the chore chart

In the last couple of months I have realized that it is very helpful for me to have a check-list for the chores I want to  need to get done each week/month.  I am a visual person so being able to see what I need to get done for the day helps me to stay on track.  Plus I have momma brain and can't remember anything now unless I write it down!!

Remember a few months ago I introduced you to The Project Girl and all the fun charts you can download from her site for free?  Recently I decided to try out her weekly chore chart for myself.  

 {image source}

I use this chart soley for household chores that I want to get done each week.  There is a space at the bottom where I list things I want to tackle monthly or as needed.


I do the bulk of my cleaning on Thursdays when Noah is at pre-school and Grammy is napping but I do a few chores most other days too.  Luckily for the most part the boys take a nap in the afternoon at the same time giving me a few hours each day to get stuff done.


You will notice there are a few days I don't do very many or any chores at all.  Everyone needs a break sometime right?  On those days I just lay on the couch and do absolutely nothing.  ha!!  Not really.  Those days we spend doing fun things with our friends or daddy-o.


Just in case you are interested, here is a break down of what my daily chore list looks like.  For the record, I know I am a complete dork.


::Sunday::
balance ck book
pay bills
fill out weekly chore chart
sweep kitchen/dining room


::Monday::
menu plan/grocery list
vacuum playroom/l. room {our only carpeted rooms}
water plants
laundry {darks}


::Tuesday::
grocery shop
wash sheets
wash kitchen towels
sweep kitchen/dining room


::Wednesday::
gather and sort laundry for Thurs.


::Thursday::
sweep and mop kitchen/dining room
sweep all other rooms with hardwoods
mop bedrooms, baths, hallway {every other week}
laundry {whites and darks}
wash towels/rugs
clean bathrooms
dust
take out trash/recycling


::Friday::
eat bon bon's


::Saturday::
stare at the wall


::As Needed or Monthly::
clean and polish stainless steel appliances
clean and organize fridge/freezer
sweep/mop sunroom
clean washing machine
clean make-up brushes
vacuum car
wash quilts
clean indoor and outdoor trash cans
organize closets
rotate kids toys


Do you have a schedule o'chores as well?  Or do you just clean when the planets align and the mood strikes?  

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bills, mail and recycling. oh my.

As soon as January rolls around and the Christmas decor is put away I start feeling the need to organize and clean.  I have been purging clothes, toys, and everything else in my path at an alarming rate.  Does anyone else do this?  Tell me it's normal!?!  I fell like I have been organizing and re-organizing anything that will stand still.

One thing I started doing last year to stay better organized was to create a little "system" if you will for our mail and recycling.  If it is warm outside, then as soon as I get the mail I will open it.  I then take all the envelopes and anything else that can be recycled and immediately put it into our outdoor recycling bins.  If it is cool ouside {like right now!!} then I will hurry inside after getting the mail and place the paper that can be recycled into a plastic bin I keep on top of our washing machine.  I got this bin at Ikea and we use it specifically for recycling.  Every few days when the bin is full I take it outside and empty it into our outside recycling bin.   Our laundry area is in one corner of our kitchen and it used to bug me to see recycling sitting hapharzardly all over our washer and dryer.  I don't do clutter.

Now onto what I do with the rest of the mail.  Boy is this ever an exciting post!! ha!!

 I take all of our bills over to our one multi-purpose {junk drawer} and place them in a little basket I have inside the drawer.  In this basket I also keep a highlighter and some pens I use to balance our checkbook with.  I also keep my handy dandy grahphing calculator that I have had since eighth grade.  And then I shut the drawer and the bills magically pay themselves.  whew, that was hard work.

No, actually I make sure the bills get paid.  And it's a job that I actually enjoy.  Us accounting people are dorky like that!  Every Sunday night after the rugrats are in bed I get out my basket, you know the one I mentioned earlier with the bills and pens and stuff.  I take out the bills and seperate the bill part from the remmittance form.  I place the bill portions in one stack to be filed away a little later.  We pay all of our bills online so I then I take the remittance portion of the bill and set up those bills to be paid.  I then balance our checkbook, write any checks I might need to write for the week, and place my calculator, pens, and the remittance forms back in the basket.  I keep the remittance forms in there each week until the bill has cleared our checking account and then I shred them.  This helps me make keep track of what bills will be due soon and what bills have already been paid. When all of that fun stuff is done I file away the bill portions for the week and stick my paperwork to be shredded into a shred file.

