I've always been a person that writes everything down and makes lists all over the place. When the Daytimers were so popular, I had one. Actually I had many over the years. I even had a Daytimer that turned into a purse. Very high tech, it was. :)
Although I try to keep as much information as I can electronically through my computer, iPad or iPhone, I still am just a paper girl. I have a hard time having to look things up with buttons and screens instead of flipping through pages sometimes. I guess it's the same as reading Kindle books and holding an actual book. Just a bit of old-fashioned in me.
One of my Daytimer replacements would be my Home Management notebook. A day doesn't go by that I don't flip through it, write in it and read from it....several times.
On the outside I have posted a list I found on line that compares a Super Mom and an Abiding Mom. (I have it pinned if you want to have one yourself. It's good stuff!) I tend to strive for Super Mom, so having this posted on the outside of my binder is crucial to helping me keep my priorities and goals in order and focused on the heart of God.
**Groceries - a place to jot down my lists, usually categorized by stores and sometimes if I know my store well, my list will be arranged based on aisles in the stores (That's why I love Aldi so much - great prices and only 5 aisles.)
**Meal Planning - here is where I jot down the meals that I am going to cook for the month. I also try to include lists of ideas for breakfast and lunches or menus for those for the month also.
**Gifts - I am horrible about buying gifts early and then forgetting what I paid and that I actually have it. Here is where I write down what I've purchased (when I find it on clearance, of course), who it is for and what I paid for it. I also have lists of gift ideas for all family members and a chart of birthdays in order and purchases for those.
**To Do - this is just my general daily or weekly To Do list. Most of these items have been written out on Sunday night or in the evenings after I've already gone to bed but have to jump up and jot down something that I know I will forget in the morning. (Tell me I'm not the only one!)
**Schedules - this would be the sports schedules that the coaches have handed me, the library story hour calendar (Note to self - tomorrow is HAT day at library!), chore schedules for myself and the kids, etc.
**Budget & Spending - this section has our budget that My Man has printed out for me, plus notes that I have added to that as I try to separate the money that he gives me into categories for our monthly groceries, school needs, drug store, newspaper subscription, etc. Oftentimes I will include goals for myself on saving or good articles that I have read about budgeting.
**Health - I have a few printed charts with exercises on them from Pinterest, some herbal remedies and herbal recipes, charts I have collected with food portion sizes, calories, etc.
**Garden - Under this tab I have jotted down notes from our summer gardens like the best green beans to plant, when to prune the fruit trees and berries, plants that like to be planted next to each other, a list of the seeds we buy each year, how to get rid of certain garden pests, and inventory of the canned vegetables I have made.
**Family - I have notes I've taken from child training books or video series, training tips based on Scripture that I have copied from blogs, a list of chores that I pay my kids to do for extra money, movies that we haven't seen but would like to, and a list of ways to show love to My Man (that I asked him for a few years ago).
**Psalms - this last section is a list of Psalms categorized with sub sections of 5 weeks. I like to read these as I eat my lunch or when I need a quick re-focus in the middle of the day. Under each section of weeks, they are divided into days of the week. I used to be very regular in reading the Psalm over lunch each day. Most days though I use it on a "as needed" basis. I need to get back into that old routine.
I know everyone probably has their own way of keeping track of things to manage their home. I have tried many ways over the years but keeping a notebook with tabs seems to be the best that works for me. I don't usually need to lug it around with me as I can just take papers out as needed.
The most important thing is not HOW we keep ourselves organized as housewives but THAT we keep ourselves organized as housewives. Being organized keeps us efficient, more relaxed, more productive and in the end, more cheerful with more time to spend with our family and our God.
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