Operation Clean and Organize: Vol 13 – Home Management Binder Part 2

By bobbi
July 5, 2012
4 Comments

Taming the procrastinating, ADD, mess cat within me.

This is Part 2 of my Home Management Binder post. (You can read the Part 1 post about my daily planner here.) As I said, I divided my information into five categories/binders:

My Daily Planner
Main Household Management Binder
Meal Planning/Shopping/Pantry Binder
Finance Binder
Blogging Binder

Main Household Binder

For my household binder, instead of starting my own sheets from scratch, I turned to one of my favorite organizing gurus – Jennifer at iheartorganizing.blogspot.com and ordered her Family Household Binder Kit. I have already used a number of her worksheets in the past and have been very happy with them. I received the personalize cover and spine as well as numerous household worksheets and lists. (I blocked out our family name to privacy. ;-))

I purchased Avery Plastic Dividers with Slash Pockets (11903) and divided up my main binder into eight categories.

1. Important Info

Financial, Medical, Insurance info

Contact List of Important Numbers

Important Dates (Birthdays, Anniversaries, Baptismal Dates etc.)

Babysitting Notes (Info for our babysitter, when we finally get one!)

2. Cleaning

Cleaning Checklist

Home Maintenance List

Master Home Project List

3. Auto

Maintenance Log

Warranty Info, etc

4. Travel & Outings

Travel Checklist

I already had a travel list made on my computer, although I haven’t updated it in awhile. (It’s been a long time since I’ve carried a separate video camera.) Here is a sample.

Outing Ideas

Favorite Places to Visit

For the places we like to visit often, in a plastic sheet protector I keep the place’s map, info and notes on things like our favorite spot to picnic or trails that are stroller friendly.

5. Books & Entertainment

Media Inventory

Library Log

I keep our library receipt in the divider’s pocket and in the log I keep track of how many books, dvd’s or mags we’ve checked out and when they are due back.

Book/DVD Check-out Log (Items we’ve loaned out.)

6. Holiday & Party Planning

Party Plan List

Holiday Gift Giving Worksheet

Gift Ideas & Notes

7. Pet Log

Fish Tank Cleaning Log

8. Blank Monthly Calendars
Okay, that’s all I have time for at the moment. I’ll post about my Meal Planning Binder next.
Feel free to leave your comments and tips!

UPDATE: Here is Part 3 – Meal Planning & Finance Binders.

PS – This post may contain affiliate links.

Operation Clean and Organize: Vol 12 – Home Management Binder Part 1: My Daily 2012 Planner

By bobbi
July 3, 2012
No Comments

Taming the procrastinating, ADD, mess cat within me.

(This post has become so big that I need to divide it into sections. I’ll do the first section today but since the bulk of the work is done, I’ll hopefully post the other 2-3 sections by the end of the week.)

I have been hearing numerous blogging moms talk about their Home Management Binder. It sounded like the perfect thing I needed on my quest to get more organized but the task seemed daunting! What was I supposed to put in it? When would I find the time to make up lists and logs? How can I make it pleasing to the eye so I’d be more likely to actually use it? Well, it took me a while but I think I finally have a system down that will work well for me and my family.

My next big problem was fitting everything into one binder. Rather than having one huge binder, I found it easier to divide my information into my main large binder with the bulk of info and then three smaller binders with specific categories – Finances; Meals, Food & Shopping; and Blogging. I use these smaller ones most often and keep them in the spot where I need them. (ie Food Binder in the kitchen area. Blogging Binder on my computer desk.)

Lastly, I debated whether I should give up my regular planner for a binder To Do List. I tried out a few but wasn’t satisfied. I didn’t want to give up my planner so I tweaked it a bit instead. I’ll break it down below.

Daily Planner

I have been using a planner for as long as I can remember because if I don’t write it down, I guarantee that I will forget to do it. You can see my trusty black and gray planner at the right hand corner of my desk.
For the last couple of years I have been using a Franklin Covey Wire-bound Planner, the Perspectives Weekly style. I liked that the headings are left blank so you can title them for each day of the week (combining Sat & Sun) or divide jobs in categories. I also like to record any spending I did online so I could make sure to subtract it from my budget.

