Someone has been messing with my calendar and suddenly, it is JULY! What happened to my summer?
Our family homeschools year-round… for the most part. We take a break when Bill gets out for the summer and then get back into our routine when he starts band camp. This year, band camp begins on July 16th… just a few short days away.
Sigh.
Don’t get me wrong. I am excited about our new curriculum and watching my children grasp new concepts, but there are some things I want to do less.
1. Print less.
Last year, I was printing stuff like crazy. Every time I saw something cute that I might use with the children… print. A recipe I might try… print. Now, I have piles of papers which need to be filed because I never got around to using them.
2. Laminate less.
I love… L O V E… love my laminator. Unfortunately, even the generic laminating pages can be expensive when you use them for everything. So, I am going to use more page protectors for worksheets and only laminate items like games, flash cards, and such.
3. Sleep less.
Oh, yes. I said it. I plan to break my 3 year old from having me nap beside him because I always fall asleep waiting for him to fall asleep. While the older tow children are having feet off the floor time in the boys’ room and the baby is napping in her crib, mommy and Ruble have been cutting ZZZZZ’s together. No more. I want to turn this time into homeschool time with Lira and Franc.
4. Judge less.
I am very aware that Christians are supposed to hold one another accountable. That is not what I am talking about here. Nope. My prayer is that I would see as God sees. My quick wit combined with a negative first impression often leaves me thinking poorly about other people… even if I do not know their names. That is not the person I want to be because I know that I am not in any place to cast judgment. I am messed up… nothing but a cracked piece of pottery barely held together by the hands of my Maker. I want to encourage others towards the love of Jesus, not discourage others away by looking like a legalistic, hypocritical Pharisee.
5. Spend less.
Last year, I spent a great deal of time in the Dollar Tree and online purchasing learning toys. Many of the toys I was able to get for free (or nearly free) using referral credits. But, now my homeschool closet is packed with educational goodies and I have not another square inch of space. Besides, since our goal is the be debt-free by March 2013, I need every dime to go towards paying those last two bills.
6. Yell less.
Why do I think that by raising my voice that my children will suddenly listen to me? While I was once a rage-o-holic, those tendencies are long gone but the yelling habit remains. Maybe I should whisper instead? I really don’t know. If you have found something that works, LEAVE A COMMENT. Thank you.
7. Clean less.
My children are lazy and it is my fault. We have attempted to teach them to do chores every once in a while but I have not been consistent. Well, my dear children, we are going to have a little bit of Mommy Bootcamp. Maybe that is a bit over-the-top but I think it is time for these children to be a part of our family team and start doing some age-appropriate cleaning around the house.
8. Eat less.
I am turning my eyes towards a more proportionate figure and that means a more proportionate plate. Oh, I enjoy food so much but I am using it for the wrong reasons. Happy, sad, mad, depressed, celebrating… doesn’t matter. I eat.
Previously, I have worked through the online Bible study, The Lord’s Table, with a provided mentor. (If you do not know about this study, it is a part of the Setting Captive Free website and the mentor is FREE.) I am prayerfully considering going through it on my own since I have obviously slipped and fallen into a huge pit of chocolate-covered gluttony.
9. Stress less.
God has NEVER let our family down. Never. Still, I find myself occasionally bemoaning our circumstances. Instead of turning inward, I want to be more focused on helping others and keep the perspective that my husband so eloquently stated when we faced our mortgage crisis, “Today, we have everything we need.”
10. Repeat myself less.
You know what I mean. I would love to be able to make it through a day without sounding like an echo. Maybe this isn’t very practical since I do have four children, one with Autism and one with ADHD, and a husband with ADD but hey… a girl can dream. Right?
What are you hoping to do LESS this year?
So proud to be a part of the iHomeschool Network! Linking up at Many Little Blessings.
