Organizing Recipes

This has been a VERY long time coming.

I am a SCRAP RECIPE hoarder. Definition?...  I collect scraps of paper (recipe cards on a good day, newspaper clippings, envelope scribblings) containing my favorite recipes. It's always been an organizational nightmare, but the more I cook (family of 7), the worse it gets. I'm finally turning over a new leaf...of paper, that is.

I put plastic sheet protectors in a binder. Printed out all the favorite recipes I've been posting on my blog. I sorted the recipes into categories that I find most helpful. (For me, that's things like: breakfast, bread, eggs, vegetarian, chicken, beef, etc...  I put soups in the beginning of each section that they fall under. So "chicken rice soup" would go under "chicken" with other main dish chicken recipes.) I'm now cutting/pasting all my frequently used recipes into the binder...ALL the scraps of paper.

I bought a "cast iron" cookbook holder from Target. It's pretty, very sturdy, and holds the binder quite nicely.

What can I say? I'm proud. :)

And relieved that I will never again have to search for a favorite recipe.

Assuming, of course, that I don't lose the binder. ;)

Kids, Homeschool, & Schedules

Since I began homeschooling NINE (gasp!) years ago, I've tried any number of different schedules. For many years we didn't need a schedule. But I've found that sometimes we need one for various reasons... Young siblings on the sidelines. A particular personality who craves order. (Sometimes that's ME!)

The last time I used a schedule, I wrote it and everyone else followed. This time I'm doing it a little different...and loving the results!  Here's what I did...

Gather supplies:

• pocket chart
• old business cards or small pieces of cardstock in 3 colors
• markers

As part of school today I had LilDude make labels indicating every half-hour. On orange cards I listed the parts of the school day that are landmarks: breakfast, lunch, and (sometimes) nap. On blue cards LilDude wrote down each of the things he does independently during the day. On green cards he posted things that he needs my help with during the day. Then, in the bottom right of each card we listed how much time (in 15 minute increments) each job takes.

He then placed all the time cards in the pocket chart, followed by the orange cards. It was then his job to make the schedule for our day, using the blue and green cards. I really didn't care what order he put them in (which gave him a lot of control!) as long as all the jobs made it on the chart. I did suggest that he put the "school" type cards before lunch as much as possible. I also explained that during the blue card (independent work) time that I would be doing household jobs.

As he finished each job, he turned the card over so I knew it was complete. This worked great! He does well on a schedule, but especially if it's a schedule that he has some control over. The fact that he has to think through what he must do each day and analyze just how much time it will take to get it done is an incredible life skill. He'll do this each morning so that the day's schedule is fresh in his mind.

New Uses for Train Table

I've sometimes regretted buying a train table. It takes a lot of space. Becomes a collection space. Gets dusty. And monotonous.

We bought ours when LilDude broke his arm when he was three. His cast made it hard to play on the floor, so a raised toy surface was ideal. But since then, it's only seen scattered use.

In the midst of "New Year, No Stuff" (which has largely turned into an organization project) I came up with a plan. I want to rotate toys in our play/school area. So each week, I'm clearing the table and bringing in something different...something that both the younger boys can play with together.

This week I got out Playmobile, Noah's Ark and the barn. Despite the fact that these toys have been accessible for, say, THE LAST FIVE YEARS or so, they were played with more in the past five days than they've been played with since we bought them. I love the fact that the table "contains" the play. No one has to pick up the floor. And, since the focus changes each week, I hope to prevent it from becoming a dumping ground.

I've been thinking about what to rotate. I'd love suggestions. Here's what I've got so far:

• Legos
• Playmobile
  
• blocks with plastic animals (to make a zoo)
• Fisher Price Little People sets (the "old" kind...which means I'm old???)
• dinosaurs (thought we'd get out the dinosaur books and tapes that week)
• trains! (LOL)
• cars w/ a plastic mat showing roads
• Lincoln Logs
• puzzles/games/math manipulatives

That's two months worth.  Sheesh. And I'm buying stuff for Christmas???

