How did this mess happen? How do I begin when the problem is everywhere??

Tamara Nugteren

Most people think that they're organized people. Or at least they used to be. 

Or they could be.

But what happened? How did the formally organized house get so out of control?

If you are reading this, you are probably a parent.  And the reason you're not organized anymore is because you had children. I’m sure of it.

I have this theory - most of us are pretty organized people. Or at least we think we are. (Again, until we had kids.) It's actually very easy to figure out what happened.  That ‘’pretty well organized’ home that you lived in before kids was maintained by two competent adults who (likely) worked outside the home and had plenty of time to take care of it (Remember when you used to think you were SO BUSY?). 

Can you find the wood glue? They keep it by the waffle iron.
Where do they keep the waffle iron?
Above the stove and near the graham crackers, of course!

Then along came baby and that was the end of that. 

In a short span of time, you probably had a baby shower, where friends and family gave you baby gifts.  You also purchased LOTS of gadgets, clothes, baby furniture and toys – all for that tiny bundle of joy.  Much of it went into the nursery.  But wait!  Where did all the stuff go that was in the room that became the nursery?  It was probably spread throughout the house – hastily put into the ‘second choice’ locations.  All of your home office furnishings are crammed into a smaller space somewhere else – the filing cabinets are stored next to the Christmas decorations and your computer is now permanently stored on the kitchen counter.  Or, if you are lucky, maybe you converted your ‘guestroom’ into a ‘guestroom/office’ – though its rather tight.  

You can’t keep all of it in the nursery, though.  Some of it will go in the kitchen.  It will start on the counter: bottles, pump accessories, pacifiers.  Eventually, sippy cups and little plastic dinnerware.  If you are lucky, some of it will eventually end up in a cabinet.  But the cabinets were already full.  So, you just cram most of it onto the lowest and most convenient shelf.  Things keep tumbling out, but hey – better than on the counter!

Lets take a minute to talk about the toys.  Were you one of those expectant parents that thought you would corral all of your children’s toys in their room so the “adult spaces” would always look great?  Ha! Rude surprise, right?  Oh well.  Toys are now in every room.  One time, you tried to get some bins, but it didn’t work out very well. 

But – lets say – even with all that – you were doing pretty well.  Until you found out you were expecting another child….  Well, if it’s the same gender as your first, you are good on toys and clothes.  Whenever the oldest grows out of clothes, you now need to keep them.  But where? There are SO MANY clothes!  You probably put them into bins – or maybe you put them under the bed.  What if the second child is the opposite gender?  Now you have a conundrum.  You will have nearly twice as many toys eventually.  (Yes, they play with some of the same toys, but no matter how hard you fight it, there will be “boy toys” and “girl toys”.)  And you have an entire second child’s wardrobe.  If you are considering a third child, you’ll need to keep and store BOTH sets of clothes because you don’t know which you will need.  Did I mention that every year your children will grow out of a significant portion of their toys and well meaning family and friends will get them more?? You know the drill. 

And that is how the “pretty well organized” home spins out of control.  All of the above, or some version of that, happens when you have the least amount of time you have ever had.  Welcome to parenthood. 

Look familiar? Probably.
Not necessarily too many things, but
too many things with no place to go.

So now what? You have admitted there are some “problem areas”. Or more accurately, some places in your house that you cannot stand to look at, be in or deal with at all.  So they keep getting worse.  And they suck your time, too.  Remember, now you never have enough time.  How much time do you spend trying to find things?  Your keys?  That permission slip?  A particular cleaning product? Your favorite jeans? What if you always knew right where everything was?  How much time would you save?  What if every member of the house could put away the groceries – in the right spot – so you wouldn’t have to be the only one who could do it?  What the children could pick up their toys or put away their own clothes because they knew exactly where they went? What if you could always find the super glue?

Sound like a dream? It’s totally possible.  You just have to have a plan.

Step one: Identify your problem areas and prioritize them.

