Mossy Wreath

 We headed to the pumpkin patch last weekend and had a ball.  I just love this time of year!

My little man had a blast picking pumpkins, riding the hayride, and jumping in the bounce house.

Just had to share a few cute pics!

This pumpkin fell over right after he gave it a hug.  Oops!  Luckily, no breaks!

How cute is this little guy?  Okay.  I'm a tad biased.

Okay, back to the post!  This week, Little J helped me make a new wreath for the front door.  I was inspired by an image I kept seeing on Pinterest, but when I tried to click through, I could never find it!  Oh, well.  A bag of moss, a wreath form, and lots of hot glue sticks yielded a needed upgrade to my tired old wreath.

For this project I used a straw wreath form, a large bag of decorative moss, and a bag of faux pumpkins.  All of these items came from Michaels with a 20% off coupon, yay!

Pull out a chunk of moss and spread it out, loosening it up to wrap around the wreath.  Please do this outside!  Moss is mega messy...I also chose to do this on the windiest day thus far, so watch your eyes too.  This stuff blows around!

Simply spread some hot glue on the wreath and wrap away.  Cover the wreath with big pieces of moss and then go back and fill in any sparse spots.

 There's my little helper!  He took a break to swing from the tree.  I think it's innate in boys to know how to climb stuff!

Here is my wreath before I glued the pumpkins on.

I love the texture and natural look.

The package came with 6 pumpkins, but I only used 5.  I think things in groups should always be in odd numbers.  Maybe that's just me?

Really get to gluing here.  I mean, lay it on thick!  I put some glue directly on the wreath and some on each pumpkin.  Then I squeezed some glue between the pumpkins so they could cling to each other.

Aren't they cute?

The next step is to attach some burlap ribbon.  You could use brown if you'd like, but I have a brown door, so... (one day it won't be brown anymore ;)

I just looped some pieces of the ribbon and folded over the ends to make tails.  There is no actual knot in this bow.

Then, I secured the bow into the wreath with dress pins.  If you have longer pins, I recommend using them.  It's kind of tough getting through the ribbon and all that moss!  You could also hot glue if you wanted.

I really wanted the oatmeal burlap ribbon, but I went to 3 stores and everyone was out!  So, I bought the only spool I could lay my hands on at Hobby Lobby.  I planned to dye it in a pot of black coffee, but after trying it out, I kind of like the off-white look.

What do you think?

Well, there you go.  20 minutes later, a wreath that makes me proud to welcome guests!  Have you made anything to spruce up your home for Fall?

Enjoy your weekend friends!  We are headed to a costume party this weekend.  I'll have to share some pics next week...if I dare!  I'll also be continuing our Home Binder quest and jumping back in with the "Holidays" section.  Just in time, eh?

XO,
 Sara

Home Binder - Part IV - Finances

We are cruising right along on in our quest for the perfect Home Binder!  If you are just joining us, be sure to start here. 

So far we have organized a binder with dividers and sections, created a spot for all of our calendars, and tackled the job of meal planning.  Today I will share a bit on how I organize our finances.

We are budgeters in our house.  Every two weeks, when pay checks come in, we sit down and determine how much we need for groceries, gas, school, tennis, entertainment, etc.  I like to use cash for all of these things (excluding gas, because I like to pay at the pump!).  It helps me keep from overspending and helps me keep track of our discretionary money.  If the cash flow is low for that week, no out to eat.  It's pretty simple.

I tried using envelopes for my cash, but I couldn't handle all of that in my purse.  Instead, I keep the cash for groceries on one side of my wallet (it has 2 sides) and cash for everything else on the other.  I never thought this method would work for me, but it really does make me think about everything I purchase. 

Once again, I use Clean Mama Printables for this section of my binder.  Be sure and check her Etsy shop out!  Right now, she is offering my readers 20% off her entire shop with the code 20NESTYOURBEST!  

This is a blank Monthly Budget sheet.  This is where we plan out how much we need for each category  forecast bills, etc.  I showed a blank one for obvious reasons!  It's nice to see on one page where everything is going.  You can even have a few months printed out at a time to forecast expenses.

This checklist makes sure I've paid each bill each month.  Let's face it.  Lots of things come across my desk.  Kiddie art, calendars, fliers, receipts, junk mail.  I like to make extra sure I've scheduled each bill when I'm budgeting.

Here is a sheet we use to keep track of our savings.  I love how it has multiple spots so you can save for different things...Christmas, vacation, armchairs for the sitting room, just sayin'!

 I highly recommend checking out Becky's Budget Kit in her Etsy shop.  There are more printables to keep your money on track.

