Our Chore Chart

Finally, we found something that works.

I pulled this together last summer desperate for a system that was easy for to kids to use and simple for me to maintain. Day-of-the-week-chores that seem never seem to line up with real life were just not working. When Hannah is supposed to clean the guest bath on Fridays and we have people over for dinner on Thursday... or Tuesday... or both... well, that just doesn't work. And sometimes the dishwasher needs to be emptied and sometimes it doesn't. You know what I mean. 

What I love about this system is that right before I go to bed I can assign chores that need to be completed the next morning. And there is piano practice up there, too. I'm afraid that seems a little like a chore to them some days. When the kids complete their chore they just move the clothespin to the other side. Oh, and if I think of a new chore I don't have to redo the whole thing - I just add a new clothespin. The chores that aren't assigned for that day hang out on the bottom. 

Peter's chores (he's 7) are more specific. They all have to make their beds in the morning, but Peter sometimes needs to be prompted. He often carries around his clothespins as reminders until he completes all his chores. It's easy to get distracted with all the loud piano playing going on. 

I used a thin wooden board I found in the basement, painted it, duct taped a ribbon to the back, and attached it to the top of the basement door with thumb tacks. Simple as that. Finally, chore chart success! 

A Tribute

May 2003 - Look at those cute little arms!

Saying goodbye... it's hard to do.

In an effort to declutter our garage, I begged the kids to say goodbye to the cozy coupe. I've been asking for permission to move it to the curb with a 'FREE' sign for a couple years now. What is it about that toy? I'm not sure, but it's hands down the best money spent on a toy to date. Yesterday, they caved.

November 2009

I cannot tell you how many hours each of them have spent with that little coupe. Sometimes as a car, but mostly as a prop in some lavish imaginary world. Never mind all that, space is what we needed. Am I awful?

Yesterday

Before I rolled it to the curb, they said their goodbyes. It spent exactly 3 minutes sitting there before it found a new owner.

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As for the tile decision, this is how desperate things have become...
I have an 8-year-old boy consulting me on very boring beige tile.

Improvements

We are in a little home improvement spurt. I wish I could tell you we are doing all the work ourselves, but we're not. We saved our pennies so we could get capable and talented professionals to do it all. It's better that way, trust me.

First it was replacing the front wood railings with iron railings. That's been on the to-do list for, uh, six years.

Then we replaced the back door. Again, a must-do since we moved in.

Next, the white kitchen back splash. It is such a huge boost for the kitchen, and so easy and affordable... not really sure why we waited so long on this one.

Now we move to this - the tiny powder room. I couldn't get in here fast enough today to get a 'before' photo, but just take my word for it - it was interesting. The previous owner had built a sort of vanity, the bottom was plywood (I covered it with a fabric skirt)... it needed *lots* of help.
There will be a pedestal sink, a new mirror and light fixture (and toilet, of course). Oh, and the red will be replaced by something much, much better... just don't know what it is yet.

I really love this tile, but now that it is lying on the floor I'm feeling a pretty nervous it's not going to work. That rug in the foyer is not helping matters either. These kinds of things make me avoid projects - projects that cost money and have a certain permanence to them. Deep breath. And another.


Thank you to my friend Jessica for talking me through the drama.

Now to make me feel better I will focus on this soothing space.


Yep, it's the hall linen closet that I cleaned and organized today. I was going to take a 'before' photo, but I just couldn't. It was really, really ugly. Funny, there are very few actual linens in this closet. We don't have a lot of extras around here. The extra towels were in the wash, but there are only two, and the guest stuff is all in the basement. When I wash sheets and towels they go right back on the beds and towel bars. This closet is more of a medicine cabinet - boxes hold extra toiletries, nail polish... you know. The really exciting part of this project was what I found! You see that top left box - it's full of sunscreen and pool toys that *I* dumped out of the pool bag at the end of the summer. Well, in all that I found my husband's missing sunglasses! I'm pretty sure I had a comment about how he always loses things when they went missing... probably accompanied my a big annoyed sigh, too. Oops.

My 21-Day Challenge

Right after Christmas it all started to get to me. Those areas of the house that are neglected week after week because they're not a part of the regular cleaning schedule were becoming harder to ignore. There is the cluttered bookshelf, the sloppy linen closet, the crumbs in the corners of the kitchen drawers, the out-of-control junk drawer, and many other "areas" that would benefit from a few minutes of attention.

So, I made a list. I walked around the house and wrote down every place that needed to be weeded/organized/cleaned. Figuring about 30-45 minutes for each area, it worked about to be 21 tasks. And February has 21 weekdays. Perfect.

