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Meal planning takes time. Do you know what else takes time? Answering the “What’s for dinner?” question several times per day and then fielding the MULTIPLE objections. So I choose to meal plan AND post the plan. Just like using clothing cubbies lessens the negotiations when it’s time to get dressed, having the weekly dinners posted for everyone to see has definitely helped with dinner-time complaints as well.
This saves time AND sanity!
My menu board of choice is a repurposed window that a relative painted with chalkboard paint and auctioned off at a family reunion. I love it, but my oh-so-sad labels for the days of the week bummed me OUT!
You might think that Teacher + Chalkboard = Success. Not so much. If you need me to demonstrate correct letter formation with a cute song to go along with it, I’m your gal. But getting those artsy little fonts onto a chalkboard? I just don’t have those skills (as you can clearly see…)
I checked around and saw a few tutorials with fancy chalk pens and what not. I’m sure you’ve seen them (and if not, you can find them on Pinterest). I didn’t want to go to that extent, but I gleaned a few tips and gave it a try. This post really isn’t meant to be a detailed how-to, but rather a testimonial…
I can actually do it, so YOU can, too!
The basic process is:
- Decide on a font (this is the most time consuming part) and type your text in a Word document.
- Print off your text in the size you need and trim down the paper to make it easier to deal with.
- Rub chalk on the BACK of the paper.
- Carefully tape the paper to the chalkboard, with the font facing you and the chalk side down.
- Trace your text with a ball point pen, then remove the paper This will leave a light chalk imprint of your text on the chalkboard.
- Trace over the faint lines with chalk to thicken it up (I use regular chalk instead of chalk pens so that I can change it up easily when I get bored with a font).
- Clean up any chalk dust with your finger or Q-tip, if needed.
The best part of this whole project? If you have your text printed off and prepped, you can easily dress up your chalkboard during nap time.
Do you use chalkboards as a time saver at your house? To-do lists? Menu boards? Do you have any other tips or ideas for me now that I’ve caught the chalkboard fever? Leave me a comment below!