I wanted to end this series on Time Management with some thoughts on managing your time when it comes to homemaking. I’m still learning right along with you, so I hope you’ll chime in and share some of your tips and ideas, too!
1) Streamline Your Homemaking Routines
Most of you know that my mantra is, “Keep it simple.” There’s no need to have an elaborate system if something really basic works for you (though, if an elaborate system works for you, more power to you!).
And there’s no need to feel like you have to scrub every little nook and cranny of your house all the time. Give yourself grace to let some stuff go.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, stick with the basics. In our house, if we have clean laundry, sufficiently picked up rooms, clean bathrooms, the dishes are loaded into the dishwasher and the floors are swept, I consider things to be in pretty good shape.
I aim to complete the tasks on my Daily, Weekly and Monthly checklists, but I don’t always get to all of them. However, I’ve found that if I shoot to get them done, even if I skip a few things every few days, the house stays in pretty good shape. It’s never perfect, but it’s usually 45-minutes to Company Ready. And I’m satisfied with that at this point in my life.
2) Take Time to Plan
I touched on this before, but I’m going to talk about it again. Without a plan, you don’t know where you’re supposed to be going. You’re aimless and purposeless and you’ll usually be more apt to just run around in circles putting out fires.
Planning one cleaning project to do each day and actually doing it, is much better than waking up with 447 projects in your head you feel you really should do but you’re so overwhelmed that you end up doing nothing.
I encourage you to set aside time in your schedule each week to make a simple plan of action as well as goals for the coming week. I usually make out this list for the upcoming week on Saturdays and then try to review my list the following Saturday bumping whatever didn’t get accomplished during the previous week to the next week.
Reviewing this weekly list of goals is always so encouraging to me because even on those weeks when it feels like nothing really got done, when I review my list at the end of the week I’ll realize that yes, I really did accomplish some things — despite what it may have felt like!
I use a list similar to FishMama’s (above), only mine’s not so detailed. It just has sections for Home, Jesse, Children, Personal, Ministry and Blogging. I try to set 3-5 goals for each section each week.
In the home section, I might write an extra organizing or cleaning project and two cooking projects. In Jesse’s section, I might write to set a goal of writing him one note, doing something fun with him and a specific prayer request to pray for him daily. In the children section, I might set a goal to finish a book we’re reading together, do an extra craft project and plan one fun outing.
In the personal section, I usually set goals for Bible memory work, a book I want to finish and some other area I’m working on improving in (such as going to bed on time!). For the ministry section, I might set a goal to have a friend over, write a card to someone and make food for someone. And in the blogging section, I’ll usually set goals for whatever posts or projects I’m hoping to finish that week.
Now obviously, I don’t always do everything in every section every week. In fact, some weeks I only get a few things off my list done. But planning these at the beginning of the week and then referring to my list of goals as I make out my short daily to-do lists helps me to be a lot more purposeful in living my life.
3) Involve the Family
My husband and I are firm believers in families being a team. No one person in a family was designed to carry the load of everything; it should be shouldered by each individual member to the level of their ability.
Now, I know I am very, very blessed to be married to a man who doesn’t shirk when it comes to work — whether that’s in his professional role as an attorney or when he’s at home changing a dirty diaper. He works from sun up to sun down and then some and I’m constantly challenged by his discipline and work ethic. [I often tell him, “Would you stop making me feel so lazy?!” :)]
My husband and I are a team through and through and we both contribute to our family economically as well as keeping up our home, training our children and doing the myriad of tasks, errands and chores which must be done to keep a home and family humming along. While I know our particular family dynamics wouldn’t work for everyone, I do encourage you if you feel like you are shouldering too heavy of a load to talk openly with your family members about how to shift some of that load elsewhere so that it doesn’t crush you!
We’re also in the process of training our children to also be assets to our family. While we very much want them to enjoy their childhood and just revel in that carefree state, we also feel like one of the greatest gifts we can instill in them is a strong work ethic.
