Whether you’ve been following along with our monthly ‘Do It’ Lists from January 1st, or are just picking up this month, we hope this simple system will be a continued blessing to you. You are not alone in this endeavor to balance the needs of home and family (and for many of you, home education) with your desire to spend time in God’s Word. That act of filling up enables us to pour out and bless others, but often we struggle in the face of so many demands on our time.
This month, we’re welcoming a number of new ladies who’ve been introduced to our ‘Do It’ List through Laura’s homeschool convention workshop, Mary HEART + Martha Home = Peace & Joy. For their benefit—and as a refresher to all of us!—we want to revisit the basics.
In January, we introduced the ‘Do It’ List and went over a suggested list of daily tasks. These are things we’ve identified that we believe many households need to do every day. Examples include: sorting mail, doing a load of laundry, sweeping the kitchen. Of course, your home is different than everyone else’s, so we left space to fill in jobs that are unique to your situation. (Never fear, we also provide a blank list every month, if you find that the pre-printed list just doesn’t meet your needs!)
The following month, we went over our weekly tasks. These are jobs like cleaning the bathroom and sweeping the front porch; they don’t need our attention every single day but do need to be addressed on a regular basis.
Finally, last month we talked about those once-a-month tasks that help us keep on top of seasonal things like gathering tax receipts or pruning shrubs before the spring thaw, as well as a few others (like cleaning the fridge) that can turn into ugly problems if left too long.
This month, we’ll be adding a full closet purge as one of our monthly tasks. This is a good exercise for the whole family … and what time could be better than when everyone is anxious to get outside again?
Have your husband check over his shirts and turn the worn ones into cleaning rags. (Check out Ms. Sam’s ideas if you need inspiration for the many ways you can use them.) Jeans or pants that don’t fit properly should be donated.
Identify what sizes your kids wear currently, then have them sort out everything smaller and send it straight to the donation pile (unless they have younger siblings who can wear their hand-me-downs). Next, have them try on their current size clothing to be sure it actually fits. Anything too small goes in the donation pile. When packing away winter clothes, get rid of anything that’s “borderline”—just slightly snug, almost too short—because they will grow and it won’t fit by next season. If, like many kids, they simply have too many clothes, they should also pull out anything they don’t wear. Wrong color, itchy seams, whatever … encourage them to bless someone else by donating clothes that are in good condition. Turn their worn items into more cleaning rags.
Meanwhile, bring out your own warm-weather gear, put away winter clothing, and while you’re at it, purge anything you didn’t wear all season! You know the golden rule of decluttering: if you haven’t worn it in a year, get rid of it. The same goes for “sentimental” clothing (it’s very unlikely your husband is that attached to the outfit you wore on your first date!) or anything 2 or 3 sizes too small, that you’ve held onto hoping you’ll lose weight. Do you really have that much storage space to spare?
When your closet is filled with only the clothes you wear on a regular basis, that actually fit you comfortably, getting dressed each day is so much simpler. And the difference this makes for your children … you will be amazed.
We pray that the monthly ‘Do It’ List will continue to help you achieve Mary / Martha balance, and help you bless your family with peace and happiness at home!
Please don’t forget: if you are attending any of the conventions where our sponsor will be exhibiting this summer, please be sure to catch Laura’s workshop. We’d love for you to stop by our booth to say hello and let us know if you are using the ‘Do It’ List!
Download your printable April ‘Do It’ List today,
and be ready to take on the month!
Available with or without pre-printed daily, weekly and monthly tasks:
