Kids/Family Archives • Page 12 of 13 • New Nostalgia

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Kids Back To School Evening Routine

I posted our “Kid’s Back To School Morning Routine” here, and got many requests for our evening routine, so here it is. It may be helpful for you to read the Morning Routine post, as I go into detail about how GREAT routines and charts have been for our family, and how we enforce them.

I made our charts online at this great site, it was SUPER easy to just follow directions, fill in the blanks, and push print.

Then I had them laminated, and we hung them on our Chore Board with magnets. They use dry erase markers or dry erase crayons (did you know there was such thing? We love them!) to mark off as they go.

Kid’s Back To School Evening Routine

~Snack

~Fill Water Bottle/Put In Refrig

~Pick Up Personals

~Brush/Floss/Rinse

~Clean Up Bathroom Sink Area

~Pajama’s

~Dirties Into Hamper

~Clean Clothes Hung Up

~Outfit For Tomorrow

~5 Minute Room Rescue

~Devotions

~Pray

Snack-a habit we started when they were young, now I wish we had not! It is a small snack, fruit or crackers/cheese, etc.

Pick Up Personals–I talked about how this is one of my favorite routines when I wrote about the Morning Routine. They go into each room of the house and find anything that they left out and put it away. No longer am I bending over a thousand times picking up after others!

Brush/Floss/Rinse–we are strict about this, as our girls get cavities way too easily!

Clean Up Sink Area–we had to add this because I got so sick of seeing toothpaste globs in the sink! Yuck.

Pajama’s–I’ve been seeing too many pajama’s in the dirty clothes, that do not seem dirty. I think I will teach them the “keep your jammies under your pillow” trick.

Dirties In Hamper–this step really helps keep the rooms picked up

Clean Hung Up–so does this one! I have shown them that there are certain items of clothing that I want them to wear twice before washing (like jeans) if they look and smell ok. 🙂 Guess they need a refresher when it comes to pajamas!

5 minute Room Rescue–They do this in the morning, too. They set the timer and “rescue” their room (pick it up). Their rooms do not frighten me anymore..

Devotions–they do these on their own. We have loved this for my youngest (7 yrs old) and these for my 11 & 9 year old.

Pray–Todd and I take turns with which girl we pray with. It is precious time, just a quick few minutes, and usually a little back gets scratched in the process which they think is heaven!

To keep them on task, most nights we have to set a timer. If they do not get their routine done by a certain time, they do not get their points for our allowance system.

They can get it done in 30ish minutes-sometimes the devotions take a little longer. Some nights when we are out later in the evening, we will skip the room rescue and devotions, which makes the routine is about 10-15 minutes.

Their room will be rescued in the morning, and we still pray with them, so a night without a devotion once in awhile is fine.

***How I decide what should be added to a routine is pretty simple. If I find myself nagging about something repetitively, or frustrated that I have to do it when I know they are capable, (like cleaning toothpaste globs out of the sink!) then it should go on the chart.

Hope this is helpful!!

FAMILY/ HOME/ Kids/Family/ Organizing/ Simplifying

Kids Back To School Morning Routine

*Click here for “Kids Back To School Evening Routine”

Yesterday, I posted about my Fall Morning Routine. Today I thought I’d share my girls “Back To School” Morning Routine.

This chart has turned our mornings from crazy to smooth. It has turned me from a “nagging” mom, to a “more laid back” mom. Before our Morning Routine, I was walking around with a bunch of crazy “monkeys”on my back that didn’t belong there. In other words, I used my brain power and my words for things that my girls were more than old enough to think about, and to be responsible for. Now the “monkeys” are where they belong, and boy does my back feel better!

I had to break the “reminder” habit, where I go around asking, did you do your chart? did you brush your teeth? etc. All that was doing was confusing my girls. If mom is going to ask or remind them about their responsibilities, (putting the monkeys back on me), then why would they ever step up to the plate and think or do for themselves??

The key to my girls taking ownership was incentive and consequence. If they do their charts CORRECTLY, without ANY prompting from me, they earn points that go toward allowance. If they mess up AT ALL, NO POINTS! This is where I had to get tough. The first few times that they didn’t do it right and didn’t get their points, oh my, were there tears!! It was hard to “lay down the law” and “stick to my guns” because they had worked so hard and diligently on their chart those mornings. The first day that we did charts, (after having a family meeting to introduce the charts and explain the rules/expectations in detail last spring,) they were so excited to earn points. They got up early to do their charts, worked so hard, then… left their cups out. Cups were considered a “personal” that they didn’t pick up, which is on the chart, so NO POINTS! I have to admit, it is a good thing Todd was home to help me see the importance of being strong, because I wanted to just let that slide and reward them. But, if I gave in and gave them points even if it was not done completely, then they would never do their best, they would never take it seriously, and the charts would become meaningless. Those first few days of strictness with our charts really paid off, but boy, did I feel like a mean-y! No more. Now they know what will happen if they “forget” something, and I feel like a mom at peace who has taught the girls responsibility when it comes to their morning routine.

