For starters, I have a whole slug of 3 in. x 5 in. index cards . I started out with bright, colorful cards, but have resorted to a mixture now. My card box is a bright yellow so I can easily locate it if I set it down somewhere. Everything is written in pencil so I can erase as needed. The exception would be for some storage cards, which I will explain later. Tabs could also be in pen, as those don’t change.

Next, I have dividers. They are labeled:

• Daily
• Weekly
• Monthly
• January
• February
• March
• April
• May
• June
• July
• August
• September
• October
• November
• December
• Storage

Emilie Barnes recommends the following:

• Daily
• Weekly
• Monthly
• Quarterly
• Twice a year
• Annually

I prefer my way, because then I can nail down an exact month in which to assign items. If the items are quarterly, I make 4 cards. If the item is twice a year, I make 2 cards. I hope you are following me now

Now to explain what comes behind those headers on the cards….

Behind my daily tab, I have several cards that need to be done each day. Yours may vary. Mine are as follows:

• Consider dinner preparations: Pull out meat for thawing
• Make Bed, tidy bedroom
• Balance checkbook
• Have quiet time
• Take garbage out of each bathroom and put in new bags
• Wipe down sinks
• Sweep floors
• Laundry: Wash 4 loads, dry, fold, and put away
• Do school
• Dishes: Maintain
• Wipe down front of cupboards and appliances

I do not do all those tasks. Some are shared and some are assigned. They are in no particular order. Each day, I go through my cards and make sure each task has been accomplished. I have been doing it so long, though, that I know them by heart and are routine here. I do revisit the box no and again, though, to see if I should add or remove something.

Behind my weekly tab, I have a card labeled for each day of the week. The days of the week could be in pen since that doesn’t change. Mine are as follows, yous could be different.

• Sunday: Plan for next week, take a break
• Monday: Iron, mend, vacuum, water the live tree in the living room
• Tuesday: Mop floors, do bills
• Wednesday: Vacuum, bathe littles, yard work
• Thursday: Town day, get garbage cans out for garbage service
• Friday: Clean bathrooms, plan menu
• Saturday: Check over undone chores, bathe littles, vacuum

Behind my monthly tab, I have 4 cards, which are labeled

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4

On each of those cards, I have written tasks. Mine are as follows:

• Week 1: Clean all 3 upstairs hall closets (blankets & linens, towels, coats & shoes), yard patrol, clean garage
• Week 2: Clean out van, clean refrigerator
• Week 3: Change linens, clean pantry, watch kitchen walls
• Week 4: Follow up on things to be mailed, sorted, and filed, clean washroom, wash appliances thoroughly.

Here are the things I have behind each of my month tabs. I have a card for each task:

• January

1. Clean under refrigerator and stove

• February

1. Straighten drawers
2. Clear upstairs bookshelves, clean thoroughly and put back together

• March

1. Sort through clothing boxes and rotate clothes.
2. Clean the shed

• April

1. Wash windows, inside and out.
2. Defrost & clean garage refrigerator & freezers
3. Change smoke alarm batteries

• May

1. Put bacteria in toilet/septic

• June

1. Clear downstairs bookshelves, clean thoroughly and put back together. Rotate books.
2. Change furnace filter
3. Clean the shed

• July

1. Clean the dryer vent in back of dryer

• August

1. Rearrange some furniture or consider what might make my home warm and welcoming. Make changes as desired.
2. Clear upstairs bookshelves, clean thoroughly and put back together.

• September

1. Clean screens from windows for storage over winter.
2. Clean the shed

• November

1. Sort through clothing boxes and rotate clothing.
2. Change the smoke alarm batteries
3. Harvest/can/freeze
4. Put bacteria in toilet/septic

• December

1. Clean shed

I know… I have some duplicates often, but the idea is maintenance before it gets bad.

I am going to share about my storage tab another time, because it is a little involved and will probably take another post.

Post from: But First, We Have Coffee

My File Box

We recently added a new baby to the family and I can’t keep up with kids, homeschool and the house. I am about ready to throw in the towel and send the kids to public school.

A.

When I was about at your place, we realized some things needed to change. These are what helped us. Your mileage may vary.

• Changed homeschool curriculum so my time wasn’t spent, exhaustively, continually, helping. We switched from Bob Jones to SOS
• We incorporated MOTH scheduling into our lives. This is coming from someone who has never been a schedule person. I find it flexible.
• We evaluated what the kids were doing to carry a lot of the load and made sure that they were all being trained as per their level of ability for chores.
• We reevaluated to be sure us parents were diligent to discipline the children (mostly me!).
• We got rid of a lot of toys and clutter.
• We reevaluated what activities we were doing and how/where we were spending our time. We had been busy with a lot of activities and realized we needed to focus on being a family unit. Going out all the time caused a lot of stress involving clean clothes, chores being done, meals prepared, just everything.

I know there was more, but that is just what I could think of first. I hope you and your husband communicate a lot.

Oh… and another thing… this is really a short season in your life. Enjoy your children and hold those babies. You may also gain something from this post.

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Homeschooling: Throwing In The Towel?