No matter where you end up in life, a hard-working, persevering attitude is always going to be a huge benefit. Plus, I believe it is so much more fulfilling to live a life of service, rather than a life of selfishness.
We have found that modeling hard work and servanthood before our children is one of the best ways for them to learn, as well as encouraging them to work alongside us from an early age. And we give them age-appropriate chores to accomplish each day, as well as encouraging them to take initiative in helping outside of their daily chore list. (By the way, you can download some fun and free printable chore lists here, if you’re interested.)
We are still learning the practicalities of imparting this to our children in a Godly and balanced manner, so I won’t give you any tips for what works. But ask me in about 25 years from now, and hopefully I’ll have some words of wisdom to share. 🙂
On Wednesday, we’ll talk more about clearing out clutter, taming the laundry monster, simplifying meals and letting go of the myth of a perfect balance. If I have time, I’m also going to do a little video blog tour of my extremely simple homemaking binder for those who are looking to set up a simple home organization system.
How do you encourage your children to help around the house and develop a strong work ethic? I’d love to hear your ideas and suggestions!
This series (and noticing a lot of changes in your routine/outlook from before Silas) helped me understand what it means to give yourself grace. I’m a working woman without kids and I feel so pathetic next to all the supermoms whose blogs I read. I’m thinking, I know they stay at home, but still how do they do so much, raise kids, make everything from scratch, yadda yadda. I see that you don’t all do that, and the sample schedules help me see exactly how you do what you do do. Working six days a week causes me to have very little time to do much at all and I often have to choose between relaxing and cleaning as my only options for the night. Also my husband pointed out that you can multitask. It’s not like I can marinate chicken or do laundry at work.
Although I did what you said not too and compared my schedule/time to yours. I really am not utilizing my time the best I can. I say I have no time but really there are at least three hours in the evening after deducting time for dinner and a shower. I usually am so tired I just go on the computer. So i do need to get things in gear, but I’m going to start small, like spend at least one hour weeknights cleaning or decluttering in some form. It’s gotta happen sometime. Mon-Sat I say I’m too tired from work, but then on Sunday I say I’m too tired from the week. My husband doesn’t work as many hours, but he works full time and he usually ends up doing the dishes, cleaning the litter box, and most of the cleaning really. That’s not fair. He still finds time to play Halo, but he’s smart about it and won’t if there is something that needs to be done. I really need to take an example from him and use the tips I read here. Thanks for the encouragement!
I am so looking forward to you sharing your binder! I just sat down for lunch at work and had to check to see if you posted yet! I. am just a little anxious….:-) Loving your blog- keep up the awesome work and thanks for helping the rest of us.
I couldn’t agree more with the one project at a time cleaning method. I had a laundry basket that had been sitting in the closet for months. Saturday I took it out of the closet and put it on my bedroom floor and said “I’m going to get this emptied by Wednesday.” But do you know what? I emptied it last night! Giving yourself a feasible amount of time to do something simple, I think is like reverse psychology on yourself. Also, putting it on my floor wasn’t so much bothering me (my bedroom is definitely not spotless), it was that I would look at it and think – Wednesday. That really helped.
I look forward to your binder.
As my children get older, I found that I have been complicating my life because I have time to do so.
I want to serve simple, nutritious dinners, but often times spend a great deal of time on them because I don’t HAVE to be there with my kids. They can do their homework on their own, they play with their friends or listen to music without me.
However, I WANT to be there with my kids, I want to finish up a few inspirational cards AND send them out, I want to sew on the buttons! There are so many things that I want to do.
I cannot thank you enough for this series and a gentle reminder that it’s okay to keep things simple!
