The Purge

The Purge.

I'm SO Not talking about the movie... sick...

I'm talking about what happens in our home every spring and fall.

I had my checklists, charts, graphs, pictures, bullet points, schedule... haha just kidding... kinda...

You're thinking What the heck is she talking about?!?

I'M SO TIERED OKAY!

The Purge.

We start with everyone's clothes. I tally up how many pieces everyone has then I make my lists of what items are needed. Usually spring and summer things are on sale at the end of summer such as well as swim wear and summer shoes. 

It's a great time to get things for next season!

I scored a new suit for Alex for $9 at Walmart.

We're going to try some shoe places for summer shoes for next year.

Wha happens when you let the kids label their own bins without supervision... 

Next day we go through winter clothes and the closet that we store things in. I, again, tally what everyone has and needs and re consider how things are organized. I usually rearrange furniture, purchase some new organizing pieces, or install some new hooks and shelves. With a large family you continually need to do this year after year. People move in, people move out, new babies enter stage left, family flow and function changes.

The final day is tallying school supplies and re organizing any bins or baskets that store things. Decoration changes usually happens this day! Here's some pics of the final products :)

Entry Way

For our shoes. So tired of piles of shoes everywhere.
Hoping to get those hanging dividers to place in here.

Backpacks, vests, and sweatshirts.
We're building a separate place for jackets and snow pants.

Dining Room

Added a buffet table. We can't seem to fit food and everyones plates and cups on the table anymore. 

Kitchen

Still trying to find a new place for my bulk bins so I can place plants on that shelf. 

Yes we eat that many eggs...

As you can see we eat mostly canned food and bulk goods.

My new chalkboards my girls gave me and our medicine cabinet. 

Office/Guest Room

Games, Gift Wrap, and family library or reference books.

School supplies, school books and craft supplies

I have a few more things left to clean and organize before I'm done (is it ever really done?), but I'm in a good place to start our school year this coming Tuesday.

This guy is ready to go to the gun range...  or maybe a nap?

I had a very sweet moment with the Lord this morning. Exhausted, running on coffee and pure "mission mode" mentality and sleepless adrenalin (if that's a thing? - I guess it is in mom world), I have been up until 1:00am and up at 5:45am, I had my quiet time with Jesus and my Bible and coffee. Then I was reading some article on feminism. After this I made an egg bake and jumped in the shower. With 30 minutes left until my egg bake was done, I woke up one of my girls to get her in the shower.

I was brushing her hair - the one that has a LOT OF THICK CURLY HAIR - and I tapped into "mission mode". Hurry, get this done, quickly, let's go!

Then the Lord stopped me. He reminded me of when I make Challah bread for our Shabbat and how I spend that time kneading my bread and praying for my family. I pray over our food, over my husband, over my kids, over my home, over my church family, all while I knead those loaves of Challah. It takes a while, and it's strenuous work, but I turned it into a time I look forward to each week.

The Lord reminded me of the article I read about feminism. He was pouring into my heart a renewed love and passion for my children, my husband, my home, and my church family. I was overwhelmed with patience and joy and excitement to provide a safe, organized, comfortable place for these growing characters, these souls that will spend their lives on a tiresome journey called life, these precious children of God who are bombarded by the world, their flesh and the enemy day in and day out.

Then the Lord whispered into my heart to spend the time showering and brushing, praying over my daughter. I prayed that the Lord would make her a beautiful, chaste, meek, faithful daughter of Him. We had great conversation in the steamy bathroom on this cool morning in the quiet before anyone else's little feet came pit pattering across the floors. 

As I did my bi-annual purge, I took this renewed perspective and prayed over my home. I prayed that our school year would be fruitful. I prayed I wouldn't hold my home to dear to myself, but that the Lord would have His way with it. I prayed it would be a clean, comfortable, welcoming place, fully functional for all that the Lord wants to use it for. 

I guess the Lord had more then just a physical purge for our home this season. It was a spiritual one ridding me of my poor perspective and cultivating that joy that I blog about so often.

