I may have the desire, but I don't have the natural ability. I read all the blogs and Pinterest posts about how to create a beautiful home that stays beautiful and organized with only minutes of upkeep a day, and I'm filled with envy. I create schedules, and lists and expectations for the girls, and within weeks, things have fallen apart. It's like a diet - I can't stick with it long enough for it to become a true lifestyle. But every time I end up binge cleaning (and subsequently spending the next week irritated as the house slowly reverts back to its usual state) and either just doing the girl's chores for them or bribing them.
Since I hate the idea of feeling like I'm ashamed to have people over, and I know that I'm in danger of having kids who will only do chores if they feel there is a reward involved, I was very anxious to read this book and see what I could get from it.
Part 1: Laying the Foundation
This is the philosophy part. If you need motivation as to the "why" of kids and chores - don't skip this part. You will be inspired to start seeing your kids as you want them to be in the future. It all comes down to simple principles.
Have realistic and age-appropriate expectations.
Establish rules or standards.
Have a working knowledge of family discipline.
Tie strings to their hearts.
Part 2: Implementing the Plan
Here's where the experience of the author shows through (a fellow mom of eight and foster mom to fifty over twenty five years). I loved the Life Skill checklists - organized by age. She offers numerous variations of the basic plan - you customize to what will work best in your family.
Part 3: The Actual Chore System
The nuts and bolts so to speak. Printable chore cards, including blank ones you can write in chores specific to your family. I also loved how she broke all the chores down into all their components. I've realized that "mom clean" and "kid clean" are usually two very different things. When I send the girls up to tidy their rooms, they don't seem to know what that really means. Having a list with all the little sub-jobs really helps.
I love this system, and I'm looking forward to making all the tweaks to have it truly work for us. If we stay diligent, soon I'll be one of those women who always seems to have it together!
Other members of the Crew took a look at another helpful tool - Everyday Cooking, you should too! You can get 10% off this book or her Everyday Cooking book through September 5, 2017. Click here to access her store, then put in discount code TOS10books at the checkout.
