Wednesday, October 15, 2008
One of Those Days
First Yasmina got me up at 4:30 and stayed up until 5:30. Then we woke up late, because we had fallen asleep in a stupor after she fell asleep. This, of course, meant that morning prayer, breakfast and school all got pushed back. This is fine because we just go later, but it is a pain. The boys, however, had just about zero focus, and had to be reminded of things like the name of that large peninsula that sticks out into the Indian Ocean. Fortunately for all of us, we got that settled and them back on track because some bad things may have happened in the Arabian Knits family today if they hadn't (this has been ongoing for the last week). Schoolwork improved after that, but I was frazzled, trying to get dinner set up and going so it would be ready in time for our tight schedule tonight. Right now. Because we have to leave in less than an hour. However, I did things like throw half the chopped garlic into the compost, and had to get more. When I returned to the house from ballet, Cathy asked if I meant to have the ratatouille on warm. 15 minutes before I needed dinner ready. Argh! So, she called the restaurant for me and ordered fish & chips for all of us. I guess we'll eat the ratatouille later.
Labels: Family, Tales from the Kitchen
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Ranee,
I'm a new reader of your blog. I found it through Homemaking Through the Church Year. I just was wondering...
How in the world do you do it all?? I have been considering homeschooling but I just can't see how it can be done with housework etc. My kids are now nearly 4 and 2 and I can hardly keep the house up, let alone think of homeschooling. So, is it just up with the sun and roll up the sleeves? Or are there some more tips you can share with me??
souzamom at gmail dot com
I'm a new reader of your blog. I found it through Homemaking Through the Church Year. I just was wondering...
How in the world do you do it all?? I have been considering homeschooling but I just can't see how it can be done with housework etc. My kids are now nearly 4 and 2 and I can hardly keep the house up, let alone think of homeschooling. So, is it just up with the sun and roll up the sleeves? Or are there some more tips you can share with me??
souzamom at gmail dot com
Welcome, and thank you for commenting.
First off, I don't do it all. I don't knit nearly as much (as in hardly ever now), and it is harder for me to get things like preserving done. That Cathy I mentioned, she is the lady who comes and cleans the house for four to five hours each week. We are in a unique position in that we left private school for homeschooling. Since we had been paying about $9,500 a year for both our boys, including all tuition and fees, but not including school supplies or fundraising costs, when we pulled them out, it meant we had some extra money to do things like hire a lady to come clean once a week. She is also a friend and has given us a big discount.
Also, our older boys are 10 and eight. They make their own beds, including changing the sheets, put their own laundry in the hamper, both can load things in the washer for me, both can run the dryer, Alexander can run the wash from start to finish himself. Alexander loads and empties the dishwasher and Dominic folds and puts away the laundry. Both Alexander and Dominic know how to change a diaper and will help with Jerome if my hands are full. Elijah and Amira are well able to fetch me diapers and wipes, extra clothes or whatever else I need.
The next two children help by putting away what they can, cleaning up their toys, our books, putting their clothes in the hamper, making their own beds (not changing sheets) and doing little tasks I ask them. Everyone helps in small to big ways with the baby and with the toddler. My husband is a very hands on husband and father and does a lot around the house and yard. The children clean up the yard for us, we work in the garden together.
That said, I know of families with eight or more children and they homestead, homeschool and keep house. It is partly a matter of organizing and delegating tasks. Older children can and should be given chores. Younger children should work beside you and learn. Your children are still very young, but I bet in a year or two they will be ready to learn some more difficult tasks than just putting things away. Our children love to dust, because it means they can use the feather duster and my MIL got them a smaller broom and dustpan to sweep, which they enjoy.
I'm not going to say it's easy all the time. And, yes, getting up early is part of it. Right now, I'm sleeping in until 6:30 a.m. I used to get up at 5:00 a.m. so I could get some chores done and organize the things I wanted to do with the children's schooling. Rich pitches in a lot now, with making breakfasts and such.
