My Ideal Weekly Schedule

Ta Da!

My newest printable is "My Ideal Weekly Schedule"!  The schedule written on the Printable as an example is not my personal schedule.  However, I really think it conveys a really healthy, happy schedule for a family.  Plenty of family time, plenty of mommy time, and plenty of time to get everything else done.  What is your ideal schedule?

My Schedule

All I can say is that I cannot wait to be able to credibly fill out an ideal weekly schedule.  Since I recently moved from the states to Italy, a schedule . . . a routine has been hard to come by.  Currently, I am living in a basic hotel and we've been here for a month!  And we still have a month to go before we will be able to get settled.  While our circumstances might make it hard to write out an "Ideal Schedule,"I attempted to fill one out a week ago.  I realized that by writing a makeshift schedule (even making up activities to make life seem routine) I was able to find routine and get closer to my ideal.  Basically, having an ideal schedule is a great step towards knowing what we want out of our time.

 Day In My Life

Here's a snippet of my Ideal Schedule:

Monday
Read Bible
Breakfast
Dishes
Laundry Mat
Walk
Laundry Mat
Lunch
Work on Printables
Prepare Dinner
Dinner
Dishes
Relax

Week At a Glance

My personal Week At a Glance looks radically different than my Ideal Week.  For one thing, my son started swimming lessons at 9 a.m. three days a week.  Also, since I live in such small quarters the refrigerator is miniature.  I do not attempt seven days of prepared meals.  We go out more than a couple nights a week.  However, we really do some of the things that make a schedule seem regular.  The ideal exists and routine exists, even if it changes.

Have you ever written out your ideal schedule?

Remember the Home Organization Printable Giveway Ends Friday Night at Midnight, so be sure to get in on the fun before then!

What is a Printable?

A Printable

Definition:  Able to be printed

Momma Definition:  An amazing PDF resource from the computer that will print to make endless amounts of sheets for organizing

Printables In Your Home

How can printables work for you in your home?  A printable . . . a designed PDF . . . can be used for so many things throughout the home and even with our kids!  You can look for a printable to help you clean the house; for instance, a kitchen cleaning checklist will remind you of all the little spaces that you might otherwise forget to clean.  You can look for a printable for your kids to have a specific activity like drawing a chimpanzee or spelling out their ABCs.  You can look for a honey do list that will remind your honey what he needs to do AND you can print it out for updates again and again.

Better than a Sheet of Notebook Paper?

A good printable can have so many benefits over a white sheet of notebook paper.  I mean why do we go to the store and buy a fancy to do list?  We want to have a specific place to write down our lists and we are more inspired to be organized when we have these resources.  Therefore, a printable is completely better than a sheet of notebook paper, because not only do these amazing resources rev up your inspiration, they are able to be printed over and over again.

Suppose your typical week at a glance calendar costs you $12 for a complete book of weeks.  With printables, you buy a week at a glance printable . . . for only $3 at most Etsy Shops.  Or for that matter buy a set of printables and save even more.  Also, you cannot lose this resource (unless you are really bad at saving files where you can find them).  Personally, I buy a calendar or to do pad, then lose it in a week and find myself buying another.  Printable PDFs are in the computer at your endless demand.  Print!  Print!  Print!

The Gamut

Here are some ideas to aid your search for Printable PDF files across the internet:

Calendars

To Do Lists

Daily Agendas

Chore Charts

Schedules

Coloring Sheets

Cleaning Checklists

Address Book

Recipe Cards

And More!

Where to Find

Etsy (of course, I would love you to visit my shop . . . www.designinglife.etsy.com)
Mamma Blogs
Pinterest
Google Product Search

Good luck on your search to find good and useful printables! 
May your days of planning be shortened and your days of fun be grand!

Please check out my ongoing GIVEAWAY ongoing on yesterday's blog post!

Home Organization Printable Giveaway / Contest

 

The day has arrived!!!!

That's not to say I'm excited or anything, because who would ever be excited about giving things away?  . . . okay, I'm so excited!!!!  I truly think that you will be just as excited when you realize what is happening today.  Today is the day that my Etsy Shop Designing Life has its super duper Rafflecopter Giveaway!