Step two: Plan to tackle one area a week, or if that is too ambitious for your schedule, plan one area every two weeks.  Schedule it onto your calendar – plan for an hour or more depending on the project.  Schedule repeat appointments until the project is finished. 

Step three:  Utilize organizational tools.  Consider investing in a label maker.  If an area is labeled, then all the members of your home will know what goes where without guessing. If you don’t want to do that – use printer labels or even masking tape. Rubber bands, twist ties, permanent markers and baggies are all standards that I have on hand.

Step four:  Invest in bins, boxes, shelves and whatever other accessories your space needs to work at the best.  The Container Store is great, but it’s expensive.  Don’t overlook what you can get at Bed, Bath and Beyond or Target.  Hardware super stores like Menards, Home Depot and Lowes also have fantastic organizational items. 

Step five:  Keep it neat.  Insist that everyone use the new system and take a little time every once and a while to fix it up again.

Here is my top 10 list of the most common unorganized areas 

and their problems:

1.     Junk drawers.  Multiple drawers that have no function other than being a “catch-all” spot.

2.     Kitchen cabinets.  Very little thought to layout, overstuffed.  No one except mom knows where anything goes.

3.     Garage.  Can’t park in it anymore.  There may be tools in there… somewhere.

4.     Linen closets.  Another ‘catch-all’ for anything that is used in the bathroom or for cleaning.  May also hold sheets and many miscellaneous items.

5.     Bedroom closets.  Crammed full – no order.  You own a many of the same thing… probably.  You can’t find matching pairs of shoes and several belts are missing.

6.     Around the computer and/or wherever you set your mail.  The continual deposit of mail and papers from school has created a mountain.  No one wants to deal with it because it’s too hard.

7.     By your main door.  Piles of shoes and bags.  Coats, hats & gloves spilling out of the closet.  If you have a closet.

8.     Spaces for play and/or toy storage. Toys and games with no obvious home. Many outgrown items.  

9.     Laundry rooms.  No plan – just dump and run.

10. Your car.  You know its true. 

This is one of the best times to organize.  Excuses are evaporating.  The kids are back in school.  Summer travel is over.  Thanksgiving is still more than a month away.  Get your home in it’s best shape before the holiday craziness begins. 

You wouldn’t hesitate to fix a leaking pipe or a vehicle that wasn’t running.  Why would you hesitate to fix this?  When that pipe is fixed, you will have – nothing.  Everything will be working as it was before the leak. Same with your car.  When you “fix” the disorganization that is plaguing your home you will have more time, less stress and you’ll save money by not buying duplicates of things you already own.  

Feeling overwhelmed with the amount of organizing to be done?  Need some great ideas and solutions? Need to be held accountable? Do you just want someone to lend you a hand? Call a personal organizer.  Myself, or someone just like me can come over and help you dig out.  And believe it or not – we really enjoy it!  Sometimes you just need an outside opinion on how to re-do it.  We are not just for hoarders (really!).  We are for parents JUST LIKE YOU. 

For a personalized quote in the Twin Cities metro area, contact me, Tamara, at: tnugteren@earthlink.net

I would LOVE to come and help you out. 

Tamara Nugteren

It’s About Time…. TLC  LLC

Personal &  Home Organizer

All things tomatoes. "Inches Away From Perfection".

Tamara Nugteren


My garden needed to end a little early this year, due to a backyard project.  Actually, I needed to totally rip it out.  To anyone who loves to garden, tearing out vegetables in their peak growing season almost physically hurts.

My tomato plants were heavy with green tomatoes and I refused to waste them. I'm not a "fried green tomatoes" lover.  In fact, I don't even like tomatoes plain.  But I do really enjoy them in salsa, bruschetta, sauces and all other recipes.  But for this, they need to be ripe.   Not a problem - I'll just ripen them indoors.  Did you know you can successfully do this even with the greenest of tomatoes?  And it works fantastically.  You won't be ripping out your garden early, but you may still have a load of green tomatoes on the vine when the frost warnings start coming out.  No worries!  Just pick them and try this great tidbit!