Don't forget...Becky has graciously offered Nest Your Best readers 20% off her entire shop!!!  Use the code 20NESTYOURBEST, you'll be so happy you did! :)

Well, we have a few more stops on this train, but I'm taking a little pause on the Home Binder mini series tomorrow.  Come check out the new wreath I fashioned for the front door.  It was ridiculously easy and cute as a button...or should I say, pumpkin???  You'll have to wait and see!

Home Binder - Part I

Home Binder - Part II - Calendars

Home Binder - Part III - Meal Planning

Home Binder - Part III - Meal Planning

Happy Wednesday folks!  We're half way to the weekend!  I just love fall weekends...

...but back to work!  We have a home binder to organize.

Today we are going to talk about organizing and planning something that impacts every member of your family.  Food.

You buy it, you store it, you prepare it, you eat it, you clean it up.  A day doesn't go by without giving what you eat some thought.  On a busy day, sometimes it doesn't get as much thought as it should.  Avoid the fast food temptation by planning ahead.  With a few sheets of paper you can create a game plan for your month, week, and day that puts YOU in charge of what fuels your body.

Ready?

You should already have your binder, dividers, and calendar section ready to go.  If you are just joining us, welcome!  You can see how we started here.

* All of the printables I use in this section come from the Clean Mama Printables Etsy Shop.  She makes great organizing kits.  I know how to make pages like this, but my time is worth the few dollars I spent to get the files.  Why reinvent the wheel!  Check her shop out!

And...since y'all are so awesome, Becky has graciously offered Nest Your Best readers 20% off her entire shop!!!  Use the code 20NESTYOURBEST, you'll be so happy you did! :)

In the front of my "Meal Planning" section, I have a blank calendar I use to plan meals for the month.  I know, I know.  It seems like a daunting task, but boy is it a time saver in the long run.

Block a couple hours to sit at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee, some Pandora on, a few cookbooks, your family calendar and your blank meal planning calendar.  Be sure you really look at your family calendar.  Do you have soccer every Wednesday?  Plan a slow-cooker supper.  Are your in-laws coming in to town one weekend?  Double up on earlier recipes to have meals ready to go.  Of course, things will change throughout the month, but it is WAY easier to move a meal than it is to plan one from scratch!


As I complete a week's worth of meals on my calendar, I will put it on my Weekly Menu Plan sheet.  I simply jot down each meal I came up with for the corresponding day and put all the needed ingredients on the shopping list on the side.  This is so handy because it means I'm not digging through cookbooks every Sunday night trying to remember what ingredients I need.

I write the date of the week the plan is for at the top.  Any given month you will wind up with 4-5 of these (depending on how many weeks are in the month).  Whenever you do your food shopping, all you have to do is take that week's menu plan from your binder and head to the store!

A note on notation!  Can you see the circled letters next to some of the meals?  That note reminds me what meat goes in the meal, and therefore, what I need to defrost from the freezer.  If I see a "C" circled, I know we are having chicken the next day so I take out what I need and put it in the fridge to defrost.

I also keep a loose inventory for my freezer and pantry.  I say "loose" because I'm not great about remembering to update it.  Each month, when I do my meal planning, I take note of how many chicken breasts I have, etc and update my inventory.  Then, as I'm planning meals, I know what I have to work with and what I need to get when I make my monthly trip to our wholesale club.

We use a FIFO method in our house.  First In, First Out!  If I've got pork chops already in the freezer, they're going to be used first.

In addition to cookbooks, I use a recipe binder when I'm planning meals.  I love to cook and am always tearing recipes out of magazines or printing them from blogs.  This is the best way I've found to keep up with them all.

Another pretty binder!  I use dividers labeled with categories (breads, sides, main dish, etc).  I then glue or tape the recipes I've collected onto printer paper and slip the page into a clear plastic sleeve.  This protects them from splatters and wear.  I'll be honest, I only update my binder with new recipes every couple of months.  When my stack gets big enough, I sit down with some paper and glue stick and add some new pages.  It doesn't take too long and makes it really easy to try all of those recipes.

(I made the cover sheet above in Word, along with a sheet listing our favorite recipes from different cookbooks and what pages they are on.)

I also keep a cute recipe box on my counter with my go-to recipes.  Things I like to make often are right at my fingertips to prop on top of the box and whip up.

 So.  Are you completely overwhelmed?  I hope not!  I promise it just takes a little bit of upfront time and then the rest of your month is a breeze.  Try it for a couple months and see what you think.

Here's a summary of my meal planning system:

• Use a blank calendar and try to fill in meals for the entire month
• Use weekly menu plans to list what meals you are making for each day of the week and keep track of your shopping list for that week
• While you are planning your month, refer to an inventory sheet to see what things you need to use and what items you need to buy (FIFO!)
• Keep recipes you've collected in a binder and frequently used recipes in a recipe box

Well, there you have it.  I hope there is something in this HUGE post you can take away and use!  Believe me, I have tried every system there is and this is what works for me.  I find I actually look forward to planning for each month.  It really has made the daily question of "What's for dinner?" A LOT easier to answer!

