In My Cabinet...

UGH.  It's been one of THOSE mornings, ladies.  I feel like shoving my head under a pillow and screaming at the injustice of it all.  Today, my toddler opened the day by dumping a full glass of chocolate milk on his lap.  Not an accident.  He watched the liquid pour, and he was smiling.  I reprimanded him, and made him clean it up.  Not twenty minutes later, he poured a glass of apple juice onto his legs and all over the floor.  Icky.  Sticky.  Apple juice.  I made my toddler clean up the mess and stripped him down to his diaper for 10 minutes.  "You can't wear clothes if you're just going to get them wet," I said.  That was punishment enough.  My boy detests going without clothing.  He huddled up on the floor and cried big crocodile tears.  Meanwhile, I nursed my baby one-handed while crouching down and helping my boy mop up the juice.  Inside, I thought, "How did it come to this?"

Now my floor is gross-sticky.  No matter how many times I go over it with a wash rag, my feet still stick to the floor.  So, now let's head into our main topic of discussion.  Kitchen cleaning products.  Oh yes.  We're goin' for all sorts of excitement today.  Half kidding.  Half completely serious.  I'm all for it on days like today when I'm in a cleaning pinch.  So, here we go.  Here's my Cleaning Cabinet Top 5...

1. Disinfectant wipes.  Usually the Clorox variety.  They're so darn useful.  As an added plus, they're great for introductory toddler chores.  One of my boy's favorite chores is to take a disinfectant wipe and wipe down all the doorknobs.  It's something easy, I usually don't get around to doing it, and who cares if he misses a spot?  Perfect for toddlers.

2. Bleach.  Whenever I'm working with raw food -- veggies, fruits, but especially meat -- I fill the sink with diluted bleach and bomb my kitchen afterwards with it.  Let it sit  for 10 minutes, then wipe down with hot water.  Heat will accelerate the breakdown of hypochlorite in bleach and make bleached surfaces safe to touch as soon as it dries.

Oh, added tip.  Remember the last time your kid threw up in the car?  No?  I try not to remember stuff like that either.  But when it happens, strip the cover off (throw in washing machine) and soak the plastic part in the bath tub in a diluted bleach for 10 minutes.  Make sure you scrub the shoulder straps.  Rinse with hot water.  Your baby's car seat will magically smell like nothing ever happened.  I speak from experience.  I may have sung hallelujah to bleach that day.

3.  Distilled white vinegar.  Oh, this baby has so many uses.  It's cheap.  It's powerful.  It's chemical free.  To deodorize a yucky drain, pour one cup of hot vinegar down the drain, wait five minutes, and rinse.  To clean out a chalky dishwasher, throw in a cup of vinegar and run a cycle empty.  To clean cloudy glassware, soak a cloth in vinegar and wrap around the dish.   To remove odors from a lunchbox or plastic food containers, wipe down with vinegar and leave a rag or piece of bread soaked in vinegar in it overnight.  For more ideas, click HERE.  Oh, and about that apple juice mess I mentioned above.  It can be easily cleaned with a homemade vinegar-based cleaner.

BASIC FLOOR CLEANER: Combine 1 cup white vinegar with 1 gallon warm water.  Use on vinyl surfaces.

WOOD FLOOR CLEANER:  Combine 1/2 cup white vinegar with 1 gallon warm water.  (When cleaning wood floors, make sure you don't saturate the floor, since wood soaks in a lot of moisture.  Dampen sponge, wring out into a bucket, then scrub.)

4.  Ammonia.  I know.  I freaked a little about buying and having ammonia in my home at first.  "It's not safe!" yelled my brain.  Calm down, brain.  If you look at the ingredients list of most household cleaners, more often than not, ammonia's already in there.  The reason is that very few surfaces can be cleaned and disinfected well without it.  Wood.  Steel.  Kitchen countertops.  Refrigerator doors.  All clean well with ammonia.  Just make sure to mix your cleaners in a well ventilated room and keep it safely stored away from baby hands like you would any store-bought cleaner.

For you curious folk, you probably wondered, what's the difference between bleach and ammonia.  They both clean and disinfect, right?  Well, yes, but there are subtle differences.  Sparing you the details, we'll just say that because of their chemical make-up BLEACH IS A STRONGER DISINFECTANT.  Ammonia still kills germs, but not with the gusto of bleach.  The benefit of that is that ammonia will clean surfaces without discoloring them.  Bleach will sometimes cause discoloration or lightening.

ALL-PURPOSE CLEANER:
2 T ammonia
1 tsp dish detergent
2 cups rubbing alcohol

In a clean, gallon container, combine above ingredients and fill the rest up with hot water.  Put in spray bottles to use.

STREAK-FREE WINDOW CLEANER
3 T ammonia
1 T vinegar

Combine above ingredients in a spray bottle and fill the rest up with water.  (I can't believe I used to pay so much for Windex.)

5.  Baking soda.  Baking soda has scrubbing power but won't scratch surfaces (use in place of Comet).   You know those hard-to-clean grease spots above the stove?  Baking soda will take care of it, no problem.

SCRUBBING CLEANSER:
1/4 cup baking soda
1 T liquid detergent.

