31 Days :: day 31- shopping comparison chart & wrap up

Day 31:: Shopping Comparison Chart

So I do apologize for not including my Household 6 Binder today- it's not quite ready and I don't want to share a rushed/half done post! So instead I'm sharing another list, but don't worry, I'll be sharing my Household 6 Binder soon!!

So today's list... this is another tool I use in budgeting. I've started saving receipts for our groceries for the last month or so {and plan to continue doing so a bit longer} so that I can compare prices at our three most frequented grocery stores. It's useful to know where you get the most bang for your buck, and whether it's really worth the extra trip to another store depending if the price difference is only a few cents or a dollar or more!

In my example, I've already filled in my most frequented stores. The first column is for the grocery item {ie. milk, potatoes, eggs, egg beaters, etc.} and the narrower columns are for the prices. This way you can quickly scan across the stores and see which is the cheapest!

This is great for grocery comparison or also when shopping for Christmas or birthday gifts or any big purchase!

{printable here}

:: 31 Days Wrap Up ::

So I may not have been the most timely poster, but I did give you 31 total lists and the like! There's a few printables I still need to get up for you, and a few posts that I told you I'll be doing in the future, so I do hope you'll stick around and keep visiting me here! Thanks to everyone who has read my series, and I hope you've found it helpful :)

Here's a look at everything we've covered...

1. in the beginning
2. list o' lists
3. Bill Paying Monthly Tracker
4. Spending Tracker {aka. How to Build a Budget Plan}
5. Overnight Guest Prep
6. Monthly Cleaning Chart
7. Daily Chore Chart
8. Weekly Meal List
9. Exercise Tracker
10. Kitchen Tools Tracker
11. Household Appliance Tracker & Service Record
12. Gift Wrapping & Gift Closet Inventory
13. Autumn Project Tracker
14. Thanksgiving Menu
15. Thanksgiving Grocery List
16. Bible Study Bookmarks
17. Gifting List
18. Gift Buying List
19. Thank-You Card List
20. Packing List {with daily plans & small checklist}
21. Packing List {with daily weather}
22. Packing List {with blank checklist}
23. Vacation Budget
24. Vacation To-Do List
25. Vacation Meal Planner
26. Couponing List
27. Pantry Inventory
28. Fridge/Freezer Inventory
29. Full Yearly Cleaning Chart
30. Half Monthly Cleaning Chart
31. Shopping Comparison Chart & Wrap Up

31 Days:: day 30- half monthly cleaning chart

Day 30:: Half Monthly Cleaning Chart

So today's list is essentially the other half of yesterday's list (no pun intended...). Today's list is my Half Monthly Cleaning Chart- aka. when I do a "half clean" or partial clean or quick clean of a room- essentially a tidy and quick wipe down. So currently I do a full clean of each room once a month {See yesterday's post} and a half clean three times a month- hence three columns for each month! Again, we're a household with no kids or pets, so we don't get as dirty as I'm sure we will one day, hehe ;) I'm working on a printable version for ya'll- with extra blank slots so you can fill in your own chores- and I'd be happy to customize this for your family too, if you'd like!

31 Days:: day 29- full yearly cleaning chart

Day 29:: Full Yearly Cleaning Chart

So looking back at my Monthly Cleaning Chart from Day 6, you'll have read how once a month I do a "full" cleaning of the various rooms in the house. Well today I'm sharing my "full" cleaning chart! It's pretty much a deep clean of everything. I print this list out once a year and put it in my Household 6 Binder {post to come Monday about that!}.

So you'll notice that there's some other things that are done a few times a year {ie. washing curtains, washing comforter, cleaning out & donating clothes, etc}. Those chores already have "X"s in the chart for the months that I don't need to do that chore. Now this list is a work in progress... it's tailored for our family {sans kids and pets, for now} and I'm still working out how often I really need to do different chores. I'll work on a printable for ya'll that has no "X"s so you can tailor this chart to your family! And I'll leave extra blank lines in each category so you can add various items that you need to do. We usually live in military housing, so some chores are taken care of for us by maintenance.

Anyhoo, here ya go! It's pretty straight forward. If you have any questions, just leave a comment and a way for me to get back to you :) I'd also love to customize this as a printable for your family with your chores if you'd like!!

