I think moms are beginning to nest before the upcoming school year.  Summer is a great time to re-evaluate what's working and what's not and what we want to do differently as a new school year looms.

Willa at Every Waking Hour shares several strategies she has implemented to manage her home and family while learning at home.  I love her ideas.

Jessica at the Trivium Academy is mulling over her options for lesson planning.  She's looking for input on your lesson planning strategies.

Maureen Wittman sings the praises of a Catholic Family Planner.  I've enjoyed this particular product myself!

Lissa at the Lilting House  seems to be on a mommy mission, reviewing a variety of organizational planners for busy moms.

And I have my own organizational assistant !

What are you doing to get organized for the new school year?  Do you have a special system to keep track of multiple kids' assignments, a filing system, or a way to keep portfolio's manageable?  Whether you homeschool or send your kids to traditional school, keeping the homefront organized is every mom's challenge!

featured in the 9th Carnival of Family Life

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Posted by JavaMama

I am working on all of mine right now, I just simply make tables and lists in MWord. I have made my own notebooks or folders for each area of my life. I am working on my Childrearing folder and School folder right now. I will probable go over to DonnaYoungs site and look at some of her organizing sheets. I absolutely love the Tilting House blog! Thank you for sharing, and the Small Meadow Press is has amazingly beautiful planners and other things. I just might have to get that planner, I think it would work for us!

JOYfully in Him,
Kelli

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Posted by Anonymous

Thanks for the trackback, Maureen! I think you're right about the homeschool mom nesting instincts!

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Posted by eyecorn

Thanks for posting these. I told DH today that I'm going to try to take 90 minutes a day to plan and and get things ready for the upcoming school year. I'd love to read other's ideas...I need ideas!!

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Posted by Diana

I often joke that nesting begins in pregnancy and simply never ends. It seems there is always something that has me nesting. Or maybe, I am just the nesting type.... hmmmmm. Either way, I think your questions deserve a whole article of their own! ;) I'll drop back by with a link once I've written it! And thanks for submitting to the Carnival of Family Life #9!

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Posted by Anonymous

Our system is pretty basic. My husband and I are on completely different work schedules. So, we have a huge calendar in the kitchen that we write everything and anything on. That way the other person knows what's going on.

Kailani
The Pink Diary

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Posted by ktneis

Now you got me hooked on another blog, lilting house. What a neat blog of information. she is easy to understand as she shows all the samples of what she is talking about. Thanks for the link.

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Posted by LocalHomeschooler

Can't remember whether I've commented on your blog yet but I've been visiting for the past week. I appreciate all your posts :-)
We started back this Monday, so I'm building in a routine, as my own organizational help. Not so much a schedule, but a "sequence of assignments" that doesn't shift too much unless I'm temporarily unavailable. But "from the beginning" I've set up my student to be able to work largely independently, which is a big organizational help. Not that he does, but usually at any given moment in any subject he can work independently....if needed. No grand tip here, but it's what works for us. I only use the HomeSchoolTrackerPlus software for the Pretty PrintOut for my student's "list of assignments." I don't keep track over time nor keep long-term records. :-)

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Posted by mtbriere

We've recently relocated 450 miles from home. I'm taking advantage of the crazy chaos to overhaul our home organizationally. I'm using the control journal and routine ideas from FlyLady, but not the zones. I'm in the process of Total Mess to Total Rest from Emilie Barnes.

As far as homeschooling, well of course that fits into the grand scheme of our home. I'm setting up agenda books for the dc to work from, customized to their needs. I've taken some of Donna Young's forms (I just love her!) and made them my own. My lesson plans are all automated in Excel, trying to keep it as simple and as automated as possible. And finally, I'm putting together an agenda book, so to speak, of my own.

It seems that every year I homeschool (coming up on #3), I tweak our routine to work a little better.

Trish

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