Combine above ingredients.  Add white vinegar until creamy texture and use to scrub kitchen stains or clean the oven.

Finally, because this post somehow morphed into a homemade cleaner article, take a gander HERE for a recipe to make your own baby wipes.  I would just add a few drops of baby lotion for moisturizing properties and a splash of rubbing alcohol (about a teaspoon) to keep mold from growing and give your wipes a bit of disinfecting power.  Other than that, I could show you how myself, but this gal already did a great job and...well...I've still got sticky apple juice that needs to be scrubbed off the kitchen floor...

In the meantime, the discussion's open.  Homemade or not?  How do you get your cleaners?  Why?  If you've never tried making homemade cleaners, did this post compel you to give it a try?  Let's hear it!  And in the meantime, happy cleaning.  I keep telling myself that to kid myself into liking it.

-Alyssa

SPECIAL NOTE:  Never, EVER mix bleach with any acid, like ammonia or vinegar.  In fact, play it safe and never mix bleach with anything besides water.  Chemical reactions that result from mixing could be very dangerous.

REFERENCED:   www.thefamilyhomestead.com/homemadehouseholdcleaners.htm

Picture Schedules

Anyone who has ever worked in preschool settings or with kids with disabilities have seen or used picture schedules. My personal background comes from the angle of working with kids with autism - severe and high functioning/aspergers. I have used picture schedules for a multitude of tasks. Let me say..

I Love Them!

Picture Schedules use picture cards to show the sequence of events for a given time period or detail the steps of a specific task (ie morning/bedtime routine, brushing teeth, chores).

While typically used for kids with disabilities, I think they have great benefits for kids of any age and ability. I especially like them for introducing new routines or skills.

Benefits of a Schedule:

• Kids can visually see what is coming up next. There is no guessing for the parent or the kid.
• Kids see how many steps are left until they are done.
• If a reward or treat is associated with the task, the kids know what they have to do in order to earn the reward.
• This one was really useful for me when I taught my son to brush his teeth. He earned a sticker when he was done. Once he saw what he had to do before he got the sticker, he was much more cooperative with the process.

Here is how I make a picture schedule...

Step 1: Figure out the sequence of event in your schedule.

The schedule I made last was for our bedtime routine.

The steps:

brush teeth

pajamas

read 3 books

read scriptures

prayer

in bed with lights out

Step 2: Find a picture to represent each step.

I just google images. You can also take pictures of your own kids doing each step. Some kids really like seeing pictures of themselves on the schedule.

Step 3: Make your board or folder where you will display your schedule.

I used a white posterboard. You can also use a manila folder, cardstock or anything surface really that will fit your needs. (The manila folder works well for traveling).

The line down the middle separates the "To Do" from "Done." When a step has been completed, either you or the child moves the picture from the left side to the right side to show that that step is done and it is time to move on to the next step.

Step 4: Laminate pieces

I use contact paper. For other laminating options, read Alyssa's great post from a couple of weeks ago.

Step 5: Velcro!

Craft stores have velcro dots you can use for easy application. I just cut pieces off of the long strips of velcro. Just make sure you buy the velcro with the sticky back.

Step 6: Set up the schedule

Step 7: Teach your child how to use the schedule

This is by far the most important step. For all your hard work to pay off, you need to teach your child what each picture means and teach them how to use the schedule.

We taught our bedtime routine as part of Family Home Evening last night. I let the kids play with pictures for a few minutes while we talked about what each picture meant. Then we walked through the schedule together.

Learning how to move the pictures when done with a step.

These kinds of schedules can be used to almost anything. Just have fun with them. You can use as many or as few steps as you need to help your child understand what is going on. You can also change the length of the activity depending on how much time you have. (For example, if we have a late night we might only read scriptures. I would show the change by just leaving the books off.)

Do you have any ideas for teaching new skills or routines? Or, do you have a skill you want to teach and have questions on how to do it? Leave a comment and we will see if we can help.

~Lisa~

Settling In

Last week my post focused on HOW to move from our current place.

Now I need advice on settling into a new house and town. I'm not too worried about myself - I can adjust, but I am worried about my 3 kids.

I know many of you have moved, so I would LOVE some advice on how to make the transition as easy as possible for my little ones.

We will be leaving the only home they've known and moving to another state and into a rather large house. We will also be too far from grandparents to visit on a regular basis (though thank goodness, not too far). I know it will take time for me to figure out the new area, so we might not be going out as much as we used to either. Overall, I'm just worried about their reactions.

Any other advice about settling into a new place would be much appreciated as well. IE - things I should do to settle in (getting a new driver's license, unpacking, finding new doctors, etc.....)

~Tannie~

Laminating 101

I had an epiphany.  Actually, my friend is the one who had the really superb idea, and it sparked my interest too.  It stemmed from laminating.  I've been meaning to laminate a bunch of stuff for a while, like my kid's worksheets, chore charts, etc.  Laminated paper is so darn useful, because it's reusable, and therein lies its awesomeness.