Is anyone still reading this post?  Have you fallen asleep from boredom?  Wake up people!!

I used to only balance our checkbook a few times a month but then last year I started paying all of our bills online instead of mailing a check to each company.  I know, it took me a while to feel comfortable doing that but now I am so glad we pay everything online.  I like to keep track of our finances weekly just so I can keep an eye on everything.  I think it holds us more accountable to keep goals, such as trying to build up our savings or if there is something we are trying to save for specifically.  Like right now we are saving for a new roof.  Boring!!

You must all be thinking I am a complete dork right about now for sharing all of this with you.  Please don't you all start unsubscribing from my blog over this one post!!  :)  The only reason that I shared all of this with you is that I think it's fun to see how other people stay organized and what tatics they use to do so.

So go on and share.  Do you have any little "systems" that help you stay organized at your house?

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the project girl

over the weekend i was looking around the internet for a cute and simple chore chart for my toddler.  in the process i stumbled upon a wonderful little site called the project girl.  she has several fun downloads that will have you on your way to being organized in no time!

i am thinking of using this weekly chore chart for my son but you could also use it for your around the house chore chart {ie. cleaning}

i am all about meal planning these days so i was so excited to see that jennifer has two different meal planning forms you can download.

check out this fun project planner download.  it's perfect for any DIY-er who always has a list of projects going on.  you could even use it to plan for an up-coming holiday party.

the project girl also has a daily planner, a food journal, and a travel check list all waiting to be downloaded by you.  i'm wondering if she would create a moving "to-do"list for me?  we have an upcoming military move in the next year or so and i am already dreading everything i have to do to prepare for that.

i saved the best for last.  check out this a-mazing chicken wire board that the project girl made.

um, hello! i need this.  click here for the tutorial to make your own.

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It's starting....

Yeah, I guess you could say I have begun nesting. I just got done cleaning the inside of the washing machine. The rubber part on the inside of the front loaders can get kind of gunky every once and a while. I like to hit it with a little bit o bleach every few months and give it a good wash down. 

Besides wanting to clean a little more often lately I have also been on a major organizing kick. Cleaning out and tidying up drawers, cleaning out the car, wiping down the interior of the fridge and organizing files and receipts.

I have also been on more of a "domestic" kick in the past two weeks. I've been on the lookout for new recipes, cooking more, and just focusing on my role as homemaker. I am pretty sure most all of this counts as some form of nesting. I don't really remember nesting this early the last go round. Hopefully my nesting instinct lasts awhile because we've got four more months to go until baby g makes his arrival!

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Let me introduce myself-Take 9

I LOVE me a clean house. Who doesn't, right? In college when I lived by myself my place was pretty much spotless. That bit of info shouldn't really shock anyone. Keeping the house semi-clean and presentable doesn't really work out so well when you live with two boys. And not to mention two big stinky, encrusted in red mud, shedding year round doggies.

Something I like right on up there with the house being clean are things being in their place. Organization really does make me a bit more sane. Our house is not quite as organized (in some areas) as I would like. Some of our storage spaces aren't laid out that well and it makes organization of any kind a free for all. We're working on that slowly but for now we are working with what we've got. I'm sure once I reach the nesting stage of my pregnancy I will becoming an organizing freak. That's what happend the last go round. That's normal right?

All this being said, I don't actually like to clean really. There are definitely some areas in our house that probably get neglected cleaned less frequently than I like. Like the showers. I don't like cleaning showers/bathtubs all that much. I used to clean the whole house at once so that everything would be nice and pretty. But now that rarely happens. When do I have a few hours to kill when a little man is not at my feet? Pretty much never.

So I'm curious. Are you an organized and neat person or is your home messy and chaotic? Be honest now......

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