Eliminating Excuses

My kids have daily chores to do. Some day they may even have weekly ones.

One of my biggest challenges is that they can never remember what they are supposed to be doing, and so spend significant time going back to finish up missed steps, making ten minutes of chores take twenty, thirty or even more minutes to do.

I have tried many ways to help them, including master lists we check off afterwards, and chore packs that they wear on their bodies. The checklists were forever getting misplaced, and the chore packs bothered my sensory sensitive child, who then would remove (and therefore lose) it. The other difficulty I had, especially for one child, was an inability to work through the steps in a logical order. Do you know how difficult it is to wipe down a counter when you haven't reloaded the dishwasher yet?

I think we may have found a solution that works.

I have made detailed cleaning lists for each room. Each list is being taped inside a cupboard door of its designated room. That way they can just open the door, start at the top, and read and complete one step at a time. Voila!

The lists are being posted tonight as our printer was being ornery, but we have been test-driving the lists this week by putting the computer in the room with the list on the screen, and have had fabulous results.

P.S. I can't figure out how to post the lists in here, but if you would like a copy let me know!

Wednesday Wackies

Some times kids say the most hilarious things! I just had to share a couple from this afternoon.

The first one is a conversation I had with my son T.
I sent him in to the dollar store to grab 2 cans of diced tomatoes. He came back with 5.

Me: I thought you were getting 2 cans.
T: It's not my fault! You didn't give me clear directions. You told me to get 2 cans of diced tomatoes!

(I discovered later that the reason he wasn't clear is that he thought I wanted 2 big Costco-sized cans and they only had the regular size ones, so he wasn't sure how many he should get in that case!)

The second was between my friend C and her son J when I dropped my kids to their house:

J: Mom, where do T, N, and A live?
C: (told him our city name)
J: No, not WHERE do they live, what planet?
C: Earth
J: You mean,  they live on planet Earth, the same planet as us?
C: Yes, John, the same planet, Earth.
J: Really, Mom? Do they really live on same planet Earth?

So now you know, we are aliens who come from a planet where 2 and 5 mean the same thing!

Hope you all had a wacky day too!

Face Paint Fun

Amanda asked for face paint at her birthday party. My mum and sister very kindly picked some up, but then I forgot to use it.

Yesterday Amanda and Nicolas came to me asking for some, and I managed to oblige them. I am not artistic, so I am impressed with how well it turned out. I am sure the true artists are cringing but we had fun! LOL

Birthday Fun

Amanda turns 8 next week, and I got off easily for her party.
Instead of the typical little girl party where I had to entertain them with mind-numbing games she elected to have a BBQ with her friends and their families. Bonus - easy for me!

She had a Hello Kitty theme but I was so behind getting ready that there was no way I could get a Hello Kitty cake done. Instead, she let me off easily and we made rainbow cakes. In fact, I was so far behind, the cupcakes only got baked 6 hours before the party, which meant the icing knocked the top of the first cupcake I iced. The kids called it an icing cookie! After that, I piped the icing on and spread it VERY gently, and managed to keep the rest mostly intact.

Here is how our cupcakes looked:

One of the big advantages of a BBQ is that Michael does the cooking!

Lots of kids, lots of balls, which also meant lots of time digging balls off of the roof and out of neighbours' yards!

The birthday girl getting ready to blow out her candle (there was an "8" candle behind the sparklers).

Family Reunion Round-up

I am amazed at how fast the summer flies. So much for all my great plans to get lots of crafting done. So far I have done precisely... zero. Oops!

We did, however, spend a week on Cortes Island with Michael's family. It was especially fabulous to watch the kids connect with their cousins. The kids had lots of fun and enjoyed sailing, clam digging, fishing, shopping, and swimming.

Clam digging at Smelt Bay, right before the rain started pouring - the dads took the kids while the moms went shopping!

Enjoying a day on a sailboat exploring Desolation Sound

Christina and Ryan hanging out in the bow of the ship...

Not to be outdone by his wife, Drew takes his turn relaxing...

Dave and Cole on the boat

Matthew turned 10

The kids were excited to explore tidepools in the rubber boat (the tide was out, leaving a sandbar between this area and the rest of the bay).

Nicolas went crab-hunting, too

 Michael and I relaxing on the deck

 Arlene unwinds with a puzzle

The view from our deck

A father/son fishing trip was successful in bringing back dinner

Beautiful cousins

Fun in the USA

Yesterday we took a road trip. Well, Michael didn't - he stayed home and worked to pay for it! LOL But the rest of us packed up with friends and headed south for the day, our first trip in years.

We had a good though very long day. We hit Arby's for lunch (no one was impressed) then started into shopping. While I was in the first store, my friend came running in to tell me both boys doubled over in cramps then ran for the bathroom. Luckily, both boys were fine by the time I came out of the store, and other than reduced appetites, were fine the rest of the day. On second thoughts, maybe I should take them to Arby's more often - the reduced appetites were cheaper on my pocketbook. Just kidding! LOL

We were very smart in that we started with the furthest away store and worked our way home. It helped to have the trip back broken up into shorter segments as it made the car ride seem like nothing. We also found some good deals, and some things we needed but hadn't been able to find at home for whatever reasons.

By the time we got back to the border, our bill was high and it was after 11 at night. Felt very blessed to get a border guard who didn't make me pull over and pay GST or duty! We pulled in at home and the kids were so tired, they fell into bed without even saying good night to me! LOL

The funny of the day:
We passed an articulated bus, which fascinated all the kids, even the 24 year old, who shot a video of it. And Tanner's comment? "It even has seats!" ROFLOL He meant NEAT seats, or at least that's what he says now...

Seizing the Moment to Speak into Others' Lives

So often I pray for God to use me, then blindly stumble through the moments that come without even realizing He had a purpose until later. You know those thoughts, "I should have said..."
Well, this week God did use me and it wasn't until afterwards that I even realized it.

My husband and I plan for a weekly date night. It takes some effort and dedication to keep it up regularly, but it is well worth the positive benefits on our marriage. I strongly recommend a regular date night to all couples, even if it is only an hour away for a coffee or a walk through your neighbourhood. But I digress...

Late in our meal hubby slipped away to the bathroom. Our server approached me, asking when we were getting married, as she had heard the word "fiancee" and thought we were talking about us. When she realized we had been married sixteen years (suddenly I feel old!) she started asking me questions about what age we got married, what age I think is best, and how did we manage to stay married this long! It was such a blessing to be able to speak to her and explain what has made our marriage work (commitment and communication!) and that there are times when you don't feel the love, but that it will return if you keep working out the issues.

She walked away marvelling that it is ok to get angry at someone! It is sad that our TV and movie fantasy world has so set up people with the idea of "happily ever after" that we have young people who don't realize that real life doesn't work that way! What a pleasure to be the messenger encouraging her that successful relationships are based on work rather than romantic feelings.

Thank you God for the chance to speak into another's life. Praying for more opportunities to be used by Him!