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I just had to jump in on this one. I'm no pro... but I am a foster mom who has 8 kids in the house. (1 biological, 3 adopted, 4 foster). I'm not sure our house has ever run "smoothly", but there are a few things I do to at least get our household on the right foot every morning.
Finding shoes used to be our biggest issue every morning. Poor bus driver would get so tired of waiting for my kids while we ran around looking for missing shoes. I solved this issue by making it a household rule... bring MOM your shoes when you take them off. Every morning the children find their shoes lined up in front of the couch... from the oldest child's to the youngest.
I also have shelves in the laundry room where I organize the children's clothing for the following week. This is my Sunday afternoon project. By Sunday night, each child will have 5 complete outfits neatly folded and stacked on these shelves for school/daycare, and that includes their socks! Each night after the children are in bed, I lay each child's clothes out on the couch (oldest to youngest) for the following day. The children's backpacks are lined up by the front door so they can grab them on the way out the front door. It takes a little effort on my part to do this... but it's definitely worth it.
Meal time is one of our most challenging times, but we're working on that also. I have 4 children who are 3 and under. My four older children are each responsible for helping one of the younger ones with their plates and assist them at the table with seconds, etc. My 11-yr-old helps prepare meals, my 6 & 7 year old help set the table, plus clear it after the meal. Thank God for my dishwasher and disposable plates!
Team-work is the secret to running a smooth home and often I have to remind the children that they are all team players... we have no bench warmers
There is also one more little tidbit I will share.. it's called "15 Minutes". This is not something I do everyday... but about once a week. I tell the kids I need 15 minutes of their time. They know what it means
Each of the older children (6 and up) have to spend 15 minutes cleaning the room of their choice. I set a timer and when the timer goes off they can stop. However.. If I find one of the kids goofing off and not working.... they ALL have to give me 15 extra minutes. Nobody goofs off! If four kids clean house for 15 minutes... it saves me an hour of work myself. And to be honest with you, my kids will often finish their room even when the timer goes off. Their reward? Lots of praise and one happy Momma
wow tha is impressive i feel as though my hands are full with one ds who is 3 1/2
my hats off to you momma!!!!!
I just had to jump in on this one. I'm no pro... but I am a foster mom who has 8 kids in the house. (1 biological, 3 adopted, 4 foster). I'm not sure our house has ever run "smoothly", but there are a few things I do to at least get our household on the right foot every morning.
Finding shoes used to be our biggest issue every morning. Poor bus driver would get so tired of waiting for my kids while we ran around looking for missing shoes. I solved this issue by making it a household rule... bring MOM your shoes when you take them off. Every morning the children find their shoes lined up in front of the couch... from the oldest child's to the youngest.
I also have shelves in the laundry room where I organize the children's clothing for the following week. This is my Sunday afternoon project. By Sunday night, each child will have 5 complete outfits neatly folded and stacked on these shelves for school/daycare, and that includes their socks! Each night after the children are in bed, I lay each child's clothes out on the couch (oldest to youngest) for the following day. The children's backpacks are lined up by the front door so they can grab them on the way out the front door. It takes a little effort on my part to do this... but it's definitely worth it.
Meal time is one of our most challenging times, but we're working on that also. I have 4 children who are 3 and under. My four older children are each responsible for helping one of the younger ones with their plates and assist them at the table with seconds, etc. My 11-yr-old helps prepare meals, my 6 & 7 year old help set the table, plus clear it after the meal. Thank God for my dishwasher and disposable plates!
Team-work is the secret to running a smooth home and often I have to remind the children that they are all team players... we have no bench warmers
There is also one more little tidbit I will share.. it's called "15 Minutes". This is not something I do everyday... but about once a week. I tell the kids I need 15 minutes of their time. They know what it means
wow tha is impressive i feel as though my hands are full with one ds who is 3 1/2
my hats off to you momma!!!!!