Your children are young now, and it is hard to get things done when they are that age. That's just the plain truth. Something that makes a huge difference, though, is that homeschooling doesn't take as long (most of the time) as standard schooling. You're working one on one or two or so, and things don't take as long. Also, regular family activities become educational once you start seeing the world that way. Math and science come up in the kitchen and backyard and garden. Reading together is always great.
We take breaks for religious holidays and focus on the faith. We take time to harvest and preserve as a family, and we sometimes do school projects on Saturdays. Yasmina sits in my lap and nurses while we read or while I'm teaching the children something. So, it's not a matter of trying to figure out what to do with her, she's just part of our family life. I think that is a valuable lesson to the children as well, that babies are not a distraction from real life and everyday living, but are a natural part of it.
This is an insanely long comment, and there is much more I could say. Please feel free to e-mail me. The link on the blog is a live e-mail address.
First off, I don't do it all. I don't knit nearly as much (as in hardly ever now), and it is harder for me to get things like preserving done. That Cathy I mentioned, she is the lady who comes and cleans the house for four to five hours each week. We are in a unique position in that we left private school for homeschooling. Since we had been paying about $9,500 a year for both our boys, including all tuition and fees, but not including school supplies or fundraising costs, when we pulled them out, it meant we had some extra money to do things like hire a lady to come clean once a week. She is also a friend and has given us a big discount.
Also, our older boys are 10 and eight. They make their own beds, including changing the sheets, put their own laundry in the hamper, both can load things in the washer for me, both can run the dryer, Alexander can run the wash from start to finish himself. Alexander loads and empties the dishwasher and Dominic folds and puts away the laundry. Both Alexander and Dominic know how to change a diaper and will help with Jerome if my hands are full. Elijah and Amira are well able to fetch me diapers and wipes, extra clothes or whatever else I need.
The next two children help by putting away what they can, cleaning up their toys, our books, putting their clothes in the hamper, making their own beds (not changing sheets) and doing little tasks I ask them. Everyone helps in small to big ways with the baby and with the toddler. My husband is a very hands on husband and father and does a lot around the house and yard. The children clean up the yard for us, we work in the garden together.
That said, I know of families with eight or more children and they homestead, homeschool and keep house. It is partly a matter of organizing and delegating tasks. Older children can and should be given chores. Younger children should work beside you and learn. Your children are still very young, but I bet in a year or two they will be ready to learn some more difficult tasks than just putting things away. Our children love to dust, because it means they can use the feather duster and my MIL got them a smaller broom and dustpan to sweep, which they enjoy.
I'm not going to say it's easy all the time. And, yes, getting up early is part of it. Right now, I'm sleeping in until 6:30 a.m. I used to get up at 5:00 a.m. so I could get some chores done and organize the things I wanted to do with the children's schooling. Rich pitches in a lot now, with making breakfasts and such.
Your children are young now, and it is hard to get things done when they are that age. That's just the plain truth. Something that makes a huge difference, though, is that homeschooling doesn't take as long (most of the time) as standard schooling. You're working one on one or two or so, and things don't take as long. Also, regular family activities become educational once you start seeing the world that way. Math and science come up in the kitchen and backyard and garden. Reading together is always great.
We take breaks for religious holidays and focus on the faith. We take time to harvest and preserve as a family, and we sometimes do school projects on Saturdays. Yasmina sits in my lap and nurses while we read or while I'm teaching the children something. So, it's not a matter of trying to figure out what to do with her, she's just part of our family life. I think that is a valuable lesson to the children as well, that babies are not a distraction from real life and everyday living, but are a natural part of it.
This is an insanely long comment, and there is much more I could say. Please feel free to e-mail me. The link on the blog is a live e-mail address.
Hey, thanks so much for such a lengthy response! I appreciate it! I was wondering also, are you Orthodox, Catholic, or something else? I like your ideas of incorporating the church year into your home.
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