Home-ally

Last in my "series" of Resolution posts... Not sure what else to call it, since every other post had "-ally" to end the word, I've made up my own word:

Home-ally: :)- I recently read a series by fellow blogger, Lindsey, over at Passionate Homemaking, which discussed the importance of balancing priorities in the home. (Part 1 and Part 2) These two articles convicted me of several things... 1) I was beginning to judge other people's lifestyles, thinking that they weren't making the best choices for their families. I started being prideful and proud of my decisions, which is not the type of person Christ calls me to be, nor does it help me open doors to have nutrition conversations with people. 2) I was focusing too much on researching/internet-ing nutrition, and not playing with my children enough. 3) I was stressing too much over menus and shopping, and not enjoying my role in the home. I started to obsess over ever meal, every box in the pantry, every everything! This wasn't healthy... and it definitely didn't honor my husband (seeing as how I was going a little nutso) and it was starting to get in the way of my relationship with my family. So, my resolution is to make sure that I don't become so obsessed and consumed by this need to be uber healthy, and make sure that our family is flourishing with my decisions, not being weighed down by them. Plus, my wonderful hubby has said that he will definitely help keep me "in line" with this resolution, lol. (Think he wasn't a fan of me going crazy???)

Another part will be keeping up with our chore list. My sweet hubby knew I was feeling overwhelmed with trying to keep the kids happy, the house cleaned, the food cooked, and myself and baby #3 healthy, so a couple weeks ago, he suggested that I make a chore chart of all the things I would like to accomplish each week, then select several to do each day. So, I set up my spreadsheet, color coated each day, set my cleaning goals, and voila! A working chore chart :). We have the chart on the fridge in a plastic cover, so I can highlight/dry erase the chores I was able to finish each day, which allows the hubby to know how he can help- without even asking. It has been great for the past few weeks; the house is staying much cleaner, and I'm having more quality time with the kids throughout the day. Plus, Nathaniel is able to get involved, and I don't feel like I'm nagging him to do things after working hard all day. So, I'm hoping that even with the addition of the new one coming in a couple months, we will be able to stick with our chore chart and keep our house tidy.