Organization

[WifeOfHisYouth]

Ladies with littles or ladies that have raised littles and mastered this phase.. how do you keep things organized? I work also, so I feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day. Aside from getting a bestie (which I’m praying for and hope to be able to share our loads), what tips, or tricks, have you put into place to help organize your life and the household?

Thanks <3

 

[Well loved wife]

Get rid of as much unnecessary stuff as possible!!! Ask your self why you have this or that, then find a home for it, wether it’s your home or someone else’s (Salvation Army?) When my kids were little I put the kids’ toys in three tubs (except LEGOs, cars and baby doll stuff they were in bins that were always accessible). When they got toys out they had to lay a sheet on the floor first, all toys stayed on the sheet-you pick up the four corners and have a tidy room instantly. Each week we’d put a tub up on the closet shelf and get another one down. The kids acted like they got new toys every time they got into another bin. This kept tidying their room to a minimum!!! When new toys came in, we got rid of the same amount of toys. That’s just the toys. Clothing- after years of being frustrated with laundry- my kids got 10 outfits, get rid (store for the next ones coming up) of what they don’t wear. We go through closets in April and October. I don’t work outside of the home, but as a homeschooling-Homemaking Mom I put a major chore to each day: Cleaning on Monday, Grocery shopping on Tuesday, Wednesday catchup, Thursday Bills and Paper, and Friday I used to bake(I’m sure my Husband would like me to bake more often). laundry gets done every day because each of my kids have their own laundry day. As a mom my goal is for them to take care of themselves before they turn 12. Kids helping themselves helps you!!! I use a planner and write everything down. The motivated Mom chore planner helped me feel on top of chores when I worked out of the home. I have my own system now that I stay home.
One more thing we have used - is a system that my mom kinda used when I was little- each kid has a room they have to keep tidy and deep clean weekly on our cleaning day.
In the kitchen these major chores are rotated between the four of them: 1. Clear and clean the table after each meal, keep tea in the fridge, put food away 2. Wash and rinse dishes, wipe down the countertops, 3. Take trash out and sweep the floor, help with meal prep 4. Dry and put away dishes. I have four kids from 10-17, so this works very well for us.

 

[WifeOfHisYouth]

Thank you thank you

 

[windblown]

WLW, sounds like you run a tight ship. I love the idea of the toy bins on the blanket. I wish I could help, WOHY, but you probably don't want to take pointers from me. I do the one big chore a day thing also. Laundry on Mon, floors on Tues, bathroom on Wed, etc. So as long as I know I'm getting these good and clean once a week, I don't stress the mess every day.

 

[Well loved wife]

WLW, sounds like you run a tight ship. I love the idea of the toy bins on the blanket. I wish I could help, WOHY, but you probably don't want to take pointers from me. I do the one big chore a day thing also. Laundry on Mon, floors on Tues, bathroom on Wed, etc. So as long as I know I'm getting these good and clean once a week, I don't stress the mess every day.

We’ll, I appreciate your rose colored glasses. However, I DO NOT run a tight ship-actually, I feel like I’m herding cats throughout much of the day... If I may, I’m going to encourage you ladies to check out simplyconvivial.com Mystie Winklers post it note a day has been a game changer for taming my mental chaos and keeping my focus on the main thing for today. Check out her EHAP system (Everything has a place). She’s great to watch/listen to on YouTube!!! I wish I could share pictures of what I use here, but... I’m not sure how.

 

[Littles]

Yes yes yes to everything @Well loved wife stated. I work part time outside of the home. I have also found that if I have a good morning and evening routine of tidying up before starting my day or going to bed my days run so much smoother. My planner is also one of my most favorite books and as crazy as it sounds, in the midst of all the crazy go go go I make time for a one on one date with each of my kids every month and dates with my husband and even a little time for myself. Those dates keep me focused on what is truly important and right in this world.

Oh and as much as I hate to admit it. . . Getting up before the kids to have a little quiet time/ bible study/ me time really helps me focus on everything else the rest of the day. I have hated mornings for as long as I can remember, but now I have learned to love them and can get bummed if I sleep in on the weekends because I missed the sunrise.

 

[Wife@Home]

I'm not that organized as you all seem to be, I read a lot of good ideas here I work part time outside the house also, but not every week at the same days. The cleaning and laundry just happen on the days I am at home.. What works for us is that every member of the family has a 'special' day what changes in a specific order. Hb and I are also in the schedule. When it is your day, you have benefits (like praying for the meals, reading in the Bible after dinner, controlling the remote controle of the tv..) and tasks (like helping serving dinner, make tea/coffee, cleaning the table after dinner, etc...) One of the great things of this systeem is that every child has learned to pray out loud in company. When we started with this, they were very shy and now (few years later) they are comfortable with it!

 

[FollowingHim2]

Organisation is not my strong point. Or hubby's, lol. I keep trying new ideas, but everything always ends up a mess no matter what I do, and I'm guessing that it's this stage of life. Nothing much I can do about that, just got to get through it as best I can.
What we do have is a chart up on the wall. This has jobs for the kids to do during the week. If it works right then the kids should be doing the dishes after every meal, someone helping me with cooking/serving each meal, and someone helping with washing, plus general tidying and feeding the ducks. Then there's time set aside for 'training'. Training is doing what we need to do to reach our goal. For the children that's school so that they are educated and can go out into the world and be who YHWH wants them to be. For Samuel it's helping the kids with school, or doing his own work. For me it's also helping the kids with school, working on keeping the house tidy, and looking after little ones. Everything corresponds with where YHWH wants us now, or will want us in the future. We're still adjusting the chart to get it working well for us, for example we've just had to take my 6 year old off doing dishes after dinner because she takes aaaages to do them and never gets to bed. As a concept it's working pretty well so far though.

 

[RainyLondonFog]

I agree with WLW, get rid of as much unnecessary stuff as possible. I've started spring cleaning and it is turning out to be a much bigger job than I thought that it would be! I started at the front door and am moving backwards throughout the house and tossing/selling things that are being unused. Since I am stay home, I don't really have any good tips for managing chores while working. One of the things that really helps me though is to plan our meal weekly or monthly depending on what kind of schedule am working with. We're working on eating more produce and less meat so right now I'm doing weekly plans for the most part. Waking up and already knowing what I am doing for dinner helps me a lot!