With our older kids each one was responsible for clearing his own dishes from the table and putting them in the dishwasher and for pulling the covers up on his bed. They were both “given” a very small allowance, but if they chose not to take their dishes or do their bed, I would do it and they had to pay me. Other than these 2 chores we let them be kids. If they wanted extra money they did extra chores. Besides the bed their rooms were left in whatever state they wanted. When they’d stop playing there because it was too messy it didn’t take too long for them to miss their things and decide to pick up. We provided for and cared for them, but allowed them their own space to make decisions for. They didn’t have a problem helping when we needed help for something and only occasionally would ask for money to do so (it’s easy to squelch such a request with “will you pay me for cooking your dinner”) Planning to take a similar approach with the 2 littles ones also….
@Cricket@ A Thrifty Penny, I LOVE this!!!
Last night they left the dinner table without cleaning up the kitchen. Next time, they get to pay me to do it! Hope it’s okay that I copy!
@Johnlyn, sure! We chose the two daily things that made the most impact for me to hold them accountable for. That way they still had lots of room to be kids while still learning some responsibility. Be prepared for some bucking when you start though-and have lot of change on hand 😉
I have absolutely loved this series! Can’t wait for the next post!
My son is 16 months old and a pretty steady walker now, so he’s getting to take on a little more responsibility. If he gets something out that he isn’t supposed to, I ask him to put it back where he got it from, and he does, usually needing a little instruction or help, but he’s getting the hang of it. And he’s getting good at putting his toys away. It’s still totally supervised (he’s as easily distracted as any toddler!), so it doesn’t save me time right now, but it’s a training thing.
And a friend of mine had a great idea…while emptying the dishwasher, have your toddler hand you the flatware one piece at a time–you usually have time to put a few things away between each piece, and you can name the forks and spoons, etc. Just make sure to take out any knives or other dangerous utensils first!!!!
My son also likes to “help” with the laundry. He has free reign on the clean clothes in the basket before I fold them–as long as he stays nearby and hands things to me when I ask him to–and doesn’t grab the things on the couch that I have already folded! Haha!
Oh, this was wonderful Crystal! I am also incredibly blessed to have such a hard working husband. I never take out the trash, scrub the toilets or the tubs/showers…if I did my husband would be upset! 🙂 He says those are “his jobs” and that I am not to touch them. (I have also *never* pumped gas again since we met. In fact I would have to search pretty hard to figure out where the lever is in our van to open the latch to pump the gas!) He is such a huge help around the house, even working the horribly long hours that he does. We too are a team, and have to be, for our home to run smoothly. With three littles and another on the way, things could get pretty hectic and overwhleming if we didn’t work together!
Would love to see your homemaking notebook! I sort of have an adapted version of flylady’s notebook, with alot of my own ideas mixed in. I have 7 children under the age of 8 and am expecting #8 this spring. Order is a must in our home but all to often I fall short. I homeschool 5 of them and it is just to easy to slack off on the chores or school when mama is feeling a bit under the weather due to the pregnancy. I am still trying to come up with a solid chore schedule, but most of all figure out a way to keep the babies happy/entertained while the older ones are doing school. Anyone have any ideas??
Thank you for this! I will use the forms. I am embarrassed to say that I am struggling with maintaining an orderly home. I need some structure and a plan.
“Planning one cleaning project to do each day and actually doing it, is much better than waking up with 447 projects in your head you feel you really should do but you’re so overwhelmed that you end up doing nothing.”
Ahh , you are speaking to me the lady with really long lists that never get done because she just is too ovewhlemed to know where to start. Time to make some “organized, time plotted” lists instead and see if that works better for me. Thank you, Crystal.
I’m an overachiever, too! And I’m slowly learning that a short, achievable list helps me be more productive than a long, overwhelming list!
This post was very timely. I was just emailing with a friend (another pastor’s wife) on chores that my 2 year old can do. I’m looking forward to implementing it. I’m trying to make a chore sheet with pictures since my son can’t read yet.
I agree with another comment, that if we could edit your daily docket and other helpful forms they would be all the more useful. I don’t have a binder yet and can’t wait to see yours for ideas. Your site has been practical and encouraging for me.
