I love IKEA, I could spend the next year posting Works for Me Wednesday tips with my IKEA finds.
Today’s tip is my IKEA chalkboard. You don’t have to buy one from IKEA though. Pottery Barn makes one that is almost identical, although it costs three times as much. You could even make one yourself with chalkboard paint.
In our new house we have an eat-in kitchen. Since we eat breakfast at the kitchen table, the chalkboard is one of the first things the kids see when they come downstairs in the morning.
On the board I write the date, and our breakfast and dinner plans. I also add a little piece of encouragement. After we get a school schedule going, I will also keep their chore packs at the bottom of the board.
If a child comes down and sees that French toast is for breakfast, he or she knows they need to wait until I come down. If it says cereal or bagels, they can get their own breakfast even if I am still upstairs getting ready for the day.
Posting dinner keeps me from answering the “what’s for dinner” question ten times a day. It also allows for my picky eaters to fill up on lunch if they don’t care for what is being served at night. 
The kitchen message board is just a little something to make my life a bit easier.
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Love this idea. Just bought a dry erase board am going to steal your idea thanks!!
Brandie
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Love this idea!
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Thank you for the tip and the reasons why you like using it so much! Great idea!!!
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I LOVE Ikea! This is a great idea! I have been using a dry erase board for my own knowledge because my kids are still too young to read it.
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I have a small 8×10 white board with the days of the week on it and I write our dinner menu on it so the family knows what to expect each night. They love to see “eat out” (like today for my son’s “Gotcha Day”) or their favorite meal listed that week.
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Oh, I adore you. You don’t know how much I love, love, love IKEA. I like your idea of using the chalk board in the kitchen. I have a spare one that I don’t have room for in my school room, so it might go live in the kitchen.
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I keep the week’s dinner menus posted on my refrigerator on a small white board. Handy for me and for the family to see what’s for dinner that day.
My husband and I spend last Saturday morning in IKEA and laughed our way through the store since we kept getting lost and couldn’t find anything (except 2 plants). 309,000 s.f.! They do have some neat things but maybe I’ll stick with the catalog and pick up rather than hunt through the store.
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I love this idea! I’m transitioning my kids into getting their own breakfast when possible. I like your things-to-remember list! Great way to start their day.
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Terrific idea! I keep my menu posted on a piece of paper on the refrigerator, but sometimes write it in cursive, which my youngest can’t read yet – meaning I still have to answer her “what are we eating” questions. Now I just need a tip on how to keep my kids from groaning when they read what’s on the menu!:)
I really like the idea of the special message at the bottom!
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This is a great idea!
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I also post menu for week but on paper on fridge. I do have a calander to track all activites for the month so no one gets lost….i could not live with out it. i wish i had room for a board but for now fridge works just find along with my notebook that sits on the counter with chore list for the day so everyone knows what we are doing. if we are going somewhere i also put that on our list for the day. my kids are older 9,11,16 so breakfast is pretty much on them except school mornings.
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I use to have a chalkboard in my kitchen years ago and used it in a similar way. I would put special messages on it—like how many days until someone’s birthday.
I love your idea though.
I answer the date-breakfast-dinner question atleast 5 times a day. I like how everyone would see it right there. It would also let my kitchen helper know if they should start on something.
Looks like I am getting a new chalkboard!! : )
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I love this idea and the little note about Jesus,others then yourself : ) I would like to do this as well. Thanks for sharing!
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That is a great idea! I love how you add the little bit of encouragement, too. I’ll have to try this when my kids are a bit older.
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I love IKEA! They always have great finds. I hadn’t seen the chalkboard before. What a good idea to write the menu on the board.
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LOVE this idea!! It would really work well at our house, thank you.
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Great idea! Thanks.
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I LOVE this idea – especially about the dinner and picky eaters! I’ll be doing this too.
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OH. WOW. LOVE the chalkboard! And it’s so cheap! Gotta get one!
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Great idea!
The closest IKEA is 2 hrs away! It’s close enough to make me drool at the catalog & the website, but too far away for me to make use of it. And they don’t ship small items!!! I don’t get that.
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Wow this is great,I have something similar on my fridge.
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You are too nice! When they ask what is for dinner, I say “Food”. LOL!
My husband and daughter now look at my blog to see what is the menu. LOL!
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What a great idea!
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I love this idea!!!! I think I want to start implementing this in my home!!!! Thanks for the post!
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What a cute idea! I absolutely love it.
P.S. I like your “JOY message” – it’s important for kids…and important for adults too.
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We have this very same board in our kitchen! It houses our keys, sunglasses, mail until it is read, and our daily menu.
Couldn’t imagine life without it! Long live IKEA, my very favorite store for household goods.
Stop by and see me over at Free 2 Be Frugal!
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I actually just reorganized our “Mission Control” center in our kitchen. I don’t have room for a separate chalkboard, so I painted a few cabinet fronts with chalkboard paint. We’re saving up pennies for a kitchen remodel and eventually these cabinets will be gone, but for now they make a really convenient message center!
http://schaafchronicles.blogspot.com/2009/08/help-for-unorganized.html
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