I recently posted this on MOMYS and thought I would share it here as well...

I have a dear friend w/ 10 children who was really struggling w/ never getting everything done on her To-Do List. She felt like a failure every single day.  After lamenting this fact to her husband, he responded with a rather creative way to give her some perspective.  He asked her to make a What-I-Did List for a whole week.

With the help of her oldest child, she wrote down every little thing she did from changing diapers, to taking a potty-training child to the bathroom, to cooking meals to cleaning up an unexpected mess.  Here she thought she was somehow squandering time, only to realize she truly was a VERY busy woman.

We definitely need to examine ourselves to be certain we aren't squandering time, but quite often our To-Do List is not getting done simply because our What-I-Did List takes over.  I know there are days when my dry erase board is filled to the brim with my To-Dos and very few of them seem to get erased.  However, I have taken to occasionally writing something extra I did on that board just so I can erase it! 

And right now, I feel particularly bogged down because in the midst of teaching 3 very different age levels, my 2 year old son has decided to potty train.  Now, let me tell you, potty-training is a full time job!  So, I have even added Potty Train to my To-Do list because honestly, there are days when I feel like I have done very little aside from making multiple trips to the bathroom and the laundry room (potty training creates a lot of laundry!)

So, if you are feeling discouraged by how little you seem to be getting done on your To-Do List, then stop making a To-Do List and start making a What-I-Did List!  More than likely you will find a great deal of accomplishment there.

Since moving to our new home about a year ago, school has occured downstairs at the "school table."  This seemed to be the logical choice since the room is large and can accomodate the table as well as all the bookshelves, the TV/VCR/DVD and the computer...everything I *thought* I needed to homeschool properly.

Little did I realize just how dreadful going up and down stairs would become once I was pregnant again.  In the beginning it had more to do with the morning sickness than anything.  I could barely make it to the couch from the bed, let alone ALL the way downstairs!  Now that I've hit the halfway mark, it's more about my burgeoning belly, my achy back, my sciatic nerve...well, you get the picture! 

Truly, I am not complaining, but I did have to finally admit to myself that schooling downstairs was less than comfortable.  Beyond this, my "littles" would inevitably be upstairs by themselves working on their Thing 1 & Thing 2 stunts.  Since running up the stairs is no longer an appropriate option, I decided something had to change.

So, school moved upstairs and onto the couch.  I really do not expect this to be a permanant arrangement, but I must admit, homeschooling upstairs is much more comfortable and for some reason, my littles do not even attempt to head downstairs to work their mischief!

I have a tiered stacker behind the couch that contains all my books and my 10 year old's books.  My 7 yo daughter has chosen to carry her books in and out of the living room in a basket she keeps in her room.  I pick up my particular shelf when it is school time and set it next to me on the couch.  I keep a lap-sized dry erase board near the couch as well so I can write their sentences on it.  I do have to head downstairs on occasion, but I have been pleasantly surprised by how few those trips have been.

The best benefit that has come from moving school to a more comfortable location (besides the comfort of course!) is that the computer is safely downstairs where it cannot beckon me during school hours to just check one email, just read one blog, just pop onto the forum for a moment.  I had not realized how very tempting it was and just how often I was giving into that temptation!

So, all in all, I am well pleased with our change of location.  I think comfortable homeschooling may become a trend in our household!

Recently, I was asked to write a letter to a young woman turning 16 to encourage her in her womanhood.  The task seeemed a bit daunting because I am only 15 years her senior and quite often do not feel as though I have a clue.  In fact, I have only 9 years of truly living for the Lord under my belt.  What could I possibly say to this young woman who in many ways seems light years ahead of me?  Well, I decided to take my 12 years of marriage, 9 years of Christianity, nearly 6 children and give her the three things I have found to be most important.

***************************************************************************************

Dear _________,

As I emerge from the morning sickness and begin to feel well again, I thought I'd share some insights I've gleaned from the 4 times I have done this since I began homeschooling.