I love this post, thank you. After my first son was born I struggled. After my second son was born I realized I didn’t know what struggling was,lol. Now that the 3rd is here I have learned to let go of a lot. We have company ready house level too. Most days I am happy if there is no food on the floors, laundry is done, and the bathrooms are presentable. As my boys get older we do more with them. I struggle to get them to help but my oldest (now 7) doesn’t fight hardly at all…that gives me hope for the 4 year old who fights everyday.
We just started giving our boys an allowance at their request. They get $2.50 a week if they do all 5 chores everyday, and they like to save it up and buy things to treat themselves.
If anyone was wondering my 7 year old feeds the cat, folds the towels and napkins, cleans his room, puts his laundry away and clears his dishes from the table. My 4 year old sets the table, folds washrags, puts his laundry away, cleans his room, and clears his dishes from the table. The baby is too little to help…YET!
And I believe teaching my children to help us and each other, by doing chores will give them a sense of accomplishment and a strong work ethic as well.
Thanks so much for these posts! I am struggling to get organized as a new (well, 15 months in the making) mom. I just started trying to put together a binder, so I really hope you have time to show us yours! I can’t wait to see it! 🙂
Our kids are all grown (2 still come home for college breaks) and I believe that requiring them to do chores and help out has made them better adults. One friend said to me that her children don’t do chores as they don’t have the gift of serving. Children will not usually volunteer to do chores! That is in no way reality for adults. We must work and keep up with our responsibilities and if we don’t learn that as children we will learn it the hard way or not at all. This may sound harsh but I have seen too many young adults with no work ethic (an aquantances’ daughter who married a lazy man and they move from homeless shelter to homeless shelter) and we must train our children to do better than that.
I have to have a detailed list for cleaning chores or I just don’t do it. I agree with Crystal that it is okay if something gets skipped once in awhile becsause it will come back up on my schedule in just a few weeks and hopefully get done then. I gives me peace to know that it is all scheduled and I don’t have to wonder what needs to get done each day. When my college kids are home they are still on chore charts posted inside my kitchen cupboards and they know to chack the charts everyday and do their part. (It takes a few days of gentle reminders sometinmes to get them out of college dorm habits but they willingly help me.)
This has been a great series, Crystal. Thanks for the work of putting it all together.
This entire series has been so helpful to me. Thanks for taking time to share. I really hope you do the tour of your homemaking binder. I’ve tried using one in the past, but never seem to stick to it. I’d love ideas for keeping it simple and functional.
Crystal,
I’ve read your term “company ready” several times in various posts, and I’m curious what that means for you? I supposed that will look different for different people. For some, the kitchen table is clear and clean plus one bathroom is neat and tidy. For others, the whole house is presentable for a guest tour. For most, in between is a reasonable goal!
Thanks for your posts — so helpful.
@Pamela, I’m interested in what “company ready” is at your house too, Crystal. I know everyone’s perspective is different. Mine is downstairs picked up, half bathroom cleaned and no dishes in the sink, counters cleaned off 🙂 Oh, and a candle going.
@Pamela/Cyrstal/Kathy,
I’m curious too! My apartment is company ready in 45min from whatever state. Dishes off the counter and a clean bathroom is all I aim for! Vaccumed carpet too depending on the state of things. Oh, and closed doors throughout. ^__^
I have a 3 year old daughter and an almost 5 year old son and they are supposed to help every day picking their bedrooms up in the morning. I am also teaching them how to set the table and so they take turns every other day.
I was looking for some more ideas and on a different blog she came up with the idea of a job jar. She put different chores on popsicle sticks and then your child can pull out a certain amount of sticks for their chores for the day.
http://chasingcheerios.blogspot.com/search/label/preschool%20activities
I just need some more ideas on age appropriate chores for my children where I do not have to be standing over their shoulder the whole time.
