An organized person trapped inside a procrastinator's body, that's me. But though organization comes hard to me, it's one of those necessary parts of healthy eating that I'm trying to master. It just makes things easier.

Diet-Blog has some excellent tips for staying organized to prevent those "eating in a pinch" moments -- the drive-thru, for instance, or even just grabbing some chips from your cupboard and calling it dinner. Not that I know anyone who's done that. (I mean, at least dip them in some salsa, right?)

No, eating right takes a little forethought. Today I planned out the next seven days' dinners, made a list of fresh fruits and veggies to pick up at the store tomorrow, and cleaned out my fridge. And tomorrow when I get home from grocery shopping, I'll shred and wash my lettuce and chop my fresh veggies for easy access. Now when 5 P.M. rolls around, I won't be tempted to reach for the take-out menus because I can't find anything to cook.

What about you? Does staying organized help you stick to your healthy habits?

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I adopted a 10-year-old boy last summer. Prior to that, I used to be quite organized. But since my son moved home, I swear that I've lost my mind. I constantly forget things. And I frequently say the wrong words in a sentence. Just yesterday I drove my son to a doctor's appointment that I thought was at 4:00 ... only to find out the appointment was actually at 5:00. I thank goodness that my head is attached to my body, because otherwise I don't think I'd remember to bring it with me. Luckily, I don't think I'm alone in this mysterious affliction. Most of my friends who are moms do the same types of things so we fondly (or not-so-fondly) refer to our forgetfulness as "mommy brain."

According to this article in Prevention, our forgetfulness isn't because our kids are slowly destroying our brain cells -- it's simply because moms have more to remember. From doctor's appointments, to math tests, to wear-baseball-hat-to-school days, to sports practices, to who likes what/who doesn't like what for dinner ... we're constantly remembering all the minutiae of our family's daily lives. So what can we do to improve our memories?

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It seems so simple, getting ready in the morning. How many mistakes could you possibly make? But according to Real Simple, many of us are making common beauty blunders. Fortunately, they're easy to fix.

For instance, if you put on your foundation without giving moisturizer a chance to dry, you can end up with splotchy or poor coverage (guilty as charged!). And if you wait until you're dressed to spray on your perfume, you could leave stains on your clothing. Instead, find something else to do for the 1-5 minutes it takes your moisturizer to soak in and spray on any fragrance while you're still in the buff.

What kind of beauty blunders do you find yourself making?

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The worst place to keep your shoes? The bedroom closet. Worst place to set your purse? The kitchen counter top. Worst place to keep your toothbrush? The bathroom sink.

But wait, you're saying, what's so wrong with stashing your shoes in the closet? If you've spent the day walking through yards that contain pesticides or other places where allergens and contaminants can get on your shoes, then walking through your house to the bedroom only brings those nasties in. Instead, say health experts, ditch your shoes at the door and put them away later.

As for your purse, studies have found the bottom of it is loaded with bacteria from being set on office, restaurant, and even...eww....bathroom floors. So you don't want it sharing a space with your dinner. And toothbrushes are fine on the bathroom sink as long as it isn't sitting next to your toilet, where it could get splashed with...well, that's enough descriptions for now, I think.

Find out about other places where you don't want to stash your stuff here.

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When I write about the merits of nutrition and fitness for the prevention of cancer, I typically have adults in mind. I guess since I'm a grown-up, I write for other grown-ups who might be swayed into eating better and exercising more. I do write about kids now and then but more from an overall health perspective and not so much a cancer prevention angle. This is exactly what I need to do, though. Getting kids to practice cancer prevention now is perfect. Their slates are clean -- well, the damage is minimal, anyway -- and they have so much time to do the right thing. The non-profit organization Road to Life operates on this very premise.

The Road to Life mission is to eradicate preventable cancer and diseases of excess by educating children about the smoking, fitness, and nutrition decisions they can make to lead healthier lives. Free health programs, available for download, consist of a classroom curriculum, an after-school program, a family program, and a Health Care Careers Program. You can also access the Road to Life blog and catch up on the latest news regarding cancer prevention. Some recent hot headlines are: Doctors Urged to Prescribe Exercise and The Skinny on Fat: Good Fats vs. Bad Fats.

It's a noble endeavor, pairing kids and cancer prevention. Don't you think?

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Unfinished 'to do' lists litter my desk, my purse and my bedroom. My lists are filled with the immediate -- bills, Emails, work-related items -- and the far-off -- finally cleaning out the storage closet, getting my CDs and pictures in order. It's gotten to a point where it seems like life is really just one big 'to do' list that will never be finished. Do you ever feel that way?

When life seems hopefully unfinished, Fitsugar has a great suggestion -- instead of 'to do' lists, boost your spirits with an 'I did' list. Mark down all the things you've done today, instead of what you have yet to do, and I bet you'll feel a lot more satisfied with yourself than you will looking at all the things you haven't been able to get to yet.

But in my case, I'm still going to hang on to the 'to do' lists too -- otherwise, how will I stay organized?

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November was a busy month for my partner and I. We spent the whole month running around and had little time to devote to our home. As a result, everything piled up and we started to live in this giant pile of chaos. I became stressed out every time I came home and it wasn't good. We were both putting off conquering the mess, but when our landlord called to tell us that she was bringing in some workmen to look at the place, we ended up in a mad cleaning frenzy and everything miraculously got put away in a day.

You are probably wondering why I am telling you this. Bear with me -- I DO have a point. Once our place was cleaned up, I felt amazingly good, like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. I felt invigorated, energetic, like anything was possible. It's almost as if now that I had conquered my house, I could conquer anything. It's the same way I feel after a good run, or after I'm able to comfortably do a difficult yoga pose for the first time. That kind of energy is what motivates me, what gets me through the chaos and mess of day-to-day life.

I can't guarantee that if you get organized, you will feel as good as I did, but it's worth a try. So I propose that you go do it - clean the mess in your life, whether it has to do with a messy house, a messy relationship, or a messy workload - and feel the pure, uplifting energy that comes from conquering something.

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