A Shalom Bayit Book (SBB) is my Jewish version of a household management notebook or control journal. Shalom means peace, and bayit is house, so this book is one major way I bring peace into my house. It contains all of my notes from past years, worksheets for things like menus, shopping lists, and checklists. It also contains running wishlists for my family members, inventories of holiday gear (like Passover things!) and a shopping list for future years (like a big meat pot for Passover).
Using a SBB helps me save: I save sanity (by not having a mad dash for Target erev Yom Tov for something I am missing) and helps me save money (by finding a good deal on something I want during the year or buying duplicates “just in case!”). It just keeps important information at my fingertips: does the baby need 12 mo clothes? Do we have candles for our menora yet? Did I actually get that pot for Passover? Instead of pulling out the boxes and sorting through everything, I can flip a few pages (mostly electronically for me now!) and find out.
I have written about how to build your SBB here and in this challenge, but here is where the printables you can use are located. All of these documents are saved as word documents for two reasons: 1. most people can access them, and 2. so you can adjust them to fit your needs!
Remember, these will only be useful to you if you actually use them! So change and adjust until it works for you!
General:
- Kid’s weekly planner
- Morning Routine
- Evening Routine
- Weekly planner page
- OJH Meal plan and grocery list (with staples list)
- Grocery list (with staples list)
- Weekly checklist
- Link to a good bill paying system
Shabbat
- Shabbat checklist (to be reviewed right before you light so nothing is missed)
- Motzei Shabbat checklist (to reset your home back to weekday life)
- Parsha ideas and resources
- How do you plan for Shabbat?
- RH checklist
- Rosh Hashanah Menu Template (blank–for you to fill in)
- RH 2011 plan
- RH kids’ mitzva checklist
Yom Kippur
- Party menu (including cookie bar, latkes, and falafel)
- Party grocery list
Purim (more coming!)
- 6 week Passover planner: OJH_Countdown to Pesach
- Or a 1-page simplified version: OJH Pesach planning calendar 2012.
- Passover Workbook
- Cleaning the house for Pesach
Tell me what you’d like to see!
2 comments
Great idea. Keep it up. I always do a review after a holiday. What works – what doesn’t. File this with this year’s plan to plan for next year. Thanks.
Author
Very helpful for future years!