I always thought I had to go somewhere and pay to get stuff laminated in a professional laminating machine.  (Silly me.)  That's just how my mom, my friends' moms, and everyone I knew did it growing up.  But, driving somewhere to get stuff laminated is a drag.  Packing up the kids to run little errands like LAMINATING is just...well, ugh. So, smart people created do-it-yourself stuff called laminating sheets.  A lot of it is self-adhesive, some is an iron-on variety.  Basically just put two sheets on either side of a piece of paper and press together.  Trim off the sides, and viola!  Instant laminating.  The best part is that you can do it at home after the kids have gone to bed, which (as we all know) is SO much more convenient than the mid-day errand method.

Then someone decided that paying $15-30 for a box of laminating sheets can get pricey, and discovered that for someone doing a lot of laminating (like home schooling moms), regular old contact paper (you know, the stuff found in the kitchen aisle and Lowe's or Home Depot (about $5 a roll) to line the insides of drawers with) does basically the same thing.  Peel off the sticker and press together.

My friend looked at me, alarmed that I'd never heard of DIY laminating before.  Meh.  So I'm behind the times.  I'll catch up eventually.  Anyway, armed with this awesome info, now I need stuff to laminate.  This is where you come in ladies.  What are you favorite websites to print out preschool and toddler friendly activities and worksheets? (Obviously focus on stuff than can be laminated, given the topic of this post.)  Do you have fun job charts and other ideas that you've come up with yourself?  Let's pool our knowledge!  This isn't limited to kid stuff.  I think I might even take my to-do list and meal planning charts off the refrigerator and laminate the tar out of em', because I can.  Because laminated stuff is reusable, and (as we all know) therein lies its awesomeness, right?

-Alyssa

A few tricks I've picked up...

Every now and again, I come across a food-saving tip that sticks out in my head. Better even is when those tricks really work! Here are a few food preservation techniques I've learned since I've run my own kitchen:

Put a slice of bread in the bag with freshly-baked cookies.


The bread will harden, but the cookies will remain soft.


When storing potatoes, place an apple in the bag.


The apple will delay the growth of eyes on the potatoes.


When preparing avocados or guacamole, leave the pit in the mixture and add lime or lemon juice (to taste).


These two things (especially the juice) will keep the avocado green much longer. Be sure to refrigerate as well.

Do you have any food saving tips from your kitchen?

~Laura~

Simply Thrifty: Fabric Softener

As promised, here are some easy to use tips for homemade and thrifty ways to use fabric softener.

Dryer Sheets

I personally use dryer sheets. I use them because my mom used them and that is what I know. A really simple way to save money on dryer sheets is to....

cut them in half or in thirds.

Simple, right? That is why I love this tip. It is so easy to do and still saves you money. You simply cut the dryer sheet in half or thirds. Then, throw one section in with the load.

You can also make your own resusable dryer sheets with cut up pieces of flannel. Directions can be found here.

Fabric Softener



The most common homemade fabric softener is not really even homemade. It is just plain old vinegar.



Vinegar is the wonder product of homemade cleaning solution. (Cream of Tartar would the other cleaning wonder in my book.) There is a whole website with tips for using vinegar here.

As a fabric softener, you simply add 1/2 cup of vinegar to your rinse cycle. It gets rid of odors and residues. If you need to you can add more until you get the desired results.

Another tip is to use a Downy ball and simply put vinegar in it.

I have used vinegar before with my husbands work clothes. If he has been working on the car or some other smelly project, I always add a little bit of vinegar to the rinse cycle and all the smells go away!

The best part is that vinegar is available everywhere and is much less expensive than any other fabric softener.

If you are partial to brand name fabric softeners.

You can simply dilute the fabric softener using 2 parts water to 1 part fabric softener. Or, just 1/4 to 1/2 of the recommened amount the bottle says.

For a lot more tips (including using hair shampoo and conditioner!) visit this website.

Do you have any simple tips for saving money? If you do we would love to hear about them. Just send us an email at thevillageformoms@gmail.com

Happy Savings Everyone!

Lisa

P.S. Don't forget to stop by our new poll in the side bar! We'd like to better serve our readers, so to allow us to do so, please give us general age ranges of your children to give us an idea of what sort of posts will be important to you and your family. When voting, select as many boxes as you need to. Thanks a million!

Simply Thrifty: Homemade Laundry Detergent

If you google homemade laundry detergent, you will be taken to many, many, many different pages. With each page having a different recipe. I am going to share my experience making my own detergent and the reasons I like it.

I first heard of homemade laundry detergent when I first got married. I was intrigued, but thought I was too busy to research it, let alone making my own detergent. Over the next couple of years, however, I kept hearing about it. My interest just kept growing, but two questions just kept coming up.

1. How hard is it to make laundry detergent?

2. Does homemade laundry detergent actually work?

Finally, about six months ago I found myself to be a new stay-at-home mom trying to budget on just one income. Suddenly I had time to make homemade laundry detergent and the economic necessity to give it a try.

In all of my research I found that all the recipes have the same ingredients, only the quantities vary.

The Ingredients

Borax (about $4.99 a box)



Washing Soda* (about $3.00)
*Important note: You have to use washing soda, not baking soda or Arm and Hammer detergent.

Fels-Naptha ($1.59 per bar)
Other soap bars such as Zote and Ivory may be used. You just want to avoid soaps with heavy perfumes.



