Wash on Monday
Iron on Tuesday
Mend on Wednesday
Churn on Thursday
Clean on Friday
Bake on Saturday
Rest on Sunday
If someone is having trouble getting the basic maintenance chores done, there is a lot to learn from that song. As a young mother of little children, I found the task of running the household overwhelming. An article I stumbled upon in a homeschool magazine mentioned assessing and assigning work for each day. That was the clue I needed. There are many excellent books on Home Management which cover much good material. But for me, the simple system outlined in the article from that magazine helped me more than the various in depth books I had read.. An orderly home is so important. Even before discovering from Scripture that God is a God of order, by studying Biology and other sciences in school, I knew this to be true. The complexity and dazzling organization of living things is stunning. Even after the Fall, things run so efficiently, so orderly. "Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered." (Psalm 40:5)
1Corinthians 14:40 says, "Let all things be done decently and in order." Our homes should be in order. There will be different flavors and personalities, different ways of solving problems to achieve an orderly home, but it should be our goal. The advantages are many. It is pleasing to God. It mirrors His character for our children. It brings peace. It promotes efficiency (redeeming the time). It demonstrates how important being a keeper at home is. It gives value to the family members. A clean, smoothly running home serves the family. It circumvents chores building up to become daunting, time-robbing tasks. Some feel that a schedule will hamper their freedom and put them in bondage. The very opposite is true! I was extremely surprised to find that when I began to schedule a daily and weekly routine of jobs to accomplish, I became much more flexible rather than less. When things run smoothly, it frees up time to enjoy your children, entertain others, to help out with unexpected needs, and take advantage of special opportunities.
Here is a way to customize a plan of action for your own situation. First, write down everything in your home that you need to accomplish every day. Write another list of things that should happen once a week. If there are other things needing to occur biweekly or monthly, etc., then write them in another column. The list for each day would include cooking each meal, making beds, training sessions for children, general straightening, touch up bathrooms (depending on how many people use them and how they use them), schooling, and anything you must get done to keep things going. We have found that unless things are put in a schedule, that is, put in a place in the daily chain of events, they generally will not happen; eating being an exception ruled by the stomach's growling. It helps to put the most essential things first in the day, as sometimes the schedule deteriorates as the day progresses. I always did Scripture Memory and Biblical Worldview teaching first thing after breakfast. What is most important to you? What do you want to see happen? Put it early in the day. Attaching specific times may help you or just allotting a space and an order to each event. (ex: I'll start a load of laundry before Bible Time. Then we'll all brush teeth, make beds and feed the chickens. Breakfast next and Clean-up. School-time, then "run around round up [quick de-clutter and straighten the house], now Lunch and then obedience training (hour time) and then outside play…)
Now the second list has work to be done once a week. That might include a deep bathroom cleaning, washing floors, cleaning doors, door jambs, walls, window ledges, windows, etc. Maybe the refrigerators need work every week, or it could be a thorough outside round-up of toys and projects. Laundry might be once a week, or a Field Trip. With all young children who could not do much house-cleaning, I had a set time every morning after breakfast when they read books on the couch in the living room, and I did one task. It was such an open house that I could keep them in view. Assign each task to a different day of the week. If there are more than 5-6 tasks, take two smaller ones and double them up on one day. I remember my father visiting a few weeks after my fourth child was born. He marveled at how spic and span everything was. He couldn't get over the gleaming door knobs and spotless bathroom. I had even made forty meals and frozen them before the birth. Another friend with two children came to visit soon after. We had a lovely time, but she went home and decided that if I, with four children, could run a house with such ease, she would have more children, too. And she did. I am not Betty Crocker or June Howard. I must emphasize how organizing and managing just do not come naturally to me. The secret was not in my ability. It rested in assessing the tasks to appoint for each day and then faithfully doing them. Also amazing to me during that season of my life was how little time I spent on housework. It was spread throughout the week and done consistently, and so didn't take much time. If a wonderful opportunity comes up, a field trip, or house guests, for example, or a babyJ, certain jobs can be skipped once in a while but only because they are regularly done. Getting ready for these events will be easier too, because things are in their place, clothes are clean and folded in the right drawers, meals are planned and the food is bought.
Monthly or biweekly jobs are woven into the schedule. Saturday could be a time to fit those in (one each week), or one afternoon a week might hold a time slot, perhaps. On the monthly rotation could be a DEEP room cleaning where closets are de-cluttered, fans are dusted, walls could be touch-up painted, etc. Sometimes maintaining the home seems overwhelming but breaking it down into small chunks and tackling them a day at a time is very freeing. It is so helpful to set your own agenda with your limitations in mind. Do not take someone else's chart and try to force it to fit. A friend of mine was surprised when I mentioned training a little one to clean the baseboards. The baseboards of her newer, more air-tight home never needed to be done So, it would be silly for her to add that to her schedule. Mine did at least once a week! Another tip which really helped me keep clutter at bay was to designate a 5-10 minute slot of time every day for picking up and eliminating junk that piles up. I usually take a paper grocery bag and quickly go room to room scanning for stuff that doesn't belong or isn't needed. Into the bag it goes and then I walk around taking the stuff in the bag to where it belongs or to a "Goodwill" bucket to take away later. A possible time for this would be right before a meal. Another tip that really helped me was to prepare for a day the night before. Although I never had enough energy to do much in the evening, I would often be able to get clothes ready, do a final house straighten, and make Ron's lunch. Sometimes, breakfast could be started the night before also. Do not forget to include the children in the chores and give them responsibilities as they get big enough.
"For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ." (Col. 2:5)
It can be exciting to be faithful in these little things and see God bring peace and joy into our homes and lives.
A Happy Home Defined
"Six things are requisite to create a happy home. Integrity must be the architect, and tidiness the upholsterer. It must be warmed by affection, and lightened up with cheerfulness, and industry must be the ventilator, renewing the atmosphere, and bringing in fresh salubrity day by day; while over all, as a protecting canopy and glory, nothing will suffice except the blessings of God." -Rev. Dr. Hamilton