Easy DIY Autumn Wreath

-- Second post of the day! --

-- To view today's "31 Days of Lists & the Like" post, please scroll down :) --

So here's a project that has been in the works for about a month! I wrapped the wreath in twine late last month when I did our autumn mantle {post to come about that!}, but it got left to the wayside. I finally got to finish it this afternoon! Yays :)

This is a super simple wreath, and I'll share a full photo tutorial for it soon...

{1} It started with an eco-friendly "styrofoam" type wreath from Hobby Lobby.

{2} Proceeded to wrap it in the great golden wheat colored yarn, which took about an hour & half- I just wrapped it while watching some of my favorite shows ;)

{3} Then cut out circles of some great fall fabric I've had for a year or so, put a pin through the center on each circle, and pushed it into the foam. Repeat lots of times.

{4} Then I created the fun little "autumn" banner with my scrapbooking supplies and The Twinery twine and hung it on our door!

sharing here...

Addicted 2 Decorating

Making Monday Marvelous Linky Party
Dittle Dattle
Crafts Keep Me Sane
Sumo's Sweet Stuff
Making the World Cuter
Singing Three Little Birds
Fall Festival @ The DIY Showoff
Organize Your Stuff Now
Somewhat Simple
The CSI Project
Making It With Allie

31 Days :: day 28- fridge/freezer inventory

Day 28:: Fridge/Freezer Inventory

Wow! So we're almost near the end of the 31 Day challenge! I may not have been the most faithful in posting, but I've indeed given you 31 lists and the like!! Well... I will once the series is done ;) Anyhoo... onward to todays list!

Today's list is a Fridge/Freezer Inventory, similar to yesterday's pantry list. I often forget what leftovers we have floating around, especially those that hide in the back! So this is a great way to keep track of what you have and when you need to use it by ;) I'm not always sure how long things can last in the fridge/freezer (leftovers, homemade items, opened jars, etc), so my go-to is usually my mom or trusty Google, hehe.

This list has one of two residences- either in my Recipe Binder {which is my go-to for meal planning} or on my fridge. I might end up printing out two- one for the Recipe Binder that will have more homemade items that I've made and frozen for later or made in bulk, and the list on the fridge more for leftovers. It's still a work-in-progress list! :)

{printable fridge inventory}

{printable freezer inventory}**

** freezer inventory is same as fridge, just the different title!**

31 Days :: day 27- pantry inventory

Day 27:: Pantry Inventory

Today's list is a pantry inventory! Now this is what has worked for me in two of our last three homes- bins & baskets! We've either had large wire racks in the utility room or a really deep cabinet for our pantries and so we've needed some extra organization help in the form of bins/boxes/baskets. So when it comes to keeping track of what food we have on hand, my list includes a spot for what bin number the food is in! If you have bins that are labeled in your pantry, you could also just put down the name of the bin- ie. perishables, soups, etc. Whatever works for you! :)

I'll be doing a "before and after" post of our current pantry! It's a really tall and realllly deep cabinet {it's a built-in unit in our current Army housing}. So when we moved in, I knew we'd need some sort of organization system so we'd be able to reach items in the back of the pantry. So keep an eye out for that post in the future ;)

So how this list works...

• box- what box/bin/basket number {or name} the designated item is in
• item- the item at hand :) ie. spelt flour, elbow pasta, black beans, etc
• #- how many of that item there is, useful if you have duplicates, like we always have a few cans of beans on hand and a few boxes of pasta, this is great for noting when you're running low and need to stock up on staples or seeing if you need to buy an extra box of something for a recipe you plan on making!
• expire- expiration date

{printable here}

31 Days :: day 26- couponing list

Day 26:: Couponing List

So today's list is part of how I coupon! I'll share the list and explain how I use it, and the printable and a full explanation of my system is going to be in a future post :) So here's how it works...

• product- what the coupon is for {an item, percentage/dollars off purchase, etc..}
• type- my couponing system uses envelopes, so this column is for which envelope the coupon goes into
• store- self explanatory :)
• Wk 1-5- if you notice off to the right, I divide the current month into weeks and then write down when the coupon expires... this is useful so I can see quickly which coupons are expiring soon. I print a new list each month.
• Other- if the coupon expires after the end of the current month, I simply write the date down in this column

I'm excited to soon share with you my whole couponing system... but for now, think of this as a teaser ;) Enjoy!

