I wrote this on another paper declutter video but it needs repeating. We were military and I created a tabbed binder with ALL “life paperwork”. Including wills, 401k investments, passports, life insurance. We also had pet info when we had pets car titles, registrations, house hud statement. It lives In a fire proof safe but the bag would work perfectly. So when we pcs’d aka moved, the binder went with us. When we had to shelter for tornados and hurricanes it went with us along with our “bug out bags” with emergency supplies for each person. I highly recommend creating it. And although a safety deposit box is good, if you both died it would be a nightmare getting into it. So putting all that into your bag would be smart. The military also suggested having a current and previous copy of orders as well as a paystub to show rank/pay deductions. I would also mention that I kept a binder for my husbands military paperwork orders, eprs, certificates and awards starting from his first day. He received 2 bronze stars and during promotion time they had a software update that only showed 1. They told him that they could not update it unless he had “proof”. Thankfully the paper certificate was in his binder. But I wonder what would have happened if we didn’t have it?? Yes declutter but as Americans and being military there is a ton of stuff to keep. I also recommend keeping the final bill for utilities that have been turned off during a move. 3 years after we moved we got a collections bill. They messed up and never shut out the account and used it for the new tenants. Thankfully I had the final bill showing turn off and 0 balance.

Paper can be so much harder than people realize. I didn’t expect I could be sentimental about paper before I started decluttering it all. 😭

Erica, you have 3 children. I am single with no kids. Sometimes I watch your videos and get tired just seeing how much you do in your day. Don't ever call yourself lazy again. I am lazy.

That bag is fire resistant for a short term exposer to a certain temperature and water resistant (not fireproof and waterproof). Water will leak into it and ruin your items (if you empty it out and just put blank paper in there and spray it with a water hose in the yard it will have water in it) and that’s just a yard hose, just imagine a fire hose. My husband is a firefighter and he said these things don’t really work. Because obviously they use water to put out fire and these normally do not hold up. I just wanted to let everybody know so they don’t 100% count on these bags that you do have a back up. I scanned everything and save it to the cloud so I don’t have to worry about it. It was a lot of work, but once it’s done it’s super easy to keep up with and worth it. I had my husband help me because after all it’s his papers to!

That is freaking smart to keep your 'life documents' (aka ID) in a fireproof waterproof bag. I am totally going to do that!! Thank you, Erica🌷 "We support each other with kindness in the comments" ❤️❤️🔥❤️

Do you think part of Rebecca's recovery is due to your decluttering? I have SEVERE dust mite allergies, that were undiagnosed until 2019 (I was 43). Once I buckled down and REALLY decluttered (with you 😉), my asthma got so much better.

I love that you emphasized and showed your first pass and just focused on getting things in zones, and then refined the active systems. You are so far ahead of a year ago! And you're this organized in your new home already!! Way to go!

I just left Walmart with a pack of file folders sharpies and labels fixing to get started wish me luck

A few years ago I had become immensely overwhelmed by paper clutter. It was all together but piled up into boxes, tubs and even a couple of laundry baskets. I paid a friend who was great at organising, to help me deal with it all completely over 2 days. I hired a commercial document destruction bin as I knew there would be too much to shred. It is so time consuming because I literally had to look at every single item and decide if it needed to be filed, recycled or shredded. I sat while my friend brought me pile after pile of papers (7 years worth) and on the first day we had narrowed down all of the papers to the filing/keep pile. On the second day we sorted the paperwork and filed them in the relevant files in date order, while also removing older papers from files that we no longer needed to keep. By the end, the destruction bin was fill to the brim, as was our recycling bin. I kept up the good paper habits for about 3 years, but I am back to having 2 baskets of paperwork that needs sorting. At least now I know how to tackle it, it’s just finding the motivation and a daily system that works for me so I can stick to it long term!

Some rainy day, when you are looking for something to do, 😁 sort your medical paperwork by person (then by date, from oldest to newest, if you are especially bored 😬). You could be very glad you did in the future.

I remember seeing your paper video around a year ago. You have made incredible progress! Woo hoo!!🎉

Suggestion:take the time to put each kids exisitingg paper medical records into separate binders. Add tabs in them to separate illnesses or bloodwork and testing done. Oldest dates in the back to newest dates on the top, Then store them in the bins. If you are found to need emergency hospital care, it is easier to grab than sorting through piles while during a highly stressful time. Don't think you have time to do this? Set a timer weekly to make it a project till it is done. Just 30 minutes to an hour will get it completed.

