Kitchen Organizing

I tried to send this post with my cell phone, but it didn't work.  I will try to upload a photo later. 


The kids had Act 80 days Thursday and Friday, so I had to take off half days which was really nice.  Friday I actually stayed home as we got a blast of snow in the morning and I didn't want to take the chance of driving into work only to turn around 2 hours later and drive back home in snow.  I was able to get some things done around the house which was really nice.  Of course not as much as I wanted.  Like reading my Bible.  SO behind on that!!

But what I did do was to create a nice command station in my kitchen.  I had a nice little system with cute wire baskets to hold pens and scratch paper, but the baskets were small and didn't hold much. I hung my calendar and menu plan on the refrigerator since the baskets were too small to hold anything but a little mini noteboo.  While at Target last Sunday, I found a nice desk organizer on clearance for $3.98.  Once I post the picture you will see how perfect it is.  It has a spot to hold pens/pencils, a small tablet or items I need regularly, and a big compartment for file folders.  It doesn't take up much more space than what I had, but it is so much neater and I can put the kids papers in a folder instead of hanging on the side of the fridge.  Hopefully, this works and I don't forget to look in their folders.  I am still hanging the calendar and menu on the front of the fridge. It's just better for the whole family to be able to see it.  As long as I jot any important information on the calendar first, I should be ok!!

My Target Find!

I also created a coupon binder.  (Pics to follow).  I found an unused binder, some old diskette sheet holders, regular sheet protectors, and Post it tabs.  Previous to this binder, I just put the coupon inserts in a pile near my bed and leafed through them to see if I had any coupons before I went to the store.  Not exactly efficient.  I do have a nice coupon holder that I purchased online years ago from PricePlanner.  It's really nice, but it was kind of small and cumbersome. 

One of the kids old binders from school

So yesterday, I sat on the bed and cut up all the coupons.  Then I took that pile and sorted them according to categories.  Then I filed them away.  Many people use baseball card protectors, but I used what I found.  Plus I don't have that many as I do most of my shopping at Aldi's and Save A Lot.  I probably won't take this with me shopping so there is no need to find a coupon quickly.  I plan out my shopping before I leave and would rather gather my coupons before I head out.  It's not the most attractive binder, but it will work for me. 

Disk sheet protectors

I also added a front page for my grocery list.  I am keeping some copies in a folder on the counter top so that my family can grab one quickly to fill out if we decide to run to the store at the last minute.



Front page grocery list and current ads

After I completed my binder, I ran to the gas station and bought my papers.  How nice and easy it was to clip the coupons and file them away!  **Edit- I also added Money Saving Mom's list of household prices to my binder to help me compare deals in my area**

Small little things really do help make life a little easier!