Below is a list of their Morning Routine. I made the chart online at this great site, it was SUPER easy to just follow directions, fill in the blanks, and push print. Then I had them laminated, and we hang them every morning on our Chore Board with magnets. They use dry erase markers or dry erase crayons (did you know there was such thing? We love them!) to mark off as they go.

Another very strict rule we have is that there is NO TV, COMPUTER OR PLAYTIME until their Morning Charts are done on a school day. This is key. This motivates them to start early and finish so they can have playtime before school starts. Without this rule, I would have to nag them to get going on their charts. If I find out they disobeyed this rule, they do not get their morning points, but they still have to do their entire chart.

Back To School Morning Routine:

~Make Bed

~5 Minute Room Rescue

~Get Dressed

~Put PJ’s & Hangers Away

~Eat

~Take Vitamins

~Clear Breakfast Dish

~Hair

~Backpack

~Lunch bag

~Homework

~Library Book

~Coat/Jacket Ready

~Shoes

~Personals

~Brush Teeth

Make Bed-they do this right when they get out of it. Great lifetime habit in my opinion!

5 Minute Room Rescue–they do this for their evening routine, too, so their rooms never get out of hand. I would like to get them timers to keep in their rooms.

Get Dressed–all the way to their socks

Put P.J.’s Away-self explanatory.

Eat–they help themselves to bagels, toast, cereal or pancakes in the freezer. Sometimes they make scrambled eggs in the microwave. Sometimes I make oatmeal. They all know they have to have some sort of fruit with the choices above. If they eat breakfast with no fruit, no points!

Vitamins–they take a multiple vitamin, a calcium + D vitamin, and a chewable vitamin C. If we miss even a week of this, it seems they start getting sick again. I am a firm believer in quality vitamins, (especially vitamin D!!!) only because I no long live at the Dr.’s office:)

Clear Dish–this includes rinsing it

Hair–they need help from me for this one

Backpack-they bring it to the living room so they can grab and go

Lunch Bag-I get all the food ready and have it in 3 separate piles, 1 for each girl. They are responsible to come in and put it in their lunch bag, and grab their water bottle from the refrigerator (which they fill the night before, it is on their evening routine chart). Then they take it to the living room and put it with their backpack.

Homework–they put it in their backpack if it isn’t already. I always know it is done because it is part of the evening routine.

Library Books– I don’t like it when school library books get mixed up with our community library books. To avoid this, our rule is they keep their school library book in their backpack at all times, putting it back right away after a reading session. Then I don’t have to worry about what day the book is due, because it is always with them.

Coat/Jacket–in the spring/fall, they keep a jacket or sweater in their backpacks at all times, because you never know what the weather will do. I HATE being home worrying about them being cold at recess just because the sun didn’t come out that day like expected. Now I don’t have to worry and have mommy guilt! 🙂 In the winter, they put their coats by their backpacks/lunch bags in the living room.

Shoes–they put them by their backpacks/lunch bags/coats in the living room.

Personals–this is one of my favorites!! They go into each room of the house to find anything that they left out and put it away. The also do this for evening routine, so it takes just minutes in the morning.

Brush Teeth–they just brush in the morning. They brush, floss, rinse at night. We make the 2 younger do it where we can see them because we had the “I say I brushed but really just stuck a brush full of toothpaste in my mouth for 2 seconds” problem. 🙂

Side note:

For this system to work properly, I have to make sure all things are accessible for them to be able to do their charts without help or hindrance. For example…

~they need clean clothes to get dressed into

~they need easy/clear breakfast options to feed themselves

~they need to know where to find the vitamins, so I keep their vitamins all in one basket in a cupboard

~they always know where their backpack is because we have designated spots for them

~the water bottles are always ready to grab because they were filled the night before

~homework, library book and jacket always stay in the backpack so there is no last minute searching

…does this make sense? Because of thought and routine, they are able to do their charts in an easy and carefree manor. Routines free us all up, and cuts down/eliminates stress, frantic searching for things last minute, and kids asking me a billion questions like “mom, where is my…” Many people who are not naturally organized (believe it or not, I’m not!) may look at this and feel like it is strict and no fun. It is actually the opposite. These things became habit for us all, and eventually done with very little thought and effort. It brings an easy, light, and fun mood to the home, and teaches wonderful lessons in the process. I realize it is not for everyone, but I can’t tell you how much better our home life is with routines in place!!!

