calling all moms!
i am probably the most unorganized, fly by the seat of my pant's mom i know.
it's a good thing {most of the time} because i can easily go with the flow and handle change well and so can my kids, which i like.
BUT i need some {better} organization and structure really bad. with another one on the way i need to get with the program!
here are the areas i need to focus on:
-chore schedule. griff does do chores but they are random chores at random times of the day and random days of the week. i want a more set schedule with this kind of thing.
-couponing. i need to get a good coupon situation going. i don't want to go store to store and do all the price matching, etc. too much work for me. i have NO time for that. what websites do you use for coupon help? or printable coupons? any other tips and tricks??
-discipline. time out doesn't work with griff. he couldn't care less about it. he bugs his brother constantly and straight up doesn't listen.
-mommy chores. laundry on certain day's or just do it when it needs to be done? wash sheets and towels on certain day's or just whenever like i do it?
-any other organization tips or ideas?
-any really good parenting books out there?
also, are you super organized or fly by the seat of your pants like me? do tell!
i am afraid the way i am doing things won't work forever.
7 comments:
Hools you're cute. I think you're an awesome mom. And even though everyone is different, flying by the seat of your pants is Alright with me. You don't want to be Too organized, too ocd, and become boring- or feel like a huge 'failure' when you aren't keeping up with your 'schedule'. Mommy chores- do them when they need to be done.
As far as Griff's chores- make a chart- do like a Mon/Wed/Fri thing. I bet you could google and find one online. Print it out and stick it on the fridge!
Wal Mart price matches Anybody! Gather all the coupons/ads you get in the mail and bring em all to Wal Mart. Why bother running to a million places to get all the deals? Wal Mart will honor ALL of them. Sometimes you don't even need the ad with you.
Discipline is hard. Is there anything he Hates doing? Or Hates going without? Try not only time out- but try taking away Trucks for a day- or no sweets for a day. Then the next time you can say "you don't wanna go without your trucks again do you?" Or take one away for a week. Try time out somewhere else like the shower or bathtub or somewhere he doesn't like.
I think you're a great mom. Go with your natural God-given instincts. I think when you read too many books and get too crazy in that area is when you lose your natural ability to just be a parent. Keep doing what you're doing Hools. You have AWESOME kids. So cute. OH and by the way I LOVE that old picture of you and Kaso kissing! haha way cute! Love you!! Miss you guys tons! xoxo
Hi! I think being organized is different for everyone! For some people, being completely scheduled is too stressful. The only thing I really always do is my grocery shopping on Mondays and Emma's Library class on Tuesdays. I try not to let anything get in the way of those, but other then that, I just do laundry/cleaning when I can.
I only shop one grocery store. Get pretty much all my coupons from the Sunday Paper. Check out thegrocerygame.com. You can choose which store you want, you get the first 3 or 4 weeks free as a trial, and she does the couponing/add match for you. Then if the coupon is online, she lets you know where to get it. What is nice about her sight, is she will tell you the final price of an item. This week I got noodles for $.29 so I bought as many boxes as I had coupons for. I shop Fry's and on the website she changes the list for Fry's on Sunday. It is different for each store. If you read the rules for each store, she will tell you when the new list goes up. Good Luck!
Flexibility is great, so if that works for you and you Love it stick with something where you can stay that way. Set yourself up for success. If you think something doesn't sound like you, then it probably won't work. I've tried a few different things and have found it's best for me to break my chores down to a daily basis. I used to try and do all the cleaning on one day...not good because if something came up, or baby is fussy, then it doesn't work and I feel horrible for the day. If you want, I can tell you what I do each day. The best part: if I doesn't get done, I do it on my free day/flexible day (thursday) or if I'm ambitious I do it on Saturday...Or just do it the next week. This has helped me feel accomplished every single day and gives me guilt-free time for myself. I love it.
We do a chore chart and she enjoys it. I try to make it fun (not stressful). It's all about her being accountable. I encourage and that's it. Also, we've found when we follow through the first time we say something to the kids and they don't listen, we don't repeat it and the consequence follows. This helps them listen the first time and they know we are serious.
As far as couponing, I tried for 6 months and was intense so I could really get a feel for it and decide if it was for me, and I've found it's a lot of time, can be stressful when first learning, and I didn't need most of the "processed" foods that go on sale. The one thing I do coupon is toiletries. SO worth it! I haven't had to buy any toiletries for 4-6 months (maybe longer). When I find I need to stock up on something I browse the ads and websites, but that about it. I only shop at Walmart (although their produce isn't beautiful, but it's always a great price) and I price match there, and our store accepts ALL other stores coupons. It's so convenient!