31 Days :: day 23, 24, 25- Vacation Lists

Day 23, 24, 25:: Vacation Lists

These are two lists that I used while planning and while on our recent vacation to Disney. I plan on sharing a lot more of my "Disney lists" either later in this Lists & More series or after!! We are true Disney fans and have been blessed with being able to visit there every year for our honeymoon & subsequent anniversaries. Anyhoo, onward with the lists! All printables are in generic teal colors {not Disney colors ;) }

List One:: Vacation Budget {blank printable here}

So when we go on vacation, I like to have our savings account stocked with how much we're planning on spending. I use our credit card so we earn frequent flyer miles, but then pay off the bill as soon as we get home from vacation- since we already have the money in savings! This is what works for us, but it's also important to stay roughly within our budget. So here's how this budget works...

• Title- the categories of spending {transportation, lodging, tickets, food, and extras}, the food area I break down into each day's breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack spending
• Paymt- "payment," aka. how we pay for the expense, this way if we break up any spending onto different credit cards, I can make sure all cards get paid off upon our return home from vacation
• Estimate- this is how I make sure we have enough is savings to cover our trip, I usually round up a bit so leave some padding in the budget... I'll go into the in-depth planning behind Disney {and how you can tailor it to your vacation anywhere!} in future posts
• Actual- important note:: I bring this budget with me on vacation. At the end of each day, or every other day, I gather up receipts and see how much we actually spent on the various categories.
• Ovr/Unr- "Over/Under," aka. I take the difference between the Estimate cost and the Actual cost and put that in this column {again during vacation ~each day}. At the end of each day, I have a total of how much our total vacation is over or under budget, and I record this at the bottom {where it says D1, D2- aka. Day 1, Day 2...}. This helps us be aware if we need to cut back on say souvenir spending in order to keep in line with our budget ;)
• Notes- well, for any notes :) on mine I take note of where we're going each day of our trip, any discounts/coupons available for lodging or activities, etc.

List Two:: Vacation to-do list {blank printable here}

So as you can see, this example is currently tailored to Disney, and I've broken it down into the different parks and areas around Disney World. The blank printable has the title "Things to Do and See on Vacation" with blank categories so you can fill them in! This would be a great place to jot down what you want to do each day, or things to see at different stops along your trip, etc.

List Three:: Vacation Meal Planner {blank printable here}

Well just because you're on vacation doesn't mean you can't plan your meals! This is especially useful if you'll be eating out a lot and need to keep track of reservations. Also if you want to make sure you're balancing eating out and eating in, this would be useful to keep track which days are which! Or if you're going camping, you can set up your meal plans using this!

You can see the printable version below as well as how I implemented it on our most recent trip to Disney. A few things I included....

• where we went each day of the trip
• restaurant names
• reservation numbers
• reservation times
• evening shows & times at various parks {aka. where we were going after dinner!}

31 Days:: day 20, 21, 22- packing/moving lists {3 ways}

Day 20, 21, 22:: Packing/Moving Lists {3 ways}

So our family recently moved from the northeast to the deep south- quite the road trip! This was our first major move with the Army, and I wanted to be prepared, so I created an extensive packing list/trip planner.

I used all three pages since we were packing up and moving our whole house, but you can use any of them individually for a vacation or use a few of them for a big move! In the printables I've provided, the list names are all "Travel Packing List" {PCS is the Army term for moving to a new post!}. The last two lists I used to account for household items we needed for the move- pots and pans, air mattress, extra towels- things we need once we're in our new home while we waited for our household goods to arrive from the movers, etc.

.: List elements :.

• travel days/tty days/leave days:: the latter are Army terms essentially for paid vacation days and unpaid days :) On the blank printables I've provided, I left the last two areas blank, so you can fill in your own important travel info!
• Needed:: jot down the number of that item you think you'll need { ie. 5 pairs of pants}, great for those of us who like to plan ahead or so you get an idea of how much laundry you might need to do before you go so you have all the needed clothes ;)
• Packed:: jot down the number of that item that you actually put in the suitcase!
• Unpacked/Repacked:: jot down the number of that item that you put back into your suitcase when you're getting ready to come home {make sure you're not leaving anything behind!}
• Travel Plans:: jot down what days you'll be where- useful if you're doing a longer road trip or if you're going to different amusement parks throughout your trip, etc.
• Weather:: if you're doing a longer road trip, you may need different types of clothing for different weather {ie. when we went from the cold north to the hot south}, or if they're calling for rain for half your trip- this is a useful place to make note of different types of clothing you may need to pack!
• Checklist/Lists:: jot down any errands you may need to run before you leave, household chores {ie. water the plants!} or plans you need to make before a move

.: Printables :.

