"Personal Time"- Can It Be Found?

I get asked some great questions.
Questions from moms seeking ways to do their best.

Recently I was asked, "How do you find "me/personal" time?
Life places so many demands on us as moms.
For those of us who have chosen to homeschool,
We get to be with our kiddos all. day. long.
So, is it possible to get some alone time?

I think so but first this:
The personal time many of us desire usually won't be found,
It must be made.

Creating this kind of space for yourself 
Will once again look different for everyone
But I will share with you where I have made space throughout my day.

First, I encourage you to share your need with your spouse.
I say this for two reasons:
The two of you can brainstorm solutions that you will both be excited about.
And, you will support each other in implementing the ideas.

Here are a few ways that worked for me over the years:

Specific wake-up times and bed times.
By setting a time for my children to wake up
I was then able to rise before them and know 
I had that time before I would be needed.
If a child woke sooner, I simply told him,
"It's not morning yet," and taught him to stay in bed.
Easier said than done, right?!
But once learned, worth it!

The same is true for bedtime.
My husband and I set a time for bed
And our kiddos were taught they needed to 
Stay in bed and be quiet.
This took much training and consistency at first
But again was TOTALLY worth it.

Nap time/quiet rest time.
After lunch, around 1:00, I would read to my boys.
This was the start to nap time 
Or what later grew to quiet rest time.
This was a time for us all to rest from interaction.
I have used this space for naps myself, reading, 
Exercising, making appointments etc.

For specific ways to include exercise, 
I have also done many ideas.
- schedule PE into the week's activities 
- adjust the school schedule to include gym time
- put on a video for the kids while working out in another room

These windows of time change with the seasons of life we find ourselves in.
But I do believe, when prioritized and planned for, they can be made.
As much as I think we can create space for ourselves,
I do think there can be a big obstacle.
So next time when I write, I will ask, 
Are you involved in too much?

Let me know if these ideas could work for you.
Do you have different ideas that you could add?
Are you faced with circumstances that prevent these ideas from working for you?
Please feel free to contact me and we can brainstorm together. =)

Eunora

It's OK To Let Them Play

I've had a few conversations recently about curriculum for the littles.

Although there are so many options available, 

I'd like to encourage those with littles to consider a slightly different approach.

Let the littles play. :)

Their time for being little is so short.

Their time to be in books and study will be here before you know it.

And with curriculum and schedules comes less time to simply play.

And much can be learned through play.

Sharing. 

Caring. 

Thinking of others.

Thankfulness (for toys, games, activities).

Enjoyment of God's creation (at parks, in the yard, on a walk).

But these lessons take time, patience, and consistency.

In hindsight, I wish I wouldn't have jumped so quickly into math and science

And used the time instead to slow down 

And focus on character training.

By character training, I don't mean finding the best curriculum, 

(Although there are some great books to use along with good training).

But rather, I mean, slow down and 

Teach, show, and model good character skills.

Take the time now, while your littles are still young,

To watch them play and guide their interactions.

Do your children obey quickly and cheerfully?

Do they treat you and their siblings with care and concern?

Are they respectful?

Are they diligent and hard-workers?

And most importantly, do they know the love of Jesus?

Teaching your children how to obey you, 

And to respect each other as an act of love and devotion to God

Is of utmost importance, especially in the early years.

Teaching them to resolve conflict 

And be peaceable with one another

Will benefit them for a lifetime

And make a world of difference when you need to run a tighter schedule.

All these important areas become much more difficult to address

When your day's schedule is filled with math, science, and history.

As the balls you juggle increase,

So too the difficulty in keeping them in the air well.

So, for now, teach them to love God, and love others.

Because of Jesus,

Eunora

I Don't Have It All Together!

I'm gonna say it again,
I don't have it all together.

Some of you have seen what I have done over the years.
You've seen my IG pictures and FB posts.

Yes, I've run a marathon.
I've even gutted out an ultra-marathon.
I've used cloth diapers.
And made my own laundry detergent.

I thought baking my own bread was no big deal,
And so for awhile I did that, too.
I cooked my own baby food,
And mixed up our cleaning products.

I loved DIY projects, 
And filled my days creating, all while homeschooling.

Back then, others put me on a pedestal.
I knew how others viewed me.
And so I tried to balance up there,
Doing all I could to maintain that image
And be the perfect little housewife.

And then I crashed.
It's hard to teeter up there on that pedestal. 
I even believe the health issues I later discovered
Came because of these unrealistic expectations I put upon myself.

