Travel Ready

So last time we talked about the entryway/launch point of your home. If it's in order, that makes coming and going easier – routine being the key. This month we're tackling when we are gone from home. 'Tis the season, after all!

I don't know about you all, but there are days I feel like I live in the Mommy-van. So I'm going to share with you my secret to this stage of life...packing for being on the go! I just assume I may not be back for 24 hours. That never happens... but I'm ready for it.

Diaper bag: A diaper bag that is fully stocked and always in the van saves frustration when out with baby. Just grab the dirty stuff and take it in at the end of the day. Likewise, throw the restock items in your purse/tote on the way out the door. This gives you one less bag to carry coming and going.

Busy bags: Older kids have a busy bag for travel time. Crayons, activity books, books, flashcards, small travel games, cars. Go with what they like and you can buy yourself a few hours of peace! Stow under their seats or hanging on the side of the seat.

Trunk organizer: A trunk box keeps everything from rolling around. It can include car things like jumper cables, air compressor, folding shovel, flashlight, lantern/hazard flasher, and emergency radio. It also holds family needs like spare clothes, diapers, outdoor must-haves, and first aid kit (more on this another time). This is a great place for reusable grocery bags and baby carriers, too.

Summer/Winter: Each season has it's own needs. Stock the trunk appropriately. Summer: swim gear, caps, bug spray, sunscreen, water bottles. Winter: blankets, spare hats and gloves for everyone, sand, emergency food. When the seasons change...so do your carry-ons.

Garbage collection: My sister had a great idea – hang a grocery sack on the arm rests of the front seats. If I have a few minutes waiting in the vehicle, we will do a quick collection throughout the vehicle. Once a week, the whole bag gets tied up and tossed directly in the garbage cans outside. This sister was also smart in having a sweeping brush in the van for quickly ridding the van of all the tracked-in junk! Loved that idea!

Driver's needs: A bin or center console in the front seat can contain all the things you may be searching for. Paper, pen, calculator, stamps, lotion, snacks, cough drops, chargers, coupons, lint roller, hairbrush, sunglasses, etc. Again, keep those things from floating around and cluttering the vehicle... and being a distraction while driving.

Use bags: I can confess I am a bag lady...if you're not, disregard the following. If each activity has it's own bag, you are ready to roll without switching things around or carrying loose things. In the vehicle this means it is easy to take things back in the house when you get back without searching for lost items.

A little preparation goes a long way. Peace of mind comes when you know you are ready for whatever while you are away from home. My motto is “I can always get it from the car at home, but can't run in the house when away in the car.”

~As seen in Dec 2013 MOPS Newsletter [Mama pulling double duty]

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Are We Coming or Going?

Welcome to the “blur” stage of life. Oftentimes I don't know if I'm coming or going. I can tell you one thing... the entryway of our house can look like a hurricane was coming and going, rather than our kids! A few years ago it got to the point where this was really bothering me – like visual nails on the chalkboard! So ... I decided the entryway needed an overhaul!

Here's few tips I found for taming the entryway of your home:

• A place for everything. That's the key. For us this looks like crates for shoes, a closet rod for coats, a shelf & individual bins for little things (hats, gloves, Bible, books and busy bag), hooks for bags and backpack.
• Don't loose the vital stuff: Keys, wallet, purse. If they are put on hooks/shelves at the door... there is no ransacking the house to find them. Priceless sanity saver!
• Mudroom mentality: Mud happens. Wet happens. Make sure the kiddos know where those things go. For us this is “everything off on the rug, boots on the boot tray (contains wetness), wet stuff gets walked to the bathroom for parents to hang up. In extreme cases...kid goes in shower. Our setup works well with a straight – hard-floor – path to the bathroom.
• Hard floors: Carpet is your enemy in the entryway. It will get dirty, no doubts there. Save yourself the angst and make it an easy-clean surface. Rugs are a low-cost fix if you already have carpet there.
• Pets' place: This is a great place for pet things if you have room. A muddy dog can go straight to the kennel and not track through the house. Water dish sloshing can be wiped up along with the day's footprints.
• Everything gets put away When we come in, everyone is responsible for their own things. Coats and shoes, backpacks and lunches. Oh yeah...and all that PAPER that comes home with us. Coats get hung (step stool close by), hats/gloves/etc in the kid's bin, backpacks on hook, lunch and papers from school go to the kitchen counter for Mom. The goal is NOTHING ON THE FLOOR!
• Training is everything: "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." This verse in Proverbs has deep spiritual meaning...but it is also very practical. If the kids are enabled and equipped to help you keep up on these things it will make life much easier for the whole family. Every now and then, mine need a refresher on this. Yes, I could just pick up after them... but that doesn't help them grow in responsibility. Call 'em back if they drop and dash; you'll thank yourself later for this little battle now.

