Today is my laundry day, and just like every other Monday, I usually have 4 loads–two permanent loads for shirts and pants, one load of darks, and one load of whites. Once a month, I have an extra load because I wash the sheets, too.
Well, today I thought, “I could get some exercising done while doing something I do every week. It’s a thought that has occurred to me every once in a while over the years, but today I gave it some extra attention.
For instance, once I put the sorted laundry into baskets and brought them out of my bathroom to the laundry room, I dumped them on the floor. Normally, I would just pick up the basket and pour the load into my top-loading washer; however, this time, I picked each piece up one at a time by squatting while holding in my tummy muscles.
Now, I didn’t count how many squats it took to put all the pieces in the washer, but I could certainly tell I had done it! I actually felt better after I had done it, too.
Then, I decided to exercise when I folded items coming out of the dryer. I have a front-loading dryer and I usually push up a small step stool, sit on it, and fold the clothes as I take them out. (Here’s a helpful tip for you, too. Fold the clothes as they come out of the dryer. That way, they are already folded when they go into the basket and all you have to do is put them away!)
Well, not today! Instead, I pulled a few items out of the dryer and placed them on the inside of the dryer door. Then I squatted down, with a straight back with tummy muscles contracted, brought the item up to the lid of the washer, which is right next to the dryer. I then folded the item, turned to the side, and squatted down to gently place the item in the basket.
Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you to squeeze your gluteus maximus muscles, too while you are squatting.
While it’s a small thing, it is a step in the right direction and it did make me feel better.
Now, on to the next event–drinking my afternoon cup of coffee. Anybody have any great ideas on how to exercise while enjoying a cup of java?
Well my laundry day exercise consists of chasing my 2-year-old laundry thief as she steals my freshly folded clothes out of the basket and runs away as fast as she can. A freshly folded towel is instantly turned into a cape of some kind and she wraps it around her shoulders or over her head and takes off. That counts, right?
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A couple of years ago, I was riding in my pickup truck with my two youngest children. They were probably 10 and 12 at the time. They weren’t in the best of moods, which then caused my mood to deteriorate.
As I recall, they were arguing about who got to sit in the front seat of the pickup truck. I will spare you the details of how this “conversation” progressed. At some point it dawned on me that my children were not going to be able to resolve this matter without some parental intervention. It was at this moment I forcefully entered the conflict.
Now, I don’t know if you’ve ever felt like God gave you just what you needed at just the right time, but I’m convinced that this is what happened for me at this moment. You see, as I was talking to them and explaining how I had had enough of the arguing over this issue, a perfect solution came to me. Here is how I resolved the conflict.
My two youngest children’s names begin with an even letter of the alphabet–J is the 10th letter–and an odd letter–G is the 7th. Well, every day of the month is either odd or even. So, in that moment I made a declaration: Jeremy could have the front seat on even days of the month and Grace could have it on the odd days.
Now, some of you may be thinking, “Yeah, but some months have 31 days, and then comes the 1st of the next month. That means Grace gets the front seat two days in a row.” Exactly. I don’t care if she does. It’s minor in the scheme of things. Besides, there are many times when we don’t go anywhere so it’s not that big of a deal.
Plus, I told them when all this happened that I never wanted to hear about how Grace would get the front seat two days in a row if we went somewhere on the 31st of the month and then went somewhere else the next day, too.
I also instructed my children that this rule also applied if they rode with their grandmother in her car or any other occasion where the two of them might ride with someone else by themselves.
I’m happy to say that this has totally solved the problem. Now they always know how to work it out. I just wish I had thought of this sooner!
Well, I’m happy to report that this system has also worked for other situations. I’ve used the odd/even system for the child that gets to clean up the kitchen, who helps with the cooking, and several other specialty jobs I need done or require help with.
If you happen to have a situation where more than one child has an odd or even letter of the alphabet as the first letter of their name, there are some other ways you could organize their activities:
Use the date of their birthday. You could use their dates of birth as a way of prioritizing. If the dates are the 15th, 22nd, 3rd, and 10th, then simply put these dates in ascending or descending order and assign the tasks accordingly.
Use their birth year. If their year of birth ends in an odd number, then that child gets first choice. If it’s even, the same applies.
Oldest to youngest. If you only have two children, have the oldest one get the odd days and the youngest one, the even.
Days of the week. Try using the day of the week they were born. The only “trick” here is for you to decide if Sunday or Monday is considered the first day of the week.
Time of birth. Even if you have twins or triplets, you can use the time of when they were born to work this system!
Once you get your mind wrapped around this concept, there are many other ways to get creative in this area of child rearing. You can use a system like this in so many ways to help bring order to some areas of daily life, and that’s a very good thing.
Originally posted 2008-12-29 10:59:53. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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Well, here we are in the 4th day of another new year. Like most of you, Faith and I find ourselves experiencing a time of reflection and evaluation of our lives–things we want to do more of, to change, and to eliminate.
Here is a short list of some of our desires for the new year–kind of a peek of what has been rolling around in each of our brains.
As the “older” of the two moms, I’ll go first:
I always choose to desire to have more quiet time–not only with God, but just some time to sit quietly and think!
