With just a few weeks until school starts, and after two months of sleeping in, I was feeling wary of how my family will adjust to our new schedule. Will we wake up on time? Will get better about not leaving things at home? If you ask yourself these questions, you are not alone, my friends, you are not alone.
So, after a lot of thinking and listing, I decided that my family needed some practice getting back on that horse, or shall I say, a new routine. My hope is that what I have been putting together for my family can help my students and their families begin to plan out their new schedules, so my next few blog entries will be all about getting prepared and organized for the ever-looming transition back to school.
One of the things my family has done is we revamped my entryway, or "mudroom." So, my husband got roped into yet another project, because an organized entryway means "a happy wife is a happy life," I mean, ahem, it is for the good of the whole fam.
I designated a space by the front door for all the things we would need to leave the house on time, because I really dislike rummaging, and those who know me well that my ever elusive keys are my Achilles heel. Each family member now has a place for shoes, keys, sunglasses, lunch boxes, phone chargers, backpacks, etc.
My husband and I are not really handy (this is an understatement), so we kind of rigged this thing together. It is a 1x8 piece of wood with trim nailed to the top and bottom to make it look fancy schmancy. Then we calked, painted, and installed hooks. All materials were found at home depot.
When it was finished, I planned out a "command center" of sorts. This is how we will stay on the same page. The new rule is that if it isn't on the whiteboard calendar, it isn't scheduled. My husband and I also allotted a spot for incoming and outgoing papers, and are trying to sort mail upon entering so our house isn't inundated with papers. This could be a really good idea for kids too, but my kid is three, so we figure we might expand the system when she goes to elementary school.
This system was not cheap, unfortunately. We completed the hooks for about $70, and I had to save up for what you see above it. It was purchased from Pottery Barn. There are cheaper routes, but I like symmetry, so we went for this system. Below are some command centers that other moms out there in the blog world have created to keep their families organized.
This one looks a little intimidating to me. I am lucky if I actually cook a real meal let alone plan a menu. But the chore boards are a good idea. It is from
A family blog.
Looks like this mom made hers magnetic, and utilized some dead space at the end of her cabinets wisely. It's from
another blog.
This one is from
Delightful Order. Isn't it cute? I like that each kid has a place for papers, and a little place to write notes.
These were also purchased from Pottery Barn, but I featured it because I like how each kiddo has a space for school papers. Too bad Pottery Barn wasn't around when I was a kid, there may have been a lot less, "My dog ate my homework" stories. It is from
http://www.tipjunkie.com/family-schedule/.