• Packing List {with daily plans and small checklist}
• Packing List {with weather plans}
• Packing List {with blank checklist}

lists coming soon!

so sorry all!!! been spending quality time with DH before his upcoming mini "deployment"... plan on being back later today with a big "Moving & Vacation" themed post- lots of lists to come :D

31 Days :: day 18 & 19- gift buying & thank-you lists

Day 18:: Gift Buying List

So today's combined post picks up where the last post left off- gift buying. If you're like me, you tend to start Christmas shopping a little early, or at the very list, you likely buy various gifts from various stores. Well it's quite easy to forget everything you've bought so far and how much you've spent!

I ran into that problem last year, and so I created the Gift Buying List below! List your budget and name of the person you're gifting to, and then keep track of what you're gifting! There's also a column to check off once you've wrapped the gift and then once you've actually gifted the gift :)

{ printable here }

Day 19:: Thank-You Card List

When a holiday or celebration rolls around, it's always nice to send thank-you cards- for gifts received on a birthday, for a helping hand friends might lend you when throwing a gathering, etc. Here's a great list to keep track of who & what was gifted and a place to check off once you've sent out the thank-you card! :)

{ printable here }

31 Days :: day 17- Gifting List

Day 17:: Gifting List

Today's list is a Gifting List- a great place to keep track of friends and family's birthdays, anniversaries, clothing sizes, favorite colors, etc. Bring this list with you when you go shopping so you have all the info you need on hand in order to pick out the perfect gift for your loved one! Fill in the person's favorite store so you can get the perfect gift card for a special occasion!

The printable includes a few blank spots- fill in any other important dates to remember about that person or any other favorite things. :)

{printable here}

31 Days:: day 16- Bible study bookmarks

Day 16:: Bible Study Bookmarks

Happy Sunday, all!!

Today's list is a crafty list :) I'm currently reading through the Bible in a year and I've chosen the chronological order- so it's the order of when things occurred historically and jumps around between books.

In order to keep track, I've created bookmarks with each day's reading on it, and broken up the reading into various bookmarks. I've listed the day's reading and a space to record which date I finished the reading on. It's a simple way to keep track of where I am in my readings. Every few days/weeks I get to pull out my next bookmark, and they're all different so it's fun :)

No printable today, but if you'd like a set, I'd be more than happy to put together a set for you via my Etsy shop!!

31 Days :: day 13, 14, 15- Autumn Projects, Thanksgiving Menu & Shopping List

Hey all!!

So I've been a bit of a 31 Day delinquent... sorry :( I hope you'll forgive me! This is apparently also my "31 days of getting better with blogging!" Bear with me though, today I come bearing THREE (3) great Autumn lists :)

Day 13:: Autumn Project Tracker

So autumn is a time of change around the house... some people opt to take screens out of their windows and store them away during cooler weather, you've got autumn decor to set out, perhaps do some "autumn cleaning" {like spring cleaning... but in autumn!} hehe... you know the drill. Or maybe your kids have a new fall sport and you've taken to volunteering to bring refreshments or help out at school... regardless of what your autumn looks like, it's bound to have a few projects to keep track of- so here's a little tracker for ya :) Super simple and super festive!

{printable here}

Day 14:: Thanksgiving Menu

So if you're like me, you like to have everything in a list... including large meals you may be hosting for Thanksgiving! I even used this list recently for an Autumn Feast we had with friends :) I find it very useful to plan what should be cooked when {ie. if two dishes cook at the same temperature, I can put them in at the same time} and how far in advance I need to start cooking everything! I also use the notes section to list out the order I'm going to cook everything in... I'll be putting out a new version of this soon that includes a slot for "temperature" and "#" for listing out what order to cook the dishes in :)

• category- main dish, side dish, dessert, etc.
• recipe- the name of the dish
• source- cookbook name, magazine name, recipe binder name, or simply "recipe card"
• pg- page number in the designated source
• time- time to prep/ cook (I usually jot down the cooking temperature in this section too)
• serves- how many does the recipe serve? this is useful so you know if you should double, triple, half the recipe

