Archive for Organizing
August 19, 2007· Filed under Family, Organizing
A few years ago I created a go-to resource book for our house and it has saved me so much time, effort and frustration. This week we are going to create one together. It will cost you very little, you can customize it to fit your needs, and it will only take a few minutes a day to get it going. Your family will thank you for it!
What you will need:
Place the protector sheets and dividers in the binder. Use a label maker or permanent marker to put a title on the spine. Call it what you want - but make it something your family can relate to. We call ours the Ops book - meaning it is our operations manual.
Next, download and fill out, or print out the master phone list.
Put all the phone numbers you need on a regular basis in one of two columns - friends and family or important numbers. Don’t forget to add school office numbers, dentist, doctor, nail salon, hair dresser, etc.
Slide the phone list into the clear pocket on the cover of the binder and you are ready for tomorrow’s task!
August 19, 2007· Filed under Family, Organizing
It’s back to school time and that means time to say goodbye to lazy summer mornings and hello to routine, structure, and backpacks! With a little bit of preparation and organization now, you can cruise through the first few weeks of school with your sanity in place. Here are my five favorite back to school sanity savers for Moms and kids:
Post a routine
Kids always do better when they know what to expect! Help your kids (especially those Kindergarten and 1st Graders) develop a morning routine and practice it before school starts. I love charts that I can post on the refrigerator (remember my summer chore chart?) and I have created a very simple one that is picture-based so that my 5 year old can go through it on her own. Yes, you can have one of your very own!! Download the morning routine reminder to hang on your own fridge.
Take it a week at a time
Use Sunday afternoons or evenings to get your week planned out. Keep the family schedule in a location that everyone can see. I have a dry erase weekly planner hanging on the fridge - everyone can get a feel for the events of the week at a glance and its easy to change.
I also keep a planner on my desk. I just ordered the MomAgenda because it has room for my schedule and notes, but also has space designated for each child and dinner. You can get them in a variety of sizes and colors. I picked the dark brown MomAgenda that is 7″x9″.
Create a Backpack Zone
Find a location in your house that is convenient and create a backpack zone. In our house it is the mudroom. Backpacks, shoes and jackets all get parked there when not in use. It makes it much easier to find everything in the morning if you aren’t hunting high and low all over the house for it.
Create a Home Study Zone
Give your kids a regular spot for doing homework - somewhere with good lighting, minimal distractions, and access to the supplies they may need to get the tasks done. Our kitchen table is the homework zone. There is no TV near by, the kids have plenty of room to spread out and I can monitor their progress without having to sit right there with them.
Joe Bruzzesse of Our Thinking is a Middle School expert and author. He has created a list of supplies to keep on hand for homework and projects. We have a china cabinet in the kitchen that houses art and school supplies. This summer the area got a little out of control so I spent some time this weekend clearing it out and reorganizing. One bin contains paper, notebooks and journals. Another bin contains pencils, pens, crayons, markers, rulers, scissors, tape and such. The bottom cabinet holds art kits (translation - beads) and coloring books.
Create a Go-To Binder
The single most used item in our kitchen is the “Ops book” - short for Operations (a term we inherited from my husband’s military ways). What is the Ops book? This 3-ring binder is my go-to resource for everything - a phone number, what’s for dinner, sports schedules, you name it!
This week I am going to help you set up a Go-To Binder for your house. Trust me, you’ll love it! And it will really help you stay organized, while saving you time and money, too.
Stop in each day this week for a new lesson, new printouts, and new tips for getting your household ready to go back to school.
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July 24, 2007· Filed under Family, Organizing, Working from Home
As I get older I am also getting wiser. I am learning (although slowly) that in order for me to be a successful business woman, mother and wife, I do not have to do it all myself. Doing it all myself does not make me a better person - it just drains me of my life energy!
I am learning to outsource even the most basic tasks so I can have more time and energy to be a great Mom, a better wife, and more efficient in my business.
One of the things I am most excited about outsourcing is the deep cleaning in our house. Let’s face it, I can barely keep up with the dishes and the laundry. I don’t enjoy the nitty gritty cleaning and don’t have the time to do it right. Thanks to my awesome brothers, I have a gift certificate for a cleaning service - it is just the right amount to get me started and get our family hooked!
Here are a bunch of great sites that will help you streamline, organize, and may even inspire you to do some outsourcing yourself:
What are your favorite time savers? What have you outsourced? I’d love to know!
December 21, 2006· Filed under Family, Holidays, Organizing, Parenting, Travel
Over the years we have done our fair share of travelling with our three kids. It is always a challenge to get everything packed and organized before you go, but the following three tips are a MUST for me.
Gallon Zip-top Bags - This is my #1 tip and one that has made the difference between sanity and insanity when travelling with my crew. I place each outfit, complete with socks, undies, and accessories in a separate zip top bag and label it with the child’s name. I make a separate bag with jammies and spares. Each bag is rolled slightly to remove excess air and then sealed. ADVANTAGES: The bags take up less space than the loose clothes; the outfits are ready to grab and go (helpful for Daddies, Grandparents and other helpers); and you have a container to put wet, soiled or stinky items in while you are at your destination.
Laundry Basket - If you are travelling by car, place a plastic laundry basket in the back to hold the smaller, loose items you are taking like shoes, back packs, portable electronics, gifts, etc. ADVANTAGES: It makes it easier to transport these items in and out of the car and you have somewhere to put your dirty laundry while at your destination.
Emergency Bag - A few years back someone gave me a red Clinique make up bag that is about 6″x9″. It is flat when empty and has a zipper top. I keep this bag with me just about anywhere we go and the kids know it is the emergency bag. In this bag I keep bandaids, travel pack of wipes, flat packs of chewable children’s pain reliever, the Triaminic cold/cough strips, my daughter’s Lactaid tablets, hand sanitizer, antiseptic wipes, a comb, a few ponytails, tissues, and a few mommy essentials. ADVANTAGES: Red equals emergency and I have trained my kids to know what and where this bag is at all times. You just never know when you may need these things!
As we enter this holiday travel week, please stay safe! And, if you have a tip for travelling with kids, share it with us.
From our sponsor: You might want to also consider bring along some activities for kids as well. You will find resources on riddles and brain teasers, arts and crafts or puzzles and coloring pages at Learninghaven.com.
December 18, 2006· Filed under General, Holidays, Organizing, Reflections
This year has been busy, but in a good way! I am frantically trying to wrap up the loose ends of the year so I can start 2007 with a clear head and some inspiration. Here is the latest:
- I got all my Christmas cards out - yeah, me.
- The tree is up and decorated.
- Most of the presents are bought and waiting to be wrapped.
- I’m trying to tackle the house room by room to be ready for Christmas Day.
- My work to-do list is shrinking as I mark off completed tasks, but I still have a handful of tasks to tackle.
- I still have to go through my box of paperwork and keep the necessaries for taxes and pitch the rest.
So, basically I am doing everything in little bits and trying to tie up as much unfinished business as I can. I try to start each day with my blank sheet of paper, filled with business to-dos, holiday and home goals. I never mark it all off, but the list is shrinking.
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