First off, give yourself a break.  Morning sickness is not for the wimpy.  It takes a lot of energy to lay on a couch and try to convince yourself you will survive.  In fact, it takes a lot of energy just to make it to the couch in the first place (unless of course, you spent the night there).  So, give yourself permission to take a break from all things.  Make meals as simple as possible, enlist someone to help you w/ laundry and dishes...better yet, use paper plates, cups, etc.  Get your husband to shop for you and keep the refrigerator stocked w/ easy snacks for you and the children.  Don't be afraid to ask for help.  You can be superwoman some other time.

As for homeschooling, consider my entry on Homeschooling Year Round.  You can catch up later.  That is one of the many beauties of homeschooling ~ flexibility.  Is there really a need for you to stress right now about what is not getting done?  Think about the larger picture.  Will it really matter that you did not do 3 months worth of math with your 3rd grader when you can make up those 3 months somewhere else?  Older children can keep up with many of their studies on their own and with very little direction.  So, really, the short amount time you are sick (I know it feels like an eternity when you are in the midst of it), will even itself out in the long run.  It will be okay.  I promise.

One thing I really struggle with when I am down with morning sickness is the Bad Mother Syndrome.  I am convinced that my children are the most unruly, my house the most messy, my world the most chaotic, and I am very, very afraid I will never, ever feel "normal" again.  It is during these times that it is most crucial that you ask for the Lord's guidance.  Sometimes, these feelings are a good "jumping-off" point for us to truly analyze our shortcomings and those we see within our families, but we also must be aware that Satan will use these times when we are already down and out to knock us down further and convince us we are no good at this Christianity thing or this homeschooling thing.  He will put questions into our heads like, "Wouldn't they all be better off if I just sent them to public school?"  So, even in the midst of your illness, you must ask the Lord for discernment.  Ask Him to show you TRUTH and give you the ability to PERSEVERE.

And finally, when you do come up for air and realize the morning sickness is beginning to subside, REJOICE!  Then, take a moment to look around you and do the next thing.  What one thing that did slip while you were "away" should be re-established right away?  Do you need to take some time to get the discipline of the children back under control?  Is your husband begging  you to clean the house and have all the laundry done up?  Is everyone hungry for some "real food?"  For us, it was the discipline.  But, as a bit of encouragement, I will tell you it only took a few days to remedy this.  They were immediately aware that mama was back.  So, do not dispair...what fell apart while the couch held you hostage will not take all that long to rectify with a little bit of consistancy.

So, as a final note, let me just say that as someone who has survived morning sickness many times and considered herself a homeschooling mom through the majority of those times, I empathize completely with your plight.  It is a very difficult place to be.  I hope you find some encouragement from my words.  And a great big cyber-hug from me to you!

Today I woke up feeling great!  Dare I say, NORMAL??!!  Since the onset of the morning sickness, this has been my best "working day" so far.  So, I jumped into my trial schedule just to see what would happen.  I thought I'd take a moment to share.

Most of us got up at that not-so-magic hour (still not tellin' ).  I'm not up to doing full-blown breakfasts yet (much to my oldest son's dismay), so he made toaster waffles for himself and I had a bowl of cereal.  Morning chores were completed and we were on to the Daily Chores.  For the first time in months, I actually got them put up on the dry erase board!  My oh-so-scheduled first-born was absolutely THRILLED!

We worked through all the chores in good time...I think it was 10:30 when the last one was erased!  Time for school with Child #3! 

At first, she was a bit confused because up until now, "school" has meant grabbing a coloring book and crayons and pretending it is important work.  When I pulled out actual materials, she said things like, "Can I color now?"  and "When can I do my coloring book?"  Part of me is wondering if she is still too young and I misjudged her readiness...but I'm not going to let one day make up my mind for me.  Besides, by this afternoon (when her school was long-over), she was asking over and over to do school and kept getting her book out and telling me which pages she wanted to do next ("Sorry kiddo...you don't get to pick and choose at random," says my brain as I nod and smile at her utter cuteness)

That went fairly well, but this is about the point I stopped taking my own good advice...meaning I tried to implement EVERYTHING all in one day.  Will I ever learn???

