*I meant to have a great “welcome 2013!” post this morning, but time got away from me.  And one of my goals for this year is not to stress too much when things aren’t going exactly to plan.  So I made a new plan Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view. This post is from my other blog, So You Think You’re Crafty, from a few years ago that I think you might enjoy.  It’s  been a system I’ve been using for years and I love it.  Sorry for the 2011 date on it.  I’ve updated my binder(everything is basically the same except the date), but not any of the pictures Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view. *

So I’m sure a lot of you get the itch around January to re-organize and get your life back in order like I do.  My problem is that right around October, my motivation seems to go right out the window and all our daily routines go to pot. I’ve tried a lot of things in the past, but this one has helped me out the most.

It’s my “House Happenings” book.  I got the idea from my wonderful friend Sarah.  She is perfect.  Like 100% without flaw.  I’m not kidding.  A few years ago, when I asked her how her house always looks so nice and how she still has time for everything else, she shared her secret.  She pulled out a plain old 3 ring binder and forever changed my life.  When I put mine together I changed a few things to fit my family and our home a little better(and I tweak it every year), but the key point is the same…maintenance.

Image may be NSFW.
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Spend 15 minutes a day focusing your cleaning on one major room/area of your house with a last minute “attack of the hot spots” (areas that seem to breed disorder & clutter) right before bed, as well as one day a week to different “chores” you have to do.  That way you spread your weekend load throughout the week and just maintain it as you go.  I’m not saying my house is now spotless and ordered all the time(I do have a 4 yr old) and that every little thing gets done, but it’s a heck of a lot better.

Here is what’s inside my book.

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I have it split up into 9 categories –  Routines, Calendars, Menus & Recipes (for the upcoming week), Church Info, Missy’s Notes, Abbi’s Notes, Brad’s Notes, Budget, & Goals.

Under “Routines” I have a morning and evening checklist…

Image may be NSFW.
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and a daily checklist.  It has a daily “chore” or theme that the day focuses around (Monday is the wash day, Tuesday meal planing, Errands on Wednesday, Thursday is paperwork and letter/thank you note writing, Friday is for any needed home projects, Saturday is a family fun day, and a day to relax on Sunday).

Image may be NSFW.
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I also have a checklist of what to focus on for each of the 15 minute cleans under this section. It may take more time than the 15 minutes at first, but once you get it to where you want it the maintenance is easy.

Image may be NSFW.
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The other sections are all pretty much self explanatory.  It’s a fantastic way to keep everything together so anyone in the family can be on the same page.

Do any of you have a system your family uses to stay on track?