Household Binders

Ever since I came across Jen’s blog over at I Heart Organizing , I knew that I was going to take a ton of great ideas from her blog. The biggest project I’ve conquered yet? The Household Binder. It has literally been months in the making. Basically, a household binder is a place where you can put anything and everything important to make your household function smoothly. Everyone’s binder can be different. The first thing I needed to decide is what kind of “categories” I wanted for my tabs. In no particular order, here they are; vehicles, school, important information, bill information, cleaning/home, pet information, and I have one free tab that I’m not sure of the category yet.

I needed to pick up a few things for the binder itself. I went ahead and bought a large and very pretty binder, protective sleeve, and divider tabs. I also used google to find templates for various things. I honestly can't remember where I got some of them, so if you recognize them please let me know and I'll give credit where it is do! 

First I added a little something at the beginning of my binder. It's a personal goal tracker. It's not anything big, just something that records goals I have one year from now, five years from now, and ten years from now. Things like paying off student loans, how to go about doing it, and exactly when I want to complete them. It's just fun to have a reminder of what you want to work at.

Let’s start by exploring what to put into each category. First up, vehicles. We own two vehicles, so I like keeping separate information for the two. We have a car maintenance logs for each the Yaris and our truck. The maintenance log has everything from getting the oil changed, to getting major work done. I write down the dates, what was done, the mileage and cost. Then I put the receipts behind the log incase, Lord forbid, I have to check back to them if something comes up. I also have our loan information for each car, and also our updated car insurance declarations.

 The school tab is just for me at the moment. It has my degree completion plan with classes that I have taken and classes that I still need to take. Luckily, I have a large portion done! I also keep my class outlines in it if we are traveling, or I keep it hung by my desk. I can never remember my student IDnumber when I’m on the phone with financial aid or my academic advisor so I keep that information written down as well. 

The “important information” tabs is just for that, important information. I really should do “sub” categories because this tab contains everything from contact prescription, explanation of insurance .coverage, shot records. It’s really for anything and everything I find important at the time. I don't have any photos because I don't have any fun templates, just boring things

And yes, I even have a tab for my children pets. I plan on adding an updated photo for each pet, and basic information. I found this great little template that is perfect for us. It is a place for us to keep microchip information and pet sitter information. I also have a section for both Buddy and Soto for their Vet Records. Their rabies and their pay and neuter certificates are also in here.

      I find having a bills section a lifesaver to say the least. I have part for log in information for different websites since I always seem to forget them.  I also have an excel spreadsheet that lists all of bills, what paycheck they are due, if they are an automatic withdraw and if they are how much the bill is. The bills that aren’t automatic are also listed, and then I write how much they were as soon as I pay them. It’s an easy way to see if I paid the bill that month. I also look at the monthly average, which is nice for making our budget.

The cleaning and household section of the binder will probably be split into two different sections in the next few years. Right now, while we’re renting, the household section only the home of our renters insurance. But, eventually it will house our home maintenance log. Like our vehicle log, our home maintenance log will help keep of track of things like when to change the air filters, when to power wash the house, when we’ve had the repair man come and things like that. This section is also a great place to put a notation of brands of paint and shade of paint used in painting your home. Maybe even add a popsicle stick with a paint sample to take with you when shopping for new drapes or home décor. Like I said, right now it just houses our renters insurance, but it will eventually house our homeowner’s insurance declaration.

The “cleaning” part of this section is such a great tool. Right now, I have a list of things I do daily, and my weekly cleaning list. I like a weekly list has things like Monday and Friday are laundry days, but sheets on Wednesdays. I also have days where just one day a week I deep clean the bathroom, or mop the kitchen floors really well. This way, I don’t get overwhelmed on Sunday afternoons to get everything done before the workweek start Monday. When we finally get out of a rental, I plan on having a monthly, quarterly, and semi-annual cleaning list. This will have things like cleaning out the garage, cleaning baseboards and organizing closets.  Right now the section is small, but there will be a lot more things added in the future.

When we have children, I will obviously modify my tabs, but right now it works for us. I have take out menus in the back for the nights where we don’t feel like cooking. I also have two “mini” types of binders. One is for our warranty information and manuals for different projects. The other is kept in our safe. This is where we keep our birth certificates, marriage license, social security cards and life insurance policy information. I call it my “important” binder. I don’t use it often but it’s nice to have when I do. 

Everyone can modify a household binder to meet their own needs. you can add a section for bible study, homeschooling, or project plans. I plan on adding an address portion for Christmas Cards, Invitations, and various announcements. I also plan on adding a "food" section as well. I may try to incorporate it to my household/cleaning section. This could keep things like a "master" list for freezer and pantry invantory. It can also have a meal planning portion. It has so many possibilities. It is a tedious task to start, but once you establish your base it is simple to add or remove as your needs change. It really does help make life easier! Until next time.. 

But all things should be done decently and in order- 1 Corinthians 14:40