And so I come to you now in what I hope is a much more humble position.
I stand among you,
Not above you.
I will continue to share my experiences with you.
But I am still learning SO. Much. Myself.

I don't have every room completely organized.
I don't have everything labeled and color-coordinated.
My schedule doesn't always work.
I now buy my laundry detergent
And our bread, too.

My kids don't always obey cheerfully on the first time.
I (more often than I like to admit) loose my patience.
I get frustrated.
I am frail.
And, at times, I cry.

But through all of this I am learning.
This, my friends, is what the Cross is for.
I won't be able to do it all.
I will fail.
But because of His grace, 
I will pick myself up.
Over. And over. And over again.
I will cling tightly to my Savior's hand.

And I will remember,
I don't have to have every closet organized,
Or teach the perfect school year. 
I just need to be obedient to what He calls me to do.
And rely on His strength to do it.

Eunora

Bathrooms, Laundry, and Meal Planning, Oh My!

Yeah, so let's talk about some specific chores.
In my last post I shared with you how we go about getting our chores done.
Remember, divide, delegate, and conquer?! ;)
But how exactly do I do that with these three major chores?
I'll tell you!

(Disclaimer: this post is a little longer than my other posts. 
Some out there are wanting the details, so here it is.)

Of course this will look differently for each family.
Chores need to be done when you're home (go figure!)
So when you can tackle them will depend largely upon your schedules.
But here's ours:

Bathrooms are done every Monday. 
We have three bathrooms.
During the summer, I clean our master bathroom.
The younger boys clean the upstairs bathroom.
The older boys clean the downstairs bathroom.
During the school year when the older boys are off at school all day,
The younger boys will each take a bathroom and clean it.
We are concentrating this summer on perfecting our cleaning skills.
I am grooming the younger boys to take over for the older boys
When their schedules prevent them from helping out with chores.
This does take time and effort, 
But, from past experience, is so worth it.

My schedule for handling laundry has become a 'well-oiled machine.' ;)
I wash clothes on Mondays and Thursdays.
I wash linens and towels on Tuesdays.
We all have laundry baskets in our room 
And then I have an industrial, divided laundry basket in our laundry room.
Every Monday and Thursday we all (some have to be reminded)
Bring our laundry baskets to the laundry room.
The boys are responsible for sorting their clothes to be washed in certain loads.
I wash and dry all clothes throughout most of the morning,
Sometimes it goes into the afternoon.
For the most part I also fold the laundry.
We all hang up our shirts 
So I simply lay them on top of each other for everyone to collect later.
The rest of the clothes I fold and place on a cart with shelves
(one for each boy with the littlest's on the counter).
I really try to fold each load as it finishes so that it doesn't pile up.
If I am tight on time, I sometimes throw all the socks in a bin.
The boys are then required to find, match,
And put them away with the rest of their clothes.

On Tuesdays all sheets and towels are brought to the laundry room.
I love having only one set of sheets for each bed.
So, as soon as they are washed and dried,
They are taken to the correct beds and I make them as I have time.
The older boys are old enough now to fix their own beds.
The younger ones are learning but, bunk beds..... ;)

I love having set days for doing laundry.
Yes, I do have days when I need to throw in an extra load (football season).
But for the most part I am able to stick to three days.
What I love about this is that although I do a TON of loads on those days,
I am off the other days. 
I don't even think about laundry, knowing it will all get done... soon.

Lastly, meal planning!
This is a must for me.
Knowing what to buy at the store
And then what to cook each night is quite freeing to me.
And so, I take the time each week to plan a menu and then shop accordingly.
About a month ago my husband came up with a brilliant idea.
He told the family one night over dinner that each boy would be able to pick a meal.
The meal had to include a vegetable but otherwise they were free to choose.
I added that we could only have one of the same style dish a week.
I.e. only one could choose pasta.
We love pasta.
The boys have no problem with pasta.
Some of us older folks wear pasta... I think you get my reasoning. ;)
This has helped me out a ton 
As I don't have to wrack my brain for new ideas all the time.
Once the menu is written on my calendar I can make my grocery list.
With grocery list in hand, 
The boys and I are able to conquer the list more quickly at the store.

I've tried to be detailed as I know some of you want the specifics.
(I'm one of these types myself) =)
Please let me know if I can share more.
What are you curious about?

Eunora

For my previous post on chores, click here.

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