Oh I am so excited about the video. I attempted a homemaking binder some time ago and honestly…it fell flat pretty much after I made it all pretty and printed everything out LOL. I really lack in homemaking skills. I can sew and craft with the best of them…but when it comes to housekeeping…I really suffer. I do have to admit that the rest of me suffers as a result of that as well.
My sewing table is a wreck, so I don’t sew as often as I’d like because it takes forever to find things. I have been blessed abundantly in my life, but the gift of organization or the desire for things to be neat and tidy just does NOT come naturally to me.
Long story short, I’m interested in seeing the visual/audio of how you organize your housekeeping. I could really really use some help there!
This is so helpful! I printed out your daily, weekly, and monthly check lists. I’m trying to make it all work while working as a teacher full time. My husband is a huge help and equal partner. Considering I have summers off, I get so much more done during the summer. I’m struggling to be more organized and efficient during the school year. I’d love to hear from other moms who work full time as well. Thanks so much!
This article really touched me because I am trying so hard to be a rold model for my children when it comes to being a team, and to being a servant of God. I am really struggling with my teenage daughter right now thought because everything revolves around her and it makes me sick to my stomach at how selfish she acts sometimes. We are a family of 6, and we try and be as fair and even to everyone… but for some reason she just takes and takes and takes and it’s so frustrating and sometimes I feel like throwing my hands up in the air. Thank you for writing this!!!
@Jamie, Hi Jamie, we too have had an especially challenging teen who was a bit out of control between the ages of 14-17 (we call the dark years.) The best advice we got from a family therapist was to NOT hand out any money, not a cent. We provide food (not hot pockets, just normal home cooked food) and basic clothing. If he wanted more he had to work for it. It was very difficult to see him suffer but it yielded results–he did find a job, became adept at picking up changes, and most importantly, became grateful for anything given to him. Now at 19, if we can just get his work ethic in place we can really celebrate… 😉 But, we do see kindness, caring, and gratefulness.
@Kerry D., thank you so much for sharing this! My children are still small, but the oldest is so strong willed I am already praying fervently about the teen years. In addition, we plan to foster and adopt older children, and so we anticipate more difficult teen years due to some of the things they have gone through in their early lives. So this seems like good advice, and I am filing it away for future reference.
Crystal,
Do you have any advice (in addition to prayer) on inspiring husbands to help out?
I COMPLETELY, TOTALLY agree with you about the importance of teaching your children a work ethic. I homeschool, handle all domestic duties (cleaning, bill paying, appt setting, etc), and work from home full time. My kids see me waking before everyone else, going to sleep last, and working all the hours in between. They see their dad faithfully go to work and put in an excellent effort, then come home and watch TV all night & weekend.
I’m obviously overworked, and could use some spousal domestic support. But more importantly I don’t think the kids are getting a great example from their father.
I love my husband, but none of our many conversations have resulted in any fruit or change in this area.
Thanks!
@Roxanne, Hi there – I know you posed the question to Crystal but I thought I’d chime in with my real life example since it sounds like Crystal’s husband is naturally predisposed to be helpful. In addition to prayer, I tried a number of things with my husband…explaining all that I was doing and asking for help (wasn’t so effective), blowing up (definitely not effective! :-)), and finally asking for him to do specific things. It really bothered me that I had to ask but over time he’s sort of gotten into the rhythm of just doing things. For example, while fixing the kids school bags in the mornings, I would specifically ask if he could get our daughter dressed or if he would take out the trash. At night while I was cleaning up the kitchen, I’d ask him to give the kids a bath. Unfortunately a lot of men seem to think that just working full time is enough. I also work full time outside the home in addition to everything else so having him not help just wasn’t an option for me.
@Roxanne, I was in a similar situation for quite a while, and after lots of prayer, I learned that what my kids REALLY needed to see was their Mama enjoying life regardless of how much work needed to be done, and loving and RESPECTING their Daddy no matter how lazy or not lazy he was. I learned that if I just quit focusing on what my husband WASN’T doing, and being grateful for what he WAS doing, I was a lot happier and thankful. I’d much rather just worry about what I’m supposed to be doing and not what others are. I was the one setting the bad example, not my husband. That’s just my two cents. 🙂
@HappyMama, Wow, what wonderful advice, HappyMama!!
