Organized :)

Happy Tuesday! 
Most everyone that knows me knows how organized I like things to be.  I even go to the extreme of having my DVD's in alphabetical order.  Now I'm not so sure that there's some craziness to that.  Cause if there's a movie that you know you have and you are looking for it....it's in alphabetical order and will take no time to locate it.  If they weren't organized it could take forever to find that 1 movie that you are looking for. 
As long as I can remember I've made a weekly menu for my family.  So there are no questions asked as to what is for dinner.  You look at the menu and that's what we are having.  And plus....I only have to think once a week and not every single day.  There's no questions asked as to what's for dinner.  It's nothing fancy just something that stays on the front of the fridge that shows breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  It's a time saver.  Then I take that menu and use that to make my grocery list.  Which eliminates going back and forth to the store during the week cause you forgot something for dinner; or you forgot something for breakfast.  Go line by line from the menu and write EVERYTHING down that you will need to make those meals.  When I was doing my grocery shopping at WM I would go the extra mile while making my grocery list and write things aisle by aisle.  I knew exactly where everything was in the store (hints the almost 10 years working for WM)..  Yes...it's a little time consuming while making all these lists.  But I would write things down from the menu and other things I needed and then go from that list and then write them in order.  I still kinda do that with my HEB grocery shopping list but I have them in categories now; bakery, can goods, cold items, drinks...etc. etc.  The reasoning I do this is cause of fast shopping.  I can go in the store and be back out in my vehicle in 30 minutes...yeah I know that doesn't sound real does it?  But it's true.  Even with the kids with me it's a quick shopping experience cause they get involved.  My daughter helps me to not over spend too :)  She will remind me....Mom that's not on the list.  But trust me....it's a big huge time saver.

Friday evening after getting back from my 30 minute shopping experience I decided to go ahead and make my kids a list of what they need to do.  Every morning I'm always reminding them...did you make your bed?  Did you take your vitamins?  Is your backpack ready?  It's every morning we go thru this.  Since one of my kids can read and the other one can't I had to make it simple for them both to understand.  Which I think this will also help my son to read....that's my plan at least.  All the basic things that they need to do I have them on this chart.  I have them written out and beside that I have a picture of what that item it.  For example: if it's make your bed...I have a bed there.  I started out with these magnetic pages that you can get at WM (2 per pack) and they have the option to remove the paper and it be sticky.  So I cut out each item and placed them on these magnetic pages.  Cut them out and placed them on a dry erase board.  Took 2 round magnics and placed a label on the front of them....1 a "C" for Cheyenne and another one a "T" for Terran. 
I have one for the morning list:

And then another one for the afternoon list:

So as they do each item they will move down their initial.  This morning was the first morning to do this.....and they were completely done with the morning list in 10 minutes.  I NEVER once had to tell them that there was something that they needed to do.  I just hope that they keep up with this.  Once they have the hang of this.....more will be added.  Do the dishes?  Clean your bathroom? Help pick up in the Living Room?  More of actual chores will be added.  As of right now if I have to tell them....or if they just don't do it....they will have to pick a card out of the sad bucket.

It's nothing fancy but it will work.  There are cards in there that say: clean all windows, wipe down all doors, clean baseboards.  They have already told me that they don't want to have to grab from the "sad bucket". 
Today is only day 1 and I know that the Lord will guide them into making the right decisions and completing everything so they don't have to grab from the bucket.

God bless each and everyone of you; just like God has blessed me!