FREE Printable: Chalkboard Style Pantry Labels

I am a sucker for labels. I have a label maker, but I get bored with just plain labels. I created these Chalkboard Style Pantry Labels for my own pantry and thought I would share with you.

There are two pre-filled Chalkboard Style Pantry Label sheets available for download. To download, just save to your computer and print. I like to use Avery® White Full-Sheet Labels for Inkjet Printers (keep in mind you won't want to get the labels wet) or you may also use white letter size card stock and either laminate and attach or tape on your canisters.

Download Pantry Labels 1 Here

 

Download Pantry Labels 2 Here

 

If you would like to create your own labels, you can download the blank version and edit using a program like PicMonkey. With the blank version, you could create labels for anything in your home!

 

Download the Blank Pantry Labels Here. 

 

 

***Update: I have also added the Small Chalkboard Style Pantry Labels and Blank Small Chalkboard Pantry Labels for Download

 

 Download the Blank Chalkboard Labels Here

 Download the Small Chalkboard Labels Here

 

 

Feel free to share this download, but please link back to this original post and not the direct link to the downloads. Thanks!

 

 



 

Reorganized Home Challenge Week #2: Freezer

This is week two of the Reorganized Home Challenge! I hope that your year has started off great.

Our family received some great news this week. My husband has been working around 60 hours per week for the past few years. It has been difficult for me since we have three young children. My husband and I have both been praying for God to open up new doors for him so he would be able to spend more time with our family. For the last year or so, there have been numerous opportunities that have arisen, but one by one they haven't come to fruition. It has been discouraging for us both, but we persevered and continued praying. Last week, we received news that my husband is going to be starting a new position the beginning of February. The best part about this? It is a 40 hour a week job! I feel so blessed that God has granted this opportunity for our family.

A burden has been lifted. The thing that I am most looking forward to, is the fact that we will now be able to have dinner together as a family. Every night right now I dread dinnertime. I try and keep my children occupied while I throw dinner together. I then feed my two and three year old. Sometimes I eat with them, but sometimes I wait to eat until my husband gets home. I am so happy that he will now be home at this time so we can spend the time as a family.

I hope that if you are struggling with something in your life, that you will give it up to Christ. It doesn't mean your life will be perfect, but if you really let go and give it up to him, he will give you an inner peace about the situation. I love this verse from Isaiah 41:10 "Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."

If I would not have struggled with the stress of managing a household with three young children, I would not have as much appreciation for the time that we are going to have as a family.

Back to the challenge...this week's task is the freezer. And yes, if you have an extra freezer in the garage, it is included!

Challenge Steps:

1. Start by pulling all of the food out of your freezer. Toss anything that is past the expiration date or has freezer burn. You will want to place your foods into a cooler so that they don't spoil while you clean.
2. Pull out the drawer(s). Rinse with soapy water and dry.
3. Mix 2 tablespoons of baking soda with a quart of water. Moisten towel with solution and wipe down the inside.
4. Finish scrubbing shelves and drawers and dry on large towel.
5. Replace shelves and drawers.
6. Reorganize your food by type as you put it back into the freezer. I like to have a shelf for breakfast food, one for baby food, one for desserts, one for vegetables, etc
7. If you have an additional freezer in the garage complete the same steps.

Optional Steps:

1. If you have a freezer in the garage and there is frost build up, you may want to defrost it. See instructions here.
2. Purchase bins and label according to food type to make it easier to find what you need.

*Follow me on Pinterest for more great Organizing and Household Ideas

If you are looking for more ideas about how to Simplify your life. Check out the ebook Simple Living - 30 days to less stuff and more life by Lorilee Lippincott.

What tips do you have for cleaning your freezer? Please share in the comments section.

Some of the links on this website are "affiliate links." This means that if you click on the link and purchase the item, I receive a commission.

Home Management: Free Download of Dave Ramsey's Guide to Budgeting

One of the reasons that I was able to quit my job and stay home when my daughter was born in 2009, was because my husband and I sat down and made a budget. We stumbled across Dave Ramsey's book, The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness. This book changed the way that we looked at our finances. We paid off all of our debt with the exception of our houses, we cut out expenses, and we started building our savings.

At the beginning of the year, one of my household management tasks is to redo our budget and look for additional ways that we can save money. If you are in the process of looking at your finances, Dave Ramsey is offering a free download of his Guide to Budgeting. It is a great overview of the process that he talks about in his book and a good starting point for anyone looking to make some financial changes.

Thanks Money Saving Mom!

