Organizing

Here are five things I do to *try* to stay organized:

1. Label and sort! This is my recipe box. I made the tabs myself and tried to create a lot of different categories. The recipes I'll be making in the next two weeks go up front. Easy to find when I make dinner!

2. Use bins. I have so many different bins and baskets! They make life so much easier. 

Keeping little bags of snacks organized.

I also use bins in C's changing table and that works really well to hide all the clutter.

3. Create boundaries. I only allow myself to keep as many magazines as fit in my piano bench. When it's full, I have to purge! I do the same thing for mail and papers. I have a basket, and when it's full I have to go through it.

4. Don't pack closets/drawers full. Have room to easily find and grab things.

(More labeling and binning too!)

I see a blurry little hand at the bottom. :)

5. Make it pretty! :) I try to display pretty things and buy baskets and boxes that are attractive as well as functional.

Linking up at:

Menu Planning

It has taken awhile to tweak things, but I finally feel like I have a good system for meal planning and grocery shopping that works well for us. I thought I'd share it with you!

We go grocery shopping twice a month for our main groceries and may occasionally stop to get a few extra groceries for a dinner with friends or if C runs out of something. This has saved me so much time! When we first got married I tried to shop less frequently, but it seemed like I always ended going to the grocery store a couple times a week.  

My System:

Between trips I try to take stock of things and write down items we are running low on on a master list so I don't forget. If I use the last of the granulated sugar to make cookies, I write it down. Notice toothpaste getting low? Goes on the list. I just love when I do a huge shopping run and get home to discover I forgot toothpaste and butter. You know you've done it too! :)

I go to several stores; Aldi, Fare-way, and Wal-Mart. Aldi is the cheapest place to buy groceries, hands down. You save at least 40% off name brand items. I get a lot of basics there, kleenex, toilet paper, butter, eggs, salad dressings, olives, sugar, frozen chicken breast, juice, cooking oil,etc...

I buy most of my produce, some meat, and a few more specialty items like wheat pasta at Fare-way.  I get things like lotion, shaving cream, and artisan breads (when I buy them.) at Wal-Mart. It takes a little more time to go to several stores, but the savings is worth it. We spend about $320 a month on groceries for our family. That includes diapers and other supplies like shaving gel, lotion, paper products, etc...

We also have been able to save money on our grocery bill by doing the Body by Vi 90 day challenge.

We take a meal replacement nutrition shake for breakfast that only costs $1.87. You can save even more with their 3 for free program; refer three, your product is free. By doing this we basically get all our breakfast groceries for free. You can learn more at our blog theVicouple.com

Another way to save money is to plan meals ahead of time.

My mother taught me this. Thanks, Mom!

Every two weeks before I go shopping I sit down with my recipe box to make a list. I write down the names of each of the three stores. I pick a recipe and then write down the name at the top of my sheet. 

This time the meals I picked were tacos, spaghetti and salad, hamburgers and fries, bean bake, etc...

Then I add all the needed ingredients under the appropriate store. Here's an example of tacos:

I go through and do that for each meal. It actually only takes about 15 minutes. I also add fruit and other healthy snacks like nuts, fruit leathers, and granola bars. I usually plan a few things for lunches too like quesadilla ingredients, and sandwich or salad stuff.

I usually plan for 8 supper type meals for two weeks. That gives us some leeway if we go to our parents or have leftovers to eat up.

I write down the meals I buy ingredients for on our calendar and cross them off as we make them. If I'm in  a hurry I pick a meal that doesn't take long to prep.

So there you have it! My method for meal planning.

Do you have a grocery shopping/ meal planning tip to share?

    Leave a comment!

'Redding' up

It is quite possible that only my mother knows what this title means. Her mother taught it to her and in turn she taught me. Now I will share with you. (Don't you feel special?)

'Redding' up is the phrase my mom used for picking up the house in the evening; readying it for the next day. (I assume 'redding' is just short for readying, but one mustn't analyze these things too deeply.)

I have since heard of the same concept from other older moms and it seems like the women I know who do this keep a very tidy and welcoming home.

Different people have different things they like to do in the evening to prepare for the next day. Here are mine:

-Do all the dishes. (If this isn't feasible, I do one strainer full and wipe all the counters and stove. Clean counter tops are a must for me.)

-Fluff pillows, straighten magazines, take shoes back to bedrooms.

-Close blinds.

-Put papers/mail in each of our inboxes and clear off dining room table.

Basically I clean off surfaces in the kitchen and dining room, and tidy the living room. This is not the time to clean the stainless steel, wipe under the fridge, and dust the picture frames. The purpose is simply to tie up loose ends and do a surface pickup. It shouldn't take more than 15 minutes.

This makes such a big difference the next day! I feel so much more relaxed and ready to start my day.

Maintenence

I feel like I'm learning how to be a much better house keeper lately. I know I'm definitely learning how to manage my time better because of having a baby. (I maximize every second of nap time!) When I first got married I would do a "cleaning day" every week. I always got stressed and put it off. Now I've been trying to make the most of small increments of time and clean every day.

What does this look like? 

-When I do my make up in the morning I wipe down the toilet and mirrors. I keep windex and paper towel in the bathroom to make this easy.

-When I wash C's bottles I do the rest of the dishes on the counter.

-While C is playing on the floor I grab the vacuum and do the living room and hall. (He loves chasing it.)

-If I'm going to throw a kitchen wash cloth in the hamper I spot clean the kitchen floor first.

-When it's garbage day I take the opportunity to clean out the fridge. ( I learned this one from my hubby. They do that at the fire station.)

-I also try to make piles thoughout the day that need to go to certain areas of the house and then if I'm going there I grab it on my way. For example; I just finished working on a craft project upstairs, but I keep all my supplies in the basement. I make a pile to take down there on the top step and when I go down to watch a movie I'll take it down w/ me. This saves dozens of trips and also allows you to stay on track with whatever else you're doing.

These are pretty little things, but I feel like I'm keeping up much better and am less stressed. We even had a surprise family get together last week that I didn't find out until the night before and it didn't bother me at all. All I had to do to get ready was run the dishwasher and sweep the kitchen floor. It was such a good feeling. I used to spend all day cleaning and picking up. Maintenance is truly so much better than overhauling.

So, what about you? Do you "redd up" at night? What things are on your must-do list? Leave me a comment with your thoughts!