To ripen green tomatoes, simply line a baking sheet with newspaper.  Fill it up with green tomatoes (not too tightly) and cover it with another sheet of newspaper.  Keep the baking sheet in a cooler (not cold) area of your home, checking them ever day or two.  If I kept them in my kitchen this time of year, it would be too hot and they would ripen too quickly and start to rot.  I keep my in the lower level of our house, either in the laundry room or guest bedroom.  Keep them out of direct sunlight and away from air vents.  In a few days, the tomatoes will begin to ripen.  They will not all ripen them together, so you can pull some out and eat them as you go.

Why does this work?  Tomatoes naturally give off a gas called ethylene.  The newspaper traps that in, helping the tomatoes to ripen more quickly.  Here are some pictures of the process, as it worked for me.  I dated the photos for you - but your process may work on a different timeline.

September 7th. 

I had to separate the tomatoes into two pans
as I added in more cherry tomatoes.  This is pan 1 on Sept. 17.

This is the second pan, also on Sept. 17th. 

This is Sept. 26th.  All the tomatoes are beautifully ripe.
I'm back down to one pan as I have been pulling out
tomatoes as they have ripened along the way.

If you look closely, the caption on the right side of the newspaper, coincidentally, reads "Inches Away From Perfection."  How appropriate!

What to do with all these ripe tomatoes?  Just search online for "tomato recipes" and you will be instantly overwhelmed.  So many wonderful possibilities.   I'll share with you our families favorites, and then the choice is yours. 

Some of these tomatoes I canned because I simply cannot use them fast enough. My crop is not big enough to do an afternoon of canning - I just do a jar or two at a time as needed.  You can too - it does not need to be overwhelming.   I'm going to let you search out directions online for the best canning "recipe" for you.  Everyone does it a little different.  I can just plain tomatoes, others can "stewed tomatoes" or different sauces.  You'll find the right fit.  Rather than "recreate the wheel", I'm just going to redirect you to these great, easy instructions I found, posted on www.About.com by Molly Watson:  Home canning tomatoes.

In the meantime, here are a couple of photos of the last time I canned to inspire you.

Step one: jars and lids sanitized in boiling water.

Step two: Split the skins on the tomatoes in same boiling water.

Gorgeous, right? This one is ready to peel.

Start peeling.  It's a mess.  Plan ahead.

Peel and chop into wedges.

Add tomato wedges, lemon juice, salt and top off with water.

Wipe clean lid (with a paper towel!), tightly seal jar,
boil for 30-45 minutes.  Remove and set on counter to cool.
Make sure the lid has sealed! (see above link for better instructions).

Beautiful, right?  It's summer in a jar. Saved for winter.  

Now for the recipes!

The best way to chop tomatoes, is to use either a very sharp knife, or a serrated one if your knives aren't well maintained. Otherwise it will just slip and slide all over the tomato's skin.

Halve it, slice it then dice it.  Easy-peazy.

Tony's Fresh Garden Salsa
(A huge hit whenever we serve it... never gets saved for later!)

- 3 large tomatoes, diced or the equivalent in cherry tomatoes, quartered.
- 1/4 - 1/2 medium white onion, finely diced.
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- 2 large or 4 small jalepeno peppers, finely diced.
- 3 Tbs. fresh cilantro, chopped (minimum - better with more!)
- 1/8-1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/8 tsp. black pepper
- Juice of one lime.

First, dice the onions and combine them with half of the lime juice and approximately of the salt.   Let that soak together while you dice the tomatoes. Add in the tomatoes, the last half of your salt, all the pepper and all of the minced garlic.  Dice peppers, removing the pith and seeds for a more mild salsa - leaving all or some of the pith and seeds for a hotter salsa.  Next, add in the chopped cilantro.  Last, add the remaining lime juice.

