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Lkunkel
Member
10-29-2003
| Tuesday, July 13, 2004 - 11:34 pm 
Laurie's Household Notebook/Control Journal TOC:
9-1-1- Emergency/Urgency numbers
- Where to find shut offs, electrical fuse box, etc.
- Emergency Home Preparedness
Contacts- Personal Telephone Directory
- Household Service Directory
- URLs
House Taming- Who, What, and When
- Room by Room
- How Do I Clean/Use ... ?
What's to Eat?- Pantry, Freezer, Refrigerator Inventories
- Master Grocery list
- Price book
What's for Dinner?- Full Meal Suggestions (including recipe location)
- Sample Weekly Plans
Virtual Desk- Filing index/Location of critical papers
- MCL
Let's Play Doctor- Medical information
- First aid kits
Go for Broke!- Budget
- Financial Accounts
- Schedule of Bills
- Online accounts/passwords
Master Calendar- Monthly Calendars
- List of monthly events
Holiday Notebook- Personal Days: Birthdays, Anniversaries; Esbats
- Winter (Nov 01-Jan 31): Veteran's Day, Thanksgiving, Yule, Christmas, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day
- Spring (Feb 01-April 30): Imbolic, St. Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Ostara, Easter
- Summer (May 01-July 31): Beltane, Mother's Day, Memorial Day, Father's Day, MidSummer, Independence Day
- Autumn (Aug 01-October 31): Lughnasadh, Dad's Remembrance Day, Labor Day, Mabon, Samhain
Projects- Art
- Craft Area
- Things To Do
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Lkunkel
Member
10-29-2003
| Wednesday, July 14, 2004 - 2:41 pm
Household Notebook: Assignment 01
This first assignment is going to run the full length of the Notebook--trust me: I am STILL finding numbers (mostly because DH scatters them all over), so don't think that you have to finish this today, tomorrow, or even this week.
Today the only think you HAVE to finish is the Emergency Page. This page has all the information you need in an emergency: contact numbers, locations of shutoff valves, etc. Here is the information on my page, (followed by a MSWord file you can download): Full Name of Homeowners; Street Address; City, State, Zip; Phone Number; Full Names, Ages of Children/Pets; Emergency Numbers; Amber Ridge Apartment Complex; Cross Streets; Directions from Street to Apartment;
Physician; Medical Power of Attorney Holder(s); Allergies; Current medications; Family Attorney; Animal Hospital; Utilities; Local Friend Contact Info; Parent/Next of Kin Info; and Important Locations.
Now, DH and I have the same doctor, so that area is condensed. You should list the pediatrician, if necessary, as well as allergies and current medications for all family members.
This page is in the front of my 3-ring binder, printed on red paper. RED = Emergency in even DH's mind, so he even recognizes it.
Now, the addresses. Yes, there are a variety of ways to store addresses: rolodex, address books, contact programs, etc.
I use a combination, actually. I keep the Master List in MS Excel, and then import the information into MSWord as needed for Address Labels (a combination of MSWord and Avery), phone number pages for the phone binder, etc.
I do actually use all three sheets in the file
Sheet 01: Personal Contact Numbers for family, friends, students, etc.
Sheet 02: Business Contact Information
Sheet 03: Christmas Card Tracker
Sheet 04: Blank
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Lkunkel
Member
10-29-2003
| Thursday, July 15, 2004 - 3:46 am
Household Notebook: Assignment 02
If you were to look at our phone binder, or the Contact! section of our Survival Manual, you would see the White (Personal) Pages, Yellow (Business) Pages, and Blue Pages.
What is on the blue pages? The URLs from Bill's and my computers. We saved them on disk, but as I tried to organize mine for a project, it was unreal. In printing them out, it was much easier to go through and see if they were live and note it on my paper. I could then go into Organize and move them into folders and sub-folders and then delete those that weren't.
Add to that that I have URLS in my AOL favorites and my IE faves (as does DH) and we have a ton. Now that we're networked, it's even worse since it's he's saving them on mine and vice-versa in case one of our systems go down. I now have my IE files organized into categories and sub-categories that makes sense to me, and I am beginning to move over my AOL URLs. When I finish mine, then I'll work on DH's.
So, today, spend 15 minutes working on consolidating URLs so you can find things online more effectively--and back up your work on disks and paper. Make a goal to organize/check 5 URLs a day for 404-status.
