On July 15th we headed to Texas for 3 weeks and then on to Colorado for 1 week. This trip is a bit of a doozy, ‘fun’ I’m sure, but a lot of different destinations, including a week on the Texas coast and a week in the mountains of Colorado. Oy.
Archive for the ‘Figuring It Out’ Category
Summer Vacation – The Packing
Wednesday, July 25th, 2018
Last week we hit the road for a 27 day long Fun Fest. A big challenge for this vacation was the packing. There would obviously be a lot of people and also two potentially very different climates we would be spending time in. All blazing in Texas with a lot of swimming but possibly AWESOMELY chilly in Vail with some hiking.
Here are some of the things I tried this year.
Of Hearth and Home – A Schedule
Thursday, March 30th, 2017
You only have so many hours in a day. And for me at least, I only have so much energy and patience in a day. When I’m not pregnant I can stretch both of these a bit farther and keep chugging until about 8pm on a good day.
Also with Summer coming our days will probably run a tad longer. I’m already noticing supper getting closer to 6pm.
Here’s the schedule that’s working for now.
Weekday Schedule:
7:30 Bible Time, verse, prayers, Catechism, Psalter LAUNDRY IN
8:00 Breakfast and Tidy Kitchen
9:00 – 9:45 Housework, Kids Outside Time or Table Play LAUNDRY
9:45 – Mama Workout – 20-30mins
10:15 – 11:00 Snack + Manners Practice, PreK Time
11 – 11:30 – Lunch Prep – EMPTY DISHWASHER
11:30 Lunch
12:00 Tidy Kitchen
12:15-12:30 Kids Tidy Time
12:30-1:00 – Little Kids blanket time, FOLD CLOTHES
1-1:30- Mercy and Esther Ready for PreK School
1:30-2 Housework
2-3:00 Mama Down Time
2:00-3:15 – Kids Quiet Time
3:15-30 – Snack -Read Aloud or Play Time
4:30 – Prep Supper – Kids House Job, Homework or Piano Practice
5:30 – Supper -LOAD DISHWASHER
6:00 – 6:30 -Clean Kitchen (Kids- Kitchen Jobs) Piano practice, Tidy Time – WASH BIG DISHES
6:30 – 7:00 Bible Time
7:00 – 8:00pm- Big kids Individual Reading Upstairs or Family READ ALOUD
8:30 – Lights out
*FRIDAY NIGHTS – CRAFT WITH MOM, LESSON OR FAMILY GAME NIGHT
Weekends are similar but I’ve added History Lessons to the mix. These are typically after lunch.
SATURDAY – Kindergarten + kids – 1 hr Lesson- Mystery of History (or Literature and Poetry)
MOST SUNDAYS – 1 hr Lesson- Mystery of History (or Literature and Poetry)
Next Post: Housework for Mama and House Jobs for Babies. What does this mean?
Of Hearth and Home – Goals
Thursday, March 30th, 2017
I decided to get crazy and make a more detailed schedule for the day and really try to follow it exactly-ish. So in those “in between fires moments” I can look at my schedule and know what I’m supposed to be doing without thinking about it.
It’s not too much different from what I’ve always had. We have had a daily routine, same things at the same times, for years, but now I’m adding more details to that schedule.
I want to keep my babies better on track with discipline, chores, individual reading, reading aloud to together, piano practice, memory work. I want to keep making our Bible time the first part of our day, it must be a daily habit.
With so many children and so much housework I get overwhelmed quickly and the days can slip by easily without making the point of adding something I want to pass on to my babies.
I had to sit down with all the THINGS I want in our life. The things I want to dedicate time to. I had to fit them into our days and evenings. It helps me feel less frantic when I know I have a designated time for ‘X’ and the ‘Y’ that I’m doing right now is the proper use of my time.
Here’s the list I came up with so far.
“Goals” for our family
For Our Faith:
Catechesis (memorization)
Bible lessons
Scripture Memorization
Hymn singing and memorization
Prayer memorization
Getting familiar with chant using the Psalter
Continue keeping our church year in the home
Obedience and Honor of Parents and other Authorities
For Our Minds:
Reading or Read Aloud
Good Poetry
Recitation Memory work
Supplemental Education – Ancient-Early Modern History and Literature
Good vocabulary
For Our Hands:
Piano/Music Lessons and practice
Stitching
Crafting
For Our Spirits:
Family Game or Movie Nights
Free Play Time
Limit my time on Facebook – FB is fun but many times I let it suck away my time and sometimes it can really make my blood pressure hit the roof.
For Our Neighbor:
Practice Manners
House Jobs
Tidy Times during the day
For Our Bodies:
Exercise – ride bikes, go for walks, dance parties!
Rest – Blanket Time during the week for the littles
That’s not asking too much is it? Now how to designate time for each of these?