So there you have it, our morning routine. Most days, when I come downstairs, they are well on their way through their chart. I can always tell where that are at due to the 3 areas on the couches where they put their backpack/lunch bag/shoes as they get them ready to go. All I have to think about in the morning is making their lunch and helping them with their hair. So easy! I love this Morning Chart! It is one of my favorite parts of our Family System. I am blessed to have a husband who is very involved and brainstormed what this Family System would look like. One of these days I’m going to get him on here to explain the rest of the system, as these routine charts are just a piece of it!

*** I Am Pleased To Be Linking Up To These Wonderful Blog Parties. ***

FAMILY/ HOME/ Kids/Family/ Organizing/ Parenting

A White Board For Chores

I made a chore chart with “the power of 3” in mind, and loved how it worked! The one thing I didn’t love about it is that it wasted post it notes!

I’m all about simple and buying as little as possible, so a chore chart that would need a trip to the store every few months did not quite fit. Enter, the white board!

I’ve been wanting a white board hung in our home in a prominent place for awhile now. My great friend, Sharon, visited and told me that she has one. She uses it for chores and said it worked wonderfully, and that is when I knew I needed one, too!

{My oldest checking off her chores, (she was horrified that

I was going to post this pic b/c of her messy ponytail:)

I keep the markers in a bowl on the bookshelf.}

I am a bit too moody for a super structured, pre-printed chore chart, never knowing until that day what I want the girls to help with. I love that I can quickly jot down what I would like them to do so when they come home from school, they can glance at the board and know exactly what they have to do before they can play.

{I don’t have a Leah, but wanted you to see how cute a name looks

when these two stickers are combined, and as you know, I like to keep my girls names private}

Because the white board is in my dining room for all to see, it was important to me that it looked nice. I liked the black frame on this one! I wanted to do something fun with their names, so I bought these letter stickers at Micheal’s. I wanted to back them with something, and was happy to find these round silver tag stickers in the next aisle, knowing they would work well as a “frame” for the letters. (The white board is from Micheal’s, but I’ve seen them a bit cheaper at Target.)

The board has room for me to write a note of encouragement or a scripture verse for my girls. Love that!
It’s just all around one of my favorite things!

*stay tuned for a post on “Routine Charts” I just finished them up today, and combined with our chore board, things are gonna be flowin’ and easy goin’ around here!

FAMILY/ HOME/ Homemaking/ Kids/Family/ Parenting/ Simplifying

Simple Chore Chart-Power Of 3

{whoops, spelled vacuum wrong on one, but got it right on the other:)}

It’s spring break for my girls, so my posts this week will be a bit shorter than usual. Despite a very busy week, I am determined to have a blast with my girls this week, which means less computer time for me!
I’m excited to share this simple chore system we have been using, thanks to Liz’s idea of the Power of 3. (you can read about it at her site, here.)

Power Of 3
Hoosier Mama Liz, over at Hoosier Homemade, wrote a great post and linked it to my “Anti-Procrastination Tuesdays” link party. Her post really stood out to me, and caused me to start thinking about how I can incorporate her idea into our family. I love how simple it is! She calls it the “Power Of 3” Here is more from Liz:

I simply give each of the boys (18,16 & 12) and my husband 3 things each day to do. Simple…huh? Not quite sure why I didn’t think of it before.

I typed up a form that has each of their names and 3 lines, I use a different sheet for each day. And if a chore on their list doesn’t get done (gasp) it gets added to the next day, if they have a chore listed more than…you guessed it…3 days, they are grounded for…you guessed it…3 days!

I have taken her idea of 3’s and made a simple post-it note chart. It has been working beautifully! (I will be hanging a white board to replace this chart in the near future, there are many reasons for wanting a white board, but in this case it will replace post-it notes, one less thing to buy!)

My girls have really responded to the chart. No one has been grounded yet:) My approach is not as relaxed as Liz’s approach, because I skip this part of her plan–“if it doesn’t get done in 3 days, it gets added to the next day.” I want my girls to get used to the the idea that we all contribute daily as a family. It is non-negotiable. They need to have responsibilities everyday as it teaches them to be hard workers, and it communicates to them that we are a team and work together as a family. If my girls were grown like her kids, I would probably feel different.

It has been super easy for them, they like knowing they won’t have more than 3 chores a day (except for Saturdays), and they are surprised at how quickly it gets done. There has been very little complaining, which quite frankly, has surprised me. They seem to like the number 3 and the simplicity of our new rule– “3 chores a day, if not accomplished = 3 days of grounding.” The “3 days of grounding” part widened their little eyes, but they took me seriously when I laid out the rules. I can’t believe how easy it has been, I love it!

{if you are wondering, “dr” means “dining room.” Oh, and the one that says “pick up mom’s room” is because they made a mess in there, not because I make them clean MY mess:)}

As you can see from the above picture, Saturdays are an exception to the rule. We have always done chores on Saturday mornings, so they are used to a list and doing a bit more on the weekend. It really only takes them 30 minutes or so each Saturday.