Crystal, this is great! Your households basics are also a “good day” around here. I really need to think about sharing the load. My husband helps out but often works late. So most of the weekday stuff is me + some small chores for the kids. I need to be better at asking him for more help (and more from the kids) on the weekends.
Yes… please share the video of the binder!!!!
I’d love to see the vlog as well. I’m really enjoying this series! I’ve really been struggling with time management and organization lately so this was perfectly timed.
I just stumbled across a website for a responsibility system that I ordered this weekend while it was 35% off. There’s a tutorial on the home page and I really liked the set up and philosophies. I haven’t received it yet so I can’t tell you how it’s working in our home, but I think it’s just what we need. I want our kids to be responsible, respectful, kind, contributing members of our household and I think it will help us accomplish that.
http://fisher-kids.com/Home_Page.html
She has a Facebook page as well.
Thanks so much for this series. Time management is my biggest flaw especially around the home. Looking forward to today’s post
I have always taught my boys that helping out around the house is important, but we recently started a more organized routine with my four year old. He has a wipe off board on the fridge with his daily chores which he checks off when they are complete. At the end of the week, he gets a nickel for each chore (feeding the cat and brushing his teeth are done twice a day, emptying the trash cans every other day). He gets $1.30 and .25 goes to God. I know not everyone agrees with paying kids to do chores, but it showed me a lot about his character. The first thing he did was saved up for several weeks until he could buy both he AND his brother happy meals at McDonalds. It was totally his idea and he insisted on buying both. I was very proud of him!
@Amanda, Your story about your son paying for his and his brothers Happy Meal made me smile! Kids can be so cute.
oh, please please please make time for the vlog. i would love to see it!
First, thank you so much for this series. It has been helping me so much. Before the baby my husband and I lived such different lives than we do now. I worked two jobs and went to school for my Master’s most evenings. We barely were ever home together to make dinner. Then the baby came the week before my husband started law school and we moved to a new city. For at least the first 6 months I was so overwhelmed with everything baby that laundry piled up regularly, dishes sat undone, etc. Now I am trying to learn how to manage our house for really the first time. These posts couldn’t come at a better time for me and my family.
I’m looking forward to a time when my son can help me around the house. At 15 months he can “help” put away toys in their baskets sometimes, but that is about it.
@Ashlee, That is too funny! My name is Ashley, and my husband started law school the week before our 15 month old was born. What a coincidence!! =)
@Ashley, How funny, that is a coincidence!
Loving the suggestions. Just one of my own. I have a small wipeoff board on my fridge where I post chores for the kids. They are to check the board everyday as I add new chores. They wipe off as completed. They seem to like wiping off the chore as they go, sense of accomplishment I guess.
“I often tell him, “Would you stop making me feel so lazy?!” ”
I had to laugh when I read this because I say the exact same thing to my husband. 🙂 He’s wonderful about sharing the load around our home. What a blessing he is!
Great post!
Crystal, I am probably older than most of your readers. (I just turned 50.) I want to encourage you by saying I think you are wise beyond your years. You are spot on with the idea of spouses being a team. Ditto with the realization that a guest ready house in 45 minutes is fine. I also agree that one of the most important things we can pass on to our children is a strong work ethic. (This becomes such an issue when kids enter their teens and a strong foundation built is essential.) Great blog Crystal! God Bless.
@Peggy, Peggy, I’m the same age as you and agree completely. I feel like I could have done better on instilling that work ethic in my 16-year-olds. There is still time but not much! Any suggestions for a quick turnaround? Thanks.
I’m really enjoying your post about time mgmt. This is a tough one for me, but I’m setting goals and getting more on a routine. I’m really looking forward to your post about clearing the clutter and seeing your binder. Thanks for your hard work.