The prize?  One lucky winner will get a Home Organization PDF Printable Package consisting of over $75 worth of printables

Thus you should be excited, very excited.  Here is a listing of the printables that are included in the prize package:





A custom Household Binder cover and spine insert

Daily Agenda Sheet

Week At A Glance Sheet

To Do List - Must, Should, Want

Undated Monthly Calendar

Yearly Calendar

Mamma Daddy Do List

My Password Log

My DVD/Blu-Ray Log

My CD Log

My Game Log

My Library Book Log

My Lending Log

Weekly Menu Calendar

Recipe Journal Sheets
Recipe Card Printable

Fitness Focus Sheet

Daily Calorie Counting

Weight and Calorie Calendar

House Projects Checklist

House Maintenance Checklist

Kitchen Cleaning Checklist

Bedroom Cleaning Checklist

Bathroom Shopping List

Bathroom Cleaning Checklist

Home Inventory

Donation Inventory Sheet

Children’s Daily Schedule Sheet

Children's Bedroom Cleanup

Summer Schedule

Class Contact List

Children's Privilege Ladder

My Address List

Computer Time Organizer

Personal Goal Planning Worksheets

Contest Details:

The giveaway/contest will be run through Rafflecopter, so follow the instructions below to enter.  The contest starts Tuesday morning, July 31^st, 2012 and will continue through Friday, August 3^rd, 2012 at Midnight.  The winner will be announced Saturday morning, August 4^th, 2012.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Home Organization Notebook: Use it or Lose it?

Trend or Lasting?

Whether you have heard about home organization notebooks from Pinterest or from your favorite organization blog, you may wonder whether they are just a fad or something you may really want to pursue compiling. While it may be a passing fad for the "try everything" mother who will try anything to have some sense of control and organization in her otherwise hectic and busy schedules and life, but for the mom who can commit, it's gold. Many mothers are buckling down and making their schedules rather than letting their schedules rule them. For the mothers and housewives who desire to plan ahead, keep the craziness to a minimum, and focus their efforts, the household management binders are no joke, no trend, and definitely no fad. They are a tool to making their lives "designed" and purposed by intention . . . rather than just floating wherever life may lead for the moment.

Here are some questions to help you decide whether a Home Organization Notebook is right for you and your family:

Do you have one or more kids whose schedules often conflict with your own?

Do you have no plan for house cleaning and home maintenance?

Do you frequently loose your calendars, to do lists, and address books?

Do you thrive on organization and having things all put together?

Are you inspired just by having a plan and a prospect?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you and your household may really benefit from putting together a Home Organization Notebook.

Starting Out

Many Home Organization Notebooks include sections such as time management (calendars and schedules), home cleaning and maintenance, children (schedules, privilege charts, babysitters notes, school information, etc.), meal planning, fitness and diet planning, address books, and more!  While utilizing every home management resource might be a little overwhelming, choosing an area to start in can be very beneficial.  If you have no cleaning plan for your home, start there.  If your children's schedules and attitudes rule the roost, then begin to plan ahead using home organization printables for bedroom cleaning, schedule planning, and privilege management.  Start where you are at and keep going!

Benefits

Mothers who are successful in using a home organization notebook have more time for what they deem important.  They PLAN AHEAD.  Do they get everything done?  No, it doesn't make a soul perfect!  However, their houses will be cleaned more often and more methodically, their children are more likely to have an idea of their schedule and how their schedule affects the rest of the family, and they know when things have to happen . . . such as vehicle maintenance, termite inspections, etc.  Thus the benefits are endless.

- What to buy -

• A 3-Ring Binder - pick your size
• A set or two of dividers
• A package of sheet protectors
• Printables
• Design your own
• Buy them online:  Try http://www.designinglife.etsy.com/ (of course, I'm just a little partial)
• Some sites offer free printables to frequent readers

Whether you decide to go for it or decide that a home organization notebook is not your cup of tea.  Just remember that you can design your life!