The recipe I use is from the Duggar family's website. (I suppose I felt like I could trust them after watching them on their TV show. Silly, but true.)

The Recipe

4 cups hot water

1 bar Fels-Naptha (or soap of choice)

1 cup washing soda

1/2 cup borax



You will also need:

a grater

a 5 gallon bucket with a lid

a used liquid laundry detergent container (optional)

1. Grate the bar of soap. Add to a saucepan with water. Heat over medium-low heat until the soap completely dissolves.

2. Fill the 5 gallon bucket about half full with hot tap water. Stir in the soap/water mixture, borax and washing soda. Mix until all the powder is dissolved.

3. Fill the bucket to the top and cover. Let the detergent sit overnight to cool and gel.

4. The next day, fill a clean, used laundry detergent container half full of with the homemade detergent. Then fill the rest with water.

Yields 10 gallons

and it only costs about $2.00 per batch

Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oils per 2 gallons. (I add lilac or cranberry/orange to mine.)

For a top load machine use 5/8 cup per load (approx. 180 loads)

For a front load machine use 1/4 cup per load (approx. 640 loads!)

I realize that this recipe makes a lot of soap. That is one reason I used this recipe. I was able to make one batch and have it last for a few months. Just make sure you keep the lid on the bucket so nothing (or no one) gets into the soap.

Question #1 has been answered now. I do need to add that I thought the bar of soap would be hard to grate, but found it actually took less effort to grate the soap than it does to grate cheddar cheese.

Now for Question #2. Does it work?

I have noticed absolutely no difference in our clothes since switching and neither has anyone else!

So, yes, homemade laundry detergent works!

I realize that not everyone will be into making their own detergent, but I found it well worth effort. I am saving a ton of money this way too.

There you go, a surprisingly simple way to be a little more thrifty.

Happy Laundry Day Everyone!

Lisa





What Chores Can Kids Tackle?

Probably more than you'd think.  Beginning with toddlers, who incidentally are the PERFECT candidates for household chore help...what with their almost overflowing desire to please adults and "Eelp!" mom, our job as parents is to instill the importance of keeping the house in working order as well as responsibilities...all while fostering a sense of empowerment in our children.  Now, ALLOWING the help may take you longer.  It may slow you down.  But the boost of confidence it gives your munchkin to be a valuable part of the family (everyone, including a child, loves to feel needed), the look on his face when he gets it right, and not to mention the magical event of a self-cleaning room (kind of) will be well worth your efforts.

So how to go about doing it?

Here are some age appropriate chores too divy out to our little angels:

AGE 2-3:
-Help make their bed.
-Pick up toys (with supervision)
-Help sort laundry (big clothes and little clothes)
-Dusting (perhaps start by slipping Daddy's sock over his hand and teaching him the basics)
-Food prep (mixing batter, helping "measure" ingredients, frosting cookies, etc.)
-Setting the table (plastic, please!)
-Sweeping and vacuuming alongside mom
-Putting away groceries (learn about all sorts of shapes and colors in the process!)

NOTE FOR PARENTS:  At this age, sticker charts may not be necessary, but be sure to LAVISH on the praise!  And...as always, make sure your number one helper is out of the room before you start filling in spots he missed while dusting. :)

AGE 4-5:
-Getting dressed
-Making their bed with little parental help
-Matching socks in the laundry
-Hang up towels in the bathroom
-Clean the floors with a dry mop
-Carrying and putting away groceries

NOTE FOR PARENTS:  For our adorable little lovers of new adventures, the thrill of learning something new may be reason enough to make chores fun.  Physical rewards at this age are very motivating.  A sticker chart or, for some preschoolers, a small allowance may be just the ticket to make chores into something fun and give the kids a wonderful sense of accomplishment.

AGE 6-8: (In addition to the chores already laid out above)
-Make their beds by themselves
-Brush their teeth
-Choose their fashion-forward outfit for the day and get dressed by themselves.
-Be responsible for taking care of a pet
-Vacuum and mop (for reals :)
-Take out the trash
-Put away dishes from dishwasher
-Answer phones (with supervision)
-Fold (with supervision) and put away laundry
-Write thank you notes (love this one)

NOTE FOR PARENTS:  Kids, at this age, most likely won't have that budding excitement to "help" as they did before.  Instead, that is replaced with an overwhelming desire to be independent.  "MO-OM!  I can do it myself!"  At this point, make use of a chore chart to keep track of responsibilities.  The chart will also be a gentle reminder without you having to nag (as much).

BUT...and that's a big BUT...every child's different.  And millions of moms have been using millions of combinations of ingenuity, patience, and discipline to get this whole "chore" machine well-oiled and working throughout the years.  The most important thing is to DO IT!  Chores are invaluable for instilling confidence, a healthy attitude about work, and basically how to be a good adult in the future (which really is our ultimate goals as parents, right?)

So now, I'd like to hear from all you brilliant guys and gals...

What have you done with your own kids?  And what kinds of new ideas are you forging to make your current system work even better?  

Learning Time

When my daughter was just under two years old I quit my job. I was expecting my second child at the time and decided I wanted to stay home full time. It was a big step for me, and since I loved my job very much I was worried about how I would feel about staying home all day.

