I didn’t grow up learning cooking skills (or any type of homemaking skills, for that matter). When I moved out of my parents’ house to live on my own, I knew how to boil water, scramble eggs, make packaged ramen noodles, and stir fry broccoli. Because I was single and worked late-ish hours, I ate out often. During the earlier years of our marriage, Hubby did the cooking. Finally, after G2 was born, I quit my full-time job and we decided that I would start doing the cooking. It was a bit of a rough start, since I basically had to start from scratch. Here’s what I did:
- Using the trusty resources available to me (cookbooks, web sites, Food Network, and dear Hubby), I began learning about cooking.
- I started experimenting, building on the little that I knew. I think Hubby pretty much held my hand with some dishes in those days—I was that insecure about my ability to cook. Thankfully, I think there has only ever been one dish that we actually threw out because it was so unpalatable. (But even with that one dish, we actually got through the meal; we just threw out the leftovers.)
- Slowly, my confidence grew. I now have a number of recipes under my belt.
Sounds like a culinary success story, doesn’t it? Oh, but don’t think it was all smooth sailing…
One of my favorite things to do is to create forms of all kinds. I don’t use any fancy software; just Microsoft Word (which I enjoy using).
Here are a few of the things I’ve created and used this year:
- A yearly calendar (two pages per month, with lines, 8.5 x 11 size), on which I can keep track of daily events and appointments. I printed copies for myself and the kids.
- A menu planner that I used to prepare two weeks’ worth of meals. I’m not using this anymore… more on that below.
- A school planner that I used to track the kids’ progress. I’m not using this one any more either… see below.
- A monthly To Do list.
Recently, I decided that I really wanted something more comprehensive. I love having the monthly calendar, but I wanted something on which I could track my day-to-day activities. I’ve looked at many planners and just haven’t found one that’s right for my needs. So, of course, I made one.
What I wanted was a weekly planner on which I could track events and activities, the menu plan for the week, some of the kids’ school needs, and the to-do list. I also like having a little extra space for working out the menu plan because I’m still trying to figure that out.
Here’s what I came up with:
- The left side of the page has spaces for events/activities, the menu plan, and space to list what we have, what we need, and what we might like to eat sometime in the near future.
- The right side of the page is dedicated to school—mainly only the things I need to do with the kids. My to-do list is at the bottom of the page.
I’m going to try using this planner for a few weeks to see how it works for me, and then I’ll make any tweaks as necessary.
Welcome to my blog! I’m a devoted wife to my wonderful, loving husband, and a happy mom to two super-terrific kids.