Remember, I was going to have my bigs take turns making lunch?  Well, I realized nearly too late that not only was it quickly approaching lunch time (and this pregnant mama DOES NOT like to miss lunch!), but I really had not informed them of this fact.  Thankfully, I was finished working w/ Child #3, so I could ramrod the operation, but it literally took all 3 of us working like crazy to get lunch on the table.  This is one of those areas that is going to have to wait I am afraid.  I think for now, I will just enlist them to help ME with lunch until I feel confidant they can actually handle it on their own.

Now onto Not-Taking-My-Own-Advice Chapter 2...

Two gigantic boxes arrived on my doorstep today from Rainbow Resource.  This is the thrill of every homeschooling mother's life...new stuff!  Well, I decided TODAY was the perfect time to start all those new subjects.  Prep time?  Who needs prep time?  I can wing just about anything!  HELLO?!  (All of you who have been reading my "advice" so neatly laid out for you on this blog, here is your proof positive that I am a real, live, occasionally insane, perfectly normal, homeschooling mom who does ridiculously foolish things more often than she would like to admit!)

So, I wing it through the schedule of subjects I had listed for today using brand-new materials I saw for the first time TODAY.  Amazingly enough, it went rather well.  Which is actually a BAD thing, because it means come tomorrow, I will try to do this all over again and the law of averages says there is NO WAY I can make this work for more than a couple of days in a row at which time, I will fall flat on my face and feel like a failure.  Yes, I will say it again...Will I ever learn???

So, how exactly do you get it all done when there just doesn't seem to be the hours in the day?

Well, after much deliberation and looking for how others were making it work, I arrived upon a decision.  I'll walk you through this piece by piece because each part has its own set of challenges and fleshing this out may prove to be much more difficult than I am imagining in my little head.

First off, I intend to have a set wake-up time.  Or at the very least, a wake-up-by time.  Meaning, everyone, myself included, should be awake by such-and-such time.  No, there is no magic hour (at least not that I am aware of), so I won't bother telling you what time that will be for us, but I am beginning to see the merits of having everyone awake and ready for the day at a set time.  This is not something I have been readily convinced of in the past, so this, in and of itself, is a huge step for me.

Prior to breakfast are Room Chores.  This is something that USED to be intact for us, but has been allowed to slide.  No more! 

After breakfast will be morning chores.  If you'll remember my post on how we clean, this is where I intend to plug in our Daily Chores List.  So, if it is Monday, we will dust, do laundry, and water plants during this time.  It is my hope that all of this will be accomplished by 10:30 am.  This IS a magic hour, because HERE is where I am going to try to grab my precious teaching hour for Child #3.

And here is what I hope it will look like...

Bible with all the children.  Then, the bigs split off to do subjects that are independent for them while I take Child #3 and spend an hour doing her school.  Much of her "work" is fun stuff and art projects, so it is quite possible that she will continue to be occupied by a project well into the afternoon while I school the olders.

After her "official" school time is over, we will eat lunch.  Now, here is where I ran into yet another snag.  HOW do I do school AND cook???  Well, my solution is to assign simple weekday lunches to my 10 and 7 year olds.  This is the one thing I am still not sure about mainly because I grow rather weary of the same thing over and over, but I think once we consistantly do it, it will work well.  So, the idea is that whoever has lunch that day will break off from their studies around 11:30 or 11:45 and start their particular easy lunch.  And since I will be doing school with my little one at the dining room table, I can supervise the cooking as well without having to do it myself.

Next, we put the youngest down for his nap, do table chores, and start in on afternoon schooling.  It will be during this time that I will do the teacher-intensive subjects.  Once those are finished, there will more than likely be a bit more independent work to finish up.  I am cautiously optimistic that all will be accomplished somewhere around the 3:00 hour.