Luckily it has been a good experience for me. There are definitely DOWN DAYS where I wonder what I was thinking and I miss teaching a lot. But for the most part we have fun.

I've found a lot of things to fill my day up with (but that's another post entirely). One thing that has helped me tremendously over the last 2 1/2 years is to spend time teaching my children every day. When my daughter was about 20 months old we started what I call "learning time." It has changed and developed over time as my daughter has gotten older and now that I have two it is completely different. But here is a rundown of what Learning Time might look like in my house.

First of all, I divide up each day into a different topic. When my daughter was very little this is what her schedule looked like...

Monday – Animals
Tuesday – Shapes
Wednesday – Numbers
Thursday – Colors
Friday – Letters/Alphabet

I would always start with a book on the topic, then give a short lesson with some practice, and finally we would do some type of activity. Learning time for my little toddler girl didn't last for more than 30 minutes, but sometimes it was as short as 5-10 minutes depending on her attention span that day. I've always tried to be flexible and when I see that it isn't fun anymore, we usually quit early if need be.

Now that she is 4 our lessons are usually 30-60 minutes. Her schedule looks more like this; I usually do a main topic for the day but also I do a quick review of another topic:

Monday - Letters/Words (Review: Math Facts)
Tuesday - Math (Review: Words)
Wednesday -Science/Social Studies (Review: Numbers/Shapes)
Thursday - Handwriting (Review: Letters/Sounds)
Friday - Music/Arts (Review: All topics)

We always start by doing a quick review of something (only about 5 minutes) then we read a book (sometimes on the topic, but more often now that she is older it is just a fun book). Then we do a lesson with an activity of some type.

My 2 year old son participates as well. Usually his "lesson" is the review part - or whatever he can understand of it. By the time we are done with the review and story he is usually bored and goes off to play. Sometimes he sticks around or comes back for the "activity" depending on what it is. His learning time is less structured than my daughter's, but when she starts going to preschool I will spend more dedicated time with him. It's amazing what he's picked up even by just watching his sister.

Sometimes I do these out of order depending on my mood, or if skip one thing I usually try to make it up the next week (since I rarely did learning time all 5 days of the week, something always comes up).

A few ideas of what I do. For reviews I do things like flashcards, or write them on the chalkboard/whiteboard, or we get on the computer and practice recognizing shapes (or whatever else) on the computer word processor. We've also done puzzles as a review, and sticky notes, or I just simply verbally quiz. I try to mix it up to make it interesting.

As for individual lessons.... that's a bit trickier. With math or letters I usually just try to come up with a learning objective for the lesson. For example, if we are working on numbers, my objective might be that she will be able to recognize numbers up to 20 (or for my son, up to 10). After we've kind of mastered that we do an activity with it. Maybe we draw the numbers/letters (whatever) with glue and pour glitter on them. Or maybe we go out in the backyard and draw shapes on the sidewalk with water and paint brushes.

When we do science or social studies I just think of something she should know. We might have a lesson on dialing her phone number, or a lesson on what types of organs are in her body (really simple, like heart and brain and lungs). This week we talked about directions and drew a map on a huge poster board with a compass. We've also practiced left/right, buoyancy in water, animals, and a myriad of other things.

With handwriting I usually just find some type of cute letter page online that she can trace and color. We also write in her personal journal. She dictates to me and I write down what she says, then she signs her name at the bottom.

When I do music/art we usually do either a BIG craft or we have little lessons on clapping rhythms or repeating melodies.

That is just a VERY rough outline of what I might do for learning time. Seriously - this is one of my children's favorite times of the day. It is so worth it! In order to be prepared I spend about 10 minutes on Sunday nights coming up with ideas for what I want to teach that week. This makes it easier for me each day.

So there you have it - my learning time ideas. I know that's a long post, but hopefully it sparks some ideas. If you have any ideas to add, please put them in the comments!!

Keeping it Clean

Cleaning the house is one of those never-ending chores...especially with small children in the house!

Is it just me, or does it seem like a room is messy again within only moments of being cleaned?

I would like to suggest a cleaning routine that can help keep the house clean on a regular basis without feeling overwhelmed or like you're constantly cleaning. There are two main components: Minimum Maintenance and Day-of-the-Week To-Do.

1. Minimum Maintenance (MM)

Set your timer for 5 minutes. Pick your first room. In that room, pick up any clutter, throw out garbage, and generally clean up the room. Here's the catch: When the timer goes off, you have to stop! It's time to move to the next room. By staying in each room for only five minutes, you are sure to not burn yourself out before you get to the rest of the house.

There are ways you can tweak this to your personal taste: Stretch it out across the day, so each room is visited at different times, or clean the main living areas of the house in one 30 minute pull. Because it's only five minutes at a time, you may want to do this once in the morning and once in the evening. If you keep it going, there is less to clean next time!

It is also easy to involve children in this cleaning. It can be a game to "beat the timer" and try to get everything clean before it starts beeping. You can also assign your child one task in the room: pick up just the blocks, put all the shoes away, etc.