Optional: 1/2 diced avocado.  This makes it super yummy, but you'll want to eat it all the same day as the avocado will not be great the next day.  If you are eating this over a couple of days - leave the avocado out.

Wash veggies and combine all in a medium bowl. Toss gently to mix.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Tony's Fresh Garden Salsa.  Mmm...

Bruschetta 
(My favorite - I could eat the whole batch!)

- 3 large tomatoes, diced or the equivalent in cherry tomatoes, quartered. (In the winter, I've been known to used canned, petite diced tomatoes and it still works out pretty nicely.)
- 1/4 c. Italian cheese blend (shredded parmesan and romano)
- 3 Tbs. fresh basil OR 1 1/2 tsp. of dried.
- 3 Tbs. fresh oregano OR 1/2 tsp. dried oregano

- Drizzle 1-2 tsp. Seasoned Rice Vinegar - Garlic*
- Drizzle 1 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
- Loaf of french bread or a baguette.
- Butter for the bread.

Toss gently to mix.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.  

Slice bread to 1/2 to 1" thickness.  Butter each slice and lightly toast them under the broiler.

Allow to cool.  Top each with a generous portion of the bruschetta mix.  Serve and enjoy!

My favorite - Bruschetta.

* Seasoned Rice Vinegar is a great product that I came across back in my marketing days.  

I buy the Nakano brand because it is widely available.  In my supermarket, it is sold in the "ethnic" area, but could also be likely found by condiments.  Ask if you don't find it.  You could substitute 1 tbs. vinegar and a clove of garlic - but it's not quite as good...

Seasoned Rice Vinegar - Roasted Garlic.

Tomato Basil Soup

Note:  This makes a large batch. You will need a stockpot.  Freeze the extras or give some to a friend who could use a ready made meal.  I usually do both.  

(I can't believe I haven't posted this before.  This is seriously my FAVORITE soup.)

- 1/4 c. canola oil

- 1 1/2 large carrots OR two small ones

- 2 celery stalks

- 1/2 medium onion, white or red

- 16-20 tomatoes OR 4 large canning jars of tomatoes OR 4 large (28 oz.) cans of store bought tomatoes. Puree before using.

- 2-3 Tbs. salt

- 3 Tbs. sugar

- 1/2 tsp. black pepper

- 4 1/2 cups dairy (any combination of milk, 1/2 & 1/2 and cream - you decide on how rich or skinny you want it to be.)  OR equivalent of chicken or vegetable stock*  

- 1/4 cup fresh basil, finely chopped.  I don't recommend dried basil in this recipe.

Heat oil in stock pot on medium high heat.  Mince vegetables, then add them to the oil.  Cook and stir until they are translucent and tender - not brown. Add in pureed tomatoes, salt, sugar and pepper, stirring occasionally for 15-20 minutes.  Add in dairy (or chicken stock) and basil.  Cook for an additional 15-20 minutes.  Finished product will be a salmon color.

The pureed vegetables will be a bright orange.

Bright red once the puree and the tomatoes are added together.

This is the finished DAIRY FREE soup - I used chicken stock.
It stays very red and has a thinner consistency.
Still tastes great - but of course, different.

This is the finished product of the main version, with milk.
It ends up almost salmon in color.  Delish! 

Here are a few of my mismatched storage containers,
ready to go into the freezer for many meals to come!

Notes: Allow to cool in the refrigerator.  If you are going to freeze the extras (highly recommended!), pour generous portions into freezer safe containers.  Don't forget to leave a little room at the top for expansion.  I most commonly use the family size yogurt containers for freezing - just don't forget to label them! These keep for a long time.  If you want to prevent the top from getting that icky ice glaze, just cut a piece of wax paper to fit and lay it on the top of the soup before freezing.  When you are ready to eat and enjoy, allow the soup to thaw at least 24 hours in the refrigerator OR put it in a crockpot on low with a little water.  When I am making this for the family, we will often add in some frozen cheese-stuffed ravioli's to the warming soup and serve with warm bread.  Mmmmm....  