So, what do you think?  Sound doable???  I sure hope so!  This is a big step for us.  Never have we taken morning AND afternoon hours to do school.  Any thoughts?

I realized a couple of months ago that I would be adding a 3rd child this year to our homeschooling schedule.  Although, I do not find myself freaking out quite as much as I did when I added number 2, I am finding that it will throw a wrench in the works.  Couple that with the fact that I now have a 5th grader and something about having a 5th grader makes me feel as though I need to step up his standards, I am finding that I must rework much of our school day to accomodate all I wish to accomplish. 

I will not even attempt to lead you to believe that I know everything there is to know about creating a school schedule, but I did think it might be helpful to give you a tiny taste of what sorts of questions and planning is going into the creation of our new school schedule.

The first thing I did was write out every subject I wished to cover w/ every child.  My youngest will be doing an all-inclusive curriculum called Home Education Curriculum (which is out of print).  The main challenge here will be finding the one-on-one time to do this w/ her.  It will only take about an hour, but we all know how elusive an entire in-tact hour can be in a homeschool mom's day.

With my 5th grader, I intend to do Bible, Math, Grammar, History, Science, Rosetta Stone, Spelling, Art, & Music Appreciation.  Up to this point, we have only been consistant with Bible, Math, History, & Science, so adding 2 new and rather rigorous subjects (Spelling & Grammar) is going to be the biggest challenge here.

With my 2nd grader, I intend to do Bible, Math, Handwriting, Grammar, History, Science, Art, & Music Appreciation.  The challenge here will be to add the Grammar and to make a more concerted effort to really help her to understand math...not just tolerate it.  (Actually, we would be leaps and bounds ahead if she would just learn to tolerate it!)

From here, I wrote out how many days per week each of these sujects required.

Bible ~ 5

Math ~ 5

Handwriting ~ 5

Grammar ~ 5

Spelling ~ 5

History ~ 3

Science ~ 2

Rosetta Stone ~ 3

Art ~ 1

Music appreciation ~ 1

Next, I wrote the days of the week on a sheet of paper and plugged the subjects in...

The 5 day-per-week subjects were no-brainers.  Next I put in the 3 day per week ones, then the 2 days, and lastly plugged in the 1 day per week subjects on the days I felt I was willing to have more to do.

However, when I looked at this schedule, I truly wondered how I would ever accomplish it all in the afternoon (traditionally, the time frame we work within), as well as find that much-needed hour to school Child #3.

I'll explain how I worked through this issue in Part 2...

Well, since my original entry "magically" disappeared, let's try this again!

The question of schooling year round plagues not only public schools, but homeschools as well.  As a youngster, the thought of year-round school was detestable, but as a teaching mother, I see with clarity the benefits of this concept.  So, rather than debate the topic, I thought I would give you our family's top reasons for homeschooling year round...

1.  Life throws curveballs.  Homeschooling year round offers the flexibility to dodge those curve balls without totally losing our footing.  Newly pregnant with horrific morning sickness?  Take a break!  Needing to visit a sick relative?  Take a break!  A natural disaster occurs that affects your family?  Take a break!  There is no guilt involved because you will be picking up right where you left off when the time comes.

2.  You are not beholden to a calendar.  So, junior finishes his math a month early.  What do you do?  Move on!  Little Susie just isn't getting her grammar?  Keep going over it until she does!  Of course, these concepts hold true no matter whether you homeschool year round or not, but if you are less dependent on a calendar to tell you when to finish and when to start, you feel more at ease with allowing the children to go at their own pace.

3.  No need to take a refresher.  There is a reason most books have about 30 lessons of review...summer steals brain cells!  We are actually able to skip about 30 lessons in some of our books because we are homeschooling year round.  Delightful news for both mom and children!

So, there you have it!  Our family's favorite reasons for homeschooling year round!

