We were able to get most of our school supply shopping done today.  Thanks to Southern Savers, I think we got almost everything we needed, and it was less than $20 plus we’re getting rebates back!  Woohoooo!  I just love that site!

After we got home, we put the supplies in Savannah’s backpack so that they are ready to go for the first day of school….yeah, we’re still weeks off, but we’re ready!  I also got Savannah’s school drawer ready to go.  I have one drawer devoted just for school/homework needs.  There’s one for her, and one for her sister.  In it, we have paper, pencils, crayons, etc.  You get the idea.

The most important thing in there is the folder.  I put 4 clear plastic sheet protectors in there that I already had laying around (ok, not laying around….they were neatly organized, I promise! lol).  I labeled them Homework, Reading, Action, and Notes.  This should keep both Savannah and I organized with all the paperwork that comes in from school.  The Reading section will hold her book lists, reading logs, or AR papers.  The Action file is for things that require action from myself or my husband, such as a signature for a permission slip.  Then the Notes section is for contact info, schedules, etc.

Check out We Are That Family’s blog for more great tips, and have fun getting ready for school! Stay neat!

Spring and summer seem to be brimming with kid birthday parties. We have one coming up next weekend! Our little Phoebe is turning 2 this month! I thought now would be a good time to write about organizing a birthday party. I really love planning parties for my girls. I look forward to the next one as soon as one is over! Birthdays are just so fun, and a great time to show a person how special they are. Being organized makes planning a child’s birthday party less stressful and more enjoyable. Here are my tips and time line.

6-8 Weeks Before
-Choose the date, time, and location for your party. Check your calendar for other specials occasions to make sure nothing coincides with your party, holidays, other birthdays, lessons and practices, etc. Kids parties are usually around 1.5-2 hours long. For younger kids, it’s smart to schedule around nap times and meals so you have a happy birthday girl/boy! Also, consider the weather when deciding on a location. An outdoor party in Georgia, in June, needs to include some air conditioning, a pool, or both! If you’re not having the party in your home, book the location as soon as you can!
-Choose a theme. This part is my favorite, or it can be. With my almost 8 year old, well, sometimes I find myself gently trying to sway her away from a rock n’ roll, black and orange, skeleton, pirate, video game, dog theme party like she would like to have, lol. Of course, I do remember that the party is FOR the child, not for the parents or guests! Themes are fun for the kiddo, and they help you decide on the cake, decorations, activities, and all that good stuff.
-Make a guest list. The general rule of thumb is that for a child under 8, invite the number of kids that equal your bday child’s age, or their age +1 or 2. Keep in mind the number of kids you can manage at one time, in the particular location you’ll be partying in, and what you budget can accommodate. Know your limits!
-Plan the entertainment. If you’re going to hire a magician, etc book them early!
-If you’re ordering personalized party invitations, order them early so you have time to have them shipped before you need to mail them out.

3-4 Week Before
-Have the birthday girl/boy make a wish list. Some stores even allow kids to have a gift registry! My girls have a lot of fun with those. This is also around the time I start shopping for my birthday girl, and I let my girls buy their sister a gift that is just from them. They always think that’s pretty awesome! From experience, I’ve learned that when people ask “what is ____ into?” or “What would ______ like for her birthday?” I tell everyone something different from the wish list. We’ve had a few Christmas Days where my girls got several duplicate toys! Whoops! Lesson learned!
-Prep Invites! If you need to, ask your child’s teacher for an up-to-date class list. Also, think about how you’re going to deliver the invitations. If you’re not inviting the entire class, ask the teacher if she can discreetly pass out the invitations so no one gets hurt feelings. If the topic comes up with some other parents, you can reiterate that you could only invite x amount of kids, only for girls, etc. One of my favorite tips is to include an end time on the invitation! It not only helps you, but then the other parents know when to pick up their children and also to help plan the rest of their day as well. Oh, and don’t forget to buy stamps! Also make sure to include if you’ll be serving a meal.
-Shop for supplies. This can be a stressful, daunting task if it’s left for the last minute. If you’re ordering them, you will want to have this time for shipping.
-Plan games, activities, and a menu that fits the theme. Choose games that aren’t too competitive. Crafts are usually a popular choice!
-Get help! Enlist family, friends, and or other parents. If anyone offers, let him or her help! You can’t be cutting a cake, taking pictures, and herding children all at the same time!

2-3 Weeks Before
-Send the invitations. If you don’t want to do the cutesy paper options, I really love evite! Have the guest list near the phone or computer so you can keep up with who’s coming and who’s not.
-Purchase supplies for the games/activities. Depending on the ages, have a few different things planned.
-Purchase decorations, party favors, paper goods balloons (order if needed).

