Are We Making Fat Souls?

As I walk into the house after lunch, I see the madness around me. It doesn’t take long with even a mere family of five for the order to start slipping away. (And it doesn’t matter how small the members of the family are.) But this morning we skipped chore time and spent our time at a local nature park with friends.

As I begin to straighten up the living room while the little ones play on the front porch, I am reminded of a recent post from a fellow blogger where she remembers the time when her goal was to at least maintain one room at a time. I decide today that is a good idea and try to clear the small amount of clutter around me. As I finish, I hear the baby stir and go to answer her call.

As I sit down to nurse her, JJ decides to reach for a book off the bookshelf…the middle book…out of a stack of books. Despite my efforts to verbally coach him on how to get it down…this happens.

I tell him it’s OK and I’ll help him clean it up in a minute. I reach for my smartphone to see what the rest of the world is up to and read Amy’s Homeschooling with a Purpose post for today.

As I’m reading I do what she says and I look around and what do I see? A very messy kitchen, a pile of books on the floor, and two little ones each pretending to read a book. All this while nursing this sweet little baby. And I get it for a moment… “If you spend your day striving for a home that looks devoid of family life, you will quickly find yourself devoid of family life.” ~ Amy

This is part of the lessons I’ve been learning lately. My home could be clean right now…but my children would not have been able to spend the morning enjoying the beauty of God’s creation with the fellowship of dear friends.

While I definitely believe order has it’s place, sometimes it’s better to just live and let go because… “Fat souls are better than clean floors.” (Rachel Jankovic)

“Seeking order in your home should never be about appearances because the Lord looks on the heart of your home and cares nothing for your tidy facade.” ~ Raising Arrows

Order In the Home

I hope since my last post you had a chance to check out Fly Lady. My home was never in CHAOS (Can’t Have Anyone Over Syndrome). But Fly Lady’s routines were right up my alley. I love schedule and routine. Since having children, there have been a little fewer schedules and a lot more routine. I believe routine is pertinent for the development of anything, but flexibility is just as important for our mental sanity. (That’s another post for another day.) My purpose today is to talk about how we can handle our weekly chores.

Explaining weekly chores requires a little bit of explanation about our day. It is very important for Mommy, especially Stay at Home Mommy to be up and at it before anyone else in the house. (If not, Mommy may not get a shower…I know we’ve all been there. And please don’t forget to brush your teeth.) On an ideal day, my day starts between 5:30 and 6:00. I use this time to shower and get myself ready, clean my bathroom, iron Big Daddy’s clothes for the day, and make my bed. On my better days this is when I exercise or read for the day.

I have a few chores that I complete daily. Obviously, staying home means dear ol’ kitchen is cleaned around three times a day. Other daily chores include kitty litter, sweeping the wood floors, and whatever Fly Lady Zone I’m working in. (The daily chore from Fly Lady divides your home into zones. You work on one zone per week leaving no need for spring-cleaning. This coming week we’ll be in the kitchen.) Another daily thing for any mommy wanting to keep her home clear of clutter is a pick-up. Often pick-ups seem overwhelming but if everything has a place this should only take 5-10 minutes. I usually do this twice a day. Once in the morning and once before the kids go to bed while they are doing toy pick up. I also try to do small pick ups throughout the day just to maintain some kind of control.

Now to those pesky weekly chores, this is what my weekly chores look like:

I can’t imagine trying to do all my chores in one day with two toddlers. I remember my mom worked and we usually had a cleaning day. That was when I was older and there was only one child. I know for me things changed a lot from even one to two. I also can’t imagine what it will be like as our toddler and preschool world grows. I do know without some sort of routine, CHAOS will wreak havoc.

I try to finish all my daily and weekly chores by 9:30 and 10:00AM so that I am available for my babies…the real reason I’m present in this home. Besides, with potty breaks, diaper changes, meals, and squabbles…I really don’t have time for housework to be in my way!

I really hope this is as informational, (and maybe even a little inspirational), as I want it to be. I believe we can all have more peace when there is order around us. There are more posts to come, including the favorite things about my home, why I think order is important, and maybe even…my least favorite things about my home. I know many of you mommies are a few years ahead of me on this game…so, please, any tips you would like to share would be great! Let me know if you have any other ideas or questions about having a clean and quiet home.

The Home Series

Order in the Home- This post!

A Taste of Home- upcoming

Why Order Is Important- upcoming

The Piece That Holds It All Together- upcoming