About a month ago, I sat at my daughter's grave and talked aloud to her and to God. I do not know if our dear ones in Heaven can truly hear us, but it brings me comfort to speak aloud to my baby girl. I told her how much I was hurting, how much I miss her, how much I love her. I also asked her if it were within her abilities, and if it was alright with her, could she ask the Lord to send us another baby. Our arms are so empty.

I went on to ask the Lord to consider me. I told Him that I did not know if He believed us to be truly ready for a new baby, but if it was His will, I would gladly accept a new little blessing.

Shortly thereafter, we learned that the Lord had indeed blessed us again! A new little babe to join us at Christmas time! A child to fill our aching arms.

With this blessing comes many emotions and thoughts...too many to put into words here. I am sure as this pregnancy progresses, I will have many things to share with you.

I continue to grieve the loss of my dear sweet baby girl who would have been 10 months old on the 4th. I find myself continually counting heads and knowing there is someone missing. I want her to be here to share in the joy of this new life, but where she is is exactly where the Lord wants her. So I must rejoice in this new life wholeheartedly. This IS His best for me. Though one is "missing" and will always be "missing", there is a future, there is hope. The Lord continues to show this to me over and over again. Blessed be the name of the Lord!

It seems to me that for the Scheduled Family the basics are often a no-brainer.  You need only to add a block of time that says something like Morning Chores, and the entire family knows that means Brush Teeth, Get Dressed, Make Bed, etc.  This is the beauty of the Scheduled Family.  However, the Routine Family tends to have a bit more trouble in this area.  I am not sure why that is, it has just been my experience as such.  So, this post is more for the Routine Family.

To establich the basics, see some of the tips in the previous post.  You really do need to practice the basics for quite some time before they will become the basics.  I can remember when I first implemented Table Chores.  I had high hopes that within a week, they would do them automatically.  Boy, was I wrong!  It took a year and a half!  And still, I must occasionally remind them of something they missed!  So, do not become disheartened!  Persevere!!!

Once you have the basics in place--things like a simple morning routine, afternoon routine, and bedtime routine--you can consider adding in routines that repeat weekly.  This is how I get my house cleaning done.  When I had a smaller family, my weekly routine was much less involved.  I cleaned my home thoroughly on Monday, did up all my laundry, and coasted the rest of the week.  I found this stopped working after Baby #3.  But, I do want to include a little more about this method of routine since small families deserve just as much attention as large ones...

For a smaller family, a one-day-a-week cleaning spree is often enough to keep the house in working order the rest of the week.  You simply get it all done and then maintain.  Since the weekend tends to destroy a house no matter what size your family is, Monday is the perfect day to regroup.  In fact, I would highly encourage you to never schedule appointments or out-of-the-house activities on Mondays (yes, I know Routine Families are not known for their ability to committ to something like this, but please consider the "why" behind my reasoning.)  If you use your Monday to reassemble your home, your week will go much smoother.  Trust me!

So, on Mondays I would clean the house.  I did this in the morning because I was schooling my oldest child in the afternoon during his sister's nap.  I will elaborate more on exactly HOW I cleaned house.  For now, simply tidy up.  Just a simple tidy will do wonders for a home!  No dusting required!  I also did all the laundry on Mondays.  (wow, if only I could manage that now!)  So, we started the week w/ full drawers and closets of clean clothes--great feeling!

Tuesday and Wednesday, I pretty much coasted.  The house really didn't require much from me those days.  These are the days that work best for making appointments if you can manage that.  The house is in good working order and can stand for you to be away from it.

Now, by Thursday, I usually needed to readdress the mess.  There were some things that needed attention since I had been away the previous days.  But, quite often, the mess only took an hour or less to completely fix.  It was sort of like a mini-clean, and it was enough to get me through the weekend.  And that was how I did it with 2 children.

For the larger family, you will more than likely need to break up your cleaning spree into bite-size days.  My week is loosely based on the Large Family Logistics way of doing things.  Recently, I heard Kim has re-opened her site, but from what I can tell, she is still not posting regularly.  You can check it out HERE. 

