Homeschool World Forum

[springmama]

I'm a mom of 4 kids. Oldest has mood disorder and requires tons of attention. She's 13 and takes up lots of my time even though she's in public school. Then I have a 5 yr old, almost 3 year old and 8 week old. I was sitting here doing laundry today thinking about how exhausted I am. I also thought about how nice it would be to just take the rest of the day off and neglect cleaning, picking up, dishes, etc. Part of me thinks....why bother, no matter what you do something is always going to need to be swept, mopped, washed, or put away, right? On the other hand I think that maybe by some miracle, if I keep working hard, I might get to a point where everything is in it's place and everything is clean. Does that ever happen? Or do I just need to learn to ignore some of it and focus on the really important stuff? That sounds like the logical answer, but it's easier said than done.

How do you keep it all in order? Happy healthy kids, clean organized home, satisfied parents? Does it ever happen?
_________________
Kathy, mom to 4 amazing kids!

[Lily]

I noticed a lot of *I* sentences in your post. The only way my house stays clean is by teaching the kids to do what they can. A 5yo is more than capable of setting a table, sorting laundry into lights and darks, using a swiffer, cleaning up a spill......the idea is to go in baby steps: we started with placemats that had outlines drawn on, personal laundry baskets that were blue (darks) and white (lights), a cabinet with rags, a spray bottle, crumber......

When kids feel they are a part of the family, not a recipient of, they tend to do better and stay more involved.
_________________
"The greatest sign of success for a teacher... is to be able to say, "The children are now working as if I did not exist."
- M. Montessori
Proud non-member of the HSLDA

[mschickie]

I do not know if it all every happens but is it really that important that it all happens. The house will not fall apart if you take a day off or if there is a pile of stuff to put away. The key in my opinion is the happy healthy kids. That does not mean never clean but do not get worried if it is not perfect, nothing is ever perfect. There is always something else that can be done but will it kill anyone if it is not done right away.

There are things you can do to make life a little more organized. You can put various chores into your homeschooling schedule that the kids can do. Both the 5 yr old and the 3 year old can have jobs they help with(sweeping, dusting, clean windows, pick up toys, sort/fold laundry). These can be teaching opportunities or even make it into a game with them. You can have set days for laundry, floors, bathrooms.... Do not let yourself get exhausted then you will be no good for your family.

Does your husband help out? With an 8 week old you are still tired from just having a baby, your body has to get to normal. Maybe he could take care of the dishes or sweeping up at night for you. He may not even realize that you are feeling a little overwhelmed.

Good luck and I hope it gets easier.

[Miss_Kristy]

Hi,

I can relate Granted, you've got more on your plate right now than I do. My kids are 2, 7 and 9. Here's a few things that I do to keep the house running and the kids taken care of.

- I know this is cheesy, but I subscribe to Flylady.net It has honestly maade a huge difference in my life. I now look at housework differently.
- We do not do chores on Saturday and Sunday. This is free time. We have fun and i've learned not to care about dishes for 2 days.
- Everybody helps! Even the 2 year old. In my house the 7 and 9 year old draw from a hat. I put an equal amount of chores on little pieces of paper into the hat and whatever you draw, you do. We do this everyday Mon. - Fri.
- I just started this one : since we don't do chores on the weekend, we take Monday morning and tackle the downstairs together. With everyone cleaning each room together. Gets it done in no time!

I hope you can take some of these and make them your own. Good luck.

Kristy