1 Week Ahead
-Call guests you haven’t RSVP’d yet.
-Confirm number of kids and other guests.
-Plan agenda for the party, for example when to open gifts, serve cake, and play games.
-Rent any videos you need for the party, or anything you may be borrowing from a friend.

2-3 Days Ahead
-Purchase the grocery items needed. Don’t forget candles for the cake!
-Prepare the goody bags. Make sure the fillers are age appropriate and not too annoying for the other parents Crafts or pictures made at the party make good party favors.
-Charge the batteries in your cameras!
-Prep activity and craft stations.
-Confirm entertainers and helpers.

Day Before the Big Event
-Bake anything that can be made ahead of time.
-Clean the house, and make it child-friendly. Stock the bathrooms with tp, too! No one will really remember how clean your house was, so don’t stress out about it. Kids will remember how much fun they had! They don’t really care about the dust bunnies under the china cabinet!
-Bake, or pick up the cake.
-Order any take out food you may need.
-Remind the birthday child about how to behave at their party, to thank everyone, how to act if she/he gets a duplicate or a gift they don’t really like.
-Decorate your home, or gather your décor if you’re transporting it elsewhere.
-Prep food, if possible.
-Prep activities.
-Pick up any last minute needs.

4-5 Hours Ahead
-Set table and decorate.
-Put candles on cake and a lighter nearby!
-Fill balloons, or go pick them up.
-Balloons on mailbox.
-Set up activity and craft stations.
-Have a pen and paper ready to write down gifts for the thank you cards.
-Crank up the AC! If you’re having a full house, it will get very warm very fast!

1-2 Hours Ahead
-Consider putting the pets away. For some reason, not everyone loves a basset hound licking his or her ears!
-Get the kiddos dressed, and I theme it up of course!
-Set up the food.
-Set mood with music or a DVD.

Week After
-Send Thank You cards. Have the kids fill them out if they’re old enough.

These pictures are from Phoebe’s first birthday. She had a cupcake theme. Remember how I love any excuse for cake!

See, she even had a cupcake on her after-first-birthday-cake-bath outfit!

Once again, I’m joining We Are That Family‘s blog party called “Works For Me Wednesday”. It’s one of my favorites, as I always find some great tips! I don’t remember where I learned this tip, but I have put to use ever since I saw it! It’s funny how it’s the little things that can make a big difference. Now whenever we buy snack food, like chips, pretzels, etc, I divide them up into individual bags with a serving size in each. This helps for a few reasons: it saves me money not having to buy prepackaged snack bags for kid lunches/snack time, it makes it easy for us to snack without over eating, and best of all I don’t have the heeby jeeby’s watching kids put their hands into bags of chips! I cannot watch kids share a snack not knowing where their hands have been, etc. Ick!

The top photo is from the Container Store website. It’s just a little more pantry inspiration.

Once again, I’ve been slacking a bit on the blogging. Family, migraines, and of course, a little organizing, have been keeping me busy! This past week, Savannah was on spring break from school! Woohooo! Although our week’s weather provided snow, rain, a little sun, and tornadoes, we still managed to have some fun launching model rockets, going to the GA Aquarium, and celebrating Easter!

I used this week to organize the office area of the kitchen. I have a designated cabinet/countertop space where I keep my laptop. I use a large portion of the space for the kids art supplies and for Savannah’s school items. I want to get this area spruced up a bit to get us through this last stretch of the school year. I have a confession! While I was going through my papers I found an overdue library book. I have actually gotten a call from the library about it, so you can imagine how late it is. The worst part? It’s a book about organizing! LOL All I can do is laugh at myself about that one!

Back to the kitchen…one drawer is specifically for Savannah’s school stuff. She has the basic supplies in there:pencils, erasers, and a sharpener. That’s also where the memos and forms go from the school, her homework, and library books. Everything in one spot. It’s also labeled so everyone knows where these things belong! This has simplified our afternoons and mornings drastically!

I use the shelves for all my paperwork. I got the idea from the show Mission:Organization. I LOVE that show! I used a cute clementine box to organize my mail/bills that need my attention, the middle section is labeled “to read” for stuff that can wait a bit, and then the right side is “to file” whenever I make it upstairs to the filing cabinet.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter

I am hooked on finding excuses to bake cakes! Who’s with me?! This week we celebrated Savannah’s 7-½ birthday. There’s not a party or even presents. I just use it as an excuse to bake a cake and to make, or in this case order, her a favorite dinner. I’ve made it a tradition to bake her half a cake every year on her half birthday! She still doesn’t know the trick so I tell her it’s a Mommy secret! You can probably figure it out by looking though. This year she wanted chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, and a red smiley face. Here’s the before picture. Oh, and the picture above if from her recent trip to the moon.

