Money Saving Monday: No Cleaning Lady here

We are making new plans to utilize untapped potential energy.

I am having surgery next week and then will be on crutches for a month so the kids are getting drafted!  We always say many hands makes light work!

I have asked them what  they prefer   

a) the same chores every week    

or

b) rotate chores each week

Both ideas have merit

SAME chores

-Become an expert on the chore & it doesn’t take as long to do

-Mom doesn’t have to keep up with who is doing what each week

-You KNOW what your chores are a little bit easier

ROTATE chores

-Let’s face it there are chores NOBODY wants—so this helps

-Boredom doesn’t set in quite so quickly(maybe)

-Everyone gets a chance at the easier chores

We will be trying a middle of the road approach.  Some chores will be assigned & not rotated.  These will have a set time/day to be done.  This will get the basics covered.  However the “yucky” chores will be passed around.  (ex changing the cat litter)  So everyone will have the joy of doing an unwanted chore every once in a while as a service to our family.

Here is the list (definitely a work in progress)

Daily Upkeep—everyone does these

Make Bed, Clothes in Basket, Brush Teeth, Toy pickup(zone)

Dishes—fix the meal & you don’t have to do dishes(yes!)

2X Weekly—kids rotate these

Sink, Toilets & Trash—two bathrooms,  Sweep Floor Upstairs(all hardwood),  Floor downstairs(tile & carpet)

Weekly—some assigned & some rotate

Wash whites,  Wash towels,  Vacuum upstairs—two bedrooms,  Personal Laundry,  Empty trashcans,  Mop Kitchen,  Clean tubs & mirrors,  Wash sheets

Daddy will be checking the zones for each kid after supper each night.  Today was amazing!  The kids pitched in and the house is so much cleaner & I did some but not a lot.  This solution keeps us from having to get a cleaning lady while mom is down & out!

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Finer Things Friday: New Year’s Bash!

Almost 20 years ago I married in to this crazy family/clan of people who LIKE to play games together—a lot.  Pre-marriage the game I played the most was solitaire.  So going to a New Year’s Eve party where all they do is play games and eat was umm… sorta overwhelming for a few years.  Now I wouldn’t miss it.
Changes over the years
There are more of us—like just over 40(28 of those are grandkids of varying ages)
The kids are getting married or bringing girlfriends/boyfriends
The aunt/uncles are older(& some still act like teenagers)
Sometimes extended family shows up

Traditions 

Grandma’s punch

Little kids playing

Two people taking pictures of each other

Nancy’s cheese ball

Big kids playing games

Dan’s sausage balls

Crackers/cheese/meat

Sweets & yummy stuff

Confetti at midnight(messy but fun!)

New Years’s cinnamon rolls--I am in charge of breakfast New Years morning—because as many who can stay the night.  So I am working on a huge batch of cinnamon rolls and the Sausage Egg Quiche is in the freezer.  We always have a SLOW morning & play games all New Year’s day too.  By the time we go home everyone is TIRED.  It is a blast though!

The recipe I am using is based on Pioneer Woman’s recipe.  I don’t use her frosting & I used white wheat flour.  Not much of a healthy improvement but there are things that cannot be changed!
Cinnamon Rolls(makes a huge batch!)
1 qt milk
1 cup oil
1 cup sugar
2 packages Active Dry Yeast
8 cups white wheat flour(plus 1 cup set aside)
1 tsp baking powder(heaping)
1 tsp baking soda(scant)
1 Tbsp salt
1/2 to 1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
cinnamon
Heat milk, oil & sugar until scalded(heat until just before it boils).  Turn off heat and leave to cool until lukewarm to warm—about an hour.  Sprinkle 2 packages of yeast in to milk mixture & let sit for a minute.  Gradually add 8 cups flour & stir.  Cover and let rise for at least an hour.  After hour, add one cup flour, baking powder, baking soda & salt.  Stir mixture together.  You can put this in the refrigerator(overnight or a day or two) at this point if you don’t have time to roll it out.   Just punch it down if it starts to overflow your pan.
Take half your dough & roll it out to form a rough rectangle.  This will be pretty thin.  Drizzle 1/4 to 1/2 cup melted butter over the dough.  Sprinkle 1/2 cup of sugar over dough followed by a generous sprinkling of cinnamon.  Starting on one of the long sides start to roll the dough in a neat line.  Keep the roll pretty tight as you go.  Pinch the seam to seal it.
Spread 1 tablespoon of melted butter in a foil cake or pie pan.  Cut the rolls about 3/4 to 1 inch thick & lay them in the buttered pans.  Repeat with the rest of the dough.  Let the rolls rise 20-30 minutes, then bake at 375 degrees until light golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.
Traditions in a family are important. 
They draw us together & keep us close. 
To me this is a truly finer thing.
To post your finer things go to Amy’s Finer Things
Weekend Hops

Wordless Wednesday: Sneak Attack

Oldest daughter vs youngest daughter

and

meanwhile

up on the deck

I love snow

Makes perfect bombs

Here they come!

Linked up at

Wordless Wednesday @ Beautiful Mess

Top 10 Things Homeschooled Children will Tell their Kids(mine anyway)

10.  My classroom was on the couch, at the table, outside, on my bed, on the deck under a sheet. . .

9.  PE = bowling, riding bikes, soccer, swim team

8.  My teacher had parent teacher conferences in the bathroom.

7.  I walked to school barefoot.  And if I was lucky I got to stay in my pjs all day.

6.  I played a games, dressed up and did my phonics worksheets at the same time.

5.  I cried in class & sometimes my teacher cried too.

4.  Field trips were really cool.

3.  Every summer at the library we would have scavenger hunts.

2.  I cut up a frog on the kitchen table.

1.  I had snow days in September & April.  YEAH!!

Hope you enjoyed this fun list!  What will your kids say about school many years from now?

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