A four-part series to make your life easy.

Well, parts of it at least.Over the years I have come up with hundreds of amazingly clever and practical systems to help make life easier in the Garrett household. I have invented a system to solve just about every problem, from keeping track of chronically misplaced keys and cell phones to wrangling shoes in the living room. There has only been one minor problem with these systems though. Most of them have failed miserably. Especially the misplaced key ones...There have, however, been four systems to date that have withstood the test of time (and more importantly, the test of incredibly system-resistant children & organizationally challenged parents). I would like to share these systems with you in a four part series with amazing picto-tutorials and helpful tips to make these ideas your own. (I'd give them to you all at once but this is good material!) Part One:Now, I don't know how things happen in the bathrooms at your house. Maybe you have girl children who don't use up all the toilet paper, fail to flush and then leave damp hand towels everywhere imaginable except for hanging on the towel bar. But I do not. Most days our bathrooms look like an interpretive Dali installation. In all honesty, I am just thankful that my boys actually wash their hands. But the hand towel thing...I mean seriously. Is it that hard to hang up a towel? (The answer is yes, it is.) So after giving up on yelling at err, reminding the boys to hang up their towels, this is what I came up with: Carabiner Hand Towels. *Poof* No more hand towels everywhere. Just like that.What you will need for this project: Two to three hand towels per child (and/or adult if necessary) Technically you can get away with one each but not if you do laundry like I do. I actually use bar towels that I buy in bulk at Costco because they are the perfect size and I can bleach them when colds & flus strike. One large carabiner per child (and/or adult if necessary, in a different color for each). Make sure it is large enough and of the right shape to fit over your towel bar. (See variations below if your towel bars are unusually large.) An extra large grommet kit Scissors, a hammer and a good solid surface Pliers are optional but recommended Follow the instructions on your grommet kit and install a grommet in one corner of each towel. Make sure that the surface you are hammering on is SOLID. I also hold the grommet setter with pliers instead of my hand so I can pound with abandon. Learned that the hard way... Once your grommets are set, slip the carabiner on, lock it onto your towel bar and Bob's your uncle! Genius.Some variations of this idea include assigning a different color hand towel to each child, embroidering initials or adding different colors of rick rack or ribbon trim to the towel (in the same color as the carabeener even!), using miscellaneous golf towels with the grommets already installed, using eyelet hooks instead of a towel bar, using loose leaf rings or shower curtain rings in place of the carabiners (which will work well if your towel bars are large), and on and on. So have at it. I'd love to see what y'all come up with if you do this!