The importance of organization part three

Scheduling

In my twenty years of homekeeping it took me a long time to understand the importance of keeping to a schedule and planning certain tasks. Now I take great pleasure in seeing my family flourish with consistency.

Consistency is vital in homekeeping and most business managers will tell you consistency is key to success...from recipes at restaurants to retail products. Even psychologist quote consistency in parenting is a valuable tool in providing discipline for children and teens.

I have a monthly meal calendar I fill out the last week of the month with full dinner plans and on weekends breakfast is filled in as well. I also have a weekly chore plan posted for the children along with a laundry list. The laundry list has the days of the week listed for each child plus the parents for when they will do their laundry. This way there is no problem knowing who is utilising the laundry room what day.

All of this scheduling is posted in the most visible place in our home...the fridge! My to-do list and an ongoing grocery list is located here as well.

In my homekeeping binder I have master copies in protective sleeve for easy keeping.

In doing these simple management steps my children know what's for dinner, know when specific chores need to be completed and my husband can write down what is missing from the pantry.

Speaking of the pantry, I keep an updated pantry list for our grocery shopping days. This list is very good for keeping up with what is needed and where to get the best price. I break some things down by where we get them: some bulk items at Sam's Club, some at other places, etc.

I'd love to hear your thoughts and your ideas for scheduling at your home.

The importance of organization part two

Being Virtuous and Excellent
Is it possible?

Proverbs 31:10 says being virtuous is worth more than rubies. What a nice thought. How does one be perfect in their moral character?

I know I'm not perfect and never will be. The Scripture states it's difficult to find a woman of noble character. My question is, Lord how do I attain such virtue?

The answer is...we don't have to. The Holy Spirit does this for us. We can strive for excellence in our daily lives but only He molds us into the character He wants us to have...Godly character. Our worth is not measured by what we do or what we say. It is measured by what Christ did for us on the cross.

By understanding who she is, the Proverbs 31 woman excels in her daily life by providing food, clothing and shelter for her family. She is not concerned for the weather, (something for me to consider during hurricane season), feeds not only her family but her workers, and provides for the poor. She works late into the evening and rises early before dawn so she must be in good health. Her husband and family call her blessed.

This makes me understand that once we place our total trust in God everything else falls into place.

Striving for excellence in our homemaking is something we must do. Everything we do we must do for the Lord. Your relationships will improve with the encouragement you receive from the Lord.

Start your day in the Word. Take each day as it comes with a to-do list in hand and mark the completions one by one. You'll be amazed at how much you can accomplish.

I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas about daily organization. Please leave a comment. Tomorrow we will continue with scheduling and menus.

The importance of organization part one

I have read many, many text and periodicals on the importance of being organized throughout my married life. Before this event I couldn't have cared less but I have learned, however, if one stays home or lacks a paying gig outside the home, it is difficult to stay on task without organization. But what keeps us on track of staying organized? If you have a plan what must you do to complete it with consistency? Joy.

Let's just say this upfront--there is no one perfect except for Jesus Christ--and so many of us will miss our own deadlines, forget the to-do lists, skip making supper, forget the clothes are on the line when it rains, etc. It's perfectly normal to do so.

In one of my most favorite books, The Joy of Housekeeping by Ella May Miller, given to me years ago by my husband's grandmother (it may be out of print), she writes one very important aspect about staying home: accept your role.

It may seem archaic, it may be like acid in your veins to think this way because it's contrary to popular culture, but I think she has a point. All of us desire to be happy and to be at home during the day without a paycheck at the end of the week can let you believe (by society's way of thinking), you are no longer an important part of society.

Believe me when I say this: I have felt this way before and I know I am not alone. I still deal with it when I go out to dinner with friends and I sit there thinking about valuable comments to make or witty jibes...do I really have something to say? All I do is stay home, do the laundry, cook meals, see about the children and feed the chickens. These people I'm with are professionals... Okay, I do host a Bible study on Wednesday nights and I have had a career once or twice before...but now?

Getting back on track here...Ella says housekeeping is pretty much what you make it...either a burden or a source of satisfaction.

We are who we are and if we're guided by God to stay at home and be a homekeeper I believe it's where we should be. That being said it's more than important to remember who we are in Christ. When we remember this important fact we keep our identity in Him and it doesn't matter if the only witty stories I have are about very, very flat bread or cute chicken stories.

Keeping organized is a very important aspect to staying home and running a household. But the most valuable trait is your joy in being the homekeeper.

Beautiful April

April in Northwest Florida typically is very wet and windy. This April, however, seems to be more like our March weather. March was not typical this year with even a few frosty mornings.

This being said, our garden is still under construction. We will be planting green beans, peas (two types) and cucumbers. We will also have some long island pumpkins which will be a new crop for the Holt House.

The azaleas are still in full bloom and the herbs are flourishing.

Beautiful April!

Currently, I am learning how to make flatbreads. This event has happened twice with the first try being successful and the second, well not so successful. I will endeavor to perfect the flatbread and will blog when this happens. Maybe I will even celebrate with a photo.

Since this is my first try at a blog, I am learning and in this endeavor would love to hear back from anyone who is relatively new to homesteading.