I have 3 wonderful little boys, 2 of whom are potty trained. I thought I would be smart and teach them to sit and use the potty. One day my sister took the oldest out and not wanting him to sit on a public toilet told him to stand "like a big boy". That's all she wrote. They must now stand which means I am mopping my bathroom floor about once a day. Who has time, right? Instead of trying to find the time, or assigning the kids an extra chore, I fit it into our bedtime schedule. Now in the evening, I put the youngest boys in the tub, wash them up and then let them play. While they're playing I clean my bathroom. I use lavender scented Comet (my favorite) or baking soda (cheap and just as effective) so they aren't overwhelmed with fumes and I take 10 minutes or less to wipe out the sink, swipe the toilet bowl out, wipe down the mirror and spot mop behind little boys who haven't quite perfected their aim.
For those of you with wee little ones, it can sometimes feel like you're always cleaning up after them, what are some things you do to keep it managable?

My name is ebony and I'm a planner junkie. The highlight of my year isn't my birthday or Christmas, it's right about November or so when I go to pick out my new planner. Some years I don't even make it to November, I start looking in October. And I'm a Planner Snob too. I refuse to carry just any planner. I prefer Franklin Covey. I know there are cheaper planners (the horror!) and more expensive planner, but I'm a girl who knows what I like. That's why I was so disappointed when I couldn't find any calender pages that I like this year. I looked high and low and nothing. I was resigned to just get some pages from Target and make do. This would be the part where a light bulb would appear over my head. I don't have to settle, I can make my own! My biggest grip with planner pages is the scheduling part. My routine really doesn't require me to schedule every hour of my day. My planner needs to be able to handle the busy life of this single mom of 5. So this is the breakdown of my new planner.

Sections:
Monthly--This is were I keep my schedule. It's enough for me to write "Doc appt-mom 2pm" I have ample white space on each monthly calender to write details such as telephone number, address, etc.

Daily--This is where I had fun. I went for the 2 page spread. On the 1st page I have Appointments, To Call, To Write, Errands, Self Minder (includes Quiet Time & Journal, Exercise, Family Time, Prayer & Bible Study), Family (includes Homework & Chores), Holidays/Reminders and Notes
On the 2nd page I have Memory Verse, Declutter, Internet Search, Books Read/To Read and Future Goals

On a busy day, I may forget to check my kid's homework and they won't remind me, now I have a reminder every day. I can keep track of websites I visited in one place instead of on post-it notes. It was easy to type this up in Word and just print it to size and punch holes in the pages.

Lists--I like to keep lists. Here I have my cleaning schedule, gift ideas, library lists, To Buy list, master to do list, etc. If it can be put in list form, I'll do it.

Notes--This is where I keep misc. stuff. If it's a one time deal, I'll put it here. I was calling around trying to find cheap car insurance, this is where I put the info.

Quotes--I'm also a quote addict. I'm always writing down clever or funny quotes I've heard or read.

Addresses--This one's kinda explains itself. I do keep one or two extra sheets of paper in this section for jotting down misc. names and numbers.

I had so much fun doing this, that I've knocked out most of my Christmas and Kwanzaa gifts for this year. I'm going to have my kids decorate planner pages for their aunties with various themes, such as Black History, Faith/Religious and Motherhood.