Hope that helps. Have fun getting new ideas implemented into your routine! I'm wondering how we're going to do with 3 also...kinda crazy!
so i don't know how much help i'll be but here goes :)
-chores for kiddos. we definitely are NOT strict on this. i have krew help me with whatever little things come up daily (unloading/reloading the dishwasher, wiping down the bathroom counter, cleaning his bedroom, windexing the windows, cleaning out the car, dusting the furniture, switching the laundry from the washer to dryer, etc...). at this point he's so willing to help i see no need in a strict schedule.
-couponing - i definitely don't do this. i probably should but it just seems too time consuming.
-discipline - we do the time out thing and it works well for us... no help on that one either :(
-mommy chores - oh my... i need BIG TIME help with this one. i'm still not great at cleaning, but i have found that doing what kira suggested works best for me. just one small chore a day. that way it only takes a little bit of time. i have a friend who sets her timer for 30 minutes and cleans like crazy until the timer beeps. then she's done cleaning for the day. i liked that idea too. i think i'll probably have to try that.
-laundry is the ONE thing i keep up on. we do about 3 loads ever 4-5 days. that way it stays under control and doesn't ever get crazy.
i'm definitely fly by the seat of my pants. there are certain things i know i need to get done on certain days, but besides that i definitely don't schedule or plan. too stressful for me!
So much great advice has already been shared... I don't have much to add. Except there is an organizational/cleaning expert who writes books: Don Aslett. I haven't read his stuff, but I know some people love it.
And I just recently learned from a friend about a discipline system I think sounds effective. They have a place on the fridge to display a card for each child. There are three types of cards -- green (which is for good behavior), yellow (which is when there is acting out/disobedience/given a warning), and red (which means the child has behaved poorly/refuses to listen or obey). Each child begins each day with a green. As the day progresses, the child gets to keep the green for doing chores, listening, sharing, etc. If the child does something to deserve a time out, the card changes to yellow and a warning or time out is given. If he follows through and restores what he did wrong, he can earn back the green. Or if he continues to cause problems, at some point (like 3 strikes) he will hit red for the day (and he can't get yellow or green back once he hits red). My friend also has corresponding tickets, so the kids can earn tickets for doing good things when the card is green, but if it's yellow, they can't earn any tickets. And if it's red, they lose tickets. The tickets are used at the end of each week/month towards something in a prize box. Anything you choose (or the kids choose, like a wanted item at the store or a piece of candy) can be in the prize box.
That was kinda hard to explain; I hope it made some sense. I think it sounds like a pretty great idea. And I'm sure you could figure out a way to adjust it to fit your needs or be your style.
I am also a really flexible, fly by the seat of my pants mom! I have tried to stick to chore/discipline schedules and routines, but they always fail when something more fun comes up!
We have been trying a lot of new discipline tactics lately, because time outs just don't do much for my kids. I typed up an "if/then" chart recently...if (kid's name) does this _____ (fill in the blank...talks back, disobeys, doesn't eat dinner), then ________ (fill in the blank...they get toys taken away, time out in bed for long period of time, early bedtime, etc.). Basically, it's a chart to tell me what to do in almost every situation that calls for discipline so that I'll stay consistent. I wrote it when I wasn't upset, so the punishment is rational instead of out of anger, and I don't have to think of a good punishment on the spot.
I love the book Creative Correction by Lisa Welchel. I haven't read it i a couple of years, but she has lots of great creative punishment ideas other than the standard time out/spankings. Example - if a kid won't sit still in his chair at dinner, you take the chair away and make them stand to eat (a punishment I use in my house every now and then).
As for chores, I never stick to anything for long. I have been trying to have my kids do more chores now that they are getting older (6.5 & 5 years). That is helpful not having to do everything by myself. I also make them do chores as a punishment when they are misbehaving. If they are fighting with each other and not playing nicely, I start giving out chores. It helps me out, and at the same time I dont' have to listen to them fight!
I did a lot of couponing last year. It saved me a lot of $, but takes a lot of time. We are eating a lot healthier this year, and most of the coupons are for junk food. I haven't done it in months. I just try to buy healthier foods when they're on sale instead.
Good luck!
yeah- I'm terrible at all of those things! No help here. We have the same problem with Bryton- he does not listen! He hates time out, but it doesn't seem to stop him from going and doing it again. Drives me nuts!
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