CLUTTER IN THE KITCHEN The kitchen has been called "heart of home," and with good reason. Here we are nourished and provided for, even if we are dining on a frozen entrée zapped in microwave rather than a homemade meal lovingly presented by Mom. An untidy and disorganized kitchen makes it hard to nourish yourself and others, on both physical and metaphysical levels. How you care for your kitchen is a clue about whether you are giving proper attention to your own nourishment and sources of abundance. Cleaning up and de-cluttering your kitchen opens up space for you to receive support and comfort that you need in life.

LIVING AND DINING ROOM CLUTTER These are spaces where you mingle with and honor your relationships with family and friends. Here you engage with world while being at home through watching television, reading paper, or arguing politics with old friends over dinner. Clutter can turn these social spaces into dens of isolation, especially if mess is so bad that it has been years since you've invited people over. Look around your living and dining rooms to see what they say about your relationship with rest of world. Are you hiding your true self from others, burying it in clutter, or putting it on display here?

CLUTTERED HALLWAYS Hallways are arteries and highways of your home. Think of clutter in your hallways as a traffic jam that prevents important connections between different areas of your home and your life. Look at your hallways to see how you feel about your life's path: are they well lit and easily navigable, or do they trip you up? If you feel a disconnect between work and family, self and others, what you need and your obligations, it may be time to give your hallways a good clearing out.

1. Too much, too late. One of most important things to remember if you are trying to lose weight is to start early. For example, don’t try to lose 20 pounds two months before big day. The key is to plan ahead so that you can lose weight (or just tone up) gradually. So if you’re dream-wedding day includes you being in great shape, then include fitness as a “to-do” on your overall wedding checklist. That way it will be a priority in your wedding planning.

2. Setting unachievable goals. Many women get engaged and begin imagining themselves drastically thinner or more sculpted. Be realistic with yourself. If you’ve never been a size 6 in your life, then it is probably unrealistic to think you can magically transform just because you are getting married. And, do you really want to look so different on your wedding day that most people (including your fiancé) hardly recognize you?

3. Radical diets or fitness programs. Brides typically are short on time and long on to-do lists. This leads many to try unhealthy fitness programs or starvation diets. Don’t be tempted by diets that promise quick, drastic results with little effort from you. You should avoid any programs that suggest taking “diet” pills or eating unbalanced meals (like eating only cabbage soup for a week). And, don’t be lured into trying dangerous things, like laxatives.