2. Day-of-the-Week To-Do

You may have already figured out that if you only did the minimum maintenance cleaning, your house wouldn't ever quite get "done". This is where the day-of-the-week to-do comes in. I have assigned a particular, larger task to each day of the week. This can easily be rearranged to fit your family's schedule.

MONDAY
Deep Clean

The three whole-family areas--the living room, kitchen, and bathrooms--each get deep cleaned once a month, with the kitchen going twice. With this being done, the MM cleaning is enough to keep it nice until the next deep clean.

1st Monday: Kitchen

Aside from the usual dishes, countertops, floors, etc. add these to your deep clean this week:

~Clean out the refrigerator, including wiping down walls, drawers, and door, inside and out.
~Wipe down the inside and outside of the garbage can

2nd Monday: Living Room

~Dust all surfaces
~Vacuum under furniture
~Wash windows (at least inside)

3rd Monday: Kitchen again

~Clean out microwave
~Clean out oven
~Clean underneath stove burners, replace tinfoil if necessary

4th Monday: Bathrooms

Bathrooms vary more from person to person, depending on how often you like to fully sanitize everything. My MM includes wiping down the counters and sink and cleaning the toilet bowl and any visible messes, in addition to putting away any clutter. I am content with doing these things only once a month:

~Sweep and mop floor
~Wash rugs
~Scrub entire bathtub/shower

TUESDAY
Laundry

Aside from my MM, laundry is the only thing I worry about on Tuesday. Then I don't feel guilty about not getting anything else really clean and I have the whole day to just get laundry done.

WEDNESDAY
House Projects

If you're like me, there are always things lingering in the back of your mind that need to get done but no one ever gets around to...cleaning out that closet, reorganizing that cupboard, maybe taking down and washing the curtains. Whatever your own projects may be, Wednesday is your day to get it done! It is much more likely to happen if you have a planned and regular day to work on it.

THURSDAY
Finances

I take one day a week to sit down and go through any money-happenings of the week--paying bills, balancing the checkbook, filing any paperwork. I personally find it much more manageable to stay on top of such things if they are done more often than even once a month.

FRIDAY
Day off!

If life is all work and no play, UGH! If you've kept on top of things all week, use Friday to just play--after you've finished your MM, of course.

SATURDAY
Bedrooms, Yardwork

I like saving bedrooms for Saturday because then Dad is home and we can work all together as a family. I like my kids to be responsible for their own mess in their own rooms, and Dad has a bedroom too, right? Aside from our regular cleaning, we also change sheets and vacuum.

Also because Dad is home, this is a good day to be outside (during the warmer months). The kids can play in the yard while Mom and Dad work or they can pitch in with easier jobs. Make it a family day!


DISCLAIMER:
Obviously, what works for me won't necessarily work for you. I also recognize that there are many, many other things that need to get done in a given day, such as errands. Everything I've shared here is adaptable. I would simply like to suggest a way to keep your house clean while still having time to spend with your family. Try it out, keep what works, toss what doesn't!


And we turn it to you...

What tips do you have for keeping your house clean without feeling overwhelmed?

How do you involve your children in keeping the house clean?

Any general cleaning tips you'd like to share?

Toy Storage Lacking

I don't know about you, but it seems like every time Lucas and I pick up toys they seemed to have multiplied and there isn't enough storage (even if we don't have anything new)! We live in a house build over 50 years ago, so storage is lacking to begin with and the bedrooms are small. I'm looking for some easy storage solutions before baby #2 arrives a couple months into next year, but I'm also looking for some easy ideas on maintaining toy storage. I do have a system for cleaning up and my two year old always helps.

BUT, I'm wanting to know:

Do you have a clean up routine for toys?
What type of storage and organization do you use?
Have you tried anything and found it didn't work and switched to something new?

Thanks for all our readers comments and support! Don't forget, if you have a question or topic that you would like to see discussed, send us an email to thevillageformoms@gmail.com.

Two in the Bed

I have two kids. My son is about to turn 2 and my little girl is almost 4. With my son's 2nd birthday approaching I'm starting to think about moving him out of his crib. I think he can stay in for a few more months, because he hasn't climbed out yet and he is fitting just fine. However, I know that within the next 6 months (probably) he'll need a bed. We live in a small apartment with only two rooms and the kids' room is small. We most likely will not be moving for almost another year, so I know that at some point I will need to have both my kids in the same room without a crib being in the picture.

So, I have a few concerns. First of all - space. The room is small as I mentioned, and I'm not sure how to fit two beds in the room. One would have to be a toddler bed and the other a twin (my 4 year old is outgrowing her toddler bed). Or we'd have to use a set of bunk beds. I'm not worried about my 4 year old being on a bunk bed, she can navigate stairs/ladders very well. It's my 2 year old I worry about. I worry he'll climb to the top of my daughter's bunk bed and then won't be able to climb down. Or that he will fall and break something.

Secondly, I'm also nervous about them sleeping in the same room when one of them isn't contained. As it is, they usually stay up for 30-60 minutes chatting/crying/reading/playing each night after we put them to bed. I can only imagine how the problem will be compounded when my son is in a bed of his own instead of a crib.

So, here are my questions.....