Remember: Only spend 15 minutes on this. Granted, I'll likely spend 2 blitzes, but I will break them up. Do not obsess on this and try to get everything done today.
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Lkunkel
Member
10-29-2003
| Thursday, July 15, 2004 - 10:34 pm
Household Notebook: Assignment 01.1
Silly me: I forgot to discuss Emergency Preparedness.
I am not going to endorse or criticize the US Government's suggestion of duct tape and plastic garbage bags.
However, preparing for emergency situations IS a good idea.
I did quite a bit of research and opted to prepare our home for the following emergencies: Earthquakes, Fire, Extreme Heat, and Thunderstorms/Flooding. Since I liked how FEMA presented information, I poured over their articles.
They give guidelines on how, work, and vehicle kits. The plain text--which would allow you to cut-and-paste information into your journal--is found here.
Please: take the time to read it. The life you save may be your own!
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Lkunkel
Member
10-29-2003
| Thursday, July 15, 2004 - 10:44 pm
Household Notebook: Assignment 03
Okay, we have now meandered to the section I titled "House Taming."
The first part of House Taming, dubbed Who, What, and When, involved typing up both my weekly plan and routines. For this section of the Household Notebook, you need to list what occurs in your home during the week.
I also included my variation on FlyLady's routines so that someone would understand my notes in my journal.
Here is what this section looks like in my HNB:
Monday: Desk Time: Weekly Plans (Things to be done/bought/etc. for the week.)
Tuesday: Desk Time: Banking (Pay bills, balance account, etc.)
B: 6-9PM--Baseball
Wednesday: Job Jar Day (Tasks I'm putting off.)
B: 7-9PM--Testosterone Night
Thursday: Desk Time: Journals: Update Household Notebook
Friday: Clean & Fling Day
Saturday: Out & About/Errand Day
B/L: 7:30-10:30PM--Vagrants Meeting (EOW)
Sunday: Recharge Day
L: 9-10AM--Wicca Studies
L: 10-11AM--Personal Foundations Studies
This is where you list standing weekly or every other week appointments, band practice, counseling, manicures, hair styling, Scouts, youth groups, sports practice, anything that has a standardized day and time.
Behind this page, I placed my daily routines. I do not expect anyone else to follow them, but I wanted a place for them. I also placed the teen's here--as well as on her bathroom mirror!--when she was with us. What are daily routines? The things we do every day without fail. My three daily routines are:
01: Morning Routine (6-8:00AM)
Get up/Put on exercise clothes
Eat Oatmeal
Morning reflections
Exercise
Shower/Dress for day
Wipe down bathroom
Make/Drink Smoothie
Look over list for day
Clean-up kitchen (smoothie mess)
Start Crockpot, if applicable
Check email
Begin work routine, if M-F, 8A-2:00PM
02: Afternoon Routine (2-5:00PM)
Transition time
Zone Work
Finish off dinner prep
03: Evening Routine (5-11:00PM)
Eat/Clean-up mess
Check menu for tomorrow
Layout Clothes for Tomorrow
Laundry Check
Last STUFF check--Sink?/Hot Spots
Calendar Check
Meditation
Bubble bath
Journaling
Lights out by 11PM
Okay, it's time to start to generate your family's weekly plan and daily routines. (Note: Just because you list what you WANT to include in your daily routine, it doesn't mean you'll start doing all of them from Day 1. But, more on that in the future.)
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Lkunkel
Member
10-29-2003
| Monday, July 19, 2004 - 3:44 pm
Household Notebook: Assignment 04
If you follow FlyLady, you already know about Zones. For those of you who don't, here's a quick explanation: To avoid house cleaning burnout and those dreadful things called Spring and Fall Cleaning, your home is divided into Zones--one Zone for each week. And, since you are hitting each Zone very regularly, there is no reason to do seasonal cleaning. For more information, visit The Flight Plan.
I opted to divide our apartment into four Zones, instead of five. Here's my broad overview:
Zone 1: Outside & Storage Areas
Zone 2: Kitchen & Baths
Zone 3: Master Bedroom & Office
Zone 4: Living Areas
I then further subdivided the Zones into days. Here are my detailed Zones as they stand now:
Zone 1: Outside & Storage Areas
Day 01: Desk Time: Weekly Plans. Balcony:Sweep down cobwebs; Sweep floor; Pull any dead plants; Get rid of unwanted items
Day 02: Desk Time: Banking. Front Porch: Sweep down cobwebs; Sweep the porch; Get rid of unwanted items; Add welcoming touches
Day 03: Job Jar Day. Linen Closet: Sweep down cobwebs; Straighten items; Car stuff--fluids, wash, etc.