This year, I would like to start an ecommerce store online. I’m getting close. Stay tuned for more
I want to spend more time with my husband and family
This year, I want to move!!!!! After having our home on the market since March, 2006, and now having a contingent contract, I pray that God will give the green light. I am ssssooooo ready!
I desire for this year to be a better one for homeschooling than any of the previous 20
I wish to feel like cooking more this year. Since I have to anyway, I might as well hope I feel like it!
Finally, a list like this would not be complete if I didn’t mention wanting to lose weight! (And by the way, when do I ever get to quit desiring this one? Oh yeah……it’s called Heaven
Okay, Faith, now it’s your turn.
I’m already feeling the difficulties of getting back into a regular schedule after the holidays. None of my goals are new but hopefully I can focus on them with renewed vigor. Here they are:
Be better organized with homeschooling and start school earlier in the day.
Make exercise part of my daily routine.
Work less! Play with my family more.
I would like to find some more “me” time. Work on some hobbies, reading for fun, and just general time beyond the wife and mom stuff.
Now that you have read our lists for 2010, we thought you might enjoy the list from this video clip as seen from a children’s point of view. And who knows? Maybe they thought of some you’d didn’t think of but would like to do, too. Enjoy!
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Anyway, I remember he shared three main points with me on how to feel successful and to keep things running smoothly on a daily basis in our home. These points are ones to focus on daily so that you never feel like life is out of control. So, if you ever have days when you’re trying to decide what “fights” to battle and where to start in your home, focus on these:
Know What’s for Dinner by 9 a.m. in the Morning
When a woman knows what her family will be having for dinner each night, it greatly relieves tension and stress for her. Whether it’s dinner at church, eating out, or a home-cooked meal, just knowing how this part of her day will be taken care of is a huge stress reliever.
Whether you use your own menu planning system, or subscribe to one like E-mealz, it’s important to have this area of your daily life planned.
Keep the Entryway of Your Home Declutter
First impressions are important, even when it is your own home. If you’ve been gone on an errand or are coming back from a vacation, the appearance and maintenance of your main entrance into your home is vital. Whether it’s the front door or your garage entrance, keep this area neat and inviting. Nobody enjoys stepping over shoes, toys, and other paraphernalia scattered across the floor (plus this can be dangerous, too.)
Keep the Laundry Caught Up
The necessity of washing clothes doesn’t look like it’s going to change anytime soon, so the sooner you get this area of your life under control, the better you will feel about your job. Whether you wash clothes everyday, or once a week like I do, you definitely don’t want to let dirty clothes pile up, or clean clothes to get stuck in baskets.
This is a life skill to get your children involved in, especially if they are at home like mine are. I wrote a post about how we handle laundry at our house. It has freed me up to do many other things with my time and has taught my children responsibility for their own clothing. Although Faith grew up under this system, she now handles her laundry days differently from me.
However you decide to organize these three important jobs and areas of your home, be sure to work your system. It can make all the difference in your ability to feel successful or to feel overwhelmed.
Originally posted 2009-01-22 21:02:10. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
How to Be a Sidetracked Mom So, you think you'd like to be a sidetracked mom? Well, Faith and I want you to know that there are a few things you'll have to do in order to qualify for this auspicious title. First, you have to be a mom! Now, don't misunderstand. We want you to......
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It has probably been 15 years ago now, but I remember reading a book by Mary Hood called, The Relaxed Homeschool. Mary Hood is a leader in the homeschooling movement who had her doctorate in education and decided to come home to school her children.
I was reading her book one day and came across this thought: As a homeschooling mom, do your children really know who you are?
That statement really jumped off the page at me that day. You see, I had been so busy giving my life to my children and trying to learn everything I could about schooling them, that I forgot to let them see who I was.
The first thought I remember thinking was, “I say I’m a quilter, but my children haven’t seen me quilt anything in several years.” Guess what I started doing again?
Yep. I started quilting again. I took a class on machine quilting and made some beautiful quilts, too. I even surprised my husband with a king-sized log cabin quilt the first Christmas we were in our new home–a log house!
Now I’m in a different season of my life and my two youngest children don’t remember much about my quilting. Instead, they classify me as an author and teacher. That’s pretty good, considering that’s what I do a lot of the time now.
So, who are you, really?
What talents and gifts did God give you that have been on the back burner for awhile?
If you asked your children what Mommy likes to do, could they tell you?
If they don’t know, what do you want them to know about you at this stage of your life?
I think like so many other things in life, we can get so busy that we forget to gift our children with the knowledge of who we are. We need to let them know how God created us and what we believe He wants us to do with our lives.
Aside from loving our husband and our children, what do you love to do?
And once you’ve figured out what it is, be sure the rest of your family discovers it, too.
Originally posted 2009-01-31 00:25:10. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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Well my laundry day exercise consists of chasing my 2-year-old laundry thief as she steals my freshly folded clothes out of the basket and runs away as fast as she can. A freshly folded towel is instantly turned into a cape of some kind and she wraps it around her shoulders or over her head and takes off. That counts, right? 
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