Mini Tags

I got these super cute mini tags from Paper Creations by Deb on Etsy. I came up with a great tool for restocking my pads with it...

Here is how it works...
Each card is for one fabric and lists the pad sizes. When one sells I mark it with a clip. When sewing day comes around I have all the items marked that need to be sewn and relisted. Plus I can keep reusing them instead of trying to organize a pile of sticky note. Cool, huh?

Pattern Organizing

Just a quick pop in to share my new pattern organizer. It holds all of my printed and crafted patterns neatly and they are labeled for easy locating too.

Binder + plastic sheet holders + circle stickers = Awesome and compact organizer!

My Homemaker's Journal

I mentioned before that I made a homemaker's journal. It is the cornerstone of our house! It has been so much easier to keep track of everything. It has been a lot of trial and error to get to where we are now. I will break it down for you. Keep in mind that this is what is working for me. Your family is different than mine, so you might not use the same technique.
The main tool is my planner. On the monthly pages I record appointments and schedules and what our school theme for the week is. On the weekly pages I write up my checklist. One side is for household projects and the other is for Crazy Elephant projects. Here is how a typical week plays out:

Monday: Laundry, list/update (TCE), sewing, getting photos ready for the week (TCE)
Tuesday: Sweep/vacuum, food prep for the week, list/update, blog
Wednesday: Family day
Thursday: Bathrooms, list/update, blog
Friday: laundry, list/update
Saturday: general tidying up, clean/set up school room for next week, list/update, blog
Sunday: church

I don't write school on my check list, but I do have pages written up for each day of school too. They are in Jayne's school binders with each week's materials. I started writing up my planner pages for the month and I like it that way. I do it the same time I write up our menu and grocery list for the month. The planner and my TCE notebook (previous post) go in the homemaker's binder. The binder also has detailed cleaning instructions for different rooms in the house. We don't use them often, but they are great to have for when we do. There is an inventory sheet to use as a guideline for writing up the grocery list. It includes all the foods and non foods that we always want in the house. There is a yearly calendar for checking. It includes things such as spring cleaning in April and winterizing the house in September. It helps us to remember to do them. I also have my spring cleaning chart that I use for making my spring cleaning check list.

I also have a homemaker's journal folder in my Internet favorites and on my desktop. That way I know where to go for my homemaking sites and downloads. That would be for recipes, sewing instructions, cleaning tips, etc.

As far as keeping the house clean, start by determining your standards. Clean for us is tidy, but lived in. It is not immaculate by any means, but it is tidy. Jayne picks up all his toys every night. I do the dishes each day which includes wiping down all the kitchen surfaces. Laundry is 2- 3 loads per week. When we tidy up on Saturdays we usually pick a room that really needs it and focus on it. There is still lots of time to do school, cook, work, and do daycare. We are all working on not just leaving things where they are and putting them away when we are done with them, that goes a very long way in keeping things clean. I am not sure if I have missed anything, but I have run into school time. So, feel free to ask questions, I am an open book!

Getting Ready for Fall

I have been diligently preparing for school this fall. i have nearly 4 months prepared and ready to go. I currently have 2 binders going, but the first still needs 2 weeks inserted and is quite full. So, I may go for 4 binders as they are all laying around the house anyway. I have a sleeve for each of our 39 weeks. The first thing you see is the planner page for the week (courtesy of Homeschool Creations). Then I have any pages that are whole pages, like worksheets. At the back are all the cut out goodies. I also have a box for printed books/card sets that are too bigg to put in the sleeve. I really like having everything in one place. We have nearly all of Jayne's school supplies for the year too. How are you getting ready for school this fall?

Organize!

I have spent 2 days on this and I finally have it complete. I wanted to get The Crazy Elephant organized, and this is working awesome! It is super easy to make. All you need is a ruler, a notebook, and something to write with. I have a page for each kind of product I sell. Let me walk you through the sections...

Sold - This is where I can mark off sold items during shows. It makes it easier to make sure I don't have listings online that have already been sold. It will also give me a visual of what items sell best and what colors are most popular.

Item Description - This is where I describe the color or item in general.

Qty - This is where I put the amount that I actually have made, not how many I have supplies for or have cut out.

On Artfire - This is where I mark how many I currently have listed on Artfire.

On Etsy - This is where I put the amount I have listed on Etsy for that item.

To Be Listed - This is where I mark how many of that Item I need to list and where.

Everything in my chart is written in pencil so I can change it as I get the listings put in or make a sale. I can add new items as I make them and mark them off as they get listed. It is going to be so much easier to keep track of everything and I will be putting my notebook in the Crazy Elephant section of my Homemakers Journal, which I may be doing a separate post on.