Day 04: Desk Time: Journals. Laundry: Clean the cobwebs; Wipe down tops of W/D; Clean the gunk from under the washer lid; Throw out empty bottles and boxes; Straighten shelves; Look beside appliances for odd sock
Day 05: Clean & Fling Day. Houseblessing Day. Spend no more than 10 minutes on each item: Change Sheets; Trash Pickup/Magazines; Dust Horizontal Surfaces; Vacuum; Quick Sweep/Mop; Sliding Glass Door/Mirrors
Zone 2: Kitchen & Baths
Day 01: Desk Time: Weekly Plans. Kitchen: Sweep down cobwebs; Clean Windows/Dust Sills; Wipe fingerprints walls/switches; Wipe down cabinet fronts; Clean lights; Straighten drawers/cupboards; Clean under sink; Wash canisters/knick-knacks
Day 02: Desk Time: Banking. Kitchen: Empty fridge; Clean down; Clean microwave inside and out; Clean toaster oven; Clean stove/oven; Completely change cat litter; Sweep ALL tile floors; Wash ALL tile floors
Day 03: Job Jar Day. Main bath: Sweep down cobwebs; Straighten drawers and cabinets; Clean shower walls/Wax; Clean medicine cabinet; Clean toilet; Throw away empty bottles; Clean light fixtures; Wash fingerprints off walls and switchplates
Day 04: Desk Time: Journals. Second Bath: Sweep down cobwebs; Straighten drawers and cabinets; Clean bathtub; walls/Wax; Clean medicine cabinet; Clean toilet; Throw away empty bottles; Clean light fixtures; Wash fingerprints off walls and switchplates
Day 05: Clean & Fling Day. Houseblessing Day.
Zone 3: Master Bedroom & Office
Day 01: Desk Time: Weekly Plans. Master Bedroom/Closet: Clean cobwebs; Straighten shelves; Arrange shoes; Clear off back of door hooks; Straighten drawers
Day 02: Desk Time: Banking. Master Bedroom: Clean Down Cobwebs; Clean Windows/Dust Sills; Clean off all flat surfaces; Clean windows
Day 03: Job Far Day. Office: Clean Down Cobwebs; Clean Windows/Dust Sills; Clean off all flat surfaces
Day 04: Desk Time: Journals. Filing
Day 05: Clean & Fling Day. Houseblessing Day.
Zone 4: Living Areas
Day 01: Desk Time: Weekly Plans. Living Area: Sweep down cobwebs; Clean Windows/Dust Sills; Wipe fingerprints from walls; Clear off horizontal surfaces
Day 02: Desk Time: Banking. Living Area: Plants to shower; Wipe down ornaments and what-knots; Clean phone; Clean under cushions; Return plants
Day 03: Job Jar Day. Living Area: Crafts; Straighten drawers; Straighten shelves; Check project status calendar
Day 04: Desk Time: Journal. Living Area: Bulletin boards; Pantry inventories; Hall Closet
Day 05: Clean & Fling Day. Houseblessing Day.
Now, why bother to have all of this in your Survival Notebook? Let's imagine that you have been put on bed rest. Someone comes over and says: "I have X amount of time, what could I do for you today?" You have your list, and can easily show it to the person. It's also much easier, I've learned, for spouses to help out if they know what is to be done on which day. When I'm laid low by the fibro, I at least know the house won't be abandoned.
Determine the most effective way to clean your house, write it down, and start doing it.
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Lkunkel
Member
10-29-2003
| Tuesday, July 20, 2004 - 11:39 am
Household Notebook: Assignment 05
Have you ever gone to a friend's house and offered to warm something up in the microwave for one of her munchkins while she did something else and faced an unfamiliar behemoth guaranteed to not cooperate?
This unfamiliarity probably lives at your house as well. When does the toaster oven door stay open during use? How much detergent is put in the apartment-sized washer?
I have started writing out the directions--and attaching them--to the appliance in question. I am typing up the instructions in MS Word in my Household Notebook, and then copying them into a new file of a 4X6" card that I will cover in clear contact paper and attached to the appliance.
