{life lab} the chore wheel

I hate chore charts and reward systems. I do not believe that I should pay the kids to help out in their own house and luckily they are very willing to help when I ask - but it takes too much nagging energy to keep up with 3 kids, a stupidly huge old house, 2 dogs, 2 cats, 5 mice, 4 chickens, a crab and fish etc... you get the idea. 
We have tried several things and nothing works or feels right for very long. The best approach we have come up with is the chore wheel. On it, I have listed the very minimum of daily maintenance chores that need to be done. Each kid has a clothes pin that rotates around the wheel each day. The idea is that we work on these chores first thing in the morning before we go anywhere or start working on other projects. 
Things get tricky around here because we have a very full (+fun) schedule. If we can keep these basics going as habit we are never with out clothes or come home to a completely trashed kitchen. Of course, some days it does not all happen because we are rushed out the door and might not come home until evening. That is ok. It is a guideline. 
My kids get do pocket money just for being a part of the family. I also offer them ways to earn extra money here and there with extra jobs (cleaning out the silverware drawer etc.) And sometimes they just have to help clean all day. 
The chore wheel changes every now and then but it has served as a great visual and hands-on tool for helping us all keep a home care rhythm. 
I would love to hear about how your family shares the work load. Leave a message in the comments...
(a picture of our command station in progress. we have a calendar, our family values, the chore wheel, a season wheel, a family portrait and a bit of mail art from a friend. sometimes my to-do list is on post it notes on the wall too. i like that because it feels good to take them down and toss them when i am done). in the same room we have a chalk board wall and a big cork board.)

mail and children :: ideas and resources

Do your children love getting and sending mail? Mine have had a deep love of the postal system since they were old enough to understand what the mailman was bringing everyday. 

In fact, my daughter even went as a ballerina-mail lady one Halloween, because ballerinas and postal workers were the two coolest jobs she could think of. 

We have been having some mail time fun around here recently, so I thought I would share some of the different ways we have had played with the mail over the years. 

Reading and writing letters is particularly useful for reluctant writers, but more importantly, the open ended and imaginative qualities are spectacular. You can create any world or character with letters and maps. The possibilities are endless. 

Here are 7 ways to have fun with the mail.

{add your own suggestions in the comments!}


1. Participate in a nature exchange
Nature exchanges can be amazingly fun. Basically, you pair with someone from a different geographical region and swap a box full of nature items from your area. Leaves, shells, seed pods, rocks and pressed flowers are among the most popular bits. You can also send a little note, a regional folk tale, photo of your family, and handmade treats. 

I have done several of these and love them. You can sign up different places on line, but I have had the best luck organizing them one-on-one. You might send out a request to some of the Facebook groups you belong to or just email someone you "know" online to ask if they would be interested. 

I am considering running one through Mama Scout this spring, so make sure you are signed up for my newsletter and Facebook page to get the information. 

2. Put a mailbox in the house (and the yard)
One of the best things we ever did was install a real mailbox in our house (the photograph at the top of the page). It is positioned upstairs in the landing between all the bedrooms and receives mail year round. We have also had an outdoor one for  children to leave messages to each other and the bigger outside world. 

These are magic making. And so easy you can do it NOW. 

And of course, be sure to use those mailboxes. I have had long conversations with my children through the mail. Something about writing the letters makes the communication different, more thoughtful and deeper. 

3. Make your own address labels, stamps, supplies and more.
This is so easy and obvious, but you would be surprised at how custom stickers and stamps add to the excitement. I just buy Avery labels in different sizes and make each kid their own return labels with fun fonts and pictures. You can also make stickers that have warnings or funny sayings on them. And of course, just coloring and drawing on the labels and turning them into stickers and stamps is fun too. 

We love making our envelopes from magazine pages. I use this template because it is little and cute. 

4. See what you can mail 
Can you mail a soda bottle? A hula hoop? A ball? A Flip Flop? Try and see! While you are at the post office asking and finagling, set up a tour for you and your friends. This classic field trip is always educational and interesting. 


5. Start a stamp collection 
Maybe it is only natural that our love of mail turned one kid into a budding philatelist. My daughter has a super cool collection handed down from her Great Grandfather. She is interested in the images and where the stamps are from instead of building a complete collection. She recently received this book and loves the creative ways it suggests collecting. 

6. Sign up for Mariposa Forest letter service
There are all sorts of subscription services for kids (magazines, craft kits...) but this is by far my very favorite. 

When you join,  your child receives biweekly letters from the forest creatures of Mariposa Forest. The letters include a gorgeous photograph and maybe a even a map. My kids were instantly smitten when we first tried a few dispatches from the forest and begged to get it year round (which they will for Christmas). 

This is one of the best gifts I can think of this year. It is imaginative, lasts all year and supports creative women (which is huge in my book!)


7. Get a copy of JRR Tolkien's book Letters From Father Christmas (immediately!).
I saw this recommended by Lori at Project-Based Homeschooling and fell in love as soon as it arrived. 

For over 20 years, Tolkien wrote his children a yearly letter Father Christmas. They included delicate drawings, hand-painted stamps, and hilarious tales of all the mischief happening at the North Pole. There are characters and languages you might now have know were up there. I promise, you will love this book. It is pure magic and a testament of the power of letters between parents and children. It might even spark your own creative project with your children. 

