As I’ve mentioned before, I went into super-organized mode while planning my wedding years ago, and as a result made several worksheets and checklists to help me get through the planning with a smile on my face. I’ve already told you about my wedding photographer worksheet and today I’d like to share another one with you. This time, I’m focusing on the wedding DJ.

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One of our regular readers, Jason, sent us a great tip for making your own contraption for holding a portable DVD player to the back of the car seat. We just love this idea and will be using it ourselves! Thanks, Jason!

While I am not a big fan of mobile DVD systems, long car trips are rough on little kids without some form of entertainment to occupy them. When we bought our Honda Pilot, we were simply unwilling to pay an extra $1500 for a built-in system. We didn’t think we’d use it that much and we figured we could buy a portable setup for a lot less.

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It’s the peak of summer and the heat and humidity make me want to have a bottle of water with me just about anywhere I go. It’s not always convenient to carry a bottle, though, so I decided I needed to make some sort of holder so that I could attach the water to me to make it hands-free when I’m out and about.

I was fiddling through my fabric stash for inspiration and settled upon an old pair of jeans. My last project with old jeans (”Recycle old jeans into a fun quilt“) went so well that I knew I had the perfect material for a cute, easy, and inexpensive water bottle holder.

My water bottle holder design even has a cute little pocket on it that’s fantastic for holding little packets of drink mix (Jo never goes anywhere without her Crystal Light packets!). It’s really easy to make, too, and a great project for a beginner sewer.

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My grandmother has a guest bathroom decorated with various items from trips to the beach and the local flea market. As I was helping my daughter wash her hands before dinner the other evening, I noticed an adorable shelf on her wall that she was using to hold some of her nicer seashell finds. As you know, I am always on the lookout for ways to display my vast seashell collection so I was thrilled at this cute display. She told me that all it was was an inexpensive honeycomb spice rack she hung on the wall. The honeycomb shape makes it perfect for displaying small collectibles. I might put one in my daughter’s room to hold all of the rocks and other treasures she collects. This would also be great to hold a golf ball collection, small bits and pieces in the craft room or for displaying vintage sewing accessories.

My day-to-day life (both work and personal) depends heavily on Post-it® notes, and I use them for all sorts of reminders. I’ve even taken to carrying them in my car or backpack, because they are so handy for quick notes that I need to leave here or there. The problem with carrying them around, though, is that the sheets get messed up as they are tossed about and handled. I solved this problem by covering the notepads in a way that not only protects them, but also makes them look so cute I can hardly stand it!

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I’ve seen the lists before that you can put on your refrigerator for your babysitter. They include the basics such as emergency phone numbers, allergies, bedtime routines, etc. But I have found that when I leave my daughter with a new sitter, there is a lot more information I need to give him or her that doesn’t appear on the standard forms. So I developed my own form, printed it out and laminated it to attach to the refrigerator. I left some lines blank so that I could include current information on the form by using a dry erase marker. Here is my template that you can customize for your family:

Babysitter information template