It seems like such a little thing, but if no one knows how to correctly operate the vacuum, the microwave, the oven, etc., your family could go hungry, naked, or worse.
Your assignment: Begin writing out instructions for appliances around the house.
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Lkunkel
Member
10-29-2003
| Monday, August 02, 2004 - 8:20 am
Household Notebook: Assignment 06
This week, we'll be concentrating on food. More specifically, the buying, storing and preparing the foods your family loves. For this week's assignments, you need to gather up receipts, cookbooks, grocery lists, and anything else you use for shopping and meal planning.
What's to Eat?, Part 1: Inventories
Do you ever feel like you go to the store, buy a hundred dollars worth of groceries, come home, put it away and then be told that "there's nothing to eat!" Or, maybe you go to the store, buy the week's groceries, and then decide to make sloppy Joes, only to discover that you have no meat, no sauce makings, or no bread.
One way to stop this from happening is to create inventories of your pantry, freezer, and refrigerator. The first part of the inventory process is to list what you regularly use. Below are my basic lists:
Pantry Supplies
Baking Supplies: non-aluminum baking powder; baking soda; sea salt; cocoa; Vinegars: rice wine, red wine, balsamic, apple cider; Flour: whole wheat, white, potato, cake/pastry; whole oats; cornmeal; molasses; baking chips; pure vanilla extract; other extracts; Sugars: white, brown, powdered, granulated date; brown rice syrup; unprocessed bran; expressed canola oil
Breads, Pastas, & Grains: potato bread, buns; pizza crusts; tortillas: whole wheat, corn; bagels; noodles; pasta; rice: wild
Canned goods: whole tomatoes; tomato paste; pumpkin; pears; pineapple; applesauce; prune baby food; evaporated milk; chicken; tuna; salsas; pickles; relish; stocks: chicken, beef, vegetable; broths: chicken, beef; spaghetti sauce
Condiments: soy sauce; sesame oil; ketchup; mustard; honey; jams; peanut butter; Yoshida sauces; Miracle Whip; Worcestershire sauce; lemon juice; cocktail sauce
Drinkables: soda: Pepsi, Rock & Rye, white; Snapple; water
Dried Spices: peppercorns; nutmeg nuts; garlic powder; onion powder; tarragon; bay leaves; ginger; cloves; mace; allspice; cinnamon
Fresh Produce: Potatoes; Onions; Garlic; Oranges; Lemons; Bananas; Leaf Lettuce; Tomatoes; Peppers; Herbs; Seasonal Fruits/Veggies
Refrigerator: milk; butter; eggs; cheeses: cheddar-jack, romano; mozzarella; yogurt; cold-pressed oils: olive oil and safflower; yeast
Freezer: chicken--whole, pieces; pork--pork chops, roast, bacon; beef--ground chuck, ground sirloin, stewmeat; frozen vegetables; frozen fruits; juice concentrate; cheeses--cheddar-jack, romano; mozzarella; butter; homemade fruit bars; milk; eggs; ice cream
Your assignment: Start creating inventory sheets for your pantry, freezer, and refrigerator. Think about how much you would need on hand to feed your family for three months, and how much you have on hand now. Your eventual goal is to have a rotating pantry of 3 months of items. If you need creative organization tips, let me know. I have an impressive storage system going at the moment.
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Lkunkel
Member
10-29-2003
| Friday, August 06, 2004 - 11:01 pm
Household Notebook: Assignment 07
By now, you hopefully have a handle on your pantry items. (And remember, when I don't post assignments, you can still work on the older assignments like addresses and phone numbers, URLs, writing out how to clean things, appliance instructions, etc.)
I listed a 3 months rotating pantry for a reason. Most financial guides stress the necessity of having short-term savings equivalent to 3 months worth of expenses (rent/mortgage, utilities, insurances, etc) so that if you are out of work, you have a 3-month cushion. I feel that the same should apply toward food. This is strictly MY reasoning, but at least try to get a month's worth.