Anything to help us be more thrifty and wise with our husband’s hard-earned money.

http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/half/

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Free Download, Cut Your Grocery Budget In Half

• Get 9 volt batteries
• Get water bottles.
• Refrigerate water bottles
• Check to see if the venue has power point.
• Invite friends if it is an open invitation
• Print the list of songs in order with notes
• Bar stool
• Clean music equipment
• Touch bases with my contact(s)
• Make sure the mens’ and boys’ shirts are picked up from the cleaners
• Drop off shirts at the cleaners after performance
• Make sure everyone fits in their vests
• Sew new vests, as needed.
• Pack skirts
• Pack tops
• Make sure the guys’ black jeans are black. Color as needed
• Pack vests
• Rent trailer
• Send posters to my contacts
• Check everyone’s shoes
• Purchase and pack extra guitar strings and picks
• Keyboard
• Drum kit
• Blankets to cushion instruments
• Guitars
• Guitar stands
• Microphone box
• Mic. stands
• Ear buds and head mics
• Hair brush
• A couple toys for Elle
• Tylenol
• Make sure everyone is bathed and socks picked out.
• Preplan and prepare dinner if there is no potluck after the event
• Clean out van
• Harmonicas & microphone
• Harmonica amp
• Guitar amps
• Recorder
• Music Rack (sound system)
• Extension cords
• Speakers
• Make sure littles have brushed teeth
• Cd’s
• Extra music cords
• Kapo
• Tuner

If you are interested in hearing some of our music, check us out at Electric Church. You may freely download and share the music. Lyrics are there, as well as the reason behind the writing of the songs on some. You may also ask for a free cd if you cannot save the songs.

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Electric Church Packing List

February

15th through the 21st
Sunday – Chili
Monday – Spaghetti
Tuesday -Potato bake with fried eggs
Wednesday – Nachos or burritos
Thursday – Cabbage soup
Friday – Home made pizza
Saturday – Krab bagels

22nd through the 28th
Sunday – Deer roast dinner
Monday – Spaghetti
Tuesday – Chili
Wednesday – Lasagna
Thursday – Home made pizza
Friday – Cabbage soup
Saturday – Leftovers

March

1st through the 7th
Sunday – Mashed potatoes with meat gravy
Monday – Chili
Tuesday – Spaghetti
Wednesday – Turkey quesadillas
Thursday – Nachos or burritos
Friday – Turkey soup
Saturday – Home made pizza

8th through the 14th
Sunday – Egg burritos
Monday – Leftovers
Tuesday – Chili
Wednesday – Cabbage Soup
Thursday – Pancakes
Friday – Enchiladas
Saturday (This is Pi Day!) – Turkey pot pie and several kinds of pie for dessert

Some of these meals may change or be swapped, if necessary.

Post from: But First, We Have Coffee

Menu For A Month

We consider what meats we have and other items that we purchase from our co-op.

We pick 2 weeks’ worth of meals based on the last couple items.

We consider what activities are going on and pencil in the meals.

I have a free program in which I have inserted all the prices of all the items we buy and from which stores, as well as the size. I did this by keeping receipts and putting the data into the program. I still have to check prices, as they fluctuate.

We go through each meal and write down what we need to purchase and how many, taking inventory in the pantry and freezer at the same time.

We jot down the cost of most of the items and determine if it fits in the budget. At that point, we may do some adjusting. I budget $3 for each breakfast and $9 for each dinner. We usually eat ramen or leftovers for lunch, or someone makes bread sticks. Lunch is negligible.

On my grocery list, I jot down a letter to signify which store to purchase the items at. This also helps me make our trip more expeditious. I will write a C for Costco, W for Walmart, A for Albertson’s and a M for Mr. Thrifty’s, our dent and nick store. I try to hit that store first, as it may have several of the items I need at lower costs. It is hit and miss, though, so best to go there first.

My grocery list includes paper products, diapers, and cleaning products.

I do not use store ads, as we do not get the paper.

I try to shop for a four week period.

Post from: But First, We Have Coffee

Making Our Grocery List

So, let’s not delay any further; here is this week’s menu:

• Sunday – Straugenoff with rolls (How do you spell straugenoff, anyway?)
• Monday – Chili with bread
• Tuesday -Lasagna and rolls
• Wednesday – Nachos (we make a large batch of chili and smash them for this meal
• Thursday – Roast dinner with carrots, mashed potatoes and rolls
• Friday – Burritos or enchiladas
• Saturday – Home Made Pizza

Have a great day as you serve your family!

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This Week’s Menu

• Sunday – Elk steaks & eggs
• Monday – Deer fingers and cubed potatoes
• Tuesday -Fried Ramen with green beans
• Wednesday – Nachos
• Thursday – Lasagna & rolls
• Friday – Split pea soup and bread
• Saturday – Home made pizza

Have a great day as you serve your family!

Post from: But First, We Have Coffee

This Week’s Menu

Last year, someone mentioned it to me, so I bought the half schedule to check it out, myself. I love the simplicity and thoroughness. It’s a keeper!

If you are interested, Click here to view more details. There are samples at the bottom of the page. You can even get one that includes a daily Bible reading.

Post from: But First, We Have Coffee

Motivated Moms Scheduler

Breakfast
Choice of the following:
Egg Muffin (English muffin, cheese, sausage, egg)
Egg casserole (shredded potato, bacon, egg, cheese)
Yogurt with granola

Lunch
Choice of the following:
Cup O Noodles
Meat sandwich
Cheese sticks and/or carrot sticks

Dinner
1. Steaks and scalloped potatoes
2. Stew and biscuits
3. Hot dogs and chips
4. Hamburgers
5. Deer backstraps and cubed potatoes

Snacks
Marshmallows
Cookies
Muffins
Cocoa
“Emergency rations” (candy)

We will prepare most of the items ahead of time so they can simply be heated. The exceptions would be steaks and backstraps.

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Hunting Camp Menu