"For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little" ~Isaiah 28:9-10
"...this is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing..." ~Isaiah 29:12
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Posts
Rebecca,
ReplyDeletethanks for posting this. I love your blog! Just this weekend I read something you had written aloud to my husband. I appreciate how biblically centered everything you write is.
I have had a question to ask you for weeks and I hope it's okay that I ask. Your home is just beautiful, so neat and clean. Yet, at the same time you seem to have biblical priorities so I imagine you are spending quality time with your children and not cleaning all the time.;) May I ask how you manage to maintain order and aesthetic beauty but without it becoming more important than time spent with the children. This is a struggle of mine. Thanks for any thoughts you have on the subject.
Blessings,
Kim
p.s. I think you might be friends with some folks that we attend church with? Her name is Mary Beth. I don't know them well so I am forgetting her husband's name at the moment.
precious and amen!
ReplyDeleteHi Kimberly,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your comments. Great to have you here. How neat that you go to church with Dan and Mary Beth. Small world!
About my house. Well, it's not always clean. It's not. But as they say, the house is always cleaner on the other side. : )
In fact, I was just sharing with some friends this weekend that since our little Hailey arrived I haven't felt like I've been able to quite get on top of things. Last week the kitchen never seemed to get clean and the meals were "fly by the seat of my skirt." That is just the way it is sometimes. We're enjoying a new baby. Some things can wait.
That being said, I do like a neat home. And I think there have been a few things that have helped me.
Most importantly, the girls and I work together as a team. We all work together, then we all rest and play together. It's not just me cleaning up after everyone while the kids are off playing. We work and earn our rest if that makes sense. The girls can work hard.
For example, I needed to do some cooking today so that I would have some things pre-prepped for my husband's lunches this week. While I cooked, the girls knocked out several loads of laundry, cleaned their bathroom, their bedroom, swept the floor, vacuumed, did the dishes etc. and they were telling me I was working too hard and should go sit down. In addition to house chores, the girls have daily animal chores as well.
We started teaching the kids to work at a young age and now they can really zip a house clean. Today we were all rushing so we could go and swim at our cousin's house. Another day it might be because they are looking forward to having me finish a book I'm reading aloud. We work and earn our rest.
Our girls may be older than your little ones (11,9,6,3 and 5 weeks) so it may be the season in which you are carrying more of the housekeeping yourself. But things will get easier if they start to pitch in at a young age.
Another thing, I am a minimilist. This can sometimes backfire, but I figure the less I have, the less I have to manage. This applies to everything from cooking utensils to clothing. It just saves time and energy. : )
Hi Christy! Nice to see you. : )
Blessings!
Rebecca
I too have been wondering the same thing as Kimberly. Thank you for answering her question. I have three little ones and I feel like the house is never clean. Maybe it's just that they are all little right now? Seeing your beautiful home in your pictures is inspiration to be more diligent in my housework.
ReplyDeleteOnce again, love your pictures. It's fun to see a glimpse into your daily life.
Hello Ladies ~
ReplyDeleteThis is Liz Rebecca's sister and next door neighbor. Living next
door I get a real view of what goes on next door, and let me just
say for the record, that those girls can and DO work each day. Even
little Lydia does her best to please Mama.
She has said before that her house looked a lot different when she
had less children and they were little. I have 3 little ones and
they are starting to really be helpful (the 7 & 5 year old) with
our daily tasks. I think it just takes time and eventually you will
see fruit. I know Mrs. Duggar has said that life was much harder
when she had 5 little ones, but now that she has 17 things are
smooth and orderly (go figure).
The main idea is to do everything as a family (work and play) and
have as much fun as can be had doing it.
Liz
Thanks for adding that Liz. Liz's family and our family have lived next door to each other- in 2 locations- for over 8 years. : )
ReplyDeleteI also appreciate your mentioning the Duggars. They have some wonderful ideas for families as they get larger- including the buddy system which we use in various times (ex. Faith is in charge of dressing Lydia and doing her pony tails in the morning; in the store I will assign a buddy to each of the bigger girls who they will hold hands with etc.).
All these things make us feel like a team. Everyone is dearly needed here! : )
Love, RJ
Hi Serena!
ReplyDeleteYes, if our children get used to working at a young age they will be a huge help later. It's a large investment now to train them in this avenue, but it will pay off. I am working on a post now about chore time and little ones. Hope you'll enjoy it. : )
Also ladies, Serena has a GREAT BOOK GIVE AWAY right now. You won't want to miss it. So go see her through the link at the head of her comment "modernjune31".
Blessings to you as you lead little hearts home!
Rebecca