Time Management Notepad

Wow.  Christmas is in less than a week!  Are you ready?  I'm not.  No matter how hard I try to avoid scrambling during the last week of December, I'm always scrambling during the last week of December.  Oh well.  I guess it wouldn't be Christmas without a bit of that "harried/stressed gotta find a way to fit everything in" feeling.  :)  Because this has been an especially busy December for us with added new house meetings I have had to work really hard to stay organized and on top of things.  Usually I use my time management binder each day to help me organize my life.  (Time management binder post here.)  

I still love my binder.  It is where I completely DUMP my brain each day.  But once the month of December hit I could tell I needed to simplify things.  So I made a drastic change.  My Time Management Binder became My Time Management Notepad.  Ok.  Maybe not so drastic after all.  :)  But I've been surprised at how much better this notepad has served my needs this month.  

I don't have time for any of the "extra" stuff right now (home projects, scrapbooking, etc.) so I kept things simple by buying a 5 subject notepad and dividing it into the four main areas I need to focus on each day.

I placed my favorite Martha Stewart home office dividers on each of the notepad folders...

and labeled them TO-DO's, NEW HOUSE, BLOG, CHRISTMAS.  Obviously these tabs would be different for everyone, but the idea is to break your to-do's down into 3 or 4 basic categories.  What I like about the notepad vs. the binder is that #1 - there aren't as many categories (like I said, I needed to simplify)  #2 - there is more paper and with the spiral binding it's easier to use to take notes.  I am taking a lot of notes these days.  Like the binder, there is a pocket folder for each section to hold loose papers.  

Here is how I've organized the Christmas section of my notepad this year.  And yes, I realize that while my notepad has helped me organize for Christmas, I wasn't organized enough to get this post done at the beginning of the month to help you!  (SO SORRY!)  I'm hoping this gives you some ideas for next December.  Never to early to start planning ahead.  :)

I used the pocket to hold random magazine clippings of toy ideas for the kids.  I've also used it to hold receipts.  I hang on to all of my Christmas shopping receipts so that if we need to do an exchange/return after the holiday we have the receipt ready to go.  It's nice to have them all in one place.

On the paper inside the Christmas section I've written LOTS of things:

- Friends to add to our Christmas card list this year and addresses that have changed.
- What I've bought for each of the kids and where I have it stashed.  Without this I would totally forget where I have things hidden.  I've had to get so creative because we are tight on space and my girls are SNEAKY.
- A list of extended family.  Gift ideas and what I've already bought each of them.  **You can see why I couldn't share these pages on my blog.  :)
- A list of friends/neighbors I am giving gifts to and what I'm giving each of them.  I check each person off after their gift has been delivered.
- Grocery list for Christmas Eve/Day dinner.  My mom is coming to our house this year for Christmas so we will have real meals!  YEA!
- Random Christmas to-do's including traditions/activities I want to for sure remember to do with my kids (make our Pretzel Hugs, visit Christmas Card Lane, etc.)

The Christmas section of this binder has been so helpful for me this month.  Each year after December I write down a list of things I want to do better/change for next year and I'll include that in this section too.  That way next year I can glance through my notes (hopefully early Fall) and get a jump start on a few things.  So that next year will be the year I don't have that "harried/stressed gotta find a way to fit everything in" feeling.  :)

The New House section has also been a huge help for me this month.  I keep random magazine clippings and notes that I need in the folder.  Plus I love having the notebook to take with me to the house.  It's so easy to use for jotting down notes.

These are a few things I've been working on this week.  See why my blog posting has slowed down a bit?  :)  Every day there are decisions that need to be made which always involve research and a lot of phone calls and e-mails.  Having it all in front of me in my notepad has really helped me stay on top of things.  Nothing makes me happier than pulling out a page of house notes and tossing it knowing those decisions are behind me!  I think this system would work great if you are doing any re-modeling or re-decorating too.