{printable here}

Day 15:: Thanksgiving Grocery List

And here's the final list list for today's autumn-themed group post- Thanksgiving Grocery List! While I'm putting together the Thanksgiving Menu {above}, I jot down what ingredients I need on the grocery list. I've included the major categories where I shop (ie. being a vegetarian, I don't have a "meat" category here)... I group in any oddball ingredients at the bottom of a section or just put a star next to it, so I know to look in another section of the store for it. If you'd like a customized grocery list, just send me an email! I could tailor this to include your major shopping categories :D

{printable here}

Happy Autumn- Easy DIY Paper Pumpkins

how cute are these, right?! hehe... I love making these little pumpkins- so super quick and easy, and great easy kids craft too!

ingredients

• orange cardstock
• green card stock
• green wire (could use curling ribbon, twine, etc too!)

steps

(1) cut out a bunch of circles

(2) fold 'em all in half

(3) glue them together
(4) cut the bottom a little, so the pumpkin has a flat surface to stand up on

(5) add a stem and some wire vines (or I've made them with paper).

Happy Autumn ya'll :)

P.S. I'll be back later today with some 31 Days of Lists the Like!! I know I'm a bit backlogged... eeep!

31 days :: day 12- Wrapping & Gift Closet Inventory

Day 13:: Gift Wrapping & Gift Closet Inventories

Today I'd like to share my Gift Closet and my Gift Wrapping storage station. I store them together- both items that I've saved to gift to people, and wrapping supplies to package up said gifty items! I'm sharing the two ways that I've stored my Gift Closet- first is in a storage bin and second is in a hanging shoe/sweater storage piece. Being in the Army, we move around a lot and also we don't ever know how big our next home will be- so our Gift Closet & Wrapping Station is on the smaller side... one day I dream of an entire actual closet for such purposes :)

Now my Gift Closet consists of two main types of items-

• Re-Gifting:: items that I was gifted that weren't quite my style, duplicates of things I already have, raffle items won, free gifts with purchase, etc.
• New:: items that I've bought for a particular person that I'll be gifting at a later date {future birthday, Christmas, etc.}

And it's always good to know what I have and what I've bought so that I don't re-buy something, or go buy something new when I have the perfect gift already in my stash! So here's what I have on the Gift Closet Inventory...

• gift :: short description of the gift
• occasion :: useful if it's occasion-specific {ie. wedding, Christmas, etc} or if I've bought it intentionally for a person for a specific holiday
• from :: who the gift was originally from {useful in the event of re-gifting}
• to :: who a gift might be for if it's a re-gift, or who I intentionally bought the gift for

{ Gift Closet blank inventory }

Up next is my Gift Wrapping Inventory. Now if you're anything like me, you save all boxes, ribbon, and tissue paper that is salvageable. I like to reuse items- both to save me money and to save the environment a bit. So I have a central place to store all my wrapping items. I also need a way to keep track of all the items that I already have... in comes my inventory list!

It's pretty straight forward...

• tissue :: all tissue paper
• boxes/bins :: all gift boxes, also included is any random gift wrap paper or certificate holders... anything that doesn't fit in the other categories I've listed here
• ribbons :: all ribbons and bows

{ Gift Wrapping blank inventory }

31 days :: day 11- Appliance Tracker & Service Record

Day 11:: Household Appliance Tracker & Service Record

So today's list piggybacks off yesterday's list... today's list is a Household Appliance Tracker. Simply used for keeping track of warranty, brand, and model info regarding all of our more expensive home appliances- namely ones that may need to be serviced once in a while. It will also come in handy when we want to replace said items one day- when we go shopping we can bring this list along to remember which brands we did or didn't like. There's a secondary list today- it's a service record for said appliances. Easy way to keep track of when & where items were serviced, including a notes section so you can jot down what was fixed and if you liked the repair shop or not.

I keep this tracker in my Household Binder, and here are the things I keep track of with these lists...

Appliance Tracker::

• Name- what appliance it is
• Brand- brand name
• Model- model name
• From- where did you buy it? if it was a gift, I note "gift"
• Date- date bought, if it was a gift, I note the year and that it was a gift
• Warranty- how long and if it's limited or full warranty

Service Tracker ::

• Name- which appliance was serviced
• Date- date it was serviced
• Location- Repair shop name
• Cost- hopefully "N/A" if under warranty :)
• Notes- notes about the part repaired and any notes regarding the repair shop

{blank printable here}

{blank printable here}