{review + giveaway + project} Fed Up with Frenzy by Susan Sachs Lipman

"Life's textures, and ultimately memories, are woven from the many small acts and micro rituals that come together, moment by moment, to add up to our days, weeks, and ultimately lifetimes."

Susan Sachs Lipman

I was so happy to be given the opportunity to review Susan Lipman's book, Fed Up with Frenzy: Slow Parenting in a Fast-Moving World. Just the title speaks to something deep with in many of us; a desire to slow down, appreciate the moment and feel present in our family life. 

Slowing down the pace of your life is simple but not easy. I loved this book because it is filled with concrete ways to engage as a family. 

The book begins and ends with chapters outlining the problems and many practical solutions. The bulk of the book is filled with an encyclopedic collection of ideas for slow activities, slow games, slow crafts, slow cooking, slow travel, slow celebrations and more. There are no photographs or image tutorials, so you can imagine how much is packed into over 350 pages.

Lipman has extensive scouting experience and that is reflected in many of the activities and songs. I particularly liked the catalog of  call and response songs and childhood hand clapping chants that I have long forgotten. Also, many of the playground games will be introduced to my children because of this book. 

This would be a great gift to yourself for your parenting bookshelf. You can browse through it when you need an idea for something simple and slow to do with your children. Most of the projects and activities are classic and use things you already have around your house. If you would like to win a copy, click down to the bottom for more information. 

{Project}

One of the micro rituals she suggests is to have interesting conversations at dinner, not just the logistical ones (who is driving who to soccer, who is picking up dinner...). We actually did something similar in my Mama Scout Family e-Lab, so I thought I would share that here. We made conversation starter jars. 

You can print out 25 conversation starters here and just cut them up, put them in a jar (or an old gum container like we used) and pull one out at dinner (or in the car or at bedtime). 

It might seem silly or weird, but you might be amazed. My kids love this and are always up for the question of the night. When we "do a question," the mood of the table instantly changes from whiny complaining or bathroom talk to thoughtful, engaged, real conversation. 

________________________________________________

Would you like to win a copy of this book? If so, leave a comment with a conversation prompt that you would add to your jar. I will pick a winner November 21st.
Good Luck!

The luck winner is:
Toni at This Simple Life!

before and after

Living in a 100 year old house is hard and inspiring and sometimes fun. Like when we finally got our upstairs bathroom completed. I can not wait to get a plant, some great new towels and candles.

The space to the left is going to be a big closet that hooks together the bath and a bedroom, hopefully making what people will think is the master bedroom (that was a constant question we had when out house was for sale).

when my children decided to built a cave in the backyard

The young do not know enough to be prudent, and therefore they attempt the impossible - and achieve it, generation after generation. 

Pearl Buck

This project took many hours on several days last week.


These kids worked together and got filthy. They chatted and dreamed together and would then pop in to let me know what was changed and what new ideas were brewing.


Plans were made and revised, work loads were divvied up, and observations were shared (how the shovel worked best, what sort of bugs they were running into, how the little artifacts (midden) they uncovered got there). At one point, Indian brave costumes were made and worn.


We even learned about sewage systems when we hit 2 different pipes - one new (PVC) and one old (clay).


Some days we do really typical things; like take a science class, write some poetry  or play math games on a hundreds chart.


But the days where we learn the very most are when we are just digging holes.


This post is my reminder to say YES and let my kids fully pursue their projects, as often as possible and with whatever support they need. 


If you are a family of free range learners - I would love to hear your stories of how you support open ended, dirty projects. Just leave a story or link in the comments.

astronaut training

Part of astronaught training, I told him, was to learn to make a summer fruit torte. He agreed that it was very important and took the job like a commander.

if you give a girl a sewing machine

she will squirrel away in the sewing room, only to emerge a hour or so later bearing a gift, the kind a mom loves....

"I made this for you, Mommy...a ballerina cat. I used some of your linen, I hope that is ok."

"Of course that's ok.... thank you."

 Such is the joy of a having a daughter.

cleaning

After scrubbing my floors, all 19th century style, I was thinking.... isn't it weird that we pay for domestic help  and then pay to go to the gym to get exercise?

map crazy

I have had this post idea in my queue for a while, but after reading Design Mom's piece here, I had to share. 

I am map crazy! I love maps and globes. I wrap nearly all my presents in old maps, use them for origami, book covers, crafts and could literally lose myself in their details as if they were a good book.

Last year, while living in another house temporarily, I used them as wallpaper in the small public bathroom. I had already peeled off some horrible 80's country blue and mauve floral paper and had a pretty rough wall left. So, I went to my stash, found maps for the places I loved to go or dreamed of going to and stuck them on the wall with wallpaper glue. The whole project took an hour or so and looked pretty cool. It was not a perfect job because I knew it was not permanent - but I loved the colors and the daily map study (if you know what I mean). In fact, I loved it so much, I would do it again. In a heartbeat. On a huge wall. But it would also do great in a small hallway or closet. It makes a big impact for little time or money investment.

What fast, huge impact project have you done in your home that you can not believe you ever lived without? (my second most favorite project includes chalkboard paint).