I haven't tried this recipe with any milk substitutes.  I know it would work, but I'm not sure how much it would alter the taste.   I think it's the creaminess that is important in the recipe, so it might be best to leave it out and substitute chicken or vegetable stock for the best taste result.  If you try an alternate milk version, let me know!

Happy tomato season!

Baking for your family - healthier, faster, easier.

Tamara Nugteren


If this looks familiar, it is because this is an updated and expanded version of a previous post.  Please enjoy both versions!

I love to bake.  This works nicely with my desire to feed my family and myself in a healthy way, because I can choose the ingredients in my recipes. I can also tailor my recipes to be dairy-free, for my daughter.  But, time is also a premium when you have young children, so how can I best do both of these things when baking from scratch takes time?  No point in arguing it – baking from scratch is definitely slower than buying pre-made items or even whipping up a box mix or using premade dough for your favorite goodies.  But, just because it takes more time doesn’t mean you can’t do it – and there are lots of ways to be more efficient and make your extra work last longer.

Here are a few of my favorite time saving tips for baking:

Dedicate a cabinet to baking supplies.

When possible, keep everything to do with baking all in one spot in your kitchen.

In my kitchen, I keep all the dry ingredients (flours, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, chocolate chips.), oils, cookie cutters, measuring cups, muffin cups and seasonings together.  If space allows, keep your mixing bowls there as well.   It’s a one stop shop.

Whenever you bake something, make extra.

Whenever I’m able to set aside some time for baking, I make sure I have enough ingredients on hand to make several batches.  This works really well for all sorts of baked dishes.  Everything from muffins to lasagna.  If you are going to go through the work, why not make two or three batches?  It takes almost no extra time if you have all the ingredients out anyway.

For entrées, you can usually make the entire recipe up until the bake point, like with a lasagna.   Just cover the uncooked dish with foil, write the bake time on top with a permanent marker and freeze.   Ever freeze extra soup?  No?? Oh, you have to try that.  Anything without noodles works great (the noodles get mushy…).

Home-baked cookies are THE BEST, but having an entire batch of cookies in the house is just trouble.  I personally, have very little self-control.  If I’m not feeding a large group, it’s best for my waistline to bake only a few at a time.  The best way to accomplish this is to make my own cookie dough rounds – just like you can get in the refrigerator section (except better of course!) and freeze them.   It’s so easy – you’ll wish you had done it earlier.  Start with a double batch of dough.  (Consider dividing it up into three or even four portions and flavoring each differently.  Some chocolate chip, some white chocolate macadamia nut, some M&M – whatever you like. )  Then, take a dough scoop or a couple of spoons and plop the dough down onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.  You can put them pretty close together since they won’t spread.  Put the cookie sheet in the freezer until the dough is frozen.  Pull them off and drop them all into a gallon sized freezer bag and re-freeze.  Make sure to write the bake instructions on the outside of the bag.  Then, whenever the mood strikes, you can bake just a couple at a time.  Or several different varieties so that everyone gets their favorite!

The kitchen tip that I use by far the most is making homemade baking “mixes”. 

A baking mix is just the recipe’s dry ingredients – premeasured and stored together.   Anyone can do that! Muffins, waffles, pancakes, scones, breads… the list goes on and on.  

For example: Find a great homemade muffin mix you love.  Measure out the dry ingredients for one recipe in a mixing bowl and two more into quart-sized storage bags. Either print-up and insert the recipe inside the bags, or write it on the outside with a permanent marker.  Remove all the air, seal it shut and put it in your pantry. Next time you want muffins, you have half the recipe already done.  Go on to finish out the recipe in the bowl.  If the recipe makes a particularly large batch, I always freeze at least half of the finished muffins in an airtight container.  Double time savings!  Some extra muffins for later and some extra muffin mixes for WAY LATER! (My family just can’t eat two dozen muffins as fast as we can two dozen cookies!)

There are so many make-ahead possibilities.  The savings are in both time and money – and of course no un-pronounceable ingredients is a great bonus. 