So, here is what we do for our weekly cleaning routine:

Monday = Laundry (try to do all of it and then maintain throughout the week) & Dusting

Tuesday = All Floors

Wednesday = Bathrooms

Thursday = Projects

Friday = Clean out Van & Finish any outstanding items

Saturday = Prepare for Sunday

Sunday = Set aside for Rest and Worship!

This has proven to be a very doable weekly routine for us and one that is not too time-intensive.  I still prefer to do all my cleaning in the morning with the children's help, and then school in the afternoon.  I divy up all the chores that are required to get the job done onto a dry erase board that hangs in my kitchen.  At this point in time, only my oldest 2 (ages 10 and 7) are listed on the board w/ chores beside their names.  The "littles" (ages 2 & 3) are given tasks at random according to what I think they can handle.  By the way, this board is not the place for the every day chores.  This is the place for the Day-of-the-Week cleaning and anything extra I see that needs to be done.  All of this happens AFTER our morning routine.   We all work through our lists, erasing as we go and usually have it knocked it out by about 11:00 a.m.  A quick example of what the board might look like would be:

Mom -

Tidy bedroom

Tidy Family Room

Vacumn entire house

10 yo Son -

Tidy bedroom

Tidy living room

Sweep/mop dining room and kitchen

Sweep storage areas

7 yo Daughter -

Tidy bedroom

Brush down stairs

Sweep/mop entryway

Sweep/mop downstairs bathroom

So, that gives you an idea as to what is on our list.  Your list will obviously be different b/c your home is different.  And remember, moving beyond the baics takes time and patience.  Finding a workable plan is not an easy task.  You often have to just try it one way and see how it goes, make adjustments, and try it again.  If you see something in your day that is a problem area, figure out a way to solve it.  For instance, is your house always a mess by the time dad comes home even though it is neat and tidy in the morning?  Implement a 4:30 pm mad-dash cleaning session to get the house ready for Daddy.  In fact, before you start doing a full-blown weekly routine, start out by implementing bits and pieces.  Do your 4:30 Mad Dash every day for a week.  Is it working?  Do you like the results?  If so, keep it and move forward.  Don't try to add every single thing I listed all in one week...you will burn out...especially if some piece of it doesn't quite fit your family.

So, a quick recap...

*Figure out what kind of family you are...Schedule or Routine.

*Find a daily basic plan that works for your family.

*Once you have practiced your plan for a sufficient amount of time, add in a weekly repeating routine one component at a time.

*If you find something that just is not working for your family, revamp it and try again.  Give it time.  Don't become discouraged!  Persevere!!!

My friend, Brandi, sent this my way...

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My junior year in college, I walked into a required Anthropology class and listened wide-eyed as the professor proclaimed, "I am a Christian and I believe in evolution, and that is just the way it is." Over the next semester, he presented a multitude of "evidence" that led me to seriously question my faith. This, a Christian institution of higher learning, was my first encounter with serious faith-rocking "evidence" that life began at random, an accident at best. And I had no good arguement with which to refute this "Christian evolutionist's" claims. I had no idea that Ernst Haekel's embryo recapitulation chart was actually a fraud (yes, my prof actually taught this as truth). I never dared to actually verbalize the skepticism I felt when I found out just how many "fossils" had been manufactured (the barn paint one really got me). I was taught not to question authority, even when authority flew in the face of all I had ever believed to be true. So, I sat there like a good little girl and got my A. It wasn't until much later that I realized this professor was teaching nothing but bad science, and my inability to speak out and question it served only to perpetuate his "evidence."

As my faith has become stronger and my knowledge of science deeper, I have often wondered what would have happened to me had I questioned this man. Would I have failed to receive an A in that class or possibly even failed the class altogether? Would I have been labeled a trouble-maker and been banned from speaking in class? Would I have managed to influence others I spoke to in private to speak out publically as well? The answer, more than likely, would be YES, to all of the above.