The BLOG section of my notebook is where I jot down ideas for blog posts and a sad attempt of a posting schedule that I never really follow.  :)  

The TO-DO section in the front of my notebook is for all of those random day to day things that come up.  It's my go to list each day to keep my schedule straight.  I try to only write down things I HAVE to get done that day.  There are so many things I'd love to do, but writing too many things down always overwhelms me and then I never get that satisfying feeling of checking everything off of my list.  One of my best time management tips if you are struggling to stay on top of your life is to determine what your priorities are and be ruthless about trimming unnecessary stuff.  I have had a hard lesson in that this year!  Along with that, only write down your must do's each day.  Be specific and realistic.  If you keep your list short you are more likely to actually accomplish it.  If there's extra time you can always do more.  Ok.  Maybe that was more than one time management tip.  You know how I feel about this topic.  :)

The only part of my binder that was lacking was my section to keep sticky notes for my "to-buy" lists.    

So I added them on the inside of the front cover of my notebook.  When I'm running to Target I grab the Target list and toss it in my purse.  My love affair with sticky notes lives on.

So as you can see, this is very similar to my binder.  I just took out the extra stuff that wasn't a priority and added things that are a priority in my life right now.  This would obviously look different for each of you, but the idea is the same.  Having a place to dump your brain and organize your thoughts makes a world of difference.

Now if I could just get my handy little notepad to wrap all of my Christmas presents for me....

:)

It's Fall

Still unpacking from our camping trip to Brian Head. Before we headed to the mountains I had a little time in Utah to hit a few of my favorite stores. Got some more scrapbook supplies (because I needed new paper flowers like I need a hole in the head). Also got lots of blue paper - can't wait to get going on Kole's book! (wonder if he'll care if his book is full of paper flowers?)

I also got a few new things to spruce up the house for Fall. I am SO excited for Fall this year. As soon as 2010 hit I just kept telling myself I needed to make it to Fall. By Fall I wouldn't be pregnant anymore. By Fall I wouldn't be dealing with a newborn. By Fall I would be past the trauma and recovery from my unexpected blood transfusion and hysterectomy. By Fall the girls would be in school and I'd have a few days with just Kole to run errands and get caught up. Just needed to make it to Fall.

Last night was the first Charger game of the season. The sounds of the crowds cheering on the TV and seeing Kenny on his feet all stressed out and excited confirmed it. Fall is here. And life is wonderful again. Not perfect (Addison threw a fit at the grocery store today that seriously topped them all), but wonderful. I feel like myself and I have been craving feeling like myself for a long time now. So last night while the kids were peacefully sleeping and Kenny was cheering on the Chargers I lit my Pumpkin Spice candle and pulled out my trusty little to-do notebook.

{Each night (usually after I blog) I pull out my to-do notebook and write a list for the next day. Kenny is constantly teasing me about my "to-do list." He'll say "what's on the list for tomorrow babe? Let me guess. Meet friends at park. Get pedicure. Meet friends at mall. Organize drawer. Meet friends for dinner. Do a blog post. Scrapbook. Meet friends at beach." I roll my eyes ... and then hide my list because while my days are nowhere near that much fun, there usually is at least one of those things written somewhere. :) }

Anyway, I pulled out my trusty little to-do notebook and made a to-do list for the Fall.

TO DO {Fall 2010}

- Keep pumpkin spice candle burning round the clock

- Switch from white summer purse to new hobo brown bag

- Go with Kenny to at least one Charger game (humor him. stand and cheer when the Chargers score. Curse the refs when they don't. Eat LOTS of nachos.)

- Crock pot something once a week

- Scrapbook last years pictures from the Pumpkin Patch and Halloween

- Change blog header from Summer to Fall

- Decorate the house for Fall

- Shop for a new Fall wardrobe (not just shoes this year!)

- Get Fall family pictures taken (check! did this last weekend before camping)

- Get Christmas cards going (check! my friend Ann and I hyperventilate if Christmas cards aren't in the works by September at the latest. Everyone thinks we're crazy. We're just glad we're crazy together.)

- Find kids' Halloween costumes. I am beyond excited to get a little something for my Kole. Baby costumes are the cutest. Fuzzy little animals, pea in the pod, doesn't matter what you put them in - ADORABLE.