However, I have reached the point where the two pages for one week is not enough room. By Wednesday, I would use up all the space. My planner runs for the school year so I needed a new one for July 2012-June 2013. I decided to switch to the Botanica One-Page-Per-Day Planner.

I love having more room but it did make my planner considerably bulkier. It wasn’t a big issue since it is always on my desk but I needed just a small calendar or notebook for my purse to record appointments and notes when I’m on the go.

I picked up this small calendar/notebook at Target for a few dollars.

It has the months of the year in the front and in the back there are grid and lined pages for notes or drawings. It is perfect to jot things down or write appointments that can later be transferred to my master calendar.

To personalize it a bit, I added some décor.

Tomorrow I’ll show you the next binder. 🙂

UPDATE: Since first writing this post, I have switched planners. I now use a Martha Stewart discbound with iheartorganizing planner pages. Here is the new post – A Look at My 2014 Planner

OTHER POSTS –
Part 2: Main Household Binder
Part 3: Meal Planning & Finance Binder

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Babyproofing the Fireplace Area

By bobbi
March 9, 2012
7 Comments

Back in July of 2008 I wrote this post about Andrew and baby proofing the fireplace area.

Brian and I have been baby proofing our house for months, now that Andrew has mastered walking and climbing low objects. However, we were still struggling with what to do about our brick fireplace hearth.

We considered buying one of those specialty gates that go around it, but they are pricey. In the meantime, we simply blocked off the sitting area by the fireplace with our dining room chairs entwined like a puzzle. (Yeah, that was real attractive.) But our incredibly small Hercules always figured out a way to move the chairs or wiggle his way through them. Finally, I saw a perfect solution in one of those parent magazines sitting in the doctor’s office. A mom suggested using one of those an interlocking foam floor mat such as this one to cover the hearth. Brilliant. We tried it and I’m happy to say, it works! (At least until Andrew discovers how to disconnect it.)

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That was almost four years ago, when Andrew looked like this.

Two years later, the baby proofing was done for John-Paul.

Now it is Matthew’s turn.

We needed to replace the floor mat and I wanted to find something that looked a little less “day care center,” trying to keep at least one room in the house free of toy overload.

I found this one in wood tones, which works so much better for us. The color matches the room and they don’t have the letters that the boys can pop out. We are very pleased with the results. They no longer sell the one I bought but Amazon has this one and this one, which are similar.

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The Gist: Confession & Meal Planning ( & My Two Cents)

By bobbi
January 24, 2012
No Comments

I was late in watching this week’s episode of The Gist but I was able to watch it today before tomorrow’s new show airs (Wednesday at 7:30 AM Pacific.) The 1/18/12 show was about meal planning and confession. Sort of a strange pairing but I enjoyed it none the less. 😉
If you missed the show you can see it here. Below are a few comments I had.

Meal Planning
It was fun hearing the ladies talk about their meal planning/feeding the family adventures. Sometimes we think that these amazing Catholic moms must have it sooooooo together yet they are facing the same challenges we do. (The occasional chocolate chip cereal and Chinese take out? Love it.)
For my meal planning it has still been working really well using my menu board. I usually plan my meals on Sunday allowing for at least one leftovers day and one eat out day. With a magnetic meal board I can easily switch meals around to another day when something unexpected pops up.

I also have a recipe folder/binder that was a complete shambles (shocker, I know!) but I have been working on organizing it I have my tried and true recipes handy and new recipes I want to try ready to go. If I have time later this week I’ll post my before and after pics.
As for getting picky kids to eat better, I don’t have any quick solutions. Since Bella was a baby she was an excellent eater and loved all sorts of fruits and veggies (Even brussel sprouts! I don’t even like those.) However, the boys have been much pickier. Andrew loves roasted chicken but won’t eat pasta or hotdogs. (What kid does not like spaghetti or hotdogs??) His only fruit is apples (and orange juice) and his only veggie is carrots. I’ve got to sneak veggie in meatballs and baked bread. I recently bought him that V8 veggie/fruit juice to help him get more of his veggies. I am getting desperate! As for JP, he could live on a continental breakfast all day long – fruit, cheese, bread, yogurt and eggs. I guess technically that’s all the main food groups. Do you have any tips that work for your picky eaters?

