Phew! Did you get all your reading done this week??? I did…but just barely! Three chapters in one week was A LOT (especially with all the craziness we’ve had going on around our house this week)!
Chapter 1: Beds & Clutter
Bed-making is a habit I want to instill in my children. Just like getting dressed for the day, making your bed and picking up your room makes you feel better. With that being said, I struggle to be consistent with ALL THREE of the aforementioned tasks. In the winter, our bed could have gone days without being made (as much as I’m ashamed to admit it). It doesn’t really bode well for enforcing Big Brother to make his bed when ours is rarely made! Our recent bedroom makeover has definitely helped with motivating me to make our bed and keep the room clutter-free. I want it to look as good as it did the moment we finished it. So with my newfound desire for made-beds, we recently placed the expectation on Big Brother to make his bed every morning (and tidy it after rest time). I have been pleasantly surprised with his ability to complete this task (and the pride he takes in how his bed is made).
Needless to say, I thought this chapter was hilarious and encouraging. Yes, making beds and picking up rooms should be a given for all children, but let’s face it…it just isn’t most of the time. It made me feel better to know that I am not alone in the battle of low expectations for our kids. :)
I also loved the idea of “the daily dollar” that Kay mentions in Chapter 1, especially for older kids. I’m happy with our current allowance/commission system so we’re going to stick with what we have for now…and $1/day is just a little much for our little ones (although you could easily do a dime or quarter instead).
Chapter 2: Kitchen Patrol
The overall premise of this chapter is to assign a child one night a week for which he/she is responsible for the evening meal: Menu planning, shopping, and cooking (aka Heaven for Mom). Although our children are far too young to do any tasks like this independently, it did encourage me to start involving them more in the cooking process. Big Brother is such a picky eater that it also helped me realize that this might be a perfect way to encourage him to venture past waffles, peanut butter & honey sandwiches, and quesadillas for the food that he voluntarily consumes.
Your assignment for next week: Read chapters 4, 5 & 6!
What did you think about Chapters 1-3? Leave a comment or link up your post below!
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I really enjoyed this. Some of the tasks weren’t totally applicable to our family, but the ideas and strategies were great. She’s really made me think about how I handle doing things for my kids.
I love having children help prepare meals from the planning, shopping, to preparing and clean up. There are so many many things they learn. Not to mention the relationship that is built!
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I’m really enjoying this book so far. I love how she “keeps it real.” It helps to make this book encouraging instead of an, “I could never do it that well” kind of read. I have tried to set the standard for my 2.5 yr old to make his bed each morning, but had really slacked off on enforcing it. The first chapter inspired me to get back at it, and to let him do it himself, imperfections and all! :)
This book is very hard to put down. Our 5 1/2 year old daughter is an only child, so yes she may be a little spoiled in some ways but I have always encouraged her independence. She makes her bed, straightens her playroom, helps me dust and wash dishes. She also likes to make her own sandwiches and helps her Dad and I work in the yard. She enjoys helping now but I know that will one day change. This book encourages consistency and independence with kids. It also encourages experimenting with kids on ways that may help to encourgage them to want to help around the house.
I’m really loving this book! I cringed when she mentioned a child saying, “That’s YOUR job!” I have heard that a time or two! My kids are a little on the young side (6, 4, 2) but it’s the perfect time to start instilling these routines/habits in them.
What a neat book! I’ll be adding it to my list of reads! :-)
this is very interesting! I like this idea of a mom book club!!
I must have missed the beginning of this, or the first post I guess I should say.
We are working on starting a kids book club on our site, we do lots of book reviews, for all ages and genres!
Oh, I also wanted to let you know that we have a folder in our blog email that is just to store your email newsletters with all of your fun activities:) I have 4 children, ages: 2,5,8 and 19, and a grandbaby, so we are always trying to find new activities that don’t require video games and tv;p You always have the best ideas and posts!
Thanks so much for all you do here! We really appreciate it!!
Wow! You know my mom raised me has an entitled child and when she see me raise my children she tells me that I am to hard on them…. so this week I read the 3 chapters to her. She stills says I am to hard on them…lol… oh well I can’t wait to read the next 3 chapters
My children are 3 and 4. Reading this book has helped me identify where I may be doing too much for them. Setting high expectations, even at a young age will only help to make them more confident and self-assured. Since I started reading it they both now make their own beds, with a little guidance from me. They now set and clear the table for every meal. And they both are doing a lot better at picking up their toys, with reminders, of course. I like the dollar a day idea, but I think a dollar is too much for this age. I’m thinking maybe a quarter a day might work better for us. I especially like the meal planning idea and am working that into my homeschooling curriculum for my soon to be kindergartener. Great book!!