Tag: routine

Setting Up a Routine

Tracy

Though I shared our new routine with you, I also know that a routine never cuts-and-pastes into someone else’s life. My routine will not be yours. So I thought I’d share my process, how I ended up creating our routine, in hopes that it might help someone create her own.

I mentioned at the start of my last post that we have struggled for a few months finding our groove, that I had a few attempted and failed schedule attempts before getting this one together. Here’s how the trial and error process takes shape for me.

1. Examine what I’m already doing.  We all settle into routines naturally; we tend to do the same things the same way and at relatively the same time everyday.  My first step to creating a new routine is to look at what I’m already doing, whether that is an intentional plan or something I’ve haphazardly meandered into. Also, I try to keep in mind the natural rhythms of my children, particularly Littlest. A major change in his sleeping pattern would throw us all off; I would be more prone to succeed if I planned around what he was naturally doing—when did he get sleepy, when was he ready to play, when did he need to eat. My windows of time would have to fit within his patterns.

If I did need to make a major change in his patterns (and I have in the past with my other kids), I would try to do it in increments and phases, inching him into a new routine 15 minutes at a time. (And even our current routine took a little training, a few mornings of fussing before he decided to conform.)

2. Evaluate what I want to see changed. This step is huge. I look at my current routine and try to figure out what it is that I don’t like. What’s not working for us? What is driving me crazy? What is ruining the flow of our day?

For instance, one thing I didn’t like about our old routine was the late start in the mornings. We were starting school at 10 a.m., when Littlest went down for his nap.  I didn’t like that it was that late before I managed a shower. I didn’t like that we didn’t have enough time to finish everything before lunch. I didn’t like that the kids were complaining about starting school because I had to stop them in the middle of what they were playing. The 10 a.m. had to change.

3. Establish a realistic plan. Though I didn’t like starting school at 10 a.m., I also knew that 8 a.m. was unrealistic. So I set our goal for a 9 a.m. start. Then I had to work through what needed to change to make 9 a reality. How early did I need to get up?

Again, I evaluated what would be realistic. Five in the morning was just not going to happen. I tried it a few mornings and utterly failed. But 6 a.m. I could do. I then listed what things I wanted to have accomplished before school and then listed how much time each of those tasks normally takes me. This helped me to make sure that what I was cramming into our morning routine would actually fit within that three hour window between when I woke up and when I wanted school to start.

I went through these same steps for each segment of my day. I examined, evaluated, and then established a routine for our school time. I did the same for my afternoon time and housework.

Also, I kept our new schedule flexible for the first couple of days. I scribbled notes on top of my schedule: what worked well, what was too tight, what would probably work with practice, etc. I adjusted and tried again the next day, tweaking each day and helping the kids understand the expectations.

After about a week of performing a schedule with little to no changes, I knew I had something that would work. And then I worked to make it routine. What’s routine? When we no longer have to consult the schedule to know what’s next. Everything flows.

Because every family is different, a routine really does have to flow from the rhythms of your own life. You will never be able to pull a schedule off the internet and make it your own. There are certain events that are must for every family, and then there are just certain rituals that make your family what it is, certain ways that make you distinctly you. Why change that?

Loving your family is knowing them—knowing what works, knowing what you want to accomplish together, knowing what will stretch them (in a good way) and what will be an exercise in defeat.

How do you find the natural patterns and rhythms of your family and create a routine?

Finally—a new 2013 routine

Tracy

Finally, and it definitely feels like finally, we are getting into a groove around here. After many failed attempts at setting up a schedule for myself and our homeschool, I think I’ve finally settled into something that will work—as in, we’ve been able to successfully stick with this one for a couple of weeks now!

Being flexible is a definite strength of mine, but my strength can also be my weakness. I can be so flexible that I have no shape or structure at all. And I hate when that happens. So after a year and a half of being flexible through late pregnancy, giving birth, and adjusting to life with baby #3, “finally” is no overstatement.

Welcome to a day in our lives…

6 a.m. My alarm goes off, and I stumble out of bed (or try to shortly thereafter). I pour my cup of coffee with cream and an 1/8 cup of sugar, and yes! It’s finally caffeinated coffee! I get out my Bible study journal, Bible, and prayer box. Sipping on my coffee, I pray and then journal through a book of the Bible (finishing Hebrews right now).

7 -7:15  I finish my study time and begin getting dressed for exercising.

7:15-7:45ish I exercise. FINALLY, I’ve found a time and workout to fit my “life with littles” day. Awhile back I’d purchased these “10 minute solution” exercise videos that offer five 10 minute segments. I can piece together a workout to fit the time I have. My goal is for 30 minutes, but if life happens and duty calls I can easily adjust my workout. Love it!

8-9 Everyone is up by now. The kids make their beds and feed the dog before eating breakfast.  I empty the dishwasher and begin making breakfast for everyone and a bottle for Littlest. I’ve also started filling one sink with some soapy water. My intention was that the kids could throw their oatmeal bowls into the water to keep the oatmeal from crusting before I could wash the dishes, but Middlest has decided that she loves washing dishes. More power to her! I got her a stool and let her have at it. She rinses in the soapy water and puts them in the dish washer.