For those who know me, you are likely not surprised that I am LOVING this 21-day event. My idea of a perfect lazy day at home is organizing a closet. Thankfully, I have a family that keeps me balanced and encourages me often to engage in "normal" family fun activities.

There have been a few unexpected projects and just plain busy days so far this month, and a few days have not met the 'challenge.' But I'm hopeful the list will still be complete by the end of the month.

The List:

1. the secretary desk - clean out and organize
2. school room bookshelves - weed and organize
3. desk drawers
4. school room cabinets (left)
5. school room cabinets (right)
6. kitchen drawers - weed and organize, wipe clean... maybe vacuum those corners?
7. kitchen cabinets - weed and organize, wipe clean
8. kitchen cabinet doors - wipe clean
   
9. fridge - weed and clean, all shelves and drawers
10. TV cabinet - organize and weed DVDs
11. Hannah's closet (with her help)
12. Will and Peter's closets (with their help)
13. medicine cabinets - clean shelves, weed, organize
14. master bedroom closets
15. hall linen closet - linens
16. hall linen closet - toiletries
17. cleaning supplies - weed and organize
18. basement homeschool storage - what to keep?
    
19. basement craft cabinet - seriously weed and organize
    
20. basement home decor cabinets (vases, candles, etc) - weed and organize
21. basement extras - bed/bath/table linens - weed and organize
    

Oh, and there is an added rule to this list. I will not go to The Container Store and buy stuff to organize my stuff. I will make due and be resourceful. No excuses.

Both my husband and I don't hold on to much (our basement would tell you otherwise), and we are keen on simplifying and controlling the clutter before it enters the house. Somehow it still gathers... and multiplies. I think I'll do this 'challenge' or something like it regularly - maybe twice a year - just to keep things under control. And, let's be honest, because I love it.

A couple before and after shots. I wish I had taken a picture of all that was thrown away!

before: the desk drawers
This is embarrassing. And why in the world do I have so many Sharpie markers? I found a separate box for them. So many of these items have no business being in these drawers.


after: the desk drawers
I found a few box tops in the basement to use as organizers. Yes, that is my old school address book with a rubber band holding all the stuff inside. For me, that book is simpler than entering hundreds of contacts onto the computer.

total time: 35 minutes


before: the secretary desk (by the door catch-all)
Not too bad, but again so much of that stuff doesn't belong there. And so much of it is trash.


after: the secretary desk
That's better.

total time: about 20 minutes

I'll let you know how it all ends and take a few more before and after shots (they do provide a lot of encouragement!).

Want to join me?

Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

This has been on my list to do for a long time. After looking at several recipes, I've settled on this for now. We've been using it for a week with great results. I'll add updates here if I tweak the recipe...

Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Borax
• 1 cup baking soda
• 1/3 cup salt
• 1/3 cup citric acid (I ordered a pound of it from amazon)
• I also added a few drops of sweet orange essential oil (not necessary)
  

Use one tablespoon per load. Also, I use white vinegar as a rinse aid. Easy as that.

OK, I'm in.

It's truly an organizational dream.

My Week on a Clipboard : Part I

Before you go any further, know that this home management/organizing thing has become a hobby of mine. So, please excuse all the type-a-ness of this post. It's embarrassing, really. (but I. love. it.)

After reading Organized Simplicity, I was inspired to change a few things around here, mainly our family calendar and home school lesson planning.

Our Calendar:
For years, I have had a paper, notebook-style calendar and it worked well for me. I think and organize best with pencil to paper, so it was a good fit. Then I got an iPhone and everything changed. I had this super-powered tool in my pocket and a bulky planner in my bag. As much as I liked how my planner joined our family calendar with home school planning, it contained so much I didn't need and was proving to be rather bulky. Also, the school planning sheets were not customized to our subjects and schedule. So, I decided leave the paper family calendar in 2010 and move to Google Calendar (which already held my birthday calendar). Then I went on to create our own weekly lesson planning sheets. No more extra bulk.

What I am loving about Google Calendar vs. Paper:
(which leaves me wondering what took me so long to do this...)

• The ability to repeat an event. This works especially well with meal planning because really we don't have more than two weeks worth of Sunday-Friday meals. So, every other Tuesday we have stir fry, etc. Saturday evenings are left open for new recipes and going out. And it's all there waiting for me when I make the weekly grocery list.
• No space constraints. I don't have a pencil and a little box, so I can be as detailed about my day as I like. Because of this, I have added my weekly exercise schedule to my calendar - that is a huge motivator for me.
• Reminders. This is a life saver for me with birthdays and orthodontist appointments.
• Sharing. Even though my husband doesn't use Google Calendar, if he needs to check my calendar he can.
• And I always take my phone, so now I have my calendar, too. I know I am late to this way of life, but letting go of paper was a big deal for me.
  