Tomorrow will go over my "Finances" tab.  Hope to see you there!  

As always, feel free to ask any questions in the comments or in an email.  This was a lot of info!

Home Binder - Part 1

Home Binder - Part II - Calendar

Home Binder - Part II - Calendars

Hi Y'all!  I hope you have your binder and dividers!  If you missed the intro on how to get started with a Home Binder, be sure to start here.

Yesterday, we talked about dividing a big binder into different labeled sections.

Today we are talking dates. You know, the zillion places you have to be any given day of the week?  Soccer?  Ballet?  Book club?  A girl's got to have a place to keep it all together!

"Calendars"

As I'm sure you could guess, this is where I stash the various calendars my family encounters.  You have your basic family calendar, the preschool calendar, the tennis team practice calendar, the church calendar, etc.  Under this tab, I can cross-check all of these in one spot and keep our kitchen calendar up to date.

You know you love to have a pretty one on display!

Here is the family calendar I keep in the front.

This sheet lists my tennis team practice rotation.  This would be where you could also keep your kids' sports, club calendars.

This is also where I tuck the monthly preschool calendar we get.  It's nice to see when show-and-tell will be and what week we are responsible for snack while I'm updating the family calendar.  I also have a copy of my week's workouts in this section to help keep me on track.

Alright!  We covered calendars!  

Hole punch those sheets of paper that are covering your fridge and pop them in your fresh binder.  Put all the necessary information on one pretty calendar you keep out for a daily reminder.  

You are on your way to organized bliss!

See you tomorrow for "Meal Planning", my personal fav!

* Many of the printables I use come from the Clean Mama Printables Etsy Shop.  Right now, Becky has graciously offered Nest Your Best readers 20% off her entire shop!!!  

Use the code 20NESTYOURBEST, you'll be so happy you did! :)

Have a question?  Please feel free to email.  I'd love to hear from you!  nestyourbestblog@gmail.com

Home Binder - Part I

Home Binder - Part I

Welcome back!  I hope everyone had a relaxing weekend.  We hit up the pumpkin patch and it was just what we needed.  Time together, outside, on a beautiful Fall day.

But now it's back to the real world!  Several months ago I put together a home binder that is really working for me.  I've attempted this exercise before, however, if the system doesn't work for you, you won't use it.  I finally figured out exactly what features I need from my binder and I'm here to share!

I hope some of these ideas work for you because this has sure made my life easier!

Today, I'll introduce my system and break down each section in separate posts.  We'll call it a "Home Binder Mini Series".  How PBS of us!

My sister gave me this binder for Christmas last year.  It is still available at Target and I highly recommend!  It holds plenty and has a clip on the inside cover to hold checklists.

I have 9 sections in my Binder, labeled as such:

• Calendars
• Meal Planning
• Finances
• Projects
• Holidays
• Cleaning
• Japhet
• Travel
• Information

I like to use the dry erase dividers with pockets.  The pockets are very useful for stashing things for each category, for example, receipts in the "Finances" section.

I certainly could have used my label maker to name these puppies, but for some reason, I really wanted some authentic handwriting.  I know.  I'm shocked too.  Usually I'm way too obsessive to label anything by hand!

Now, you're probably thinking, "Wow! That's a really big binder! How do you cart that thing around?!".  Well, the truth is, I don't.  It is my home base for the start of each week/month.  I plan out meals a month at a time, budget 2 weeks at a time, food shop once a week, etc.  I organize all of my weekly/monthly activity from here and then transport my to-do's, daily calendar items, reminders to a small planner I keep in my purse.

My HB lives in the large drawer under my command cabinet.

This drawer also holds my checklist clipboard (for current/active projects), a wire basket for frequently used items (pens, scissors), and 2 coupon bins (1 for restaurants/stores, 1 for grocery items).

I am an experienced couponer and I used to do the big coupon binder, however, now that I try and eat as organically and as cleanly as possible, I don't find I use as many coupons as before.  That's a sad thing to me.  You shouldn't ever have to compromise health to save money.

I'll touch more on how I use these coupons in my meal planning post.

It usually does look this neat.  I tell you.  This is the beauty of finding the system that will work for you.  Between this binder and my command cabinet, I'm one happy chickie!

I also stash my camera in this drawer for quick access.  Obviously I couldn't photograph that!

Well, that gives you a tiny taste of what we are getting into!  I hope you will check back tomorrow to see how I use my "Calendars" and "Meal Planning" sections.  If you want to tackle the HB with us, go grab a binder you love and a pack of dividers.

See you tomorrow!