Here's what each of us had to say about this section:
This week we are romping through chapters 28-47. Here, Kim fleshes out more of her home management techniques. I'm not going to give summaries of all of them, just a few high points.
Chapter 28- She gives a sample morning and evening routine, pointing out that a good morning starts the night before when you do things like 'redding up' the kitchen for the morning, checking your calendar so there are no surprises, and laying out your clothes. The actual morning routine includes things like reading a Psalm, making the bed, straightenting the bedroom and master bath, starting a load of laundry, making breakfast for your husband and reading the Bible together, exercise, and so forth.
Some things you do while the children are doing other tasks, and since you breakfasted with Dad, you can read the Bible to the children while they eat.
Chapter 29- she explains Table Chores, which generally are done while meal prep or cleanup is done- setting the table, filling water glasses, scraping the dishes clean, cearling the table, wiping the table, chairs, adn high chair, sweeping under the table, and so forth She suggests setting a timer and racing it to finish the kitchen chores so the children learn the reward of doing work quickly is getting out of the kitchen to do other things. Like me, she is a fan of putting the children to work. She explains in detail how to clean up the dishes and the counters and sink. She also discusses the importance of sitting down together and eating as a family, including not allowing children to wander away and leave the table as soon as they are finished, but requiring them to stay with the family and visit.
There are short chapters on morning Bible study, phonics, Quiet Time, and read aloud time.
Chapter 34 is a longer chapter on afternoon chore time, which Kim says is a key to keeping the house consistently clean. Every work day of the week there should be some cleaning time scheduled.Go through the house quickly straightening each room, or, if the children are big enough, assign them different rooms. You should have a chart in each room detailing what needs to e done to clean it, and a picture of the room when it is clean so the child can refer to it.
Basically, this is a clutter patrol period, followed by bedroom chores and then the deep cleaning chore for that day. Have a personal clutter patrol too, tidying yourself up for your husband before he walks in the door.
Chapter 35 is on bathroom clean up and, and also includes a tip for getting rid of cradle cap on babies. She uses a mushroom brush or corn silk remover brush. I use an old toothbrush and lots of oil, followed by a shampoo.
Chapter 36 fleshes out bedroom clean up (I clearly need to get rid of more stuff, but find the thought simply overwhelming).
Chapter 37 is titled The Children's Hour, and is about family time each evening.
Chapter 38 is on Family Worship
Chapter 39 is about making time and space in your lives and house for the creative mess of crafting and art projects.
Chapter 40 is on homeschooling and teaching children to work independently.
Chapter 41 is on health and wellness. I always glossed over chapters like this in my younger years and I deeply regret it now, so do not be like me. I think I;ll add a B complex
vitamin and some Cal-mag-zinc
for restless legs- a thoroughly annoying sensation. Because I'm doing a severely low-carb diet right now (and already feel better after just ten days), I take one of these
each night. I also take turmeric pills
for inflamation. Who knows, maybe the pills are why I feel a little better.Chapter 42 is on toys and the playroom. She says the average American child receives 70 new toys a year, which I find shocking. She is a one toy at a time Mommy, a rule I always admired but never was able to master because there are so many ways that more than one toy at a time work together for creative play.
There are chapters on having a weekly feast night, on meal planning, on special days for larger projects, on pregnancy (again with the health advice, which every young mother should consider), and the Buddy System, whereby you pair up an older sibling with a younger- they help make sure the younger child has shoes on and tied, gets buckled in the car, team up for chores, and so forth.. We did this as well and it worked very well for us.
I enjoyed reading this section, was encouraged to try again and working otu some different systems for keeping our overlarge house clean. What I'd really like to see is a few schedules of Kim's day in action, or something like a live blogging for each day of the week (something like the Four Moms did once)
I've been bringing this book with me on Wednesdays when we go to visit the Striderling, because I read it in the car and sometimes while there if there is time, and the HG picks it up and flips through it when I do. I'll be passing it on to her- there's a lot of good stuff in her for a young mother of one baby, as well as for a mother of many.
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For restless leg syndrome, you could try putting a bar of soap~any ol' soap will do~under your fitted sheet on your bed. I read that tip on The People's Pharmacy, tried it, and rarely have restless legs now. You need to change the bar of soap every few months. I use commercially produced soap.
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