Home School Lesson Plans:
Before our school year begins, I create a spreadsheet with each subject and what lessons need to be completed each week to get it all done in about 34 weeks. For instance, I know that in week 20 Will needs to do math lessons 76-79. With all that work completed ahead of time, I spend about an hour every weekend planning for the next week. That includes filling our file box and gathering books. Our file box has a folder for each school day filled with worksheets and papers needed for each day. Hannah (red) and Will (blue) keep things moving to the next day's folder if they are needed every day.

Before each week begins, I print out our lesson planning sheet, a grocery list, and a to do list/weekly chore sheet (I will post about this soon). It all goes on my clipboard. Along with any other papers I may need (like right now I have Peter's birthday party planning sheet in there, too). When the week is over, the lesson plans are transferred to my home management notebook.

Our lesson planning sheet:
(if anyone would like me to email them any of these documents just let me know)


My grocery list (with spaces for our weekly dinner schedule):
(the week begins on Thursday because I go to the store with the boys on Thursdays while Hannah is at piano)

Organized Simplicity

I read Simple Mom Tsh Oxenreider's book, Organized Simplicity, over our Christmas break. It was a perfect get-ready-for-a-new-year read. Highly recommended! Full of inspiration for creating a simple, well-managed home, this book has really encouraged me to evaluate what living simply looks like for our family, "Living holistically with your life's purpose."

I plan to post more about the changes I have made and things I have re-worked, including...

• managing our family calendar.
• my home management notebook.
• my weekly to-do list and house cleaning schedule.
• organizing our homeschool week.

So, stay tuned. : )

7 : 25 {laundry}

Today did not go as I had planned. Our morning lessons were unorganized, frustrating, and dragged on and on. Our fun afternoon plans were canceled. Everyone just seemed a little more on top of each other. Tempers were short. You know the day... blah, blah, blah...

My attempt to find beauty in this December 7th was tough.

Late this afternoon, I turned the corner to my room to find that ugly mound. Sadly, it had become a fixture this week, a centerpiece you might say. My sinful self wanted to sit down right next to that pile and list all the reasons I should be grumpy, why it never gets done... blah, blah, blah (again).

It was 4:40 and the sun was setting. I needed to choose joy. While I found some fun Christmas music on the radio, I invited the battling trio upstairs for a Laundry Party. Up they came, slowly, and grumbling a bit. But we worked together sorting, folding, matching, helping, laughing, and ended up finding the bottom of that pile. That ugly-beautiful pile.

Holiday Hospitality with Children

Christmas is a season for kindling
the fire for hospitality in the hall,
the genial flame of charity in the heart.
-Washington Irving

My children love for our home to be full of friends, big and small. Whenever we host a dinner or party, their excitement is overwhelming in those important hours before guests arrive. Instead of being frustrated by their energy level, I have found that delegating a few creative jobs can make that time very pleasant and fun for all of us. Additionally, they are able to share in the blessing of hospitality and learn what it means to honor guests in our home.


Make it personal. For more formal dinners, my daughter loves creating place cards with each guest's name. From basic, folded card stock to names beautifully written on leaves... the possibilities are truly endless. All they need is a list of names and a little inspiration (maybe from Google images - kids handmade place cards). Legos will also hold a place card very nicely....

Click HERE to read the rest of this post over
at Heart of the Matter Online.

2 : 25 {making granola}

A daily post this advent season sharing a simple moment from our day.


Yummy Granola

ingredients
2 cups old-fashioned oats (NOT quick oats)
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (or pecans)
1/4 cup real maple syrup
3 Tbsp coconut oil (here is why I chose coconut oil)
1 Tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup dried cranberries (or cherries)

directions
Preheat oven to 275. Grease a jelly roll pan (9x13 to 12x17 size) or line with parchment paper. Mix oats, wheat germ, salt, and nuts. Set aside. Bring syrup, oil, water, and vanilla to a simmer in a saucepan over low heat. Drizzle over oat mixture, and stir to combine. Pour mixture onto pan. Using your hands, squeeze mixture to form small clumps. Bake at 275 for 30 minutes. Then add cranberries and bake for 15 more minutes, until golden brown.

Cool completely in pan and then fill a jar for a delicious and healthy gift.

And then feed your child a ginger cookie to keep him out of the granola. : )

Art Boards

Our "Art Boards" are saving my table.

