Stay-at-Home Challenge - Update 1/13/09

Here is a quick update in pictures of what I have been doing during my "Stay-at Home Challenge".    You can read more about my challenge here.  I am trying for the month of January to reduce the amount of time I spend couponing, shopping and being out of the house so I can get some things done and organized and save some  $ too.

Here are some things I've done:

Planned a Month of Meals.  I'm not holding myself to make the things on the exact day.  But if I switch a day I cross off what I made.  Also, sometimes we have more leftovers than planned so I don't cook the next day.  So I have really more than a month here.

Organized my Kitchen Cabinets and got rid of old spices.  I organized them in this drawer and can now see all the labels.

I organized my "Stash".  Most of the items in here I got for free at CVS, Walgreens, or Kmart.  I can now see what I've got enough of and what to look for, for free before I run out.

Cleaned out bathroom cabinets.  This was packed full of "Stash " stuff.  Now it is out of here and I can store only  a few items more neatly here.

Things I want to do yet this month:

After dinner is coloring time.  Both kids love to color and it is a good quiet activity.  I want to organize the craft items, paper, coloring books, etc, so we can find things more easily.

Here is a rolling cart that fits 12x12 scrapbook paper.  I want to organize my scrapbook and craft items in it.  I got it for 50% off at Meijer.

Okay - this is hard for me to show you.  My very messy make-up and hair drawer.  I still have a few drawers in the bathrooms to sort and get rid of stuff.  I want to finish this job.

So far, I've made 1 trip to Aldi for produce and a few other things and stopped at CVS for milk.  It's been hard for me to keep out of the couponing loop, but I've enjoyed the extra time and also enjoyed keeping inside where it is warm!

Stay-at-Home Challenge - Update 1/7/09

I wanted to update you on my January Challenge.  

(If you  haven't read about it yet you can go here.)

Basically, my plan is to stay home and take a grocery shopping & coupon break so I can:

#1: Organize the house, minimize clutter, make the space we have work.

#2: Save $.

#3: Time for Savvy Savings program preparation.

So far,  the challenge is going well and I am enjoying the extra time I have in the week.  I have my Month of Meals Planned and have all the necessary items for them.  I will need to go to the store soon for some produce and diapers.

I have been able to reorganize my kitchen cabinets, making it much easier for me to find the things I need.  I emptied many of them and tried to rethink the space and use it better.  I moved my spices from a corner cabinet, where I couldn't see them very well, to a drawer nearer the stove.  I love being able to see all the labels and not dig around for the one I need!

I have several more things I would like to reorganize this month:

1. Kid's Craft items, coloring books, paper, paints
2. Upstairs bathroom  cabinet
3. Master Bath cabinet
4. Linen Closet - toiletry/personal care stash

 Also, I have had some good time to prepare for the Savvy Savings programs, read more to the kids and get a few other things done.  

So, I highly recommend you take the challenge and stay home!  Take a grocery shopping break. Maybe you can only do a week, if so try that and pick something to do in that afternoon you would have spent at the store.  

Stay-at-Home Challenge - 1 Month of Meals Planned

Yesterday I did a Pantry Inventory.  Today I was actually out of the house all day.  We went to The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, returned some gifts and went to Aldi.  So, except for a few misc. items I need (I forgot yogurt and diapers) I am ready for the challenge.

I picked up a great wipe-off calendar at Wal-Mart (in the stationary dept.)  I used this to plan out our dinner meals for the month.  I also was able to note my Husband's days off and the days I will be holding classes.  I taped a few flat magnets to the back of it and it will now hang on the fridge.  It also has a place for notes at the bottom.  This will be good for noting grocery items I need to get.

I now have a whole month of dinners planned and have all the groceries I need to prepare these meals on-hand.  I will need to pick up milk, maybe eggs, salad and fruit a few times in the month - but I can make a quick trip around the corner to Aldi or CVS for those and should be able to spend less than $10 a week for the extra things we will need.

Stay-at-Home Challenge - Pantry Inventory

If you haven't read about my January Stay-at-Home Challenge go here.

So, I've been getting ready for my January Challenge, where I plan to stay home, minimize shopping,  get organized, save $, and prepare for my presentations.

Monday, I took a "Pantry Inventory".  I emptied my pantry and cleaned it with the help of my son.  It's not a big pantry, about 5 small shelves.  I threw out the things I wouldn't use - like the "Cup-of-Soup" that expired in 2005!  

Next, I wrote down the main dishes I had on hand, noting any additional items I needed to purchase to complete the dish.  I placed the items back into the pantry as I wrote them down, so I would know what was used.   (I also got rid of some of the packaging.  I put all the tea bags in one plastic container, my lentils in another. This made things easier to stack.)

I then made a list of the extra items were not being used in any of the main dishes.   (Side Dishes, canned vegetables, etc.)

Next, I did the same inventory of my freezers and refrigerator. 

My next project is to compile a list of meals and match-up side dishes with them, then make a grocery list and get the remaining items I need to complete the dish or meal.  I plan to post my meal list on my fridge and choose the meal I want for the day.  I want to make sure I have 30 dinners on hand so I will not need to do much shopping this month.

Here is a picture of my now organized and inventoried pantry.  I wish I had a before picture!  It was really messy.

New Year, New Challenge

The New Year always motivates me to try to get it together.  Get the house more organized, get the finances tighter,  exercise more, eat less...  

I have been thinking about what I want to accomplish in January 2009 and I want to work on organization and de-cluttering even more around the house.  The winter is a great time to do this because who wants to leave the house anyway?  I'm not tempted to go to the Zoo or work on the flower garden.  I only want to stay home! 

Goal #1: Organize the house, minimize clutter, make the space we have work.

The second thing I want to do is to save some money.  It always seems I spend a bit more than planned over the holidays.  There are groceries I need and unexpected expenses that pop up.  So to "make-up" for some of those things I want to save as much as I can in January.   

Goal #2: Save $.

The third priority is the Savvy Saving program I am presenting starting January 20th for the IMCPL Library system. I need time to finish preparations and some evenings I will be away from home to do presentations. 

Goal #3: Time for Savvy Savings program preparation and presentation.

In order to accomplish my goals, I need time.  Time to de-clutter, organize and minimize.  Time for program preparations.  So,  I have been thinking about where I can find time and Goal #2 will actually help me to find time.

So, this is my challenge and plan for January:

Challenge

Goal #1: Organize the house, minimize clutter, make the space we have work.

Goal #2: Save $.

Goal #3: Time for Savvy Savings program preparation.

My Plan: Stay Home

To make the time to accomplish these goals, I have decided to take a "shopping and coupon break". 

This will give me extra time because:

I will not- 

get coupons, 

cut coupons,

file coupons, 

check the ads, 

pack up the kids and go to the store.  

It will save me $ because I won't shop!

It will make space and clear out clutter because I will use my stash!

How will I do this?

I plan to make a list of all the meals I can make with the items I have in the house currently and then a shopping list of the items I need to get through the month and do 1 shopping trip only. (I realize I may still need some basics weekly like milk, eggs and produce.  I should be able to get these at Aldi or CVS and these are both close and I can go without kids!

So, I am calling this the "January 2009, Stay Home Challenge", because I will only accomplish my goals if I Stay Home! I will post more as I plan my meals for the month and map out my plan of attack for organization around the house.

If you would like to join me in my "January 2009 Stay Home Challenge" leave a comment and let us know what you would like to accomplish my staying home in January.

If you have a blog, feel free to copy the logo at the top of this post and blog about what you want to accomplish by staying at home in January 09.  Just please link your post back here!

(If you would like to read the second post in this series go here.)