Getting Organized, Baby and Backyard!!

We are still no more organized than when we moved in, our sixth child, EllieMay, is 5 weeks old today and the backyard is coming along surprisingly well! Homeschooling is starting to pick back up again, after an embarrassingly long break, feel free to judge me... And I couldn't stand to go another day without a blog post!

Moving from a huge house to a home about half the size has really put a cramp in my pack rat style.

Aside from having an overabundance of things I genuinely do not need, I don't have the time nor desire to clean, purge and organize it these days! I kept telling myself, "after the baby comes you will have the energy..." We all know that was a lie.

Now baby is here, she is a bundle of sweetness wrapped in sleepless nights and baby poop. I couldn't be happier with her, except for the fact that she is too cute not to hold, and you cannot get anything done while holding a sleeping newborn! Also, the kids all adore her... Which is hard, because she is mine and I don't want to share... But that is a whole other issue!

Needless to say, we are inching along slowly on all of our goals... My honey and his father put up the fence for my garden area, we will very likely build our garden boxes in the next week, then work on the chicken coop. We have 5 baby chicks already! More on that later.

The kids are seriously in love with our huge yard, and are taking full advantage! I love seeing them get creative and building the clubhouse of their dreams!!

The garage is still an example of complete insanity. No, I will not post a pic! I have the desire to want to organize and clean out there... Neither desire nor want are strong enough to motivate me... I decided today that I will do my best to follow the 15 in 15 Home Organizing Plan (Link To Organizing Plan), and apply it to the garage. In theory, it should be helpful to follow some kind of plan... I make no promises...

The New Chore List!

Moving to a new house means a new Chore List!! Also, since this house is substantially smaller than our last, we have to stay a little more on top of things.

I can't lie, we are all pretty excited about chores. Yes, we are crazy.

I have always had a strange philosophy about chores. I believe that chores are a privilege. You still have to do them, whether you want to or not, but they are a privilege. We call our chores our "home blessings" and the kids get to take ownership of our home by blessing it with well completed chores.

There are the daily expectations that are not considered chores. Making your bed every morning, picking up your room before bed and general picking up after yourself. We try to encourage this as soon as they can walk, make it a habit and constantly praise them for a job well done.

The kids know whats going on, they realize that I am glorifying dog poop duty, but it still works. When kids complete even the simplest of chore we make sure that they know that they have just done a service for our family and home. Part of their membership to our home is completing their assigned task, joyful and timely.

I can admit that there are days that I am not honestly in the mood to be the chore cheer leader, and I joyfully hand this task off to another family member. Giving the kids the opportunity to cheer each other on has turned out to be a valuable training tool. I can see the kids reacting positively to each other and using encouraging words in other parts of their lives. It's a wonderful feeling to see the hard work in training come to life...

The August Chore List:

• Daily
• Kitchen .................. Mason 
• Sweep/mop .......... Chase
• Vacuum ................. Gabby
• Dust ........................ Abby
• Dogs Needs .......... Chase
• Cats Needs ........... Mason
• Bathroom .............. Gabby
• Weekly
• Windows ........................... Gabby
• Sanitize Door Knobs ...... Abby
• Baseboards ....................... Tanner

The chores are split between the kiddos depending on age, in my house you must be at least 8/9 to be allowed to clean the kitchen and you must be little to clean baseboards. Each kiddo receives their assigned chore and must complete that chore every day/week for that entire month.

My kids seem to appreciate that they can truly own that chore for the month. The kitchen person has a much larger job, but the vacuum and sweep/mop person has to keep track of their floor. If there is a muddy mess the person responsible for that space must make sure that their chore is complete before bed time.

When the switch happens and one kiddo has to hand their chore over to the next kiddo, there is always a sense of passing the torch with pride.

We haven't actually moved yet, but the kids already know what their next months chores are and they cannot wait to bless our new home!