Household Organizational Binder

Number 47 on my Life List is "Organize my Life."  I always thought I was organized until I opened the "pantry" one day and a screwdriver fell out.  Now I'm just anxious! I found a new site that I LOVE. Organizedhome.com is going to help me organize my home and my life, and I couldn't be MORE excited! Cynthia, the editor of this site, is my idol and I am her stalker. I want to will be her.

My first step to organized perfection is the Household Notebook.  I started one of these a couple of years ago but never really finished it.  I put a few things in it but then forgot that I did so and just ended up "losing" them.

I started with a generic binder and Mod Podged paper to it.  Then, I stamped the front and added a ribbon.  This was all done at a class at Archivers a looooonnnng time ago.

My Binder

I also made larger dividers for each section.  The little stack of note paper in the front is great for quick reminders!  I made this by stamping individual sheets of 8½ x 5½ inch paper.

Inside of my binder

I divided my binder into six sections: Planning, Family, Home Management, Meals & Menus, Activities, and Contacts.

"Whatcha keepin' tabs on"

Each main section has subsections.  In Planning, I have: Weekly Planner, Weekly To-Do, Weekend To-Do, and Master To-Do.

Planning Section

Cynthia offers printable pages for each section.  I designed my own using her concept.

Weekly Planner

The Weekly To-Do List makes keeping up with housework so much easier!  Instead of wasting a Saturday afternoon cleaning the entire house, Mike and I spend 30 minutes a night cleaning a room designated to that day.

Weekly To-Do

Have a busy weekend?  Use this section to map out your plans!

Weekend To-Do List

The Master To-Do List will have things on it like... FIX THE FAMILY ROOM CEILING.  You know, things you want to get done eventually!

Master To-Do List

In the Family section, I have a divider for each person.  I have the girls' shot records in their section.  This is also a great place to keep track of sizes and wish list items!

Subsections under Family

 In the Family section I also keep a master birthday and anniversary list.

Birthdays and Anniversaries

I'm also going to create a tab for daycare.

In the Home Management section, I will have sections to keep a home inventory list, movie and book lists, home decorating ideas, party planning ideas, and tips & tricks.

Under the Meals & Menus section, I can plan our weekly menus! I can plan as far ahead as I want or just stick to the week-by-week schedule.

Weekly Dinner Menu Plan

I also included Favorite Recipes and Recipes To Try pages.  On these pages, I can list the recipe, where it is, and include comments such as, "Shannon loved it, Mike didn't, Jaden... forget about it!"

Favorite Recipes

Recipes to Try

In the Activities section, I have 3-hole-punched some flyers for upcoming craft shows I'm attending.  I keep these in order by date so when the show passes, I can just tear it out!

Activities

The Contacts section is where I keep addresses and phone numbers.  I have the Important Phone Numbers page first so it is easily accessible to anyone looking for it... like babysitters!

Important Phone Numbers

After that, I created Contact List pages.  Here is where any and everybody's addresses and phone numbers are kept!  I'm going to put little Christmas tree stickers next to people we send holiday cards to so I make sure to include the same people each year.

Contact List

In the very back is a page I made that holds business cards.

Business Card Holder

I think this will work out GREAT for my family!  This binder will serve as sort of a central command station in our house so we all know what is going on! 

I'm linking this idea to all of my linky parties listed here!

UPDATE: Printable pages are available in my Etsy store!!