Remember clutter equals stress. Get your launch point organized so you feel more prepared for your day and have fewer surprises when you are on your way out!

~As read in Nov 2013 MOPS Newsletter [Mama Pulling Double Duty]

Organizing Family ~ Saving Time and Money

My bio: mom to four rowdy boys, one huge dog, and six chickens. As a recovering perfectionist, I have a driven heart for practical organizing that make life with kids fun and manageable.

Okay, so beyond that little blurb -- why do I love being organized? Well, this stage of life can be -- let's face it -- a blur. I want to enjoy it, not be stressed over everything that needs done and what and where and on and on and on...

I have been a perfectionist for most of my life. As a teenager, this saw me with many physical symptoms of the stress I put myself under. I didn't know the Lord, didn't have peace in my heart. All I had was "I must do this -- if I don't, I'm a failure." I tied my significance to my success or failure at things. I was a top student, but no one knew how much each day took me deeper into depression. Now if that won't ruin the heart of a teenage girl!

As a mama -- it can ruin me just as readily. The difference is that now I am in a position of influence -- I am raising my kids (by the grace of God and with huge help from my husband, of course). Now, the enemy will use that tendency to want to be perfect to undermine my peace, faith, hope, love and joy. We all know that is his plan -- to steel from us our peace and destroy the heart of our family. If he does that, he eliminates the chance for our family to honor God!

When it comes to curbing those meltdowns of being an overwhelmed & underrested mama, three things make the difference: prayer, rest, and organization.

PRAYER: Friends, this is at the top of the list for a reason. Prayer is the single most powerful thing we can do...and yet it is often a last resort. Why? For me, I see my pride as the obstacle. It goes back to thinking I need to earn my significance on my own works. Wrong. I have a Father who loved me before I was even a life on this earth. I have a Savior who intercedes at the throne of Heaven for me. I have Spirit of hope that lives in me and guides me... if I can just be still long enough to listen. My Ladies Bible study group is starting a new term on this topic, so expect to hear more soon.

REST: Have you ever read Psalm 23? You know, the one about that good shepherd?What a beautiful metaphorical picture of Jesus! There is one verse I always breezed over until a friend shared it at work one day. "He makes me lie down in green pastures." I was not aware of this, but did you know that sheep are a little dense? They just keep meandering about until exhausted. They are spooked by rushing waters, but yet won't rest in even the most perfect place. The shepherd has to lead them there and make them rest.

Do you rest? I mean really take time to rest? Or are you waiting to be forced to rest? I admit I am a little like those dense sheep. It takes influenza to make me rest for a few days. It takes sick kids or a dead vehicle to keep me home. My body wants to rest, but my "I have to do it myself" voice says keep going.

I have started to rearrange things to bring rest into my life:

• I only leave the house on Sunday (church), Tuesday (MOPS), and Thursday (errands) whenever possible. The other days, excepting being the mommy-van school bus, are for catching up at home and having some down time. A mentor of mine once said, "Rest when they rest [or are at school]. The chores will be there when the kids are...time to rest won't. Time to rest is fleeting." 
• I also have quiet time in the morning before doing anything else. Just me and God's Word. It means not going back to bed right after feeding baby at 5...but hey, that lady in Proverbs 31 "rises while it is still night," right? Seems to be working for her.
• I have made going to church and a Bible study group a priority. This is rest for my spirit. I can go go go all day, but if I am not being refreshed in God...I will feel empty and overwhelmed.
• I am getting braver about accepting or asking for help with the kids. "Honey, I really need a haircut. Tonight's schedule is clear...I am going if you can watch the kids." I used to wait until desperation set in (6 months between cuts kind of desperation), then beg. Now I can remember taking care of me is important enough to ask for help.
• If it works with family and budget, take a little retreat. Our church offers some for individuals and families throughout the year. There are great local seminars and national conferences to do. I just try to remember garbage in, garbage out. Make it worth your time and uplifting to your heart. Trust me, the kids, spouse, and home will survive a few days without you. I have learned to not have grand expectations of them rushing me at the door with remorse for taking me for granted. Nor will the house be as neat as I left it. Those just set me up for disappointment. But I will be refreshed and actually have had the opportunity to miss them!
• Do something that makes you feel healthy. Even exercise can be rest when it gives you time alone and recharges your batteries. You better believe I am looking forward to getting back to my fitness club when this year's frenzy of multiple schools passes.
• Get organized and you get more time/money with which to rest.

ORGANIZATION:
So, there you have it. More time and money. Less stress. More rest and peace. Living the calling God has for you. That is why being organized is a blessing to you and your household. For a while...the next few blog posts (barring random acts of homestead inspiration) are going to dig into some specific strategies that make things a lot smoother for us. It is my hope they help you out too friends! I have shared many of these with my MOPS group, and now it's a joy to share them with you, as well.