I have a folder labeled “death docs” to hold what you call “life documents.” My heritage is Norwegian and Scottish. 🤣🤣🤣

I took inspiration last year from your sorting this stuff. It took the best part of 6 months but my family paperwork is now entirely in one binder. (Minus sentimental) I am so pleased I can go directly to this and file anything that comes in straight away and not have random drawers and boxes full of it anymore.

3:37 has a pile, 3:45 doesn't, in 5:04 it's back again and in 6:57 it's gone again 😂 Love it!😂

Paper was always an issue for me but thankfully it is much more manageable since both my kids aged out of school. I reckon about 85% of all the paper we had cluttering up our home was school related, even though I switched to getting emails instead of paper. It was a terrible waste of trees I reckon. 12% is junk mail I keep being sent and the last 3% is actual useful paperwork. That 3% is easy to keep track of nowadays so my paper nightmare seems to be finally past. Yay! :)

Thanks! Maybe my paper situation is better than I'm giving myself credit for... everybody keeps telling me to throw that crap away, but I have repeatedly referenced things that most minimalists would trash... With those medical papers, --- Last year, I put ours in 3 ring binders, one per person, in close-ish to chronological order. It's been quite helpful as I've switched pediatricians several times. The docs were seriously impressed. 😉

It’s so amazing how much you have done in a year!!! You are amazing and should be so proud of all you’ve done and do every day. I love your videos and family. So glad I came across your channel🥰

Excellent video, Erica! I'm always eager to watch whatever you post, as soon as I can. One suggestion re: the kids' medical records: keep in mind they may need at least some of the summary info even as adults, particularly any hospitalizations, surgeries, and of course immunizations (retired nurse talking here, lol!). Thanks so much for all you do! 👍😉💕

Most knowledgeable techies recommend keeping three digital copies of anything you value, which would include important documents and pictures, for sure. Keep one copy in the Cloud for easy access from anywhere, one on some kind of accessible media like CD/DVD, and another on a flash drive or portable hard drive. You can scan your items to your computer, then have it automatically back up to both the Cloud and a portable hard drive to make things easier. It is a good idea to store a copy with a trusted friend or family member, or in a safe deposit box, as well. Once scanned, you can easily transfer items you'd like to review or enjoy often to Media that works with your home devices (DVD player, for example.)

I feel like if you had just a couple folders on your desk labeled short term, long term to match your closet system this pile wouldn't happen. When the folders get full you can take it to your closet and put them away but you aren't likely to do it every piece or day.

Omg is it really a year since you did that HUGE pile of paper??? 😮 it’s a job I find very difficult to do. Thanks for the great tips and ideas. Stay safe and healthy. Mary

Brilliant video, Erica! I love your "carry bag", very smart and much easier than a metal box!

Would love to hear why you think your current process hit a snag (and led to the pile). I get a lot out of learning others’ thought process. Well done on your progress!

I purchased one of those fire bags after you shared it in a previous video. So nice to know that those hard to replace docs are in a safe container.

Paper adulting is hard... thanks for the video

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the fireproof document bag and I'm ordering one from Amazon today. I have a safe deposit box but it can be a pain in the neck to manage and I really don't need all of my important documents to be stored in that. This document bag is such a great idea. Thanks for the tip!

Great😊... Wonderful that you macro sorted stuff first and then micro sorted the stuff that is important "now" into your office sorting system!

You've come a long way, baby. Happy to have journeyed along with you since you started!

Cheering you on from Canada you are inspiring and just lovely to watch!

Beautiful work. It’s coming along. I hate paper Declutter.

Congratulations of one year of paper being under control.

I always get excited when you post a new video! Learning through your process Is really helpful. Thanks for bringing us along on your journey.

We have a “bug out binder”. Started it when we lived on the base in Cuba. So if there was ever an emergency evacuation of the base we could pack quick. It is a zip up binder so nothing falls out!

I like how you signed off with supporting each other with kind comments. Sad that this even needs to be mentioned.

Very helpful!! Thanks for sharing & I’m so glad your children are doing well!!

I am so proud of you! I came across your channel 7-8-9 months ago, when your husband came home. I was impressed then (mainly how sweet you and your husband were together), but you have really updated your channel. WAY TO GO!!! Glad to see you on the January declutter!

The difference from a year ago to now is extraordinary! Good on you!! 🎉🎉

You are always helpful,thank you! Glad for your kids good health.

Most people don't need to keep medical records long term, unless it's a chronic condition. If it's an office visit, paid by insurance correctly the EOBs can go. Sounds like your situation is a bit different. But not everyone needs to keep these long term. It was a relief when I realized that!