Once the kids finish breakfast, they dress and begin morning chores. Oldest wipes the bathroom counters down; Middlest sweeps the crumbs from under the table with a small broom and dust pan. I finish feeding Littlest his oatmeal and apple sauce mixture and scarf down a few nourishing bites for myself. We say “good-bye” to Daddy, and I inspect chores.

9 – 9:45  At 9 the alarm sounds for school and the kids are learning to be ready for that sound. I start them off with what we call their “pocket pages,” independent work pages that I have placed in their notebooks at the beginning of the week. I explain directions for the different pages, and they get to work. Middlest works at her desk in the schoolroom. I’ve moved Oldest to his bedroom with a timer for this particular task; he seems to work much better without the distraction of his little sister. Littlest goes to his playpen for a little independent time before his morning nap. And I get a shower, dress, do my hair and make-up, etc.

The “alone” time they have is not really that long, long enough for me to shower and dress (about 15 min. or so) and then I check to see how everyone is doing. I leave them to finish my hair and make-up but am available for questions during that time.

9:45-10:20 We all meet back up in the schoolroom (except Littlest—he’s napping now) for  “Assembly Time.” During this time, we do our pledge, sing the national anthem, and go over our calendar. We review our Bible memory work, our timeline of history, our history flashcards, and our science facts. Each day I’ve been adding just a couple of minutes of science, reading a short paragraph and going over our memory work (more on that to come). Depending on time, we may sing a few songs together as well.

10:20-10:40 Oldest sets to work on his phonics flashcards, new history facts, and his spelling list. I work with Middlest with her reading and math.

10:40-11:00ish Middlest chooses an activity (playdo, shape puzzles, or a computer program) while I work with Oldest. After several months, she is doing MUCH better at not interrupting us during this time. She will curl up in my lap to hear the story that Oldest is reading or join us to see what new math concept he’s learning; I allow her to come and go as she wants as long as she doesn’t distract. Oldest and I work on his reading and language concepts, then transition to math. For reading, he only reads the A Beka reader if I don’t have anything else for him to read. Otherwise, he will read a title from our Tapestry plans or read the Bible story that is part of our Tapestry lesson for the week.

11-ish to noon This time is approximate because there are days when Oldest needs a little more time from me to understand a new concept or to work on problem areas. But around 11 or 11:15 we usually finish up, and we all begin Tapestry together. Littlest will sometimes join us around this time as well. During this time, we work on maps, lapbooking, or read our history titles from Tapestry.

We finish up around noon or 12:15 everyday. It feels so good! I make lunch, the kids play, we eat, the kids play, I finish up my chores and feed Littlest. We have a little play time together, and then the youngest two go down for naps. Oldest begins his quiet time, and I either finish my tasks or have an hour or so for computer work, blogging, etc.

4:30-10:30  I begin supper prep and our evening routine begins. Bedtime is the one aspect of my routine that I really need to work on. 10:30 is my goal but one I rarely meet right now. I’ll be honest that sometimes it’s 11 or 12 before I make it to bed. And yes, that makes the next day much more difficult. I am working on this.

But to have the day running so smoothly is a huge, HUGE blessing. {Sigh of relief}

So what adjustments have you made half-way through the year? Are there any finally‘s that you are rejoicing over?

Back-to-Homeschool Routine

Tracy2 Comments on Back-to-Homeschool Routine

It’s finally here! After a two-week break to get my affairs in order, we are ready for Back-to-Homeschool. (Actually the kids have been ready—very ready. But I’ve insisted on my break.) And thus, a back-to-homeschool routine. Which means, among other things, back-to-early mornings.

We’ve been very casual learners this summer: starting around mid-morning or whenever I finally get things in order, working through topics with only a skeleton of a lesson plan. It’s been very enjoyable—loving summer, loving learning, and best of all, loving on Littlest. But it is time to bring back some structure. I can feel it, and I can sense that the kids need it, too. But oh! Those early mornings are the worst.

Thankfully, I do have Littlest, who insists on eating at 5 a.m. every morning. So the first step has been to stay up after I finish the early morning feeding. And the first half of the first step is to get to bed a little earlier.

To achieve all of these steps and half-steps, I’ve turned to my ipod alarms. I figured out that I can customize any number of alarms on particular days and label those alarms with a name. I currently have six alarms set to go off each weekday:

5 a.m.—Pray

7:15 a.m.—Shower

9 a.m.—School Begins

2:30 p.m.—Exercise

4:30 p.m.—Take pills

10:30 p.m.—Bedtime

5 a.m.—Pray 

Labeling this alarm convicts me when I consider hitting the snooze. It’s not just my time to wake up (if Littlest hasn’t already done that job for me); it’s my time to meet with God. I start with prayer time rather than Bible study for a number of reasons but primarily because I know that if I need to feed Littlest first, I can still pray while I do that. No excuses = greater chance for success. After I finish feeding, I continue with my Bible study and a cup of coffee (decaf, but hey, maybe I can fool my body into thinking it’s the real thing).