- Help Kenny with our Fall Line Up (spread sheet of all of the shows we watch). I usually tease him about his intricate spread sheets, but not this one. This one is my favorite. It's carefully planned and executed. We take it very seriously. Need just the right amount of comedy vs. drama.

YUP. That list should keep me busy. And very very happy.

So glad it's Fall.

My new planner

K.  You all know my deep, undying love for planners.  I'm so obsessed with planners that I tend to switch them up often.  Always coming up with new systems to attempt to organize my time better. 

For years I used my Time Management Binder and it worked so well for me.  I still use the sticky note shopping list system!  So easy to grab a sticky note and head to the store.

Then building my house became all consuming so I switched to my Time Management Notepad because I needed more space for writing list after list of house to-do's.  I've since dropped the additional tabs for other things and have labeled the whole notebook NEW HOUSE since I don't have time for anything else anyway.  I've gone through about three of these babies to date.  Thank goodness the house is almost finished.  I seriously fear for our forests if my to-do lists don't cease at some point.  :) 

Since the notepad holds my new house lists, I needed a smaller planner to keep in my purse to calendar our every day stuff.  I bought the new Martha Stewart Planner because it's cute and matched my ever growing heap of Martha Stewart organizers...

but I didn't really feel like it met my needs for all I wanted it to hold without tweaking it and adding things to it which I just don't have time for right now.  So when I received an e-mail from the folks at Day Timer asking if I wanted to pick something from their site to review on my blog I said YES!  PLEASE!  Which is funny because my usual response to emails like that is thanks, but no thanks.  Bottom line is that I just can't resist a good planner.  And this is a good one!

I looked at everything they had on-line (so many fun organizing solutions) and chose the "Family Plus Solution Set."  It comes in two colors: blue and purple and much to El's dismay, I chose the blue.  I like the fun pop of color and how nicely it snaps shut.  It's small enough to fit in my purse, but big enough for me to have room to write.  

I also like all of the happy colored tabs.  

And the notepad in the back for additional notes.  Moms always have additional notes.  

Monthly calendar spread.  

And a section to the side of each month for goals.  I like that.  I always have a few things I try to work on each month.  Little things like drink more water, etc.  Plus I jot down goals I've set for the kids so I remember what I'm working on with them for the month.  (Yes - I set goals for the kids too - they love me for that.)  Example: El - master multiplication fact sheet in under two minutes.  Ad - finish all books on reading contract.  Kole - pronouns (speech therapy goal).  And Kenny - hang wet towels up after shower.  Kidding.  I don't write a goal for Kenny.  I just politely remind him.  Daily.  ;)

Here is the section that I am really loving and the reason I chose this planner.  

I love seeing the week laid out in front of me.  

It has a small section at the top for to-do's.  

Room to write down important appointments/activities for each day of the week.  

Or the weekend. 

And a big section in the middle where you can write the weeks' dinner menu.  LOVE this.  I am really trying to plan our dinners a week at a time because I don't have time to run to the grocery store as often as I used to.  Even if our meal for the evening is chicken nuggets and corn on the cob - writing it down and making sure I have everything ready a week at a time has been a big time saver for me lately.

This is my planner right now.  I recognize it looks ridiculous with everything blocked out so you can't read it.  I had no choice since I work for the CIA and my daily assignments (a.k.a missions) are top secret.  You can see how I am using the left side for appointments/activities and the right side for meal planning and notes.  I divide my notes into two sections (CIA agents do that) - a section for miscellaneous to-do's and one for house stuff that needs to be taken care of ASAP.  Anything house related that needs to be done but not right at this second goes into my notebook.  Which I appropriately refer to as "the motherload."

End of story is that I'm really loving my new planner!  It's a great solution for busy moms (and anyone else trying to save the world).  Plus you can get it for a great price.  You can check out the details (and other fun planners) at Day Timer.

Happy planning!  And happy Friday.  

