Jotham's Journey, Prudence and the Millers, 1 Peter, The King's Daughter
Our Curriculum:
Horizons Math Grade 4 and K,The Reading Lesson, Sequential Spelling, Lifepac Language Arts 4, Apologia Astronomy, Veritas Press New Testament/Greeks/Romans
Prima Latina, Contenders for the Faith and various Winters Promise books, Live Mocha Spanish, Plants Grown Up
I've had to figure out all things wifely, motherly and homemaking-ly on my own. I've come a long way (but have not arrived at perfection by any means) and my heart is to help other ladies make that transition a little easier than I did by sharing the things I've learned that worked for me! I've blogged bits and pieces here and there with tips but I wanted to do a series of blogs a little more in depth. My plan is to give you a tour through my home and let you know what I implement to make it this way :)
My number one all around tip is to ALWAYS start in the cleanest room! I know common sense would tell you to start in the one that needs the most work, but I've found by starting in the least messy you get more rooms done, and you feel a sense of accomplishment as you finish each room which gives you more desire to keep working instead of spending a huge amount of time in one room feeling like you didn't do much and then you don't feel like continuing!
Stop one: The boys' room
So some things you may have noticed, they share a room, even though we have 3, and more obvious.. there are NO toys! This has been the best thing we've ever done! We originally moved them into the same room because Andrew wouldn't have liked sleeping alone. But I also liked the idea of a toy-less sleeping room. Its great because this is one room of the house that is ALWAYS clean! They go in at bedtime to change into jammies, have stories and prayers then sleep. And in the morning they get dressed, put their clothes in the hamper, and make their beds, so all I have to do is vacuum and we're done for the day! (Or wash their sheets once a week. They have just the one set, I wash it first thing in the morning and have it back on in plenty of time for bedtime, it makes for less clutter in the linen closet) They are allowed special stuffed animals (Peter has just one big one, Andrew has 4 small ones). They have a CD player and a book that holds CDs on Peter's bed (they fall asleep listening to Bible songs or the Bible read on CD). Peter also has his foreign money collection, and Andrew has some brass figurines my great grandma gave him on his.
We love the beds! We bought them affordably at Walmart, and all their clothes (besides shirts) are inside. We get lots of questions about those, so here is a close up:
On the wall you can not see is the closet, also quite sparse. It holds their clothes (we keep this at just what we NEED, I can not stand extra stuff or clutter!), Peter's rock collection, a rubbermaid bin with the clothes for Andrew to grow into. They only use half. The other half has all Abigail's clothes (up to 4T) and our sleeping bags.
STOP 2: Boys'/Guest bathroom
To keep the guest bathroom always ready for company, I bathe the children and have them brush their teeth in my bathroom. This mean only one tub and sink to clean, and I get to do the floor MUCH less often! They still use it through the day so I have to clean it daily but there is much less to clean! Also since they are bathing in the master bathroom which opens into my bedroom I can sit on my bed and fold laundry and still see them and be close which helps me make the most of my time. We bathe them assembly line style! Mommy showers first (because if I didn't it would never happen!) then I give Abigail a bath, then when I pull her out Andrew takes his bath or shower while I dry and dress her, then Peter's turn. (Daddy has long since left for work!)
So, of course, I have questions! :) Do you limit the kids clothing? For example, only so many shirts, pants, etc? How do you decide what to keep if you do? If there is an accident in bed, how do you handle only having one set of sheets? Now that you have the 3rd, does she have her own room and what did you do with the toys and school stuff?