These boards are underneath projects in several photos here, but I don't think I have ever mentioned them. I first got the idea for these boards from That Artist Woman. Then I casually mentioned them to my dad (who loves projects... and trips to Home Depot). Sure enough, the next time my parents visited he had a stack of them in the car for me.

The boards are made of masonite (think clipboard material). Home Depot and other such stores sell big sheets of it and will cut it for you (or your dad). I suggested duct tape for the rough edges, but dad sanded them... love him.

They are fabulous to have! These boards are perfect for sloppy projects that need a portable drying space (so we can eat dinner at the table). Great to take outside and sit in the grass and paint on. We will be using these boards for years!

Speaking of art projects, here are a few new fall projects we hope to do soon...

• Autumn Window Display. Peter will especially love this.
• Fall Trees. Another great idea from That Artist Woman.
• Leaf Pictures. Just like Leaf Man.
• Tissue Paper + Watercolor Fall Leaves

Our School Room

It's School Room Week at the Not-Back-to-School Blog Hop. Here is where we do school... and, of course, all over the rest of the house. When we moved into the house, I wasn't really sure how we would use the space, and homeschooling wasn't something I had ever thought about seriously. Now I am so very thankful to have this room!

The school room doesn't get a lot of natural light, so we work together often at the dining room table and in our family room (below).


Hannah's desk is currently in between coats of paint, but you get the picture. The door to the right of her desk is to the garage, so this is a high-traffic area.


Will's desk... (that I pulled from a neighbor's trash!)


Buckets for toys, math manipulatives, blank paper, games, puzzles...


Books, books, books... the bottom 2-3 shelves are for school (and 2 of the cabinets beneath the shelves).



We don't use the secretary desk as a desk, just a catch-all. A tour... Left door is to the kitchen. Middle door is to the foyer. Right door is a closet.


I posted photos of our school room two years ago (before I had even officially started homeschooling). Since then, the kids have their own desks and we have accumulated a lot more books and stuff.

Thanks for visiting!

This and That

This week is not really going the way I had planned. When does it ever? The boys are sick, so we're here at home and I'm just flitting from laundry to reading to school planning to cleaning to organizing photos. This post feels a little like my brain lately... all over the place.

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Edward Hopper is one of my favorite American painters, so I was thrilled to find this book. It's beautiful and written at Hannah's level. A great summer artist study.

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I finally purchased something on Etsy! I have been wanting a chalk board in the kitchen for over a year now... for verses, fun messages, school stuff. It was a great shopping experience. And I love that it's not from Pottery Barn.

"Delicious Summer" is a message to 3 kids that are less than enthusiastic about the amount of new-to-us vegetables on their dinner plates this summer. Hannah asked the other night if we had to get a CSA share every summer or could this please be the only one. They will thank me later.

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Nailing the chalk board on the wall led to this backyard fun. A board, a hammer, and some nails is serious fun for Peter.

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We are praying today for this little girl, and for her family boarding a plane to China, eager to hold her and bring her home. Her much older brother is a dear friend of ours.

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And just to bless you...
(I love this song)

Trying Something New

We have followed the same chore schedule for about a year now. It has worked well for us. The kids don't flip over their chore cards anymore, they know them by heart and we just have a rhythm to how it all works.

But lately, I sensed my three needed a little boost. I wanted something that made chores happen quickly each morning, without me reminding them to get it done. I wanted them to get a little excited, and help them see there is blessing in work and obedience. So, now we have marbles.

In the Back to School 2009 issue of Family Fun Magazine, I read a great article about chore rewards called, "A Fistful of Dad Dollars," where the kids had dad dollars waiting for them each morning on the counter if everything was completed by a certain time. And the most recent issue of Family Fun offered another creative way to handle chore boredom using jars of marbles. So, I married the two ideas. While I liked the dad dollar idea (you print real looking money with dad's face in the middle), I knew the boys would not keep track of slips of paper.

How it works for us:
Do your daily chores and receive marbles. Their morning chores have to be completed by a certain time to receive the marbles (I give them a 30 minute warning to help my non-clock readers). Also, good table manners at dinner can earn you a couple marbles. I don't take marbles out of their jars for any reason. Discipline issues are completely separate. My hope is to keep this light and fun, not burdensome.

With morning/evening chores and table manners each of them can earn up to six marbles, and sometimes more. When Will told me today that he matched all the white socks that were piled on my bed (seemingly just for fun), I happily blessed him with a couple extra marbles.

The kids then get to spend their marbles on some fun privileges. Here are a few examples... and most are divisible by 3 - in case they want to pull together to buy something...

