I cannot begin to tell you how many emails I get each day from other busy mothers wondering how on earth I do so many things and still manage to be a mother of four. I love to answer all of my emails, but it can be very time consuming, and since I am always having to share a few of my "secrets" (LOL!), I thought it would be a lot easier to just go ahead and share them with all of my blog readers! Just as a disclaimer, I do want to say this...I am by NO MEANS perfect. I struggle, I stress, I cry, I get down, I feel overwhelmed, and mostly...I am human. People seem to think that everything around here is just perfect...of course it may look that way on my blog, because I am obviously not going to post pictures of my kids throwing a temper tantrum or pictures of my dirty bathroom. The items I am sharing are merely tips and ideas that may or may not work for you... they are simply things that have made life more easy and more productive for me. I am struggling each day just as the rest of you to meet all the demands of life...constantly trying to juggle family, home, work and self. Here is how I like to run my life...
First and foremost, my family is my #1 priority. The world could fall apart tomorrow, and all of this nonsense that fills our time could lose significance in an instant. But lets face it, being a mommy and wife is difficult. Our job doesn't end at 5:00...it doesn't end at all! When it comes to my children, nothing comes before them. I have a lot of extra things going on, but if it ever gets to a point where it interferes with my relationship with my children (& husband), I will be the first to let it go. Here at our house, we are firm beievers in a schedule. Babies are in bed at 7pm, the older two are in bed at 8pm. David & I like to watch TV together after they are all in bed, and we very rarely go to sleep later than 10pm. We all wake up around 6:30am. I love to start the day early, even though it can be hard sometimes. Especially in the winter...I hate waking up in the dark! Believe or not, for the most part, my babies (4 months & 16months) sleep through the night for that long...because it is their schedule! After getting Grace off to school, I try to do everything first thing in the morning...house cleaning, laundry, bathing & dressing the kids. If we don't do it first thing, then it just doesn't happen! I also like to cook in the crock pot a lot...if I get something put together in the morning, I don't have to stop my "projects" later in the day to go cook. By the time the morning work is done, it is time for the babies to take their nap...this is when I get my creative time. I have to admit that over the years, mostly out of necessity, I have become a very fast scrapbooker. It doesn't take me long to create a layout. I know that it is "now or never" and the babies are going to 
need me soon. After nap time, it is lunch and chores. I have created a little chore chart for each of the kids that hangs on the fridge (the graphics are by Shabby Princess). I have posted a new photo album on the side bar of my blog with a blank chore chart that you can print off and personalize to give it a try. I think that it is super important for kids (even little kids) to learn to work. We tend to push our children to do things today (like exceling at sports, music & academics), but we often forget that what they really need to do, is to learn how to earn. If they can kick a ball, they can help! My kids help me a lot. Grace and Russ transfer laundry from the washer to the dryer and from the dryer to the living room so I can fold it. Russell empties all of the bathroom garbages into our kitchen garbage can. He rolls up the rugs and puts them on the front porch and then gets out our little mini vacuum and cleans up all of the crumbs on the hardwood floors. He is only 3, but very able. I have found that when I give him jobs, he is a better kid. He feels useful and helpful. Grace helps with everything...holding & feeding babies, cleaning up toys, cleaning bedrooms, shaking rugs, putting laundry away. I just praise them a lot, and it seems that they want to do more. Grace will even go through phases where she wants to organize drawers. Even though she is only five, I just give her full reign. She empties out the bathroom drawers, fills the sink with dish soap and water, wipes out the drawer and organizes the toothbrushes, hair elastics etc. It is amazing what they can do if you just give them the opportunity! And besides that fact that it is good for them, it really does help me out! I have my hands so full...many hands make for light work. Now, truth be told, we do clean & straighten our house every day, but it doesn't always look that way. Lily empties drawers and tears things apart and the other kids are constantly getting out new things to do, but we try our best to keep things under control. I think that it is all we can do...to try our best!
When it comes to scrapbooking, I have a lot on my plate. I usually spend the rest of my afternoon in and out of my studio creating or doing things for The Scrap Coop (babies permitting of course). People tend to think that scrapbooking for a job would be the funnest thing on earth... and it is, but when I work for companies, I do treat it like a job. I am always very serious about deadlines and I always do everything I can to showcase the product and to have the companies best interest in mind, not my own. But when evening comes, I am outta there! Evening is for family. We eat dinner together, bathe the kids, practice violin, read books etc. I try not to do any scrapbooking at night unless I have a very tight deadline. Family and sleep in the evening make for a more productive work day.
As for food... it takes some thought to feed a family of 6, and I do like to cook and bake. We live on a farm, so there isn't a grocery store around the block, and even if there was, I would have to load up four
kids and take them all with me! So, I try to plan ahead. I only go grocery shopping about 2 times a month (my husband picks up stuff like milk etc. in between), so I always try to plan a menu. I have a little menu planner for the month that I fill out and then create a shopping list so that I have everything together. I am also posting my little menu planner and shopping list in the "mommy stuff" photo album with the chore charts if you would like a copy.
I do stay home a lot though...and this is something that isn't really possible for a lot of people, but I love it. I love accomplishing things and to be productive, and if you spend all of your time goofing around and running around, you just aren't going to be able to get so much done. I sometimes get annoyed when people get jealous of the opportunities I have had and the things I have earned doing something as silly as scrapbooking... I am not out to the movies every weekend or shopping and eating out every night. I am working, I am learning. I think that each of us has the ability to do anything we want to do. What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail? I wanted to be able to take better photos of my family, I set a goal and taught myself. I wanted to be able to use Photoshop. I taught myself. I wanted to learn to sew better, so I did. I wanted to learn more about computers, so I worked at it. I wanted to scrapbook for manufacturers, so I worked hard and set goals. It happened for me. I want to be a good mother...I do my best every day, and I think (I hope) that I am doing a good job. I want to be a good cook, so I practice and I try. We can do anything we want to do, but we have to be motivated. I have had people tell me "You're just so talented". No, I am not talented. I have to work at everything. I just like to work hard. We all need a break in life, but I say Work Hard, Play Hard. Immersing yourself in learning and doing new things is reward in itself.
I am feeling a little bit like a Motivational Speaker right now...one that lives in a van, down by the river (a little Chris Farley humor for any of you who didn't get that). I just feel that as women, we should empower ourselves. We can do anything that we want to do. There are struggles every day. I think that with the right attitude, we can arise from the downfalls that face us each day, and that we can definitely take on our roles as mothers and wives and still find time in our lives to learn and achieve and grow ourself. Like I said before, there are days when I just feel overwhelmed. I think it happens to all of us. I am trying each day to better myself, and to be the best me I can be. We can accomplish anything, but we need to remember that most important things in life are the loved ones that surround us. I am always looking for new ways to keep my life organized and ideas for being a better parent and wife. If any of you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them! Post a comment here on my blog. If you have your own blog, I challenge you to share...What tips do you have for parenting? What makes life easier for you? How do you run your household? When do you find time for yourself? What are things that you would like to learn to do? What have you already learned to do? I think that I could learn from each of you...