:)

Getting Ready for Baby

One more quick post before I head to the hospital! This has been such a fun weekend and I am so excited for tomorrow! Here are some pics from the last week. I finally finished my "to organize before baby" list. My mom just asked why I'm posting pictures of my organized drawers right now. Well I'll tell you. They make me happy. Organizing them made me happy and seeing the finished product makes me happy. And I LOVE to see pictures of the way people organize on their blogs. My mom thinks I'm weird. Am I weird? Does anyone else get just giddy over this stuff? Well, regardless, here are some pics for the maybe two readers like me who like to see a little organization. :)

Girls' homework drawer

Spice cupboard (see Shari...I do have one. I have a feeling this cupboard will stay organized for a very long time...)

Miscellaneous cupboard. Cleaning supplies up high away from little hands.

On to my bathroom drawers! (Note to self: stop buying lip gloss)

I always keep a notebook in this drawer and I can't tell you how much I use it! When I'm upstairs and the girls say something funny I don't want to forget, when someone calls and I need to take a message, when I'm laying in bed at night and remember things I need to do the next day... it's a handy place to have it.

These drawers will all have to be re-done once Kole is on the move, but thankfully I've got awhile until then. :)

I switched out some pictures and artwork in the playroom and that finished my list!

Work was done just in time for the weekend. Saturday my parents arrived. YEA! Reinforcement is here! My girls were beyond excited to see grandma and grandpa.

It's always such a nice break for me when my parents are in town. The other night Kenny was putting Addison to bed, my mom was reading with Ellie, my dad was cleaning up dinner, and I was chillin' with my feet up. Not bad. Not bad at all.

Today my mom and I went shopping and bought a few things for the girls.

And a few more things for little Kole. Finally getting into the boy groove! Then we got pedicures and came home and I took a nap while my mom bathed the girls and fed them dinner. I could really get used to this whole pamper the pregnant lady thing.

Next we set up all of the baby gear and I did some laundry. Look at all of that blue! Something I'm not used to seeing in my washer. I packed for the hospital while my parents and Kenny put the girls to bed. Now we're all hanging out watching New Moon (per my request of course). It's been a great way to spend my last day before baby arrives. With my girls I was so nervous the night before, but this time around I'm just excited! Can't wait for tomorrow. Thank you so much for all of your sweet comments and well wishes on my last post. I was extremely touched by all of your support. I'm heading to the hospital tomorrow feeling very loved.

Off to get my Edward fix before the big day. Next post will be pics of Kole (not more organized drawers). :)

Organizing Inspiration/Ideas!

 I've had so much fun dreaming up ways to organize everything in my new home!  My Pinterest "organizing" board is just brimming with fabulous ideas that I can't wait to implement!  Here are a few of my organized spaces along with some "pinspiration" for my new home.  These are all great ideas that any of us can adapt to our homes to make life run a bit smoother.  And who doesn't want that?

As far as my current garage goes, I've figured out a system to keep shoes/coats in check.

I've even found a way to organize all of those pesky loose nails and screws.

But. I'm loving this ...

Source: monkeybarstorage.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

What a great way to store holiday decor and other miscellaneous items!  Plus those bikes!  Bikes take up so much room.  Hanging them like this is such a fabulous space saver.

My kids have a lot of bath toys so the best current solution for us is using clear bins that stay under the bathroom sink.

Source: bhg.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

But in my next house when Kole has his own bathroom, I want to copy this fun idea!  Hang a decorative bucket to hold bathroom supplies.  I think something like this would be perfect for a handful of bath toys!  You could hang it right by the tub.  Stylish and functional.

Currently I keep all of my cooking utensils corralled in a kitchen drawer.

Source: google.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

But I've always loved the look and and simplicity of keeping them close to the stove.  Especially when they are grouped with similar utensils in fun jars/pitchers on a tray.  Lovely, useful kitchen decor!

You all know I love an organized closet, but there's one thing that my closets are missing...

Source: tonyastaab.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

a bin to hold clothes that don't fit!  What a smart idea!  Clothes that are a bit big I will just leave hanging up, but I love the idea of having a set place in each closet for clothes that are too small that need to be passed on to another child or donated.  That way when your child puts something on in the morning and it you realize it's getting snug, you have a place to put it.  Every few months you can round up the "too small" items from each closet and head to Goodwill or give them to a friend.  Brilliant.

