Laundry Quandary
Posted by Rachel Balducci in Homemaking on Wednesday, October 08, 2008 3:43 PM
A few months ago, I adjusted the settings on my washing machine. I believe I was on some kind of green kick and decided to switch from washing with warm water and start using cold. It seemed to me that using cold water would save on energy, which would help me reduce the size of my carbon footprint, and possibly save on our energy bill as well.
Of course, washing with cold water seems less effective... READ MORE
Homemaking Compromise
Posted by Arwen Mosher in Homemaking on Wednesday, September 24, 2008 6:03 AM
I used to grocery shop with Camilla during the day, and I hated every second of it. I’d never enjoyed the task of grocery shopping, but once I added the job of keeping a little one happy on the trip, it turned grocery-shopping day into my most dreaded day of the week, by far.
Still, I kept at it for months, and this is why: my mom always did it. She grocery shopped by herself with kids in tow, every... READ MORE
Recycling ‘Stuff’
Posted by Lisa Hendey in Homemaking on Saturday, September 13, 2008 6:30 AM
Earlier this week, I spent three hours finding the floor in my seventeen year old’s room. Things had gotten a little precarious in there during the past few months so I set aside an afternoon to help him get organized.
The end result was a very clean and organized closet, drawers that actually open and close now, and three big stacks of “stuff” in the hallway.
One stack was for trash, another was... READ MORE
What I Don’t Do
Posted by Danielle Bean in Homemaking on Tuesday, September 09, 2008 12:04 PM
In our podcast last week, some of the other Faith & Family Live! bloggers and I took on the topic of moms who “do it all.”
Though we all agreed that no one in fact does “do it all” the myth persists that some moms do. The smart moms do it all, we think. Or maybe it’s the pretty ones? Or the rich ones? Or the virtuous ones? And how do they do it anyway?
In my own feeble effort to dispel the “do it... READ MORE
Kids Can Do Chores
Posted by Danielle Bean in Homemaking on Wednesday, September 03, 2008 2:05 PM
When we talked about chores on Monday I promised you some lists.
First, I’ll share my simple chore chart. I’ve never been much of one for charts, but I find that a little bit of organization keeps us on track throughout the school year. You can see my kids’ Monday-Friday chore assignments here.
This simple system ensures that the older kids pitch in with the necessary stuff (meals, laundry, clean... READ MORE
Chore War
Posted by Danielle Bean in Homemaking on Monday, September 01, 2008 7:38 AM
One of the effects of having a large family is that, if you’re not careful, your youngest kids can become totally spoiled. There is always someone available, it seems, who is willing to indulge a preschooler or cater to the whims of toddler.
In recent weeks, it has come to my attention that the younger kids have not been pulling their weight at chore time around here. It’s just so much easier, I have... READ MORE
Happily Hospitable?
Posted by Lisa Hendey in Homemaking on Saturday, August 23, 2008 12:04 PM
Tonight, we will be hosting a backyard barbecue for my mother in law, sister and brother in law and five year old nephew Jake. Jake and his mom and dad are visiting from Camarillo, and he loves to come over to our house and play with his big boy cousins.
Since the only extended family we have living in Fresno is my mother-in-law, these opportunities for family gatherings are much too rare. I would... READ MORE
Fire Extinguisher Safety
Posted by Lisa Hendey in Homemaking on Monday, August 18, 2008 11:35 AM
Last week, at our Parish Staff Meeting, we had the opportunity to play fireman. The expiration dates were up on some of the office fire extinguishers, so our head of maintenance took the opportunity to bring in a fire safety consultant to do an inservice on fire extinguishers. I have low “meeting tolerance” so I thought it was going to be boring, but I actually learned a great deal. Best of all,... READ MORE
Be Not Afraid
Posted by Danielle Bean in Homemaking on Monday, August 18, 2008 8:41 AM
I have a confession to make: I am afraid of paint. More specifically, I am afraid of kids and paint. Together.
Truth be told, what I fear most are the messes and the dining room destruction that tend to accompany painting times around here.
I have long admitted that I am not a crafty mom. I think being a crafty mom implies a certain level of ease with mess-making and I am just not there yet. Or ever,... READ MORE
Loving Jesus, Serving Others
Posted by Rachel Balducci in Homemaking on Thursday, August 14, 2008 6:11 PM
Cooking is a challenge for me. If you’ve known me longer than two minutes, you are already aware of this bit of my personal trivia. It’s not that I burn the food or give my family salmonella – it’s just very, very tough for me to decide what to cook, and then (when that overwhelming task is complete) to actually want to make the effort to cook it.
You can imagine, then, when the occasion arises to... READ MORE