• a late night reading pass (extra reading time in bed) - 10 marbles
• 30 minutes of screen time (computer or tv) - 12 marbles
• a trip to the playground/hike of your choice - 15 marbles
• treat at the pool snack bar - 15 marbles
• after dinner bike ride - 18 marbles
• out for ice cream - 30 marbles

We are only a few weeks into this and they love it. I am always thinking of things they can do to earn a marble or spend marbles... and they are, too.

Yum!

We decided to commit to a CSA (half share) and are thrilled to be receiving this weekly box of beauty all summer.

This is only the second week of the season. Already, I have enjoying finding new recipes for all those vegetables that I would not normally buy a the store. Our farm also provides us with recipes to go with what is in the box that week (so thankful for that!). The kids tastes will most certainly be expanded this summer... as will mine. Swiss chard for example - I'm not sure if I have ever had it and I really like it! And I love that it was all grown just down the road... and we even can go there and pick it ourselves.

A few months ago, I mentioned here that I was looking at CSAs and local grass-fed beef/milk suppliers. Cleary, we found a great CSA and are excited about this first season. As far as beef goes, we eat very little meat so buying a share of a cow would be silly. Rocklands Farm may supply beef in the future and I will revisit it then. For now I am buying an occasional pack of grass-fed beef at Whole Foods. I did find a local milk delivery that was already coming to my neighborhood, but it was pricey - more than what I was spending at Whole Foods for grass-fed/organic. So, I'm sticking to Whole Foods for beef and milk. It's oh-so-nice to have one about a mile away.

Good, Green Reads

Get Clean with Shaklee Basic H2 - A Review : Small Notebook

I have been using this stuff for years and love it. I'm so glad to have a review to pass along. Passionate Homemaking also has a list of easy-to-make, safe, household cleaners. Really all you need is baking soda, vinegar and Basic H2 for the whole house. Also, microfiber cloths are my new favorite housecleaning tool. I bought a 8 pack of them at Target (automotive section) a year or so ago and they are still in great shape. The kids and I use them for everything... general cleaning, dusting, windows, mirrors. I even attach them to my swiffer-sweeper (reusable swiffer cloths!).

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How to Create a Paperless Kitchen : Simple Mom

This is something I have been thinking about/working on for the past year or so. We have switched to using cloth napkins most of the time, but it's hard to hand a cloth napkin to a kid with a blueberry smoothie. And I try to use rags, not paper towels. I struggle with going completely paperless mostly because I just don't have enough cloth. We're getting there... soon.

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Michael Pollan on the Oprah Show: "Food 101" : Kelly the Kitchen Kop

I just found this blog, and loved her recap of Michael Pollan's visit to the Oprah Show. I didn't see the show, but loved reading her notes. Michael Pollan appears in Food, Inc., a documentary on the food industry. We netflixed it a month ago... an eye-opening movie. The journey from "farm" to table is not pretty.

I have always tried to provide simple, organic, local, whole foods for our family when possible, but this movie challenged me to do more. Now I am looking into CSAs and local grass-fed beef/milk suppliers. The other day, Hannah says to me as I poured her a glass of grass-fed milk (that I picked up at Whole Foods), "Mom, why does it say grass-fed on the carton? What else would a cow want to eat?" Exactly.

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The Oil-Cleansing Method : Simple Mom

About 4 months ago, I was running out of my (very expensive) skin care supplies and didn't want to order more. I wasn't all that pleased with what I had been using, and really wasn't sure what was in it. After reading about this "oil-cleansing method" a handful of times, I decided to give it a try. I have DRY skin, so I use Simple Mom's recipe for drier skin and then use coconut oil as a extra moisturizer. LOVE it. I'm never going back. And it's basically free!

Also, the new blog Simple Organic has a *great post* on healthy skin care.

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Lastly, I am thankful for this thoughtful post...

Can Natural Living Become an Idol? : Passionate Homemaking

The Boys' Room

We found a little desk for the school room on Craigslist. This led to moving the craft cabinet up to the boys room, and declaring it the lego cabinet. This led to moving some things on the walls. This led to a blank wall with 2 nails. So, Will and I came up with this yesterday...



We just doodled with watercolor pencils (he loves them!) and then cut out the W and P from our paper, glued it to some cardstock, and put it in two old frames from the craft store.

On another wall in their room, I have this...


Inspired by Heidi (a couple of years ago), I grabbed a white canvas, cut some colored circles, wrote out all the letters/numbers with a sharpie and glued them to the canvas. All this because I was unable to find a poster with upper and lowercase letters. I think it took an hour or so. It's not perfect, but was super easy and inexpensive. I like that.