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I am a paper packrat! It’s kind of hard not to be when you homeschool. There are papers to be copied, papers to be completed, papers to be corrected, papers to be corralled… Papers, papers, everywhere!
While researching something school-related, I stumbled across the site for Mom’s Tool Belt. After reading through her blog, I realized that a large binder to hold everything related to the day-to-day operation of my home just had to be my next project! So, I started doing lots of googling of terms like “household binder,” “home management binder,” and “household notebook.” There are tons of blog posts out there on the subject! Lot of great freebies, too!
The Mom’s Tool Belt option has a price tag of $24.95, which gives you a lifetime membership. Translation: Pay $24.95, get free downloads any time she offers a new product. I signed up for a free sample, and with the download came a coupon discount of $5. I realized that I really liked a lot of the options that Mom’s Tool Belt had to offer, so after a week of research I decided to make the purchase.
My home management binder is still a work in progress, and probably will be for some time as I figure out what works and what doesn’t, but it has a nice cover and I’m beginning to figure out which sections I want it to contain. So far I have financial, homemaking, and meals & recipes sections. I have also placed a few weekly planner sheets at the front of the binder to give them a trial run. So far, the format seems to work for me. I also want to include sections for our big move that’s coming up in a few months and for the current house once it becomes our rental property. Everything I have included to this point has come from Mom’s Tool Belt, but I have also found several freebies that may prove useful to my project.
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| There were several options and combinations for covers, and I think I made the right choice with this one. I really, really love it! |
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| I’m using small Post-Its for the tabs until I’m ready to print the permanent ones. |
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| A great worksheet that will be perfect for keeping track of things like checking the batteries in the smoke detectors, putting rinse agent in the dishwasher, and replacing furnace filters. |
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| I tweaked the .xls file for this to add extra lines under the meals section to include snacks. |
In the meantime, I also found a free blog planner from Confessions of a Homeschooler. It was so colorful and beautiful that I downloaded it, printed it up, and took it to Office Depot to have it bound. I paid less than $5 to have it spiral bound with the addition of a back cover and a clear front cover. Isn’t it beautiful? (It would be even more beautiful if I hadn’t been having difficulty getting a great shot!)
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| As you can see, I have already had to make adjustments to my blog scheduling! |
Well there you have it… the beginning of my new home management binder. Do you have a household notebook to keep things in order? If so, which sections are the most useful to you?
Please be sure to check out part two of my binder project!