Once I finish my prayer and Bible study, I then get to work answering emails, setting up any posts for my Facebook page, and blogging. I can usually produce 2-3 blog posts in about an hour (reviews take a little longer); and I try very hard to schedule my posts in advance.

7:15 a.m.—Shower

Before this alarm actually goes off, I’m fervently praying that the kids don’t wake up. If they do, I make breakfast and push my shower just a little bit later. If not, I like to get my shower out of the way before the day erupts. This time also includes getting dressed, doing my hair, putting on make-up, etc.

9 a.m.—School Begins 

I am a stickler for this start time during the school year. My mom was a stickler for starting on time back when I was homeschooled, and it made college so much easier. During the summer, anything goes. But now it’s time to get in gear. {Sigh}

2:30 p.m.—Exercise

I have found that I can be most successful at including this into my routine if I do it in the afternoons with the kids. I’ve been reviewing Family Time Fitness (stay-tuned for the details coming soon!) and literally exercising WITH the kids. Otherwise, the rest of the day tends to crowd out this good-intention. The alarm is for accountability. The kids know it’s coming, and when the alarm goes off, there’s no more procrastinating.

4:30—Take Pills

Nothing exciting here, folks. I have certain pills I have to take before I eat supper, and I never remember them. This has helped me immensely. It also signals the beginning of dinner prep. Littlest comes to the rescue again here, as well. There’s no room to procrastinate. He eats at 5:00, so if dinner is not prepped and/or in the oven, we eat about an hour later than normal (if there is a normal at this stage in life).

10:30—Bedtime

Littlest used to take his last feeding at 11:00, which started a really bad habit of staying up way too late. Even after he dropped this feeding, I still stayed up way past what I should have. The evening really just gets away from me. This alarm helps me to shut the day down at a half-way decent time. And it is a source of accountability as well; when my husband hears the alarm, he helps me by insisting that I start preparing for bed.

 

So that’s it, folks. My new routine, and the tips and tricks to make it happen. (1) Set lots of alarms; (2) get a five month old who wants to eat every 3 hours!

 
I’d love to know what makes things move at your house. Leave me a comment with your tips for setting up a routine.

Homeschooling with Baby

Tracy1 Comment on Homeschooling with Baby

My favorite blogs are the ones who get honest about what doesn’t go right in a school day. The beautiful pictures and brilliant ideas are inspiring, but it’s always nice to know what’s going on behind stage and in the wings—what the camera did NOT capture. Since we’ve added an adorable new person to our routine, I thought it might be advisable to show you just what our homeschool looks like right now and how we’re managing.

First, I’m struggling to get a morning routine going right now, so school starts whenever I get to it and often no earlier than 10 a.m. Littlest is sleeping for good stretches through the night but not reliably all the way through the night, which means his morning feeding times cannot be set in a schedule. That also means my breakfast, shower, and morning chores routine is not set either. All that translates into a very unpredictable morning schedule.

When we do begin, Littlest is either starting a feeding or will be starting one soon, and as I’ve mentioned before, I prefer to take care of that on the couch rather than in the school room. Consequently, school is more often than not at the kitchen table or in the living room. While the baby impatiently waits his turn, I gather the work pages, readers, flashcards, crayons and anything else we’ll be using and bring it all to the table. I read directions and hand out assignments, then take my place on the couch.

I have brought back the timer, which is on my ipod and convenient for me. Setting the timer for 10-15 minutes per activity keeps me from having to nag and keeps them accountable even when I am not right over their shoulder. When they have a question or need a new set of directions read to them, the kids run their papers over  to the couch, and we look at them together. Right now, we’re only tackling phonics and math on most days, even though I really want to get back to our geography. Our un-routine mornings keep thwarting those efforts.

Our latest attempt at geography (notice Mr. Not-so-happy in the background)

Some days, Littlest will eat his fill and then quietly take a nap during the rest of our school time. Other days, he’s up for the extent, either watching us all from his vibrating chair or fussing his burps out over my shoulder. We usually finish up by about lunch time; and though I could tackle geography after lunch, I’m usually very ready to have a few moments relatively (very relatively) to myself.

My Happy Face
My Not-so-happy Face

Beyond that, I’m merely trying to keep up with laundry and to remember to defrost what I need for dinner. Then, there’s blogging: my mental exercise to be sure that I can still form a complete sentence. And that’s the “new normal” right now. I’ve also taken advantage of every free trial offer computer school that I can find: Reading Eggs, Time4Learning, and now Reflex math (which I totally love, by the way).

It’s not perfect or ideal; it’s not even what I’d necessarily prefer. But it’s learning, and I’m so grateful to have us all learning to learn together.