Chores for children

I've had several people ask how I started to teach my children to do chores, so I thought this would be a good place to start.  There are so many ways to do this, but I will share what has worked for us.

My girls, we'll call them M and C, have daily chores and my boys, we'll call them L and H, don't.  M is 6 years old and has been helping out around the house for quite some time now.  C is 4 years old and has recently begun having more responsibilities.  When I found out I was pregnant with H, I knew that I had to get going on teaching the girls more individual responsibility.  I knew my time was going to be spent taking care of a baby, but that certain things were going to still need to be done, and my girls were old enough to help with that.

I started teaching them small tasks such as sorting laundry and putting silverware away.  Once they were proficient at that, I began having them take on bigger jobs.  Some things they have started doing, then I decided it was too big of a job, so I've stopped having them do those things.  For example, I thought M could handle cleaning toilets, but after a couple of weeks of close instruction from me, it was too big of a job.  Another job she began was emptying the dishwasher, and I carefully showed her how to stack dishes on the counter, because she can't reach all the cabinets...job success!  I haven't emptied my dishwasher in over 6 months, and she has learned a great life skill!

Here are some links to great chore charts!

Fab N' Free has an entire post of free chore chart options!  She links to all the original sites in her one post, so I don't feel the need to reinvent the wheel.

All in all, by having my children help with jobs around the house, I am teaching them life skills they will use as adults, teaching them responsibility and being part of a family and lessening my own work load.  I'm not robbing them of childhood fun, they have plenty of time to play and pretend, but I'm preparing them for a successful life. 

Finding my "voice"

Boy has this blog morphed several times.  I really want to write a blog that people enjoy reading, but finding my "voice" so to speak has been difficult for me.  I thought I would love to be able to dump my mommy brain here, so I started with a confessions type blog.  Well, that didn't work.  Then I moved on to a baby blog...with all things baby.  It went okay for a while, but I ran out of interesting things to write about pretty quickly.  Well, things that were interesting for me...and I need to stay interested enough to write, ha!

Now, here I am again, trying to find my "voice".  I'm hoping this is a winner because this is the most excited I've been to sit down and write this blog...ever.  I'm just going to be content to "mommy blog".  I have been really growing a lot as a mom and wife recently, and it's pretty exciting!  Also, I love to organize things around our home and need someone to share them with.  I get a lot of ideas from organizing blogs, but I also have to tweak ideas to fit my home and lifestyle, and I hope that will be helpful.

So, hold on tight, I'm hoping this is going to be a long ride!

And....she's back!

   Whew!  Finally getting back into this thing called blogging.  You ever have one of those days where you feel like you accomplished a lot, then looked around and realized you really accomplished next to nothing?  Well, I've had a season of that.  During this season I've been jotting down blog post ideas, so I should have some fresh things to "discuss" coming soon.
   I've also had people I know say they enjoy reading just to feel like they are having a conversation with me, so I may do some "everyday" kind of posts every now and then.  Can't wait to dive in to mom blogging soon!  Thanks for checking back...assuming you have.  Ha!

A Robber named: Comparison

I'm finally back after taking a break for family vacation and Christmas.  I intended to post a few times during the last month, but it never happened.  Real life is beginning again, so back to blogging.

When it comes to raising children, it is so easy to compare your family to another family.  This is something that I know is wrong to do and not a good idea to do, but it's something I still do often. (Why is it that we do this as women?)  It becomes especially hard when it's someone close to you.

This is what I'm struggling with right now.  Comparison.  It's stealing my joy, but I'm determined to not let it.  Let me explain.

We have chosen to homeschool our children.  It's a decision we've come to after prayer and discussion, and I know it's the right decision for our family.  I love all of the flexibility that comes with homeschooling and the freedom we have, most of the time.  But, I am with my children all day, every day.  There is the occasional class or lesson that gives me a little down time from having all 4 children, but that's not too often.

I sometimes get jealous of the people who send their children to school.  I daydream about how much I could accomplish and how nice my home would look if I had time to really clean it.  I "compare" my family with those whose children are in school and I get jealous of the "free" time they have.  Sometimes, I even get judgmental. Gasp!  I think about how their children would be better off being home vs. being in school.  And I realize how ridiculous I am!  Double Gasp!  Then I sit and sort my thoughts out and pray and realize I am right where God wants me with our family...and I really am happy.

So, all that to say...comparison is a joy robber.

The magical formula to get your baby to sleep through the night

Ha!  I laughed even as I typed that title.  Don't I wish there was a magical formula that made babies sleep.  I don't have a magical formula, but I do have some ideas on how to get your baby to sleep through the night sooner.  Some of these things worked with one of my children but not another, so these are all just suggestions to try...I can't guarantee any amount of success.  I currently have a 3 month old baby boy, who we will call Boo, so I am in the midst of this very dilemma.

Boo is baby #4 and he is my best sleeper by far!  He came home from the hospital sleeping 6 hour stretches at night!  I'm not sure it's anything I did or didn't do that caused that, but I'll tell you what I have been doing, because it can't hurt to try.  I mean, who doesn't want 6 hours of sleep at night with a newborn!

I wake Boo up every 3 or so hours during the day to nurse him.  He usually wakes up on his own now, but in the beginning, I had to do the waking.  I would usually undress him to get him awake enough to eat.  I tried to keep him awake for a little bit after he ate, so he would be more tired and sleep longer.  I never woke him at night though.  I have always just let him sleep as long as he can once 11pm came. 

I also swaddle him when I want him to sleep.  Being baby #4, Boo spends a good amount of time in our baby swing or bouncy seat throughout the day.  If he happens to fall asleep in those seats, I just let him sleep without being wrapped.  If I want him to sleep for a larger chunk of time, I will swaddle him and put him in his bed.  We are currently using a Fisher Price rock and play sleeper. 