Here’s what happened when I left the husky alone with the cake for less than 10 minutes! It was out of her reach, or so I thought. I forget how tall she can be! Yes, I know chocolate is very dangerous for dogs, so I was freaked out for a bit. She’s fine though, in the “doghouse”, but fine, ha ha ha.

Another reason of mine to bake is “Trash and Treats Day” with my BFF. So far we’re meeting up every other week to watch our favorite trashy reality shows on the DVR, and at least one of us bakes for the occasion. It’s SO much fun and so yummy! This week she made yummy S’mores bars!

Speaking of yummy treats. I finished up with the recipe binder I was working on. I put it in a different notebook and half-heartedly decorated it with some scrapbook paper. I also found some AWESOME menu planning notepads at Michael’s for $1!

Head on over to Hooked On Houses and see what other bloggers are hooked on this week!

Why Bother Monday…that’s what I’ve renamed my Mondays. I think I might have mentioned it before, but Monday is when I change the bed sheets, vacuum, mop, empty the trash cans, etc. I’ve been noticing that even a few days after I mop my all-hardwood floors, they get dirty all over again. The bottoms of our socks give it away! Not only that, but only minutes after I clean the windows and doors, they’re covered in dog snot, which I lovingly calls “snart”, once again! So why do I bother, right?

I do it because I love my family! Did you think I was going somewhere else with this? I love my husband enough to make sure our bed isn’t covered in dog hair at least once night of the week ☺ I love my 7-year-old enough that I will wash the same jacket multiple times a week because she just loves to play in the dirt on the playground. I love my baby girl enough that I line up her shoes every night because she loves to try them all on every morning. I love my dogs enough that I let them sleep in my bed whenever they want, and guess what? My basset almost always smells like fabric softener, and she’s always soft! Yep, that’s the secret to Trixie’s shiny, soft coat! Lastly, or maybe I should have been first, I love myself enough that I want to be enjoying my happy family, quirky dogs, and my great home.

Update on Organizement-I’m trying to figure out what to do next. I think I have a game plan in my head, but I need to write it all out in a business plan. I’ve been trying to work on my house when I can-I’ll post pictures eventually!

I love the “Hooked on Friday” posts at Hooked On Houses ! Go over and check the others out when you’re done here. Lately I’ve been hooked on silver accessories around our home. I have a memory wall, which is another work in progress, going up the stairs. I LOVE it. All of the photos are in black and white, they’re in a variety of sizes, and a variety of different frames. So cool! I got the idea from a Pottery Barn catalog. What’s cool about PB is that you can go to the website and download template for hanging your frames! It’s a great way to organize and streamline the look.

Here’s a few more silver frames I have in the living room. Having them all in one color makes things appear less- cluttered!

Procrastination is putting off today what you can do tomorrow. I’m guilty of this from time to time myself, though I work very hard not to do it. I have a few things that help me stay motivated to do things as soon as I can. Here they are…

-Tomorrow is just another today. Think about that for a minute. What makes you think you’re not just going to put it off again tomorrow?

-Pick it up, don’t pass it up. I learned this motto from the book I’m still working on by Pam Young and Peggy Jones Sidetracked Home Executives. I’m now saying this at least once a day to my family, and I remind myself of it all the time. Instead of memorizing where the toys are scattered around on the kitchen floor so I don’t step on them, I’m getting into the habit of actually picking them up when I see shes done playing with them. I used to ignore them and pick them up right before or after bedtime. Things are much nicer now. Plus, my husband never mastered looking where he walks so he often would get a lego embedded in his foot! Ouch!

-Baby steps! Oh, that helps so much! I’m thinking about posting pictures of the most embarrassing room of my house-my office! For someone who aspires to be a professional organizer, you wouldn’t believe the mess of my office! I think I’m going to use a Flylady and work on it in very small steps-like 15 min a week. Sounds easy, right? I love breaking down jobs into more managable tasks, so I know it will make a huge difference.

-Do the hardest part of the job first. You’ll be glad you did.

What tips do you have for anti-procrastination?

Photo from Pottery Barn

Our schedules get so busy doing the things that we have to do, that we no longer have time to do the things that we love. Making time for yourself recharges your batteries and renews your spirit. I don’t know where it came from, but the phrase “when Momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy” comes to mind. Think of it as a gift to your family, not just to yourself. A relaxed and rested wife/mom is a much more patient, loving woman!

So where are you going to find this time? First, take a look at all the things you do in a day. In the organizational sense, you would look at everything, prioritize your schedule and routines, delegate some smaller jobs to the kiddos or husband, etc. My favorite way to squeeze in some “me” time is to kill two birds with one stone. Multi-tasking is key! No matter who you are, how much you make, or the kind of car you drive, the amount of hours in your day just can’t be increased!

