What works for me this week is packing lists.  We actually are spending our spring break visiting family in Canada right now!

I hate packing!  What makes it easier for me is to make an individualized packing list for each member of the family.  I keep them on my computer so I can update them and print them at a moments notice. 

Instead of throwing away the lists after I'm done packing I take the lists with me on our trip.  On the back I write "Things I'm Glad I Brought" and "Things I Wish I Had Brought".  I add to those two categories for the whole trip and when I get home I update the packing list.

P.S. I also have a packing list for boat trips to the lake (sunscreen!  sun hats! flip flops! water noodles! sand toys!), picnics (sharp knife! hand sanitizer! wet wipes!) and camping trips (matches! folding chairs! marshmallows!). 

(Inside family joke… "Don't forget the sandwiches!")

What works for you this week? 

For more great tips check out Rocks In My Dryer.

We've been dealing with pneumonia, stomach flu, ear infections and your regular garden variety colds in the last two months and our medicine "cabinet" was making us crazy!  Every time we tried to find our daily vitamins, a syringe to give the baby her Motrin, or the Airborne medicines would fall out of the cabinet by the dozens.  Clearly, we needed help.

I wrote Org Junkie an email and asked her if she had any great ideas of how to organize medicines and she responded by posting pictures here of what her medicine cabinet looks like. 

After a surprisingly short time organizing…

Here is my before picture (I keep my meds in the kitchen on a high shelf)…

Here is my after picture…

This system works so great.  I labelled the baskets Pain/Antacid, Kids, Wounds (for band aids and petro carbo and neosporin), Daily (for vitamins and daily meds) and Thermometers/Syringes/Measuring Cups.  When I need something I pull a basket down, and no meds come crashing down on my head anymore!  Everything is easy to find!  Yay! 

Cost of 4 mini baskets: $2

Cost of label maker tape: less than $1 

Being able to find the baby Motrin and the thermometer in the middle of the night:  priceless! 

Organized medicines work for me!  Thanks Org Junkie!

For more great tips check out Rocks In My Dryer.

Anybody going on vacation for Spring Break?  If you are, consider taking these items to make your postcard sending faster and easier.

1.  Address labels for the people you are sending postcards to.  If you already have an address database set up for your Christmas cards, print out address labels for everyone you will be sending postcards to.  This will not only save you from having to write addresses out by hand, but also will allow you to leave your address book at home.

2.  Return address labels.  I bet you already have a bunch of these around somewhere.  Take them with you!  If your postcard gets lost, the post office can sent the card back to you.

3.  Stamps (if you will be travelling in the USA).  Obviously, if you go to another country and want to mail things there you'll need to use their stamps.  I've noticed that it can be hard when you are in a new place to figure out where to buy stamps, and sometimes you just don't have the time.  If you take stamps with you, you're all set.

For more great Works for Me Wednesday tips, check out RocksInMyDryer.

What works for me this week is saving money on coffee!

Do you make any trips to Starbucks?  Even just a few per month?  It can be really spendy, right?

My husband and I decided to buy a Senseo coffee machine from Target.  It cost $60 but there is a $20 rebate right now (it expires June 30, 2007), so really it was only $40.  It came with 68 "bonus" coffee pods, too. 

We figured it up, and the coffee pods you use with this machine cost anywhere from 17 cents to 25 cents according to where you buy them.  That is a cheap (but still good) cup of coffee!  There are all kinds of gourmet coffee pods, even cappuccino and espresso, but they are a little more expensive. 

For me, this coffee tastes really good.  Not at all like the traditional drip coffee maker we had before.  And we haven't spent a dime on Starbucks (or Dutch Bros. Coffee which is really our favorite) since we bought the Senseo.  We figured we can make our money back for the cost of the Senseo in a few months, and if you are someone who regularly goes to Starbucks, the Senseo could pay for itself in one month.  (Watch a demonstration of how the Senseo works here.)

P.S.  Easy to use!  Easy to clean!

It's what works for me!  For more Works for Me Wednesday tips head over to RocksInMyDryer.

Check out my sister's wfmw post about her Kitchen Couch.

When I was about 16 years old my dear friend Shannon shared this family recipe of hers with me.  We made it many times together and I have such great memories of those times. 

*Warning:  This is not a low fat recipe!  Also, totally not for anybody who is lactose intolerant.  (Sorry Shanell!)  Great for vegetarians!

Three Cheese Lasagna 

1 Box Lasagna Noodles, Cooked and Drained - DO NOT OVERCOOK NOODLES… 10 minutes is all it takes

1 Package Cream Cheese (not the spreadable kind)

2 Jars spaghetti sauce (Prego Traditional works best for us but any type will do/you could also make your own if you are more clever than me)

2 Cups (or more) grated mozzarella cheese

2 Cups (or more) grated cheddar cheese (Tillamook Medium Cheddar is our favorite)

Pour some sauce into the bottom of a 9×13 pan… be generous.  Then layer ingredients in the pan… noodles, mozzarella, cheddar, cream cheese and more sauce.  As far as the cream cheese goes, make little tiny pieces (I use two spoons, but however you can do it is good) and drop them at about one inch intervals on each layer.  On the top layer add extra cheese.  I like to pour sauce around all the edges of the pan so no noodles will stick out and get dry in the oven.  Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees.  Can be made early and refrigerated or frozen, but of course fresh tastes best. 

Serve with garlic bread and a garden salad.   I've made this recipe literally hundreds of times and have yet to meet anybody who didn't like it.  My advice to you is to add one kind of cheese (Parmesan on the top?  Romano mixed in?) and then you can call this recipe your own!  Also, I've had many, many people say they prefer this lasagna to be served with corn.  I have no idea why, but it really does taste good with corn.

This recipe is great for parties and potlucks.  If you want your potluck dish to get gobbled up and everyone to ask for the recipe, make this lasagna!   You'll go home with an empty pan for sure.  (Don't you hate it when you bring something to potluck and it isn't all gone when it is time to go home?  Don't you wonder if it tasted bad or something?)

Enjoy!

For more terrific Works for Me Wednesday tips, head over to RocksInMyDryer.

P.S.  I made this lasagna for my husband for Valentine's Day… check out the picture…  okay, I realize it is hard to see the lasagna on the plate, but this is my only picture of this lasagna!

I've been lucky (or unlucky) enough to have a washing machine repairman and a furnace repairman in my home in the last couple of years.  Each one of them gave me at least one tip to help lengthen the life of my appliances.

First the washing machine.  The repairman gave me two tips.  First, don't use too much detergent.  If you use too much the residue builds up on the (what is the correct term?) insides of the washing machine and causes some type of corrosion.  Second, don't overfill the washing machine.  Do a lot of small loads rather than one big load.  The big loads wear out the motor. 

Next, the furnace.  The furnace repairman (who actually had to REPLACE our furnace) told me not to cover any of our registers with anything.  Don't close them, don't put a carpet over them… even in a room that you don't want to heat.  He said that it puts stress on the furnace if you block off the registers, and that if you want your furnace to last, you will leave them open.    Since we bought a new furnace that was so much more energy efficient than our previous furnace, we still save money on our energy bill even with leaving all the registers open.

I'm not an expert in either of these areas.  I'm just passing along what I've learned from people who actually are experts(or at least they appeared to be.. haha).

For more great tips check out RocksInMyDryer.