It has been fantastic because it is portable, so I can have him sleep wherever I am and keep an eye on him so no other little people bother him.  For swaddling, I use the Swaddle Me Blankets.  Well worth the money!

I am breastfeeding Boo.  I have done the same with all 4 of my children.  Let me tell you some background so you know what this has to do with sleeping through the night.  I've had to tailor my diet to each of my babies sensitivities.  With my oldest, M, I couldn't eat much of anything with flavor.  She was sensitive to onions, garlic, chocolate, dairy and caffeine.  Actually, I couldn't even drink decaf coffee with her...it was tough!  I lost a good bit of weight while nursing her, so the trade off wasn't so bad.  With #2, C, I could have chocolate, dairy and decaf coffee, but none of the other things I already listed.  She wasn't as sensitive and I added the other things back in rather quickly.  With #3, Bubba, I could eat pretty much anything with the exception of caffeine.  And, on round #4, it's more of the same as Bubba. 

All this to say, what you eat does affect your milk.  It may not affect your baby the same way as mine, but it does affect it.  I have never had caffeine with any of my young babies, and they have all slept great from the beginning.  I also know people who have had caffeine from the beginning, and their babies sleep great too!  I'm not telling you to not have caffeine, but if your baby is having a hard time sleeping, maybe try cutting it out to see if it helps.  Cutting it out would mean not having any for at least a week, so it has time to fully be out of baby's system.  Caffeine is residual...so it last's longer in baby's system than yours.

Finally, I put my baby down.  Some babies love to cuddle and be rocked, but at some point, most babies just want to be put down to sleep.  They can get over stimulated very easily.  Holding, rocking, singing, patting....any of those things can overstimulate quickly.  I find myself trying to rock Boo to sleep when I have the chance, but he just wants to be left alone to fall asleep on his own.  So, don't be afraid to put your baby down and let them fuss a little to put themselves to sleep.  Boo doesn't scream or cry a lot, just a little fussing, and then he's out.

If you have any tips you've tried to get your baby to sleep through the night, let me know!  I'm always looking for new things to try!

A Baby Nursery

When you are expecting a baby, people always ask how you will decorate the proverbial nursery.  It may not be the first or biggest question to be asked, but it ranks pretty high up there...at least in my experience.  I've been pondering this question because I've never had a baby nursery to "set up" for any of my 4 children.

With my first baby, we lived in a very small (and I mean one car garage small) apartment, with only one bedroom; ours.  So, she didn't have a room.  With baby number two, same deal.  I finally got to decorate a room for them when we moved into our new home.  Now I am just finally getting to decorate a room for baby number three, who is nearly two.  Because I am just finishing that project, I have been reflecting on not ever having a nursery to bring my children home to and I've come to some conclusions.

First, a baby doesn't really need a room...just a bed.  You don't send a baby to his/her room for any reason really.  Baby can usually sleep wherever his/her bed is placed, so it really doesn't matter.  Does a baby admire any pictures or curtains or furniture?  No.  Does a baby have likes and dislikes when it comes to a theme in a room?  No.  Will you use the baby's room for the first few weeks or months of his/her life?  Probably not.  So the conclusion is...a baby doesn't need a nursery...a mommy really does.

Now, if you are blessed enough to be able to decorate a baby nursery, that is wonderful!  I'm not begrudging you that pleasure.  I would have loved to be able to decorate 4 different nurseries for my children!  It is so much fun deciding what theme you will use, and colors and bedding and furniture.  It's a great sense of accomplishment when the room is "ready".  Please don't think I'm saying that having a nursery is in any way indulgent.  It's a wonderful thing to be in a place to decorate and prepare a place for your new baby.

But, in my case, not having a nursery to decorate almost made me feel like I wasn't adequately preparing for my babies.  I've since learned that none of my children care, or will even remember where they slept or spent time for the first year or so of their lives.  So, if you have a nursery, or if you are preparing a nursery, count your blessings in being able to do so.  If you don't have a nursery, know that your babies will love you just the same, and you have one less room to keep clean.

My "Qualifications"

I figure I had better lay some ground work before I "dive" into this little piece of the www.  I am the oldest of 7 children and currently have 4 of my own children.  All growing up, I was a "second mother" to several of my younger siblings.  As a result of that, I had some experience in "mothering" before I became an actual mother.  I mean, you can't really know what motherhood is like until you are a mother...not just an older sister, but it did give me some insight I wouldn't have otherwise had.

I say all that to "qualify" myself to embark on this journey.  I know as a mother I receive all kind of advice from well meaning older women (and sometimes men) on how to successfully "do" this thing called "being a mom".  I usually hear them out, then go on my merry way.  Sometimes I take what they have to say and implement it into my life, other times, I don't.  Either way, they feel some sense of joy in "helping" me (even if the advice isn't really helpful), and I sometimes receive some wise insight I wouldn't have otherwise known.

I also have several friends who are moms who hand out advice to me on occasion.  I treat this the same way as the above advice.  These women are in the same stage as me, so they are learning things right alongside me.

So, this blog is a place for me to "hand out advice" to all of you who are looking for it.  You can take it or leave it.  Really, do what you want with it.  I won't be offended...I don't offend easily.  I just know that I like to help people in any way that I can.  I like to offer advice to other moms because I genuinely want them to succeed and enjoy raising their children.

I've also considered that no one will really read this blog, and that's okay too.  I just enjoy unwinding and giving my "two cents" to anyone who will listen...even if it's just the computer.  So, if you dare, join me on this journey!