I got one of those fireproof bags after your video last year. What I do is have a three ring binder in it. Everything paper that I keep is scanned on my computer and saved to a flash drive that I keep in the bag. Then in the binder everything is organized in clear sheet protectors. Over my winter break from school I actually went through all of my paper. Anything important enough to keep in that binder/bag, I kept. Everything else besides stuff for the current year, I scanned and shredded. At the end of 2021, I'll scan and shred or move everything from this year.

truth running from fire I didnt grap the binder with the life docks. but we all lived including the pets. when we were military I had given my mother and mother in law a folder with a second and 3rd birth certificate for each of us. glad I had for many reasons. we did get into the house and the binder was fine (only the top half of the house was destroyed and smoke damaged down below.

Well done on your paper journey!! I’ve been watching for over a year and I love your real videos 🥰

I like that bag! I didn't know something like that existed.

I have our papers like birth certificat and like dokuments, warenties, medical, contracts organized in binders per person (6). Twice a year when my kids get new contracts for school and kindergarden I go throught them. I am really on top of it. And still last years I had a ton of paper to trash. I keep medical paper like- my kid cut her finger. It was bleeding alot so we went to a hospital. She was fine and got a bandaid. When will I ever need that? Recycle! My next task is to clear their art work. I have it in more binders than I would like to. I think I will take a photo of it, make a folder per person. Once they grow up I will give them that binders and artwork folder.

Your paper pile's "twin" is sitting on my desk. (hahaha) all good intentions, long to-do list, however the pile is not as daunting as when we started - right? Thanks for the videos! (never long enough bc I enjoy watching your journey, reminds me of mine started years ago and is always a work in progress. Always looking forward to the next video you post and how far you've come.) Enjoy the day!

yay! you read my mind. I'm tackling paper this week, and your video really helped solidify my process. thank you!!

Wow! This is perfect for me! It makes sense in my head! 👍❤️❤️❤️ I thought I had a system but it has never worked so I'm gonna head out to make this happen. Thank you for sharing your system! ❤️🙏🙏🙏

I purchased a fireproof and waterproof bag and have added our important documents to it - passports, birth certificate and our wills etc. It’s reassuring to know I can grab the bag in an emergency 🙂🙂

Great video as usual Erica 💗

I love what you are doing with the sentimentals keeping them in one zone!!Thanks for sharing!💗

You go girl!

Have to say I'm loving your videos. Really glad you are part of Dawn's playlist or I may not have found you

Thank you for sharing your journey NEW Sub

Paper clutter can be the hardest to start to manage!

Hi Erica, could you explain to me please what qualifications you need to be able to homeschool, and will you be homeschooling when your children are in higher education. thanks, sweetie. very informative video.

I struggle a lot with finding the right categories. I always ask myself where would I look for it if I need to look at it. But sometimes it is so hard

Erica Lucas, even with sentimental, i have begun to take pictures of item and download to a flash drive. i have few family and when ive posted pics, the most response is, thats nice. not what a great pic or i remember that or can i get a copy. :(

Love your videos - they are so real. Can you tell me where you got the file bin with hanging files? Thanks!

can someone please recommend channels similar to erica lucas or a hoarders heart? i like the channels of people that are decluttering what could legit be considered hoarder status. i still love erica but you aren't quite there anymore lol (which is amazing!!)

I want to know what the three black boxes on your desk are and where you found them. I've been looking for something like that for awhile.

What info do you need to keep from a prior house that you don't own anymore?

Thanks so much for this video. I really need to do this as well. You are so awesome! P.s. I have a lot of grandkids drawings, and colorings that I need to save. Should I get a tote for all of it, or use the file system and organize it by who drew and colored what? Thanks in advance!

That bag is a great idea!!! Where did you get it?

did you finish jewelry declutter part 2 ?

so you know NEVER get rid of the medical records. when the kids get old enough they can take them but sometimes it is that medical paper trail that helps figure out a medical condition that would have been missed other wise. hopefully one day you will never need them.

Where can I find the fire/waterproof bag?

Hi! Where did you purchase your fire/water proof bag, may I ask

Hello everyone! I have a question for you all. In the pass few years I have been the recipient of many photographs. My family and extended family has decided that when they pass on I get all the family photographs. Unfortunately as they pass my collection grows and my motivation to organize them diminishes. Do any of you have any tips on how to get motivated and how to organize them? Do I go by family? Or by common ancestor or what? Help!

I feel like you like to set up systems and you like to hear yourself talk more than actually staying organized....otherwise....you would not end up having piles over and over again!!!! Not really a great manager...perhaps you should move onto things that you could be more successful in!