NOTEBOOK

As promised earlier in Scheduling My Day series --I am sharing with those of you that asked my "Notebook" !

I have wanted to create a central notebook for quite sometime -- in hopes that it would help me become a little bit more organized with my home and time. I had read about many other mom's notebooks that they had created for their homes. I gleaned from them and took what I thought I would need for my own notebook.

Thus, here is what I came up with for my notebook.

The binder -- I think it is 3.5 inches? It was just one that I had leftover from something?? It has purple plastic liner on the outside and a pocket place to put a picture, etc. in the front or back.

The front cover is a poem called "Love in the Home". I love this poem because it redirects my heart attitude about what is most important for a home -- not necessarily the perfectly clean house, but rather a home of love. My perspective is to have a home of love.

LOVE IN THE HOME
If I live in a house with everything in its place, but not have love,
I am a housekeeper-- not a homemaker.
If I have time for waxing, polishing, and decorative achievements,
but not have love, my children learn cleanliness -- not godliness.

Love leaves the dust in search of a child's laugh,
Love smiles at the tiny fingerprints on a newly cleaned window,
Love wipes away tears before it wipes up the spilled milk,
Love picks up the child before it picks up the toys.
Love is present through the trials.
Love reprimands, reproves, and is responsive,
Love crawls with the baby, walks with the toddler, runs with the child,
then stands aside to let the youth walk into adulthood.
Love is the key that opens salvation's message to a child's heart

Before I became a mother I took glory in my house of perfection,
Now I glory in God's perfection of my child.
As a mother, there is much I must teach my child,
but the greatest of all is LOVE.

~Author Unknown~

INSIDE THE NOTEBOOK: I have colored folder dividers -- each labeled with a different categories. My categories are:

• TO-DO List
• Daily Routines
• Routines
• Cleaning
• Meal Planning
• Meals Ministry (I am in charge of organizing meals for church)
• Projects
• Blog

In the very front of the dividers I have a year calendar and my Goals List. I also have a zipped pocket to hold calculator, pens, pencils, etc.

Here is an idea of what is under each category:

TO-DO List:
- Master TO-DO list
- Daily TO-DO list
- Binder Paper to write notes

Daily Routines:
- Weekly Plan Chart
- A Daily place to write what needs to be done (for a week)

Routines:
- Morning Routine
- Evening Routine

Cleaning:
-- All my cleaning Routines/ Schedules
-- Recipes for Natural Cleaners

Meal Planning:
- Master Menu
- Forms: Planning, Freezer Inventory, Pantry Inventory, Shopping List
- Recipes

Meals Ministry:
- Forms for planning ministry
- Names, phone numbers, email addresses for those that volunteered to help bring meals

Projects
- List of Projects wanting to do/ working on/ etc.
- Declutter Calendar

Blog
- Notebook Paper to write ideas
- Other (storing items related to blog)

So, there you have a glance at my notebook that I created. So far, it seems to be working well...and I may add or take away a few things as I journey through it...but, like anything it is always a work in progress.

Do you have a notebook? If so, please share.