View this link: My Favorite Bell Pepper Recipes for recipes for Roasted Red Pepper Hummus and Veggie Packed Savory Meatloaf.  Both of which freeze well.

Check back soon - my next few posts will be some of my favorite fall recipes, all of which are perfect for making extras for later.  Homemade Tomato Basil Soup (for my garden's bountiful tomato harvest!) and the best, EASY rosemary bread recipe will be first.  Shortly following will be two of my favorite muffin recipes - Pumpkin Chocolate Chip and Chocolate Zucchinni (both of which also happen to be dairy free.) Yum!  Happy baking!

Chores - "because you live here" or for allowance?

Tamara Nugteren


If you read my previous post, then you already know our kids have recently started getting allowances. And hopefully you also noticed that they are EARNING it.  So, what exactly qualifies as a chore that you have to do "because you live here" and what is a chore that can bring in extra income?

For our two, up until this summer, ALL chores were done "because you live here" and because "everyone has to help out".  They have been doing some sort of chore since they were preschoolers.  Alas, that could only last so long.  The aforementioned need for the children to learn money management skills and my need for more output with less fuss has led us here.

So, now the chores that are done "because you live here" are as follows:
- Make your bed and keep your room mostly clean (no clothes on the floor).
- Put away the clean laundry that I deliver to your room.
- Feed the dog and take him on walks.
- Practice piano.

The chores that are done for allowance are more varied.  The 9 year old and the 11 year old can really accomplish all the same tasks for now.  They have one chore each day.  It's written down so they can go look and do it anytime of the day.  My goal was to get them to do things that teach them a housekeeping skill and get them to do things that I find tedious and time sucking (but don't tell them that). Before you read this, I must give you the caveat, DONT JUDGE ME.  I know some of you have children that do WAY MORE and some of you have children who DO NOTHING.  I'm trying to hit the middle ground with room to grow.  The following list is revolving, meaning we update it and change it around a few times a year.

Our nine-year-old's current list:
- Monday: Sort vitamins.  She lays out the variety of calciums and multivitamins that each person is supposed to be taking for the week (This is one of the tedious ones...).
- Tuesday: Put away all the clean dishes for the day or empty the dishwasher.
- Wednesday: Dust the main living areas.
- Thursday: Shake out rugs in the bathrooms and the kitchen.
- Friday: Clean surfaces in the main bathroom (counter top, switches, knobs, etc.)
- Saturday: Clean bedroom.

Our eleven-year-old's current list:
- Monday:  Shake out rugs in the bathrooms and the kitchen.
- Tuesday: Vacuum the rug by the front door.
- Wednesday: Wipe down the stainless steel appliances.
- Thursday: Take the trash and the recycling to the curb.
- Friday: Take the trash and the recycling back up to the house.
- Saturday: Clean bedroom.

Other past chores have been helping with the various stages of laundry (folding, sorting, hanging and even running the machines), blowing out the garage, sweeping the kitchen floor and others I can't recall.

On any particular day, if a chore doesn't get done, that percentage of allowance gets deducted from the end of the week payout.  There is a little wiggle room here - I've said that if it doesn't get done because they are really busy, they could do it the next day.  However, if it is a pattern of behavior, it's a "too bad, so sad" scenario.  Truthfully, it hasn't happened yet and we are at the start of month three.  They are very motivated to get the paycheck, and I haven't had to beg-plead-nag for them to do the chores.  Its been great.

Another real world financial situation will come to light this weekend.  The kids have been at their grandparent's farm this week.  There will be no allowance because I was doing the chores.  In our house, vacation time is unpaid.  A good lesson to learn, I think.  We also now have one child actively seeking out additional chores for a little extra cash toward the item she is saving for.   Nice.

I'd love to hear how others have worked out the whole allowance thing...

Money Management 101 - Kids edition

Tamara Nugteren


Its finally time. 

Our kids need to learn some good solid money habits before it’s too late. We’ve been putting it off all school year. 

