you can lay down and then just throw
that in the wash is super helpful. So I always
like to keep some towels in there. Again, maybe some
hand wipes or baby wipes in case you're out playing
and then you want to eat something, you want to
(06:38):
have that right there, and then this you may or
may not want to have, but I've seen people do it,
and that just keep.
Speaker 3 (06:45):
A little cooler in your car.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
I'm notorious for leaving water bottles in the car, which
I know are not good to do for a variety
of reasons. But they get gross and they get warm.
And if you're somebody that spends a lot of time
in your and you want to have snacks or beverages accessible,
or maybe you're going on a car ride, on a
car trip, you're going to be in the car for
(07:08):
a while, having a little bin with an ice pack,
a little cooler that you can just keep some waters
on ice so they don't get hot and gross in
the summer, in the temperature. That is another great organizing thing.
Don't necessarily have to have that live in there full time,
but just something that you want to cycle in and out.
(07:31):
So that is tip number one for organizing and decluttering
your car for the summer. Okay, second thing is we're
talking outdoor spaces.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Now, depending on where you live, that could look different.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
It could mean your backyard, it could mean a porch,
it could mean a balcony.
Speaker 3 (07:49):
It doesn't have to be a huge sprawling area. But
whatever your outdoor.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Space is, you want it to be inviting, you want
it to be clutter free.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
And it's funny.
Speaker 2 (08:02):
I just had my girlfriends over for drinks the other night.
Every Tuesday night, I do an open house and I
have my friends over. It's called Tuesdays with Lori. And
they come over and we just drink and gossip, not gossip,
but vent about what's going on in our lives and
celebrate the winds and talk about things that are stressing
us out. And it's just like an open, really chill
(08:24):
way for us to get together and just share, you know,
make time for one another. Anyway, they were my friends
were coming in and they were all commenting on how
pretty the outdoor space looked and I had spent a
little bit of time just freshing up like my planters
and weeding and just getting things in order, and it
(08:45):
really does make a difference. But again, the first thing
you want to do is make sure you declutter your space.
I know, for me, I'm not always good about bringing
stuff in the winter, so sometimes things will crack and break.
Sometimes all planters that are no longer good and I
just need to get rid of them. Something may if
(09:08):
you have a lawn ornament or something that may need
to go. If you've got toys that have broken or
missing pieces that's got to go, some storage items, evaluate
what you have.
Speaker 3 (09:22):
What needs to be replaced.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
This is big when it comes to outdoor cushions and pillows.
Sometimes even if they say that they're weather resistant, they're
really not. And so if they were left outside, evaluate
is this something that we want to keep or do
we need to replace it. If you bring your cushions
in for the season, hopefully by now you've probably brought
them back out, but just make sure everything is been
(09:48):
rinsed and washed and is in tip top shape for entertaining.
And then from there you want to make sure that
you're planters are filled, and if you're not, if you're
in a busy season, you're like, I don't have time
to do them, then just take your planters away.
Speaker 3 (10:07):
It's fine.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
They don't have to live there. Sometimes an easy hack is,
you know, we have a lot of flower nurseres near us,
and so if I don't have time to make a
whole big arrangement, I'll just buy a big potted plant
and put it in there. And it's a great way
for me to fill that spot without having to take
a lot of time. Other things like we have bird feeders,
(10:28):
and so making sure that I have refilled them for
the season, constantly refilling them or buying new bird seed,
or if something's broken, getting rid of it. I also
restock things like our citronella candles. I have a bug
spray that I leave out on our porch because, as
I mentioned earlier, we get eaten alive.
Speaker 3 (10:49):
So I have our bug spray out there.
Speaker 2 (10:51):
I also make sure that we have all those We
have all those mosquito repennant mosquito repellent container thingy that
sit on I don't know what they're called. Josh buys them,
but they sit out there just these little things that
he bought on Amazon, and they have rechargeable I guess
it's like a rechargeable battery or something, and I just
(11:13):
make sure that they are recharged so that when we're
sitting outside we can turn them on.
Speaker 3 (11:17):
And it's supposed to keep them mosquitoes a day.
Speaker 2 (11:19):
I don't know if it really works or not, but
you want to make sure that you have all of
your supplies whatever that looks like, all prepped and ready
to go, so that you have that if you're buying
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