But there is a side of Summer that isn't all beachy, am I right?
I feel like, especially for a stay at home/ work at home parent, all of their awesome parenting skills (or lack thereof) are truly tested once Summer break comes. I mean, we've skated by all year with our amazing teachers being in charge for a good 1/3 of the day, but come Summer, all bets are off. This is when our ability to handle our little minions becomes truly tested.
For our house, this is where our Summer schedule has become a sanity saver. We went Summer upon Summer with no plan, no general outline and chaos is what ensued. A constant, ever single day discussion of "what are we going to do today?" "I'm bored!" "I don't want to clean up!" "When will you be done working so we can do something?"
Every. Single. Day.
It wasn't until last Summer that I was inspired by another momma to start a Summer schedule.
Now, before we go further, let me make it clear that this is not a die hard, by the book schedule. It's an outline with a lot of flexibility depending on what's going on that day/week, but it's something. I mean, the kids follow a schedule at school every single day (when they have class, recess, lunch etc.) and then come home during the Summer to no schedule at all. For our girls, we found quickly that having something for them to follow, even if it's pretty flexible, made the whole house happier.
It took us a couple of weeks last year to get a groove going once we had a plan in place, but once it hit a stride, it was awesome!
So it was only natural that as soon as we came home from vacation, that we get this year's plan drawn up and ready to roll.
To start, the girls and I sit down and think about the things we'd like to do this Summer. Daddy isn't involved only because he's at work all day, but it doesn't mean he's left out of the fun.
Next, we divide out chores that will need to be taken care of each day. During the school year, I take on 99.5% of the daily household cleaning because I am here and we want school to be their focus. The only exception is their rooms, in which case, they have to keep those tidy. (they don't like it when I clean them...muahahahahaha)
But during the Summer, we are all 3 here eating meals, making messes, playing etc. so it is completely reasonable for them to take on some of the things I would normally take care of myself. Sharing these responsibilities is a triple win because...
1. I don't have it all on my shoulders on top of the work I need to do for my Scentsy business
2. They don't make near the messes knowing they'll have to clean them up, especially if it's in their area
3. It teaches them pride in hard work and the space which in they live. I don't want to raise slobs.
The chores are divided out equally and we discuss who would be willing to do what. If one does the kitchen, the other does the hall bathroom. If one does the living room, the other does the den. They are both responsible for their own rooms and their laundry. Now, these jobs aren't "down on the floor scrubbing grout with a toothbrush" jobs. They are picking up, wiping down counters, putting away dishes, tidy jobs. I still do the deep cleaning. Their list can be done in an hour is they really get after it, but most days, it takes the morning because they'll start, stop and start again.
But with these things taken care of, the house stays clean enough for anyone to pop by at any time and for those deep clean days to go a lot smoother.
Here is ours for this year. Our dry erase board has seen some hard days and is in need of replacing, so I'll list what this year looks like here for you. Feel free to use it as an outline for your own!
Katie's chores- Bedroom, Den, unload dishwasher, wipe down kitchen counters, personal laundry on Monday/Friday, devotional, in charge of dinner on Tuesday.
Abby's chores- Bedroom, living room, picking up bathroom and wiping down sink, personal laundry on Tuesday/Thursday, devotional, in charge of dinner on Wednesday.
On days they're in charge of dinner, they get to pick the menu, help shop for ingredients and then do as much as is safe to prepare the meal. They LOVE this one! It's not only teaching them some basic cooking skills they need to have anyway, but they also tend to be more adventurous with their choices and very proud when they see what's they've accomplished.
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| My perfectionist spirit totally wants to use my Cricut to make this beautiful, symmetrical, and perfect, but as the lovely Shaun Niequist quoted in her book 'Present Over Perfect', just because you can, doesn't mean you should. My time is better spent elsewhere (but I think about it every time I walk by that ugly thing) |
Once the chore list is complete and all are agreed, we move on to what the reward will be for taking care of their business. I love a good theme, so we try to come up with alliterative names for each day. (Make it Monday, Thankful Thursday etc). As mentioned before, these things are very flexible and aren't set in stone, but give us a good direction to at least head in that day. Both the chore chart and rewards chart is then written on our dry erase board and propped in the kitchen nook throughout the Summer.
Here is our reward list for this year and then I'll explain how it all works together...
Make it Monday- experiments, crafts etc. Could be a fun recipe, slime, sewing, painting etc. Focus is creativity.
Theater/Tune In Tuesday- movie (our local theater has $2 showings on Tuesdays through the Summer), movie at home, see a play, make up a play. Focus is the performing arts in some way.
Where Will We Go Wednesday- adventure/discovery day. Could be a trip to the Nature center, the park, out of town for a day trip, museum etc. The focus is purposeful learning or exploring.
Thankful Thursday- looking for ways to bless others or pay it forward in small or big ways. So many options here between baking something to take to another who needs a reminder they are loved or doing small, good things for strangers.
Free Friday- We just changed this one today. It was 'Floatin' Friday' and water themed, but let's be real, we are likely to not just stick to swimming/water fun on Fridays, so we changed this to be an open day. If there is something we want to do that week that didn't get done yet, we'll do it on Fridays or we may just come up with something spur of the moment. The key is that it's totally open.
With all that being said, how does the schedule ACTUALLY work. Well, here's how it works for us.
I am a work from home mom. I run a very successful Scentsy business and am a leader for a large team who I work with each day to help build their own great business. I also have great customers to take care of, orders to put together etc. That means that I've got to have time to work. During the school year, I do this while they're at school. When they're home, it gets tricky, which is why this plan is perfection in our house.
Our plan is this. We get up in the mornings, have breakfast and do our quiet times/devotionals. Then, I come into my office to work until lunch time. They know that they aren't to disturb me unless necessary because the more work I get done, the more opportunities we have as a family. If you have smaller children, this may be more tricky, but ours are 12 and 8, so it works.
During this time, it's their job to complete their daily tasks. I might remind them once to get them done, but I won't any more than that. We're teaching personal responsibility here people.
At lunch time, I stop working and if they're finished their lists, then we get to spend the afternoon doing whatever is on that days schedule. This set up allows me purposeful time in my business and keeps a great consistency in our week. Every one knows what to expect, so there is no guess work, no asking 500 times what we will do today and no complaining about chores because they know if they just suck it up and get it done, we can have fun.
When do I get my laundry and other cleaning done, you may ask? In between working in the mornings or after we get back from our adventures. My goal, however, is to be disconnected from my business responsibilities and that type of cleaning by the time my husband is home from work so that we can spend the evenings all together. It isn't 100% fail proof, but it's something. This isn't me trying to keep them from being little and enjoying an amazing Summer. It's teaching them how to take care of their business, so we CAN have an amazing Summer.
If your kids thrive on a schedule (even if they won't admit it) , I want to encourage you to give this a try for a couple of weeks and see what happens. I realize this method won't fit every family perfectly, but if you think it could give you even an ounce of sanity, use what you can and adapt what fits your family's dynamic. My greatest peace of advice is let them help you with every part of it because that's where they feel like this is a plan for you all and not just mom or dad telling them what to do.
With that, from our family to yours, we hope you have an incredible Summer filled with adventure, loads of new memories and tons of laughter.
- Amanda
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