Have you realized that you spend half your time looking for things? If you have decided to get your house totally organized, you've probably got a big job ahead of you. From sorting to storage, here are some ideas that might help you.

Start With A Family Meeting - A good thing to do is to begin with a family meeting. Tell all of your family members that the time has come to get serious about getting the house in order and let them know that they'll be helping you in a big way. Mark your family calendar with the date of your project and ask everybody in the family to save that day.

Have A Plan - One excellent thing to do is to present a chart that has a list of chores that will need to be accomplished. Have people sign their names by the chore they want to do. For example, if one of the items on the chart is to organize all of the DVDs or your collection of board games, somebody can claim that job as his or her own. Another idea is to work as teams. If you do decide to work as teams, it will probably be good for you to decide who should work together. Pair an older member of the family with a younger one. Indicate on the chart who will be working together so there won't be any confusion when it's time to work.

Work Day - Start early so you can finish early. Make delicious smoothies for breakfast so your meal won't take too long. Give individuals sturdy plastic bags so they can get rid of trash in their own areas. Also, designate a place for items that will be given to charity and and set another location for items that will later be placed in a yard sale. Have an assortment of transparent storage boxes for things like shoes, scarves, and toys with tiny parts. It's also good to have a rectangular storage box that can hold things like personal memorabilia. That type of container can slide right under a bed.

Rent A Storage Unit - As you organize your household items, you have probably come to realize that you just plain have a lot of stuff. Don't stress about trying to find a place for every single item. Instead, rent a storage unit. This would be a great place to keep off-season clothes and off-season sports equipment. Holiday items like your Christmas tree and home decor would also be good to store. No matter what you decide to put in your storage unit, you can have the peace of mind that your things will be safe. Good storage facilities have climate controlled storage units and they also have round-the-clock surveillance. Another plus is that you can get to your things anytime you want to.

It's smart to make a list of where you put things that are not often used. For example, if you are sporadic about doing crafts, it's smart to write down where you keep items for crafting.