Happy homemaking.

In December I resigned from my job as a city planner to come home to raise our daughter full-time. I can't tell you how much joy this has brought me and how grateful I am for this season. Being home has reduced the stress in our family, big time, has allowed me to experience so many of Nora's firsts that I would have missed out on and has given me the time to explore some ways to make income from home (more on that to come). However, while I wouldn't change my life for anything, being home all day, being your own boss and having a to-do list that never seems to end can be overwhelming.

Below is a repost from a blog I have been following for sometime. It has been SO HELPFUL to me in figuring out my daily priorities and to help create a peaceful and joyful home, although I have a loooong way to go. But in the words of a wise man, "baby steps, baby steps...".

Here's a summary of Lindsay's "Tips for Maintaining a Simple Home":

1. Keep your relationship with the Lord first and rise early.

May the Joy of the Lord be your strength! (Nehemiah 8:9-12).

Eliminate physical clutter. More importantly, eliminate spiritual clutter. ~D.H. Mondfleur

2. Keep your priorities in the right place. Maintain regular date nights & family nights.

This helps keeps priorities in the right place. Relationships are first! When I keep this in balance, by Gods grace, everything else falls into place.

3. Take time to rest.

Acknowledge Sunday as the Lord’s appointed day of rest. Take time to be a family and enjoy each other’s company! If you can take regular prayer retreats to just get away for a few hours, or a whole day, it does wonders for maintaining a God-centered perspective in your calling.

4. Maintain a right perspective of the home.

What is the purpose of your home? My purpose is to maintain a peaceful restful home. I want it to be a haven for my family and those I welcome in hospitality. This provides me good Biblical motivation to keep it maintained in an orderly fashion. Simplifying allows for more time to focus on relationships with your family and others.

A good home must be made, not bought.
Joyce Maynard

5. Have an annual/bi-annual re-haul of your home.

When my home is organized and simple, there is peace. My goal is to have a place for everything and everything in its place as much as possible. More stuff means more things to maintain, clean, organize, break and replace! At the beginning of every year, I progressively work through each room in our home and thoroughly de-clutter. Be thorough! Be aggressive! Once you do this, each following year becomes easier!

6. Complete a daily to-do list (but keep it flexible!).

Every night before I retire, I try to compile a brief list of tasks for the next day. This helps me plan in advance and get a good start on the next day. Writing it down helps me sleep better! My list is never more than five items in length. Keep it manageable, especially if you have children around.

7. Hold a weekly family planning meeting.

This was a habit developed when I was growing up. Every Sunday evening, our family would gather in the living room to discuss our schedules for the weeks, transportation needs, etc. Now, we and I take a few moments each Sunday evening and sync our schedules for the week. Helps keep us organized and communicating well.

8. Develop Morning & Evening routines.

Having a simple list of morning responsibilities helps kick start the day. My list includes: Prepare breakfast, think ahead and make dinner preparations, fill up water bottle, clean kitchen, etc. After dinner I complete the following tasks: clean up kitchen, quick house pick up, make quick meal preparations for the next day (pull out anything from the freezer, soak something, etc), and finally make a to-do list for the next day.

9. Make a regular schedule for cleaning/house maintenance.

How can you peacefully maintain housecleaning? Map out a simple schedule for your home maintenance. One load of laundry a day, bathrooms on Tuesday, Kitchen on Wednesday, or whatever method suits you. Write it out and place it in a visible spot that you view most frequently.

10. Work quickly.

It seems basic but it is important to set your mind to a task and stick to it! Whatever you hand finds to do, do it with all your might! (Eccl. 9:10)

11. Conquer your distraction.

We all have them. Too much of anything can be a bad thing. Too much computer, phone, email or even reading. My weakness is too much computer time and God graciously is working on me by removing my computer all together. Ephesians 5:16 says, “Make the most of your time for the days are evil.”

12. Make a simple schedule for your days activities.

Having a simple schedule is very beneficial but not completely necessary. Rather than mapping out hour by hour how your day will transpire, work around a model of “themes” focuses for each day of the week. This gives more freedom to not get overly consumed with my to-do list as it is much more simplified.

For example:

Mondays: Organizing for the week, Finish laundry (if necessary)
Wednesdays: Housecleaning
Thursdays: Baking Day.
Fridays: Errands.
Saturdays: Laundry day.

I hope this is helpful. I know it has been a great list to revisit when life seems out of balance or when I'm taking on more than God has given me the grace to do. Happy homemaking!