There really is No Greater Joy then to serve the Lord and to see my children walk in truth.

Here's some ideas for the checklists I use for this during season. 

I add onto them and change them every year to better fit our needs. 

This has a page 2 that includes:

Tape (scotch)

Tape (masking)

Tape (duct)

Tempera Paint

Water Colors

Print Brushes

Hot Glue

If you would like these emailed to you, please shoot me an email.

Preparing for the New Year/School Year: Large Family Style

Ahh the third trimester! 

Not much energy, but a STRONG desire to NEST! 

Thankfully I've remained physically strong and worked out the entire pregnancy! What perfect timing to nest! 

Now, I am NOT a "minimalist", but I DO love the mentality to only keep what is necessary. In America, we are given more to want and greed and often have to learn to choose moderation and contentment. This is crucial when you have 6 children and 3 adults in one modest-sized home (I LOVE MY HOME!). Several times a year we go through all our belongings (clothes, towels and sheets, toiletries, books, craft supplies, board games, shoes and coats, toys) and keep only what is in good condition, builds us up, or that we've used regularly.

Too much is more to manage, more that occupies our time. 

Too many toys means more time picking up.

Too much craft supplies means a larger mess to clean up.

Too much clothing, blankets, towels and sheets means more time spent on laundry.

Too many dishes means more to wash.

Too much living room clutter makes things feel smaller and cramped. 

We do school from January-October so that November and December can be filled with leisure, baking, family & friends, and wraps up with purging and organizing for the school year & New Year! We spent the last week of December pulling out my stock pile of supplies and refilling what we need for the year as far as crayons, markers, glue, scissors, rulers, paper, and pencils (Lakeshore Learning or Costco bulk people!). We also weed through used coloring books, broken board games, and useless activities from last Christmas. 

Alex talking to the kids about the New Year and things the Lord's laid on his heart for our family 

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Pray and Plan: Alex and I sit down and evaluate the kids characters, their progress in school, our daily schedule and happenings, our desires, goals, and our plan to grow our children into maturity. We type it up and pray over it. I then work on the logistics in my own time typing up a tentative daily schedule and make sure all my ministry and business plans don't interfere with the bulk of our days. 

Character
? What character traits does each child need to mature in?
? How can we get them there?
? What are some problem areas?
? Where do they need to become more responsible?
? What affects their negative behavior?
? Can it be removed or replaced?
? Where can they have more independence?
? Are the children respectful?
? Do they respond how we want them to?
? Where and why is there contention in the home?
? Where and why is there laziness?

Home
? How is the daily flow?
? Are the house cores manageable?
? How can you split up all the house work amongst the kids to keep it clean and organized?
? Are meals managble - time, money, healthy, enough to share?
? Are meal prep times convient or can they be combined to create less time in the kitchen?
? Can another family member take over in making 1-2 of the daily meals?
? Is the home too cluttered?
? How can you spend less time cleaning?
? Is clothing clean, modest, in good condition?
? Is the managing of clothing an effective system or can it be simplified more?

Personal
? Is your prayer and devotional life the first thing, most important, uncompromising?
? Does your marriage have time? 
? Is your spouse REALLY held as most important?
? Do you have a date night?
? A family night?
? A sabbath?
? Do you get enough sleep (night and naps - or one night a week your spouse takes over the midnight wanderers)?
? Can the kids sleeping schedule adjust to suit yours better?
? Do you get exercise (10-30 minutes a day)?

Ministry
? Are you serving the church in some way?
? Are you freeing your husband up to lead in the church?
? Is your ministry interfering with your home life?
? Can you alter something so it doesn't interfere, but still serve?
? How can the kids serve along side you (sit quietly - serve along side you)?

Curriculum
? What are the main goals?
? Does it all fit in a day/week?
? What do you want to teach and what can be indepentendet or simplified?
? Can you afford what you're using or wanting to use?
? Is there a less expensive option?
? Does everything need to be taught at this time?
? Can you do "mini courses" focusing on one subject for half the year and another the other half?
? Does your time off fit with the pulse of your family's life or can it be adjusted?