What is the longest you've left your toddler in a crib for?
Have you used bunk beds with toddlers?
At what age did you feel safe having a bunk bed?
If you've used bunk beds with toddlers what safety measures have you taken?
How do you get your children who share a room to stay in bed when neither one is in a crib?

Thanks so much!

Simplify

As we all know, motherhood is a full time job. I, like many moms out there, am always looking for ways to become better at that job. And ways to make it simpler and more meaningful. Sometimes I have an "aha" moment when something in my brain clicks and I come up with an idea that is so great that I wonder how I didn't think of it sooner. Many other times I get great ideas from other moms. That is what I hope this post will be--moms sharing their "aha" moments or little "tricks of the trade" that have helped them simplify their life as a mother and help the days run more smoothly. I will share a couple ideas to get us started.

The first is one I came up with. When grocery shopping I used to find myself glancing over my shopping list over and over when in a certain section of the store to make sure I got everything that I needed while in that area. Even then I would still find myself going back and forth for things I had missed and end up in the same section of the store more than once. Then one day several months ago, it finally dawned on me. I needed to organize my shopping list! Now my shopping list looks like this:

{I apologize for the image being low quality. Click on it to enlarge and see more clearly}

It hangs on the side of my fridge. When I go to write something down on the list, I write it down in its corresponding section. Lettuce in the produce section, diapers in the baby section, chicken in the meat section etc. It has made shopping so much easier and faster! Now when I am in the produce section of the grocery store, I can quickly look at my list and see everything that I need from that section. No more reading over my list over and over and no more going back and forth in the store only to end up in the same place I started because I missed something on my list. Hooray for more efficient shopping! :) I realize for many of you brilliant moms this may be something you have been doing forever already, but maybe it will help someone who hadn't though of it yet.

Another idea I got from a fellow blogger, Andrea at J and A and Co {seriously girls, this mom is incredible! She shares many awesome ideas all the time. If you want to be inspired, go to her blog. She does a grocery list very similar to mine, but truly takes her meal planning to the next level. She shares it all in a 4 part series in her "What I Have Learned Thursday" posts}. This particular idea is one she got from one of her friends {see how we can all learn so much from each other :)}. I liked it because it was simple but impacting at the same time. She assigns every member of her family a station in her home. ie: mom-kitchen, dad-trash cans and outside, big brother-living room, little sis-playroom, etc. At the end of the day or any time mom says "Check your station," everyone goes to their area and makes sure it looks nice and orderly-the way they would want it to look if they were having company over. This helps so much when a quick run through of house cleaning is needed. Everyone is working together and no one feels overwhelmed. Plus at the end of the night, mom can go to bed with a house that is picked up without feeling exhausted. Who wouldn't want that? :)

Now it is your turn! Please share!!

What are your "tricks of the trade" or any "aha" moments you have had that have helped make being a mommy easier and better?

They can be about anything really, so let us know anything you can think of that works for you!

Disturbing the Dust Bunnies

March or April starts to roll around and I start to think of the dust, disorganization, and dirt that has been hanging around my house all winter. I am not a SUPER germ freak, but I LOVE organization and order - so Spring Cleaning really appeals to me.

I think Spring Cleaning is different for everyone. My family cleans our house from top to bottom every weekend. This usually includes cleaning all floors (mop or vacuum), dusting, and of course scrubbing the bathroom. We also do daily chores like dishes and toy pick up... you get the idea. But this to me isn't enough for a good Spring Clean.

So each year I make a "big deal" out of spring cleaning... below are some steps I've followed that have given me success.

#1 - Make a List: I think this is SO important. How do I make my list? I go into a specific room and think of EVERY thing I possibly can that needs to be cleaned. I scan the entire room and move around the space until I think I've thought of all that needs to be cleaned. I divide the list up for each room. I am sure to include things like washing the walls, doors, and baseboards, and moving large appliances or furniture. I also take pictures down and Windex the glass on them, and we take the blinds down and wash them. In addition I try to organize and dejunk. I make my list on the computer so I can easily add to it later, but I print it off when I'm done so I can have the satisfaction of crossing off the things I've accomplished. This list will of course be different for each person, but if you are interested in seeing my 2010 Spring Cleaning list then let me know in the comments and I can e-mail you a copy.

#2 - Buy Supplies: After your list is complete, make ANOTHER list (a shopping one) of all the things you'll need to buy to finish all your tasks. Your spring cleaning list might include something like painting something, or fixing a cupboard door. So make sure to think of nails or other household supplies you need. Check all your cleaners and get something specific (if you don't have it already) to do heavy duty work. I got a cheap, but fabulous heavy duty green cleaner from Don Aslett's and it worked wonderfully on everything. We bought a new scrub brush as well and some rubber gloves. We also bought plenty of paper towels.

#3 - Organize the Crew: Involve your WHOLE family. If you are like me then cleaning by yourself isn't the most fun. I don't do Spring Cleaning alone, but wait until my husband can help. I also have my kids help as much as I can. We actually don't separate often either - we stay in the same room to keep each other company and then we move on to the next room when that one is done. We also listen to music to pass the time.