Some of the links on this website are "affiliate links." This means that if you click on the link and purchase the item, I receive a commission

Reorganized Home Challenge Week One: Refrigerator

Starting today and continuing through the end of 2013, I will be posting a weekly Reorganized Home Challenge on Mondays. One of my top 6 priorities in 2013 is Home Management. A big part of that is making sure that I simplify my life by purging and reorganizing.

I would like to begin the challenge in the kitchen. For the next few weeks, the challenge will revolve around tasks to get your kitchen in tip top shape. I have a small kitchen with minimal counter and cabinet space, so it is essential that I keep it as neat and tidy as possible. Let's begin with the refrigerator. I must admit that I hate cleaning the refrigerator, but when preparing snacks and meals, it is great to have a clean refrigerator with fresh food.

Challenge Steps:

1. Start by pulling all of the food out of your refrigerator. Toss anything that is past the expiration date. You may want to place your foods into a cooler so that they don't spoil while you clean.
2. Pull out the shelves and drawers. Fill the bathtub with soapy water and throw all of the shelves and drawers in (make sure that the water isn't too warm, you don't want the glass to crack). I have found this is much easier than washing them one by one in the sink.
3. Mix 2 tablespoons of baking soda with a quart of water. Moisten towel with solution and wipe down the inside.
4. Finish scrubbing shelves and drawers and dry on large towel.
5. Replace shelves and drawers.
6. Reorganize food as you put it back into the fridge

Optional Steps:

1. Create fridge mats like these found on U Create to make cleaning spills easier.
2. Organize your food in labeled bins, like these Interdesign Fridge Binz Deep Bin, 8 x 4, Clear (or take a trip to the dollar store and purchase bins to use)
3. Start off the New Year by creating a healthy snack station for you and your family members. Fit Sugar has some great healthy snack ideas.

*Follow me on Pinterest for more great Organizing and Household Ideas

Next Monday, I will share with you my own completed refrigerator challenge with pictures.

If you are looking for more ideas about how to Simplify your life. Check out the ebook Simple Living - 30 days to less stuff and more life by Lorilee Lippincott. 

What other tips do you have for cleaning your refrigerator?

Meal Plan: Week of 12/31

 

One of my 6 priorities for 2013 is Household Management. A big part of this is making sure that I have a menu planned for each week. I tend to fall into the "oh no, it is 5:00 and I have no clue what to make for dinner" trap. By being more prepared each week, I hope to serve our family more nutritious meals and eliminate a lot of the dinnertime stress. Each week, I will post my weekly menu here. I would love for you to share your menu! I usually use Pinterest as my "recipe" book" (follow me on Pinterest).

Breakfast

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Pancakes (from freezer), Oatmeal, Cereal, and/or Waffles (from freezer) and fruit
*More breakfast ideas here on Pinterest

Lunch

Peanut Butter and Honey Sandwiches w/ fruit and yogurt (Pretty much our go to lunch)
Cheese, Crackers, and Fruit
Macaroni and Cheese w/ fruit
Leftovers

Dinner
White Chicken Chili (for Chili cook off at church on New Year's Eve)
Pasta w/ meatballs, salad, and garlic bread
Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings (I always add carrots and celery to the recipe)
Tacos w/ Refried Beans
Pizza
Crockpot Pulled Pork served on buns with corn and fruit
*More crockpot ideas here on Pinterest
Leftovers

Freezer Cooking
Whole Wheat Banana Chocolate Chip Bread
Brown Bag Burritos (for husband's lunches)
Homemade English Muffin Bread
*More Freezer cooking ideas here on Pinterest

Since my husband usually gets the girls breakfast in the morning, I like to provide him with easy options. My favorites are pancakes, waffles, or muffins that can be frozen and reheated for 30 seconds in the microwave. At this time, I find it easier to just take dinner one day at a time, but hopefully I will find time this year to complete a couple freezer cooking sessions.

What does your meal plan look like this week? What are your go to meals?

My 2013 Schedule and Activities

As I discussed yesterday, I am in the process of establishing my Household Management Binder and schedule so that I can focus on my top 6 priorities for 2013. I just finished reading Tell Your Time: How to Manage Your Schedule So You Can Live Free by Amy Andrews, which proved to be an invaluable resource for my basic day to day schedule. In the book, Amy discusses developing a schedule based on activities that help your to reach your goals. If you are in the process of making a schedule for 2013 or if you too need to reevaluate your priorities, I would highly recommend reading this book (and at this very moment the ebook is FREE). Amy also provides several printable resources to assist you in making your schedule at TellYourTime.com.