I’m a yeller, too. I’ve found that lowering my voice works just as well, and sometimes I don’t even have to speak. I’ve got The Look and my kids know when they see it that they need to stop what they’re doing. I’ve developed something almost like a growl for those times I really, really want to kill somebody. Of course, that’s all after I’ve had my coffee. Before I’ve had my coffee, I just yell. In fact, my oldest has learned that the best thing he can do for his own peace is turn on the Keurig and fill my reusable filter with coffee for me! 😉
I’ll be honest… I’ve tried lowering my voice and it doesn’t seem to work for me. Maybe because I am out-numbered and they are often paying more attention to one another than they are to me? I’m not sure. Maybe I am just not giving it enough time before I blow my top. I’ve never been accused of having too much patience. LOL
I love that you have your oldest trained to go for coffee. I must admit that I can no longer start my day without a BIG cup.
Regarding the yelling, I discovered that I yelled because I was frustrated that my children didn’t listen to me when I talked to them the first time. I had conditioned them to wait until I started yelling before they paid attention/obeyed. So, I started disciplining faster and more often. Now I throw somebody in time-out before they even know what’s going on. Also, I work harder to be sure I have their attention before I start talking about what I really need them to hear. For example, “KidfFirstName, please look at me.” When I see their eyes, I start talking. The yelling has all but quit. 🙂
Additionally, I’ve been trying to just relax more and to be sure their needs are met regarding play time, time with me, etc. God has really been teaching me to live more in the moment, to take note of the way their faces light up, to revel in the fact that we made it to the pool that day and that they’re LOVING IT… and so am I. Before, I feel like I just looked for things to occupy them so that I could work on my to-do list. God has made me realize that THEY (along with my husband) are at the top of my list, not the bottom.
You know, I think this is my problem. Maybe they are conditioned to wait until they think I mean business. Thanks for mentioning that. I do try to get them to look at me. I even point to my chin out of habit from when we were teaching Lira to speak. I also think I need to spend more one on one time with the children. I appreciate your encouragement very much.
I can definitely relate to #3! My son has a terrible habit (which no, I haven’t done much to break) of coming into our bedroom in the middle of the night to sleep until morning – and – he likes me to lie down beside his bed at nap. I’ve actually begun to enjoy the quiet – my own personal rest time. I need the rejuvenation so for now, I’m enjoying it. One day, he won’t nap at all!
I think I enjoy these nap times too. I love to watch him as he falls asleep and I think about how one day he will no longer want to snuggle with me. 🙁 I just feel guilty when I fall asleep because I know that there are 100 other things I could be doing.
WOW! What an awesome post! I think having your children look you in the eye when you speak to them – about serious matters – is very worthwhile. I need to print less too…and sleep more…and eat less too. Thanks for your inspiration…I know this is gonna be a terrific school year for all of you…Blessings as you prepare to Begin…again. How blessed we are to have a God of Second Chances…and Third…and Fourth too…XO
Amen. If God gave up on the first try, He would have abandoned me LONG ago. LOL
Your list is great. I’m trying to do less of some of those same things. I don’t have a laminator, and I think that’s a good thing. 🙂 And while I will be running around more in some ways, since my teen now has a job but does not have a car, we will have less overall commitments, and that’s a good “less” for me.
And the “clean less” is a big one, too. My kids are big, so they really ought to be doing a ton of the cleaning and such around here, but I struggle with finding a balance in giving them responsibilities but also still setting an example of serving. I’ll figure it out at some point!
Thank you for making me feel better, Jamie. I have needed to delegate chores to the children for quite a while, but I just keep pushing it off. Honestly… I just didn’t want to take the time to train them. That’s pathetic, right? Oh well, guess my lazy-less year will pay off in the future. 😉
Great List!
While I could “ditto” several things on your list of less-ness, #7 is a top priority here. I’ve been considering a bootcamp of sorts to kick off our school year.
Already been working on #8 — portion control has already made quite a difference.
Hope you have a great start next week!