#4 - Split it Up: Don't try to do it all in one day, you'll get burnt out!! It took us at least 2 solid weeks to get all done with our cleaning this year. We did about 3-4 hours on two consecutive Saturdays and we also spent about 1-2 hours on SEVERAL weeknights before bed. It was frustrating that it took so long, but I was also not up for doing 10 hours of straight cleaning in one day. And I felt so good when it was done.

That's it for my tips... how about yours??

How have you made Spring Cleaning successful?
Do you make a list?
What supplies have you used?

Hammers and Nails and Screws, oh my!

My husband and I recently purchased our first home, a house that is 50 years old and needs a little updating. We are replacing all the flooring and repainting all the walls, just for starters.

Add to all that work the two small children...

What do you do with your kids while you are remodeling?

It's difficult to have the kids around when there are open buckets of paint, power tools on the loose, and Mom and Dad's minds are trying to focus on other things to get the job done.

When you don't have a babysitter available, what tips and tricks do you have to keep the kids out of trouble while the projects are in progress?

For those times when things can't be cleaned up in a day, how do you keep the projects protected?

Any other answers to questions I haven't thought to ask about remodeling while being a parent?

Thanks!

Laura

image from www.lightquotes.com

what to do, what to do!

I found out I was pregnant with my first baby one month after I was hired for my first teaching position. I taught half-time that first year, then switched to full time. I have taught full time for two years now, including during the pregnancy and seven months of my second's life.

To sum up, the entire time I've been a mom, I have been a working mom. I'm quitting my job in about a month when we move. I will be a stay-at-home mom from that point on.

My question to all of the other stay-at-home moms out there:

What do you do all day?

You may laugh at this question as you think of all the things that manage to fill your day, but I'd like to know.

Beyond the normal household chores, what activities or hobbies do you occupy your time with?

How do you maximize the time with your kids without, to put it bluntly, getting tired of each other?

When I was home on maternity leave and during the summers, I struggled with the boredom of having the same routine day after day...how do you avoid that?

Any other tips on successfully staying home?

Balancing Different Schedules

I know that we have talked some about having two or more children, but I am hoping that this will help answer some specific questions I have in regards to juggling kids' schedules. I am due with baby #2 in 5 weeks and for some reason this has been on my mind a lot lately. I have been wondering how moms keep two kids who seem to be on totally different schedules happy and content. Do they schedule their day around their infant assuming that they are young enough to "go with the flow" or do they schedule their day around their older child because they are more flexible? Make sense?? For example, my toddler (almost 2) takes one nap in the afternoon from about noon-3. I remember when she was taking 2 naps a day that she slept from about 10-12 and then again form about 3-5. So I found myself wondering--does a mom with two kids who nap at those times just not go out during the day? That doesn't seem feasible since we all have our to-do lists to accomplish as well as getting out of the house to have fun. So how do you balance it all? I know that each child is different and that different scenarios work for different families, but please share what has worked for you and maybe that will help get some ideas flowing!

Babysitters

I am back to school full time now and luckily live close enough to family that they watch my son Lucas during the day. However, when my husband and I go on a date, or to the temple. or somewhere else we don't want to take Lucas we have the hardest time finding a sitter other than family. My sisters can't always watch Lucas when I want them to, and it seems like I can never find anyone else. The girls in my ward don't babysit. That leaves me calling my visiting teachers, cousins, or people who owe me favors to find a sitter, it is so frustrating!

Where do you go to find a competent babysitter?
What do you consider competent?
How many days before you need a sitter do you call?

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Also, don't forget our recipe blog! If you have a recipe you would like to share, send it to thevillageformoms@gmail.com.

House Cleaning...

If only we all felt this way about cleaning, right!?!

I don't know about you but house cleaning is one of my least favorite things to get done, especially when it takes forever and the kids are awake.

There are a few products that have made this task more of a joy and much easier...

Swiffer Duster and Mop:

I am a huge fan of these two products. They are not the most eco-friendly but it makes those two frequent and tedious tasks much easier and done faster! Dusting is a breeze with their nifty extension tool and moping the kitchen, laundry room, wood floor, and bathrooms are so easy! Scrubbing Bubbles:

I love this product. Spray on, wait, and rinse off. Every so often after getting out of the shower I just spray it down then rinse it off. One bathroom chore done on the go.

So how about you...

*How do you get all your house cleaning done?
*What products/solutions do you love to use?

Requests From Our Readers: Week 8

This week we are talking about self motivation. Check out what our reader said:



"Another topic that would be of interest to me would be a discussion about how to stay motivated to do the parts of being a homemaker that you don't enjoy. I love spending time with my baby and am almost always motivated to get on the floor and play with him, but I really struggle to do things like clean the bathroom, do the dishes, etc. sometimes. How do you guys keep motivated!?!"

We've talked before about setting routines in your house and making sure that your clutter doesn't turn to entropy. So we've discussed HOW to get it done, but we haven't discussed how to WANT to get it done! So help her out.

Do you ever feel like you don't want to do your house work?
How do you stay motivated to do house work and other homemaking tasks?
Share your successes and failures!

Keep it coming - we have only 1 or 2 reader requests we haven't gotten to yet, so be sure to shoot us an e-mail if you have a good question or concern. We appreciate your responses - thank you very much for making this discussion forum a success!!