I was thinking about trying this book – Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food by Jessica Seinfeld. Any of you use this book?

Confession
The second half of the show was about Confession. I was happy to see Lino Rulli on the show. I’ve heard him a few times on his Catholic Guy radio show and I think he is hilarious on Twitter so it was fun to see him on The Gist.

I’ve finally reached a point where Confession is not scary anymore. I try to go at the very least, once a month and I can always tell when I am about due. In fact, yesterday I was having a horrible day. The kind of day where I am so angry and frustrated that I literally have to walk out of the room and take a deep breath before I lose it or break down in a ball and sob. Part of it was due from my lack of sleep with the kids being sick and Matthew up at night teething but I could also hear that voice in my head telling me that I need the grace of confession to recharge my batteries. I looked at the calendar and yep, it has been one month. So come Saturday morning, you’ll know where to find me – in line for confession.

Have a good night!

PPS – This post may contain affiliate links.

Operation Clean & Organize: Vol 2 – Weekly Menu Board

By bobbi
August 31, 2011
3 Comments

Taming the procrastinating, ADD, mess cat within me.

(To read the introductory post, click here.)

It is week two of Operation Clean and Organize and this week I’ve been working on a menu board. Some moms prefer to make a monthly menu but that doesn’t work for me. Planning one week ahead is all I can handle right now!

I looked at various styles of menu boards to see what appealed to me. I previously had a dry erase board but over time the erase ability of the board deteriorated. I thought of using a magnetic board because I really liked this one but it was too big and I wanted it to be weekly not monthly.

source

I decided to make my own smaller magnetic weekly menu. I spent a total of about $20 for a magnetic board the right size to fit on my fridge, a pack of Avery Printable Magnetic Sheets, and “Days of the Week” magnets that I found at Target in the Back to School seasonal section. (You can find similar products at Amazon – Board Dudes Magnetic Board, Board Dudes Days of the Week Magnets and Avery Magnet Sheets.)

Next I sat down and made a master list of all the meals, side dishes and veggies I normally cook. In a Word document I made four columns of labels and typed up the list of foods. I wanted to keep track of days when I had appointments so I would know to plan easy or slow-cooker meals on those days. I also wanted to mark days when I had to pack the kids’ lunches for school.

I color coded the labels: main dish – blue, sides – orange, veggies – green, appointments – purple, and school lunches – red. I made sure to have a number of blank labels to fill in later as I tried new recipes. Next, I printed and cut out the labels. Lastly, I arranged the meals on my board along with a shrunken down copy of Bella’s school lunch menu.

Here’s what it looks like.

Click on the photo for a larger view.

The first week using it has been great. We’ll see how it stands the test of time. 🙂

That’s it for this week. Next week I’ll be working on organizing my pantry and making master shopping lists. Share your own ideas in the comments and happy organizing!

POSTSCRIPT:
In the spirit of full disclosure, I must admit that this organizing business is getting fun. Who knew? But you must make sure that your motherly duties are attended to first. Otherwise you will have to find out that your earlier statement of “he should be able to eat his yogurt alone without making too much mess while I make a quick post” was not only false but stupid thinking. So be forewarned. Wait until the kids are asleep. (And this was after I cleaned off his hair and face.)

* * * * *

UPDATE (May 2014): I have since updated my menu board. The new version can be found here.

PPS – This post may contain affiliate links.

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Tag Archives: homemaking

Operation Clean and Organize: Vol 13 – Home Management Binder Part 2

Operation Clean and Organize: Vol 12 – Home Management Binder Part 1: My Daily 2012 Planner

Babyproofing the Fireplace Area

The Gist: Confession & Meal Planning ( & My Two Cents)

Operation Clean & Organize: Vol 2 – Weekly Menu Board