Waiting for time. 

I guess I can take joy in the fact that it coincides nicely with our new “summer chores” list.   A nice two-for-one deal, if you will. 

A little back story to start this.  My husband and I have an 11 year-old son who is a saver and a 9 year old daughter who spends every last cent she gets.  Wildly different in every way, but they both need money practice before we send them off into the world by themselves.    We also really want them to learn to take responsibility for the things they own AND know how to do things around the house – hence the chores. I know many a college student who racked up thousands of dollars of credit card debt because they had no concept of money when they left home.   We parents need to step it up.

Our children have been doing age appropriate chores since at least kindergarten. They make their beds (begrudgingly), pick up their rooms and have had an additional “chore list”.  We have always told them that they need to do a few things “because they live here, too.”  Which I think is perfectly appropriate. But before this summer, they have never had an allowance.    The time is here. 

Because the children were whining frequently about their chores, I knew it was time for the seasonal change out.  We needed new chore options for the summer (more on that later...).  To add in the aforementioned “Money 101” class AND stifle the whining and nagging we decided to add in an allowance.   I have to say, 3 weeks in, it’s working.  Chores are getting done each day without (much) complaint and they are starting to learn to divide up their money.  Here is how we decided to do the allowance management in our house.

First, we needed new piggy banks.  I wanted the kind with three slots – one for save, one for give and one for spend.  I looked online and was unhappy with the choices.  Pretty expensive (sort of defeats the purpose of the lesson) and they were really plain.   So instead I just borrowed the concept and we made our own.  See below for instructions.

Then we decided on how to divide up the allowance each week.  This was not a popular decision, but again, it’s a lesson.  In our house, the kids put 20% of their allowance into the “save” jar, 20% into the “give” jar (split between our church and a charity of their choice) and 60% into the “spend” jar.  Every few months we will go to the bank to deposit the “save” money and we will donate the “give” money*. 

Now, thanks to the immediately divided allowances, it’s easy for each child to tell exactly how much money they have, and how much they still need to earn to get whatever it is they desire.  They can also take a peek at their savings accounts online via the bank’s website and watch their savings grow.  Last, they are learning to save first and hopefully they will get some joy out of choosing how to donate their “give” money.  Money management is too important to neglect.

* One child feels passionate about the humane society at the moment.  The other needs a more “active” donation, so we are going to introduce him to www.Kiva.org, an organization that allows regular people to lend small loans to people in impoverished countries. 

Multi-Sort Piggy Banks - two versions. 

We took two different, but similar routes to make our homemade multi-sort piggy banks.  Something for everyone.  One of the methods is really nice looking and one is cute and durable.  One of our children takes after me and has a severe case of "drop-sy", our nickname for the inability to hang on to anything to keep it from falling to the ground. No, it's not a really condition, but we try not to give her things that break.  :-)

Our daughter's bank is quick and easy.  I used three plastic jars leftover from some Dole peaches and pineapples I had on hand.  I asked my husband to cut the slots in the lids with a box cutter (it was easier for him to do...).  Then our daughter wrapped her choice of duct tape around all three.  Last, she labeled each jar "give", "spend" or "save".  Done.

Our son got a more sophisticated piggy bank look.  I'd love to say it's because he is more sophisticated, but really it's just because I think this version is way better and I couldn't let our daughter have glass.  But I digress...

For his banks, he chose three different paint colors from leftovers we had on hand.  One is his bedroom paint, the other two are from other projects.  For each color, I poured some paint into a ball jar and rolled it around until it covered the jar.  Then I poured as much out as I could back into the can.  Last, I inverted the jar into a big red plastic Solo cup and let it continue to drip out overnight.  By the next morning it was beautiful.  It took another 24 hours to fully dry.  We decided not to bother with slots in the lids on these.  Just twist off the lids for use.  Also labeled with "give", "spend" or "save".

Next post - the chores that earn the allowances.  Have a great weekend.