Based on the principles in the book and the priorities that I established, I put the following activities into my schedule:

1. Relationship with God:

• Church
• Daily Bible Reading/Prayer Time

2. Relationship with Husband:

• Daily One-on-one Time
• Monthly Date Night or Weekly in Home Date Night

3. Relationship with Children:

• Daily One-on-one Time (30 min per child)
• Family Time
• Family Outings
• "Preschool" Time

4. Relationship with Others:

• Bi-weekly Friend/Ministry Time (will include catching up with friends, delivering meals, volunteering, etc)

5. Self Development:

• Rest/Nap Time
• Exercise Time
• TV/Reading Time
• Work (Blogging) Time

6. Household Management:

• Morning Routine (Make Bed, Eat Breakfast, Load of Laundry, etc)
• Chores
• Meal Planning
• Grocery Shopping
• After Dinner Clean-up

Here is what my completed schedule looks like:

Although I love a good schedule, it is important to remember that you need to leave some white space or "cushion" as Amy Andrews calls it. This allows you to insert any other activities in that you need to complete. I also believe that you need to still have some flexibility when it comes to your schedule.

Do you have a daily schedule? If so, how do you schedule activities that keep your priorities in order?

Household Management Binder and Creating a Schedule

To accomplish my 6 Top Priorities, I am creating a new schedule and Household Management Binder for 2013. By creating a schedule, I will be able to make sure that I accomplish the things that I need to do first to keep my priorities in order. For those of you that haven't ever used a Household Management Binder, it is a great tool to organize all of your day to day information. I have used a Household Management Binder in the past, but I have to admit that I haven't used it as consistently as I should.

There are some great free printables available to help you create your own Household Management Binder. I like to pick and choose the printables that best suit my needs.

Organizing Home Life has a great set of free Home Management Printables to get your binder started.

 

 

Life Your Way also has a fantastic set of free printables that includes Menu Planners, Emergency Information, Babysitter Notes and more.

Amy Bayliss offers free printables for your Home Management Binder that include planning sections for church, Bible study, and ministry.

To begin with, I am keeping my binder very simple and I will add on to it as the year goes on. I printed a cover sheet, daily and weekly chore sheet,  monthly calendar, Birthdays and Anniversaries tracker, and Read Through the Bible in One Year printable.

I am excited to use the Read Through the Bible in One Year printable to keep me in line with my number one priority to focus on my relationship with God. The Birthdays and Anniversaries tracker is perfect to focus on my priority to serve others, the chore sheet will help me to work on my priority of household management, and planning out my weeks will allow me to focus on ALL of my priorities more effectively.

Do you use a Household Management Binder? If so, how does it help you to keep your priorities in line?

Prioritizing Life the Way God Intended

In March of 2008, I married the most amazing man. Ever since that day, my life has become a whirlwind. My first daughter was born in March of 2009 (a day after our first wedding anniversary), my second daughter was born in August of 2010 and my son was born in July of 2012. Having three children under the age of four has been challenging.

Before my eldest daughter was born, my husband and I made the decision that I would be a stay-at-home mom. At the beginning, I worked from home for a family member's business and I created a money saving blog. After the birth of my second daughter, I knew that I had to make some changes. I was constantly stressed and anxious trying to keep up with my self imposed work load. I quit my part time job and discontinued blogging. Despite these changes, I still felt like I couldn't keep up with my day to day workload.

During the last few weeks, I have been praying about how to cope with my anxiety and stress. God has revealed to me that my priorities have been severely out of whack. It is now abundantly clear to me, that it is necessary for me to make some drastic changes in my life. First and foremost, my relationship with God has to be my number one priority. Without a focus on this relationship, I know that I will not be able to accomplish any of the things that I would like to. Secondly, I must focus on my relationship with my husband. Although my husband and I have a good relationship, I know that I fall short of the things that I should do as a Godly wife. My children need to be my third priority. Too many times, I allow outside things to take precedence over my children. My vice is technology...Facebook, Pinterest, reading blogs, etc.  After God, my husband, and my children, I need to focus on serving others. In order to accomplish these first four goals, I know that there are many things that I need to do to simplify my life.

2013 Priorities

1. Relationship with God
2. Relationship with Husband
3. Relationship with Children
4. Service to Others
5. Self Development
6. Household Management

I created this blog as a means to hold myself accountable for a reorganized, simple lifestyle. I will be focusing on the things that I do to focus on my top 6 priorities. I hope that some of the things that I learn along the way will also be beneficial for you as well.

What ways are you planning to simplify your life in 2013? Do you need to make any changes to your priorities?