Nothing like a little organization to make a girl feel good

I have been trying to get more organized around the house and finishing up some projects in the process. The first thing I did was to make (long overdue) chore charts for the kids. We basically used the same set up in Alabama but there we used magnets on the fridge. I wanted our chore charts to look a little nicer this time around so I bought some frames and added metal sheeting. I bought little wooden circles and let the kids paint them whatever color they wanted. Then I wrote their chores on the front and added magnets to the back. A little vinyl lettering at the top and voila!.....new chore charts!

I also re-purposed our artwork display boards. They used to be really long and held 6 papers across but I didn't have that much space here so I just cut one of them in half and put one above the other. The top one holds a paper that they're proud of and I'm using the bottom one to keep all their important papers from school for the week (homework assignments, permission slip forms, etc.) This whole system has brought much needed order to our house!

Another big challenge for me has been packing lunches. Have I mentioned that I HATE packing lunches? If I were rich, I would definitely have my kids buy school lunches EVERY DAY. But that's not happenin' right now, if you know what I mean. So I finally figured out a way to make it easier for me. I made a "Menu" for the week that will stay the same. Monday is PB sandwiches (with jelly, honey, or raisins). Tuesday is Egg salad, Chicken salad, or Tuna salad (whichever one I make for that week). Wednesday is ham or turkey day. They can have it on a sandwich, in a wrap or as "lunchables". Thursday is PB sandwiches again. Friday is grilled cheese. Then we just add yogurt, fruit, veggies, and/or a cookie. I am also trying to pack lunches at night and the kids rotate being the "Lunch Helper" (it's one of their chores) and they basically just help me get it all together. It's working beautifully so far. Last night as I was preparing dinner Kyler was bored so he went ahead and packed all the lunches all by himself. LOVE that boy! :) He thought maybe in a few weeks that everyone should just pack their own lunch. Our current system seems to be working for now but I told him that we could definitely re-evaluate in a month or so.

I finally got our new FHE board finished.....well, almost finished. I still need to add the nails and make some cute name cards to hang on the pegs. I really like how Sharon made hers but I haven't decided if I'm going to use a picture or just the name on mine.

Here is my beautiful red wall that Kelly painted for me! I am working on getting 3 pictures of the kids printed to go in those frames to hang above the mantel. Kelly wants to hang them on the wall. I originally wanted to just lean them on the mantel but I think they will look better a little higher on the wall so the top of the frames aren't at the same level as the top of the windows like they are now. For my birthday Kelly got me this Believe thing-a-ma-bob that I fell in love with at an art store weeks ago and I like it on the mantel. What else should I put on the mantel?

Look what else we got last week!FINALLY I have a piano again. Happy, happy. The plan is for me to teach the kids to play (well at least get them started until we can find a real teacher). Not sure when exactly we're going to fit that into our schedules but I am hopeful that we can. Kierstyn is especially interested so I may just start with her. Anybody have a suggestion as to what program to use to teach them?

And back to food....I have been planning my meals one week at a time and it has worked well. That way I can see what we have going on each night and also based on my work schedule and just plan accordingly. Any more than that is just too overwhelming for me at the moment.

I welcome your tips and ideas on how you manage to keep things flowing at your house. Come on, leave me a comment and teach me something new! If it actually works for me I'll be your friend for life!!!!