But, I cannot go back and change something that happened 10 years ago. Yet, something I can do is prepare and equip my own children for the day when (notice I do not say "if") they will be confronted with the THEORY of evolution and all its implications. I want to give them the tools to dilineate fact from fiction. I want for them the understanding I did not possess.

With this knowledge, I must also instill in them a certain amount of fight, an endurance, a desire to stand against all odds for the TRUTH, because folks, our freedom of speech, as Christians who are in legitimate disagreement with a theory that is being taught as a law, is nonexistant. We are not allowed to speak out, and if we do, we become relegated to the religion corner where all ideas contrary to Darwinism are poo-pooed and shunned as quackery simply because they point to a Creator and not the accidental atheistic ordering of life from non-living materials. You even dare to speak the word "intelligent" or the word "design" in the same sentence as "science," and the ears of the modern-day scientific community instaneously become deaf. They will have none of it, but for the sake of TRUTH, we must keep speaking!

Ben Stein's documentary, "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" entreats those who see the flaws in Darwinism to speak out. This verse comes to mind when I consider the task before us:

"Does not wisdom call, and understanding lift up her voice? On top of the heights beside the way, where the paths meet, she takes her stand; Beside the gates, at the opening to the city, At the entrance of the doors, she cries out: 'To you, O men, I call, And my voice is to the sons of men. O naive ones, understand prudence; and, O fools, understand wisdom. Listen, for I will speak noble things; and the opening of my lips will reveal right things. For my mouth will utter truth.'" (Proverbs 8:1-7a)

As our freedom of speech continues to be squashed, we must hold steadfast. But one word of caution...we need to know our stuff. We cannot go into battle unarmed. Our arguements must be well-thought out and scientifically sound. We cannot simply start shooting ANTI-arrows. We've got to have some answers of our own. We must be free to inquire, to question, to offer another opinion...that is our inalienable right.

I encourage you to watch Expelled, then buy Expelled and watch it over again. Consider the implications of the "gag order" against freely expressing a differing view. Consider how you can speak out. Equip your children with a Biblical worldview and then teach them the life applications of that worldview. This is where the rubber meets the road...are you willing to exercise your freedom of speech?

Now, for some ideas to get you started...

One option for Scheduled Families is a simple Daily Planner.  These work great for older children and parents alike, and they are compact enough to go wherever you go.  Simply fill in each time slot with your to-do's for the week (I suggest weekly for the Scheduled Family rather than daily because you naturally prefer your week to have a nice flow or pattern to it).  As you develop a workable schedule, you will need only to transfer the previous week into the new week.  Leave the planner lying open on the table during the day for quick glances at what is next.  Anything out of the ordinary (ie. school projects, mending something in particular, picking up your mother from the airport, etc) can be penciled in without too much disruption to your daily schedule.

Another great option for Schedule-lovin' families is something like Managers of Their Homes.  This type of schedule is put together in 30 minute blocks of time.  You have a neatly set time for nearly everything you would like to accomplish throughout your day.  You are able to schedule in everyone else's day as well.  All of this is put into a color coded wall chart with blocks that can easily be changed and moved around.  If you find something that does not work well in the time frame you originally placed it in or something in your life suddenly changes, you simply move it.   

But, if you are a Routine person, MOTH is more than likely NOT for you.  In fact, I would gently suggest that it could quite possibly make you feel very badly about yourself and your ability to run a household properly.  Mrs. Maxwell never intended for this to be the case, so please do not think I am suggesting she believes her schedule is the only way to run a household.  She is merely trying to help other mamas out there manage their day with something that worked well for her household.  But, the fact of the matter is that some of our lives do not fit neatly in 30 minute boxes.  My life being a case in point. 

So, what are some things that a Routine family can try?

A Daily Planner may work for you as well (or just a piece of notebook paper for that matter), but with two differences from the one kept by the Scheduled Family.  Yours should not be marked with times.  The other difference is that your routine should be written out DAILY, not weekly.  You simply take everything that must be accomplished during that day, write it down in a good working order, and cross off as you go.