One way I squeeze in a good 30 minutes or so is in the carpool line! The baby is in the backseat, but with a snack and a Wiggles DVD, she’s usually pretty quiet. I take a book and forget my troubles for a few minutes! Another idea for those times when your kids are in their extracurricular classes is to take a walk around the parking lot to squeeze in some exercise. I also like to try to catch up with my friends with a quick phone call during those few peaceful minutes.

What works for me in scheduling time for myself, is to make it a priority. At least once a week I do this. It’s even written down (you know how much I like lists!). I try to have at least one lunch date with a friend every week. This isn’t completely time to myself, since I have a toddler with me. The trick to that is to go to lunch with the friend(s) that likes to hog your baby, he he he. Almost every Tuesday evening, my husband and I have a movie night together. We just rent one from Netflix and pop it in when the girls are in bed-no babysitter required! I also have made it a habit of taking a bubble bath whenever I get a new magazine. I know that sounds odd, but when else would I have time to sit and read Real Simple uninterrupted from cover to cover? Well, I suppose I could cut back on the blogging, but let’s not get crazy here! Click here to read more tips for “Works For Me Wednesday”!

When I’m trying to be thrifty, I often escape to the bookstore one night a week when hubby gets home from work. Books, comfy chairs, and a Starbucks, what more could I need? I also like to get away to Target and walk every single aisle that my heart desires. It’s so nice to look at whatever I want, skip the toy department, and not have to hear “why do we always have to look at…?”. I’ve even learned to enjoy yard work and being outside. It’s quiet and often repetative work, so it’s a nice time to reflect. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE my kids and my family, but I love them even more when I’ve had some time to myself!

I’m back and ready to organize this week! Here’s an update:

• My first client has been maintaining the work we did in her bedroom, and best of all, she’s made progress in other areas of her house. Yeah!! I’ll post before & after pictures of her home as we finish each room.
• Savannah passed her test for her ice skating class! She’ll be starting the “Basic 3″ class sometime in March. She’s very fast going backwards!
• Phoebe learned to say “no” and to SCREAM when she’s angry…all in the same week. Lovely.
• I’m currently reading a book called Sidetracked Home Executives by Pam Young and Peggy Jones. It’s the book that inspired Flylady to do what she does. I borrowed it from the library, and I’m really enjoying it so far.
• While I was down last week with the migraines, I got inspired by a few of my favorite shows to work on some small projects. Two of my favorite TV shows right now are “neat” and “Mission: Organization”. They always have great ideas!
• This week I’m finally tackling my recipe disorganization!

I’ve been frustrated by my collection of recipes for a long time now. I have recipes ripped out of magazine, entire magazines with pages dog-eared, recipe cards, and of course, a collection of books that grows every year. They’re taking over my kitchen! I really love baking, but cooking is another story. I have a sweet tooth so that’s a big reason why baking is more enjoyable for me, but also, I have a 7 yr old so that makes cooking a lot more challenging. Kids are picky! Mine is anyway. As I try different recipes in my books I always note whether or not we all liked it, if it could have used some tweaking, whether it was worth the time to cook it, etc. There’s probably a dozen dinner recipes that all 4 of us really enjoy and that I try to cook on a regular rotating basis. I finally got the right idea on how to organize all of this mess on a blog called Forever Whenever. Thanks for the idea, Kim, and for permission to post it here Take a peak at her site to see more pictures and ideas.

The basic idea is just a 3-ring-binder with dividers to keep all your favorite recipes in one place. There’s also room for the take-out menus! Yeah! My goal is to be finished by Friday, but here’s where I’m at right now…

First I gathered all my loose recipe cards that were shoved into a drawer and all of my magazines.

Next I gathered up my new dividers, some cardstock from my scrapbooking stash, page protectors, a glue stick, and a Sharpie. I used the dividers for Menu, Dinners, Breakfast, Dessert, and Take Out. I may switch those up a bit later this week if it doesn’t work out quite right. Then I took my messy cards and glued them right onto the cardstock. Of course I remembered to keep like items together, like two chicken recipes on one page, not a casserole on one side and a cake on the other. I did all of this while catching up with my DVR. Isn’t multi-tasking great? After I finished my show, I wrapped everything up and put it away where I was. I slid my take-out menus and my ripped-out magazine recipes into page protectors and put them behind the appropriate divider.

This is another look at what I was able to accomplish in the time it took me to watch The Amazing Race last night. The pile of magazine scraps and cards is what I was able to get rid of with the use of my new binder.

Quick and easy! While I’m working on this project this week, I’m also going to purge through my cook books that I don’t really love or that I rarely use. I don’t need this taking up valuable real estate in my kitchen!