If you've read my time management binder post you know I'm a big fan of sticky notes.  Huge fan.  I use them every single day.  I love them.  I really do.  Here are a couple of similar ideas of ways to use sticky notes to stay organized. You know.  In case you are a fan too.

Source: jenhewett.blogspot.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

Keep your notebook/binder divided into two categories: things that are pressing (you need to do them immediately) and on the other side, things that can wait a week or two.  So easy to move the sticky's from one section to the other and then toss them when you've completed the task!  Love it.

Source: thewritestart.typepad.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

I also adore this idea of hanging days of the week tabs somewhere in a central location and then attaching a sticky note or piece of paper with your to-do list for the day.  Such a great way to see a week at a glance!  Is this making anyone else giddy!?  :)  Not yet?  Check out this idea:

Source: cornflowerbluestudio.blogspot.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

A rotating goal or to-do list with... you guessed it!... sticky notes!  Oh the JOY!  I am so in love with this idea too.  Don't be surprised if in my new house my scrapbook room/office is full of organized sticky notes!  I want to implement every one of these ideas!

I've also been thinking about how I will display my kids' art work in my next house.  Nothing makes me happier than a wall full of artwork from my little ones.

Aside from the kitchen, I also display art in our upstairs playroom.  These boards from Pottery Barn are fun, especially for big, colorful art projects, but I want to have a place in my next house that we can rotate the daily school work my kids bring home.

Source: cleanandscentsible.blogspot.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

This is a great idea I'm considering.  Using clipboards would make displaying and switching out school work a breeze!  A perfect way to hang that math quiz or spelling test.  I love that the clipboards make it easy to change the work weekly or even daily.  Moms know all about the insane amount of school work that comes home each day!  It would also be cool to have a clipboard for each child and he/she could decide what gets displayed and for how long.  Plus it would be a fun DIY project to spruce up the clipboards so that they coordinate with the room they are hanging in.  All sorts of ideas are popping up from this picture!

My girls' bows and headbands are currently stored on this ribbon in their bathroom.  It's working great except for one tiny problem...

These aren't even half of my girls' headbands.  Now one solution would be to get rid of some headbands and stop buying more.  But let's not be silly.  As long as me and Addison are around that's not going to happen.  :)  I'm hoping in my next house (which will thankfully have more storage space than my current one) I'll have room to keep all the headbands in a drawer in the girls' bathroom.  But if not, here's another great solution...

Source: thegainesgang4.blogspot.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

CLEVER.  This is just an oatmeal container decorated in fabric.  Such a creative way to organize headbands!  Plus it would just look cute sitting on the bathroom counter.

Currently Kenny and I each have an "inbox" where I keep all of our time sensitive papers that we need to deal with.  I keep them on this shelf in a closet under our stairs.  I love that our paper mess is out of sight.  I also hate that our paper mess is out of sight!  It makes it too easy to forget about!  Here is a fun idea to keep mail and important papers in the kitchen without looking too clutter-y...

Source: bhg.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

Paint the buckets or baskets to match the colors in your kitchen and now your papers are not only in sight, but you've also created a stylish addition to your decor!

Not long ago I shared my newly organized craft cupboard - love it!  It is working so well for us.  I'm also a fan of this system for organizing arts and crafts for kiddos...

Source: ohdeedoh.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

The nice thing about setting up something like this is that you are able to keep certain items (paint comes to mind!) up high out of little ones' hands until you can assist.  :)

Our star charts have been a fabulous way to keep behavior in check over the summer.  Once school starts, I'm going to change the goals.  They will include a lot of the same items on this fabulous back to school clipboard:

Source: the36thavenue.com via Erin @ Sunny Side Up on Pinterest

Things to complete after school!  Homework done, backpack/lunch ready for the next day, clothes laid out, bed on time.  Perfect!  What a great way to help kids be accountable for each day's school prep.

Well!  I'm in a good mood!  First of all, this post makes me SO happy.  I love finding new, fun ways to organize my home and life.  I'm also thrilled that our darling American girl gymnasts just won the gold!  Oh my word!  I started to cry!  I'm so proud of them.

** Sidenote:  They won right about the time I was typing about sticky note organization so my tears may have been tears of joy for more than one reason.  :)

Happy Organizing!