My Master Shopping List is based on my inventories. Below is a section of one version of my MSL for Baking Goods and Mixes: Baking chocolate; Baking powder; Baking soda; Balsamic Vinegar; Chocolate chips; Cocoa; Coconut; Cooking Oil—Canola, Safflower, Olive; Corn Syrup, Dark; Corn Syrup, Light; Cornmeal; Cornstarch; Cracker meal; Cupcake holders; Dry Buttermilk; Dry Milk; Evaporated milk; Flour—All Purpose, Cake, Whole Wheat; Gelatin/pudding mixes; Honey; Molasses; Nonstick cooking spray—Canola, Olive; Oats; Prepared pie shells; Spices/extracts; Sugar—date, powdered, granulated.
Your items will vary, but will likely include the following: Produce/Fresh Fruit/Veggies; Bakery/Bread Items; Beverages/Juices; Boxed Foods; Canned Foods; Cleaning Products; Dairy Products; Deli Meats; Dried Beans/Rice/Fruit/Nuts; Fresh Meats; Frozen Foods (Breads; Desserts; Entrées; Fruits; Meats; Vegetables); Junk Food; Pastas; Pet Foods; Spices; Staples; Personal Products; Miscellaneous Products
[Note: There are some items not on my list, such as Chocolate Syrup, Pancake Syrup, Lipton Onion Soup Mix, etc. That's because I make my own. Some things on my list are past their best date—so I am replacing them.
Eventually, I want to create a pantry/laundry room that is about 8x10'. In the pantry would be laundry facilities—including a table for folding clothes and a fold-down ironing board. On the pantry side, I'd like a freezer (like my current one) and a small refrigerator (like one in DH's office for drinks). All of the back-up flours, sugars, spices, etc. could go in the freezer for bug-free storage. In the refrigerator would be the back-up opened oils (I mean, a gallon of peanut oil, while cost effective, takes up a LOT of room).]
Recently, I made the discovery that the delivery charge for one of our local chain markets, Albertsons, was a mere $9.95. As our heat soars into the triple digits, and we are sans vehicle, it became worth it to type in my MSL and plan on using the delivery service.
That does not mean everything I inputed would be purchased through them. The prices aren't bad, but there are a number of things I can pick up cheaper at Walmart or Target, such as pet items, paper goods, and personal/health care items. It does, however, mean that if I am laid up, Bill—or someone—can access the shopping information, and order in supplies.
Now, how do I know that I can find the items cheaper? This is where the Price Book comes in. A Price Book is a way of keeping track of what you spend for a particular food item, where you bought it, how long ago, how much of it you bought, how much you now have, and/or when you'll need more. Here's an article about getting started.
As an example, on my MSL is Iams 6oz. Canned Turkey and Giblet Cat Food. Albertsons carries it for 69-cents per can, or 11.5 cents per ounce. Smith's carries it for 68-cents per can, or 11.3 cents per ounce. Walmart and Target both carry it for 59-cents, or 9.8 cents per ounce. In knowing this, I can plan to buy enough cans to last Bopper (since the younger ones eat dry food) to last a month when I refill my prescriptions. Bill, admittedly thought the 10-cent difference was interesting, but not worth going to a different store until I sat and explained it to him like this: I call Iams to receive coupons and normally the company will send me 8 coupons good for buy 6 cans, get one free. Thus if I have $20.00 to spend on cat food, 30 cans at Walmart or Target is $19.14, and I'll get 5 cans free—enough for 35 days. Since I need to go there for my prescription, it isn't a wasted trip. I will have also gathered more coupons by then, and can repeat the buying of the extra 5 cans—giving me a 10-day advantage. In six months, I'd have an extra month's worth of food. Conversely, if I buy the food at the grocery store, $19.32 only equals 28 cans, so I would only have 4 free cans, and just 2 would be surplus. To obtain a 30-day supply would take me 15 months—approximately 2.5 times as long. That made him sit up and take notice.
This list can also help you figure out your food budget. Did you know the Center for Nutrition Policy and Planning tracks American eating habits and expenditures? Yup. AND, they put out a chart listing the cost of food at home at four levels: Thrifty, Low-Cost, Moderate Cost, and Liberal and they offer well-balanced meal ideas for each level. The most recent chart is June 2004, and can be examined here: .
Your assignment: Using your inventory sheets create a Master Shopping List of your own. This will be something you will want to keep in a translucent page protector so you can write on it with a dry-erase marker, or that you make plenty of copies of.
I post mine on my refrigerator—but I also use HandyShopper 2.0 on my Palm. Websites of potential interest: Handy Shopper Users Group, Price Book Page Form.
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