Time and Flow
? Do schedules or routines work better for your family (set times for events, or just an idea of what comes next)?
? Do you have ideas for the younger kids to keep them occupied?
? Do the younger kids have time with you during the day?
? Is there time unscheduled for kids to be bored (SO IMPORTANT!)? 
? Are there open-ended, educational materials provided for bored times (books, encyclopedias, legos, blocks, crafts, library books)?
? Does daddy get time with the kids?
? Can things adjust so they get time with their dad and it works with his schedule (late nights, early mornings, school at different time during the day?)?

New Year Shortbread cookies and Tea!!!

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The beauty of homeschool is the flexibility we get. Don't get caught up in the conventional idea of school or how to run a home. 

You don't HAVE to fold clothes, match socks, or hang dresses. 

You can have a family closet with everyone's clothes.

You can mop the floor in swim suits with soapy water and plastic boats floating everywhere.

Baking, gardening, grocery shopping, and filling the car with gas can all be educational.

Your children's character training will make them FAR more productive to society then formal schooling will.

You don't have to finish that lesson that day.

You can do 4 lessons in one day.

Everyone can join in the reading of that biography and glean something from it.

You can have a math day, then a reading day, then a science day instead of doing all in one day.

You can do a 3 day school week or a 6 day school week.

Your schooling can be in the evening, on the weekend, or through the summer.

You can all stay up until midnight and start your day at 10am.

You can double dinner and eat it again the next day.

You can eat left over dinner for lunch the following day. 

You can snack ALL DAY then you don't need to make lunch!

The kids day can consist of mostly house work and very little school work.

You can have a whole day dedicated to BORDEM where kids explore what they're interested in.

You can have field trips in the mornings - on week days!

Sick days can be science documentary days or history audio book days. 

You can combine the older kids and the younger kids in the same level of curriculum and teach them all at the same time.

What do YOU want?

What CAN you do?

Will your children be ready for adulthood?

Can they manage time, money, relationships?

Do they have a work ethic?

Can they make wise choices?

Do they know how to learn?

All this is what my husband and I think and pray over during this time and readjust how things flow. 

I hope this helps you! 

The last thing I want to stress is the importance of your children's character: They cannot learn or be taught if they cannot listen and respect to authority, if they cannot control what they want and do what they need to do. If they do not respond to the parent properly, how can you teach them anything?! How will they be ready for life as an adult? This is SO IMPORTANT and needs to take priority over formal schooling.

Large Family, Real Food, Low Income Thanksgiving

Unfortunately, I had BIG PLANS and little energy for Thanksgiving since we got slammed with the stomach flu the day before Thanksgiving (I;m talking on-the-toilet-with-a-bucket-on-the-lap-make-me-a-bed-on-the-bathroom-floor-for-24-hours-oh-another-person-puking-in-the-other-toilet SLAMMED), AND Alex and I just got back from traveling to several countries in the Middle East so were severely jet lagged.

Here's a glimpse of coming out of the delirium Thanksgiving morning. Alex said he woke up 8 hours after getting home from work to Aryeh asleep on his chest, all the kids asleep and a Thanksgiving feast for the house mouse plated generously across the main living area:

It ended up being a sort of a blessing in disguise. 

Even though we didn't get to have our usual big Thanksgiving with extended family, I got to provide breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert all myself without spending much more then our allowed $150 a week. 

Every Year we have our tradition of making cinnamon rolls from scratch the night before Thanksgiving and then passing them out fresh and hot from the oven to the neighbors. However, because we were SO sick, Alex went and bought cinnamon rolls from Cub. We heated those up and ate ours, passed out the neighbors and watched the parade.

My plan was to have my few dishes made for my mom's ahead of time, but that didn't happen. After watching the parade, I had the kids start putting together a spread of appetizers to get us to dinner. They did fantastic!

Meanwhile, I started on my healthy versions of my Pecan and Pupkin Pie. 

