Tuesday, November 14, 2017

Inspector McChecker Lives Here

This is one of my favorite parts of the day... all those blond bedheads chowing down on breakfast while I grab the Bible story book for devotions. 


Anyway, it seems like tips and tricks have been a bit of a theme around here lately.  Sharing what works is a fabulous part of hearing what others have gleaned from their daily lives.  I love a good tip from others "in the trenches!"

I had a bit of a revelation while we were at our cabin on vacation in August.  Lots of kids go to summer camp and many of those camps do cabin inspections.  Tidy barrack are expected and somehow the kids survive such "cruel treatment" and come back from camp, having had the time of their lives.  

Our vacation involves six people living in two rustic rooms for 8 days.  The clutter disaster that explodes in a matter of minutes after our arrival has the power to greatly subtract from Mommy's and everyone's vacation.  

This mama got to thinking and cheerfully told the Blossoms, "We're gonna run this place like summer camp."  

Enter the morning and nightly inspections.  

I explained to the girlies that they were each responsible for keeping their sleeping bags and duffel bags tidy.  If inspection was passed every day, they could earn a prize.  The Blossoms took to this amazingly well, even eagerly asking me if I'd inspected yet and if they'd passed.  Sometimes, I'd have to send someone back to re-tidy up their space, but overall, what a success it was!  

Unfortunately, the girlies were slightly disappointed when they realized they couldn't get a (real) (live) sheep as a prize, but they did eventually settle for some new Littlest Pet Shop figures upon the completion of the goal.  

The end result:
Our cabin was SO TIDY and I was SO SURPRISED.

Ya'll, we simply do not expect enough of our children.

Then, we came home and Mama thought, "Why can't we use this for bedrooms?"  I helped the Blossoms with an initial, overwhelming cleanup.

The Blossoms are now working on a chart for earning some little garden statues that they want for spring time.  

I'll admit, now that we are four months into this "thang," I only remember to inspect about 50-75% of the time, but they often remind me.  However, it has helped their rooms to stay mostly tidy.  

Two things surprised me about this new "regulation:"

#1 - The Rugged Mountain Man noticed and commented that it made such a difference in the overall feel and look of our house.  There's no longer junk bursting out of their rooms.  It helps with the "calm" at night and in the morning.

#2 - The older Blossoms commented that it was SO MUCH NICER to go to bed in a clean room.  It was a relief and helped the next day to start off better for them.  

Right before I plop myself in the schoolroom to kick off our school day, I take a gander through the bedrooms.  At bedtime, we continue to try to start the bedtime process early enough to allow for a quick-clean and then, an inspection.  

It's something that's really helping us and I sure am glad for that.  

Go ahead, mama, I'm giving you permission to run your place like summer camp... or the military.  I'm pretty sure your kids will survive just like mine did.

Dominique

#mamalifehack