Another suggestion comes from my friend, SarahLynne.  You can read about it HERE.  The basic idea is that you write eveything down on seperate notecards.  When you have accomplished the item listed, you move it from the TO DO section to the DONE section.  This is a great option for the children.  Even those who can't read can have picture cards that tell them what to do next.  I've incorporated this into my daily routine by putting two magnetized chip clips on my refrigerator...one is TO DO and one is DONE.  It feels so good to move the cards from one side to the other.  I use this mainly as a way to remember all those daily things that if allowed to become sidetracked, I will simply forget to do:  taking vitamins, giving the kids their vitamins, switching over laundry, dethawing dinner, etc.

I recently blogged about making a workable Homeschooling Schedule, but as homeschooling moms, we have the added responsibility of keeping up with a daily to-do list that can often be overwhelming.  We have a home to run and no amount of positive thinking will make the house keep itself clean.  So, in addition to finding a workable homeschooling schedule, we must also find a workable Homekeeping Schedule.

The first place to begin is with assessing what kind of family you have.  There are basically 2 types when it comes to how things get done:  scheduled and routine. 

Now, before you tell me that you are neither one because you are a free spirit and prefer not to commit to anything even remotely resembling something that might tie you down, let me entreat you to consider the God you serve and His attributes in this respect (remember, we are created in HIS image).  God set forth timing and order to nearly everything.  Our day is 24 hours, with a sunrise and a sunset.  We have a 7 day week, with a day set aside for worship.  The tides, the seasons, the revolutions and rotations of the planets are all in a set order.  Even God's plan for mankind's salvation and reconciliation to Himself was set forth in a certain order.  God is not a God of chaos.  So, Fly By the Seat of your Pants is not an option.

How do you determine if you are a family who prefers schedules or a family who prefers routines?  First of all, there are merits to both.  One is not right and the other wrong.  They both lead to order, just in a slightly different way. 

The Scheduled Family tends to like alarm clocks.  They feel their best when they rise at the same time every day with no variation.  Most of the members of the family work best within time limits.  They are often encouraged by accomplishing tasks on time.  There is very little deviation in life from day to day, and very few outside or spur-of-the-moment trips throughout the week.  Everyone enjoys knowing exactly when and what will happen next.  And Daddy often has a set schedule, so there is no question as to when meal times are and when Daddy's days off are.

The Routine Family rises at approximately the same time every day, but if they have been out later the evening before, they tend to sleep in later.  Things in the home do not necessarily have a designated place.  To this family, time constraints only serve to create foul moods and frustration.  The joy of finishing a task often supersedes the amount of time it took to complete that task.  Daily life includes many spur of the moment happenings:  people dropping by, quick trips to the store, an impromptu outing with Daddy, to name a few.  Daddy's schedule is not set in stone.  He is on call, or works random weekends, or later nights here and there, or possibly, Daddy works from home or has the option to be home at will.  Meal times change from day to day as do Daddy's days off.

So, now that you have a better idea of which type of family you are, you can now move forward with putting a Homekeeping Plan in place.  There is a myriad of options out there for each type of family, so I couldn't possibly touch on each one, but I will try to have several future posts that give you a place to start. 

I'd also like some input from you!  What type of family are you and have you found something that works well for your family dynamic?  I can't guarantee I'll be able to research and post about every one, but if you leave it in the comment section, others will be able to benefit from learning about what has worked for you!

I don't generally like parodies, but this one caught my eye because of the truth that lies within...

I am so very pleased to announce my children's blog...

http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/littlearrows

Where Little Arrows Hone Their Skills

You will see posts by Camoboy (age 10), Nutmeg (age 7), Sunshine (age 3), and Laddy (age 2).  They will be writing on everything from family happenings, to Bible studies, to their homeschooling day.  You will be able to enjoy poetry and stories, science tidbits, and original works of art.

So, please take a moment to visit them and encourage their new venture!