Wow- great timing on the binder. I want to set something up but some people have SO MANY sections I cannot believe it. And some, such as coupons and recipes, are done differently. Very curious as to what your sections are and what they include!
Thanks so much for the downloads – they are really helpful, and fit my own household management style. I’m still curious, though – what chores do you involve your children in for each age? My 3-year old knows how to pick up his toys (with our help and reminding every ten seconds) and likes to throw the laundry into our stackable washer (which is on the bottom) and then toss it into the top dryer. He also helps with taking out the garbage cans (which you can tip and roll to the curb). But beyond that, he seems to be a bit of a hazard at times. He saw me swishing the toilet once with the brush, and then got it into his mind that he needed to clean the toilet every time after he used it – total mess all over the floor! He also likes to toss dishes into our sink to be washed, which has resulted in a broken glass or two. Anyway, just curious as to what the kids do during their “chore times.”
@Jenni, I had to laugh at the fact that your son has broken a few glasses by tossing his dishes into the sink. My son has done the exact same thing. My kids both know that they are to clear all of their dishes after each meal, but I never explained to my son that you have to gently put them into the sink and not throw them. We’ve also had juice and milk splashed all over the floor because he has put full cups in the sink and didn’t pour the liquid out first.
I have 5 children under 8 so we have to be very organized & everyone must do their part. My 3 & 4 yr old emplt out the garbage cans in bathrooms, bring their dirty cloths basket/hamper to laundry room, put clothes in the dryer(I then start it), take dry clothes out from dryer, 3 yr old holds dust pan while 4 yr old sweeps up their crumbs from meal, help scrub food & etc marks from kitchen cabinets, dust & clean end tables, wipe down dinner table & play table, etc. This all isen’t done everyday but these are duties my 3 yr old has learned to do & can do quite easily. Does she make mistakes, why sure she does. But I do too, so we just re-teach or help them & all & keep going. I try to teach them to ” Clean as they go, so the mess don’t show”. ” If you get it out, put it back” the bulk of my kids chores comes from their own messes/stuff etc. Teaching them early to be responsible for their messes/stuff/ & Actions is something that will last a lifetime. If more people were taught that way we would have a much better world to live in…
@Jenni, My 4 year loves to help his older siblings: set the table, empty the dishwasher, separate his clothes from the clean laundry, put his clothes away, wash marks from the walls with a sponge, feed the pets – just a few I can think of right now.
Hooray for a video blog!! 🙂
I am teaching my daughter (at the age of 2) to start picking up after herself and putting her toys away. She also loves to “help” with the laundry by taking the clothes out of the dryer and “throwing” them on top of the washer for me to fold. It’s cute 🙂
Great post!
Thank you so much for your post. With 5 kids, I am always looking for more advice. 🙂 I hope you are able to do a video blog on your homemaking binder. I am VERY interested!
This series has helped me so much–thank you!! I am working on my binder now. I can’t wait to see yours. Have you been able to make the daily sheets editable yet? I tried but yours look so much better than mine.
Thank you for this wonderful post. I have thoroughly enjoyed and used the ideas found in all the time mgmt posts. Keep up the good work!
Thank you for this post! I honestly don’t think most people realize how vulnerable blogging can be. I don’t blog, but I read the comments on my favorite blogs and it’s evident that the Lord made us all very different! =) I appreciate your honesty in your posts. I also appreciate you willingness to put yourself out there and be vulnerable in order to serve and challenge others. As a young mother, I have learned many things, and i continue to do so. You have shared many great ideas, lots of which I have implemented and they have been a blessing to my family. Thanks again! I hope you feel appreciated! =D
Love it! Thanks for the checklist downloads!
awesome!
Thank you for this post! I’m looking forward to tomorrow as well!
Thank you so much for this post!! I have been doing a lot of goal-setting recently and came up with a different sheet to fill out, but I love your ideas and your approach. Very useful!