I will continue the idea of 3’s, even after our white board is hung.

I am also working on what I call “Daily Routine Charts” (brush teeth, get backpack ready, eat breakfast would all be part of their morning routine.) We have done this before and it worked beautifully. Why we stopped? Hmmm, I have no idea, but it is time to start again. By having these charts, mommy is not constantly nagging reminding them to get these little things done. I’ll share those when I have the design finished.

So what works for you? Do you have a chart system? How many chores do your kids do?

This Post Is Linked To:

30 Minute Mom Challenge @ Steady Mom
Motivate Me Mondays @ Keeping It Simple

Kids/Family

A Saturday At Home

I love a day at home, especially a Saturday.

It is about one o’clock in the afternoon, and it has been a great lazy day. Last night, before starting our Friday Family night, I rallied the troops and we did a quick whole house boogie. I motivated them by saying “wouldn’t it be great to wake up on a Saturday with NO chores to do? Let’s do it all now!” It worked, and because of that stroke of brilliance on my behalf last night, today has been a lovely, LAZY day.

It has gone something like this:

Eyes open. Ears hear major sister fight. Brain thinks “maybe they can work it out without killing each other.” Fall back asleep thinking “either its a miracle they worked it out, or- I might need a miracle to revive the one who lost” Wake up, feeling guilty that husband is up and I am not. Read awhile in bed. Fall back asleep while reading. Get laughed at by husband because I’m still in bed-I love him! Get up, finally. Make coffee. Look around to see a miracle-the house is still picked up. Greet my 3 lovelies with a “good morning.” Get reminded by lovelies that it is almost afternoon. Ignore tinge of guilt. Pass husband who is doing the budget-I love him! Eat a banana and Cheerieos for breakfast at lunchtime. Sit at computer and read my blog favorites on Google reader. Sip my delish coffee. Laugh-LAUGH! at this blog post and love knowing I’m not the only mom who has tried this. See that husband bought a new Wii game for our girls-I love him! Hear girls squeal in delight. Answer some reader emails. Ignore laundry calling my name. Comfort little lovely who has run up from the basement with a large, oozing gash on her leg from a scooter. Wonder why scooters are in the house. Get a band-aid. Get over the shock that they are where they are supposed to be- for once. Kisses and hug for the wounded. Wonder if the kids have had lunch. Delighted to see child munching on a carrot. Hear husband running on the treadmill-so disciplined that man! Ignore tinge of guilt- I have only exercised once this year. Decide to write a post about this “do nothing” Saturday. Wonder if it will bore my readers to death. Enjoy writing it anyway. Wonder what I will do with the rest of the day. Decide to end this as my lovely yells from upstairs…”Mooooom, can we have lunch??”

Christmas/ Kids/Family/ Seasonal

The Nativity Story /Family Movie Night

Above is a preview of the movie “The Nativity Story.” We watched this as a family (minus our youngest who was 5 last year, because of the “murder of all firstborn sons” scene) last December. It is a beautiful movie, and it really made an impression on my older girls (they were 7 and 9), they are both so visual, it really helped bring the story to life for them. I would like to make a tradition of watching it every year, so I plan on making some homemade popcorn and some fudgy buttons so we can snack, snuggle and watch it together on a near- future family movie night!

Most Friday nights you will find us at home, in the basement with popped corn, cozying up on the couch and watching either recored tv or a movie as a family.

During the summer months and during the month of December, (summer break and winter break) we buy the Blockbuster Monthly Movie pass. (it is called the Blockbuster total access in-store subscription) It allows 2 movies out at a time, unlimited amount of time, for 30 days, one fee. This is our little family splurge, it replaces going to the movie theatre as a family, so really, it is quite inexpensive comparably. We usually get the deal that allows us to rent wii games, too, so that is super fun when the cousins are over for summer/winter break sleepovers. The best part is NO late fees!!

I love it. We are able to catch up on the movies we missed throughout the year. Todd and I have had many fun date nights watching a movie in our basement once the kids go to bed. Who needs a movie theater?

When we don’t have the pass, we watch recorded tv as a family, like “Amazing Race” or “American Idol,” on the weekends. As you can tell, we are a family who likes our tv!

Kids/Family/ Seasonal

A Child’s Heart On Thanksgiving

I had to share this with you all. My sister sent it to me last year around thanksgiving and I have not forgotten it. Oh, to have a heart like this little girl, so joyful and thankful for the small things. The rest of the family makes me laugh, so typical!! At the same time, it is kind of sad! They are so easily distracted, such a stark difference between them and the little girl. I have to ask myself, which one am I?
I truly am trying not to sweat the small stuff or get caught up on the details of thanksgiving this year (read more here). Instead, I am thinking of all the things I have to be thankful for, like…gum, chewing gum!:)

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