We timed it well since we had to walk to the store to get our rotissary chickens from the Natural Food Store near us. I threw a pie in the oven and set my timer as we walked out the door. We got back home with 2 minutes left on my timer. PARFAIT!!! 

Then Ahavah helped me make our green bean casserole (healthy version all from scratch) and my root vegetable stuffing. Thankfully I had some green beans from the Farmer's Market I chopped and froze in the back of my big freezer!

As I was wrapping up my husband requested good old mashed potatoes (which I have a LOT of potatoes on hand), so I peeled and boiled those babies while I put my feet up. 

Dinner was served! 

So full, and still a little queasy, we cleaned up and took out all our Christmas decorations.

When that was finished we ate pie, snuggled up and watched Boss Baby (HILARIOUS!) until we all nearly passed out. 

All in all, a healthy Thanksgiving staying within our normal budget, excluding the surprise of the stomach flu and needing to provide a meat for dinner. :) 

God is Good!

Now we have left overs to last me a few days so I can start potty training Aryeh!! (PRAY FOR ME!)

*GIVE AWAY!!!* Large Family Living: Health Care

I have an entire page on my blog dedicated to Samaritan Ministries. 

It's truly the BEST option for a large family (and even a smaller family) when it comes to health care. 

There are no "networks" you're ensalved in, the monthly payments cap off once you have 3 children, and best of all it works! We've had every single one of our qualifying medical bills completely covered. 

The only vitamins and supplements I bother to buy are a multivitamin (usually through my husband's job's Health Savings Account money that is set aside for this type of thing), Vitamin D (for the winter months) and Vitamin C (for sicknesses or flu season). I usually get these from Costco or Shaklee. 

Medicines are not a thing really used in my home. I've made herbal tinctures and creams and salves for years and they've met almost all our needs. I now own a business that sells these very same products I've used for years and years. 

 

Some products our store carries include:

Fever, Cold and Flu Tincture
This is my most coveted item our shop carries. It's miraculous how God created these simple herbs to naturally reduce fevers and ease cold and flu symptoms. I have countless stories of how this tincture has saved my family!

Digestive Aid Tincture
Upset tummies, colic, indigestion, morning sickness, diarrhea girgles everything. 

Elder and Echinacea Tincture
This I literally carry around in my diaper bag and give it to my whole family whenever I feel they need an immune boost. This is probably our most versatile tincture!

Insomnia Tincture
Not only does this help you or restless kids settle down into a blissful sleep, but it is used for treating anxiety and depression as well! We have many testimonies of this tincture being used for this purpose. 

Garlic Tincture
This is great for everything again. Virus and bacteria fighting. We have testimonies of people using it to treat warts, stomach ulcers, foot fungus, cold sores, lots of things. 

Our store carries a few creams that are great to have on hand including our Best Selling Menthol and Magnesium Muscle Cream, Healing Cream, Bug Cream, and Booty Cream. We will soon be stocking our Eczema Cream which is incredible stuff! This cream was actually created for my nephew who has that sensitive white baby skin. A customer of ours requested some of the cream and was so impressed asked us to list it as a regular product!

We also have several essential oil roll-ons including our Immune Booster, Rise and Shine, Spot Treatment, Headache Away, and Calm Me Down.

We stock many other items that I would implore you to check out!! 

As far as Dental and Vision, we've never had insurance for either of these before, but we are looking into getting Dental insurance this year. In the past we simply paid for whatever procedures needed to be done using our HSA through my husbands work. 

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If you are interested in purchasing something from Ancient Medicine Cabinet LLC then I have a special promo code for all my bog readers: NOGREATERJOY2017 can be used in the promo slot at the checkout and you'll receive %15 off your entire order! Yay!!

I also have a giveaway for you!

You can receive a tincture of your choice (except for the garlic tincture) for free if you win this giveaway!

Please follow the directions and earn points to get a better chance at winning! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I will email the winner and announce them on my blog.

Then you can choose one of the following as your prize!

Fever, Cold and Flu Tincture

Digestive Aid Tincture

Elder and Echinacea Tincture

Insomnia Tincture