Tuesday, January 25, 2011


When it comes to chores, I try to keep it simple. We stick to a regular routine that seems to cover all of the basis in a week's time. I like to have the kids do different jobs each week within each category, so I usually assign who is doing what right after breakfast and devotional time. Some days these seems to take longer than other days, depending on how messy or unorganized we are after the weekend! We adjust as we go, but overall this keeps us on a consistent track. The important thing is that each day we are all working together to take care of what God has given us! This teaches my kids (hopefully!) to take care of what they have, to be thankful, and to develop a work ethic -- all things I hope they will develop under my roof! To download our chart, click here.


Triple Stacked


We have 3 boys and 1 girl (who is the oldest). This proved to be somewhat problematic with the room situation in our house. While having plenty of square footage, the house is short on rooms (at least for our family). We explored many ideas for how to fit all of the boys in one area, and this one turned out to be the best! We already had the twin over full log bunk bed. All we needed to do was to add a bunk to make it a triple decker. We took it in to the local log furniture store, and they build the bunk to specifically fit on top of the twin. The boys LOVE, and I mean, LOVE their bunk bed. It is more like a fort than a bed and they tie ropes to the rails and shimmy to the top and "hide out." If you've got the tall ceilings, this is a fun solution.... even our daughter likes to join in!

It's MY NIGHT!

Early on, my husband and I designated each child a night of the week. The first question out of my kids' mouths at breakfast is, "who's night is it?" No matter that the child of the day has a few extra chores like unloading the dishwasher in the morning, or helping me with dinner, the real kicker is that he or she gets to stay up past everyone else to spend time with DAD (the superhero in our house). Usually the time is spent shooting hoops, running football plays, or playing a game. Other times it involves sitting by the campfire, or snuggling on the couch. It really doesn't matter what the activity, what matters is that it happens consistently week after week. On that particular day of the week, their dad pulls them aside and says with his time, "YOU matter, and YOU are important to me."

I've often said it is hands down one of the best things we do. Such a small thing, but something I believe will have a deep impact on our children.

The List.....

Do you ever find yourself repeating yourself over.....and over.....and over again? " Pick up your coat, put away your shoes, practice piano, bring down your laundry"... our verbal list goes on and on and yet our kids don't seem to hear any of it! Enter center stage.... the list! Kids work the best when there is something concrete. The list takes out all guess work -- no more repeating, explaining, or asking if it is done. I simply take a piece of scrap paper, write what I want that child to accomplish in the next hour or two, then wait as that child checks off the boxes one by one! We often forget to set our kids up for success. As parents we need to give them the right tools to succeed -- the list is one tool to put in your toolbox!