Halloween Candy Alternatives! (NYNS #4)

While I'm thrilled to declutter, I'm not happy to add to the landfill. So, as I yell and scream and try to unjam my junk drawer clean, I'm looking for new ways to make use of our stuff.

This morning, as I emptied my "junk drawer" (got one of those?), a thought occurred to me. Halloween is coming. Although I'm not so miserly(?), smart(?) that I neglect to buy candy, I'm also not all that thrilled about handing out so much CORN SYRUP. I admire our neighbor. Instead of loads of candy, she makes "goody bags" consisting of crayons, coloring books, and other consumables. So what does that have to do with me?

Well, in the process of cleaning, I kept running across decorative erasers. Lots of 'em. In new condition. Then, while cleaning out another cabinet, I discovered my 19-year-old's abandoned pencil collection. Also new. I even found one pencil with the $3 Disneyland price tag still attached.

So....

If you come to my house for Halloween this year, there will be three baskets: candy, erasers, and pencils.

But then I started thinking... What if those of us with a bazillion McD's toys provided a basket of those on Halloween? (Although we no longer subject ourselves to UnH*ppy Food, I found an unopened toy when I was cleaning out a cupboard. Once you get one in the house, they mutate.) I've got an entire baggie of little bouncy balls. What do you have in abundance? And, even better, what can you pass on to someone else to enjoy...all while saving stuff from the landfill?

From now 'til Halloween, I'm lookin'!!!!!

One gal's junk is her next door neighbor's kid's treasure.

Start with the WORST! Organize Counter/Toys (NYNS #3)

I decided to start with one of the worst-offending junk-heaps in my home...the counter. I don't know if every home has one of these, but it's the place where everyone deposits either:

1. stuff that they're taking with them the next day: wallets, purses, sunglasses, coupons, store items to return, etc.

2. things that need to be repaired

3. misc stuff that needs to be put away


In our case, the counter has cabinets beneath that held little-used china. I moved the china and replaced it with dedicated bins. I hope to retrain the fam. "Hope" being the key word. (I've emptied this surface repeatedly, only to have someone cover it with junk again. Hopefully, the new storage area RIGHT BENEATH will eliminate the problem.)


I also went on to tackle the toy bins. (Remember...worst first...cause it makes you feel good, is obvious, and shows quick progress!) Bins are awesome...but only when they store things the kids actually use; I eliminated close to half. (You're seeing the before picture...in the "after" picture, several bins are empty.) If your kids are like mine, they spend about 90% of their time playing with about 20% of their toys. If it's out and hasn't been utilized recently, it's GONE.

Bathtub Toy Basket (Homemade!)

My friend, Lisa, is a genius at organization.

I, on the other hand, am pathetic. But good at stealing, coveting, admiring other people's ideas.

When I saw her bathtub toy basket, I had to have one. Our bathtub toys, kept in a mesh bag, usually look like they just slimed up from some bog in the deepest of ancient forests. Seriously gross.

I thought I'd have to hand over a wad and buy one at some fancy organizational store. Imagine my surprise when I found out I had to MAKE MY OWN!

Here are her instructions:

You go to a dollar store and choose a basket (with a lip.) Then buy 2, heavy duty, suction cups. Take a medium sized nail and a hammer and punch a half-dozen or so holes in the bottom of the basket. (It's best to do this when you get home -- they frown upon it at the $Store ;-) Also, this could be an opportunity for a husband to break out a power drill!) Use your common sense for the location of the holes after first trying the basket out on the tub wall.

She advised I buy the suction cups at a hardware store. So I went on a major shopping spree and spent $2.18...$1 for the basket and $0.59/each for suction cups.

My only problem? Getting it to stick. Apparently, her brand new tub accepts suction cups better than my grimy, slime-covered 35+ year old tub. I had to scrub off 35 years of soap scum before mine would stick.