This morning, I was thankful to have gotten dishes done last night (some Mondays I am too exhausted to get to them). That meant just getting clean dishes put away. My kids have chores each day/week that they’re responsible for. My two oldest are boys and they alternate weeks with laundry and dishes. I do the folding of the laundry and the washing of the non-dishwasher dishes. They take care of the rest.

It was time for a fresh batch of homemade yogurt and I decided to involve all three kids in that process- not only to learn how, but also to get familiar with kitchen thermometers (versus outdoor thermometers). That took us a bit of ‘on and off’ hands on time. (A future post about yogurt forth coming!)

Tuesdays are often ‘home days’… my favorite kind. Today was no different. Since we attend our weekly homeschooling group on Mondays, Tuesday usually means catching up. But, that’s one thing I love about it!… the catching up. Homemaking chores can look different for different people and at different stages of life. At this stage, here is a typical day at home for us…

We generally begin our homeschool day between 8 and 8:30am. My kids are early risers and they enjoy breakfast and play time, getting some much needed energy out, before we begin. We were well underway this morning (some days require more time for me to be involved than others). Math help here, sight words there, paper writing… a good mesh!

Late morning I went back into the kitchen and began using some of my homemade cheese (eek… another forth coming post!) to make both ricotta gnocchi and lemon ricotta pancakes. The gnocchi my oldest helped me cut into cubes and flash freeze on a cookie sheet for later use. We added ‘smashed eggs’ (our version of scrambled eggs) to the go along with the pancakes and enjoyed breakfast for lunch. My Sweet Husband is a conventional grain farmer and this time of year is often hauling grain to a local elevator during the day. Otherwise, when it isn’t farming season, he is home with us for lunch and supper. We are blessed!

After lunch, we turned on an audio memory work CD and the kids drew or built blocks while I washed the dishes. The sunshine was streaming through our large kitchen windows and I forgot for a minute that it was February. The rose bush out front is a place for the birds to rest and they keep me company many a dishwashing day.

My youngest still has quiet time for about an hour every day after lunch. She goes into her room and sometimes is anything but quiet. The boys headed outside today- they often do unless it is frigid or icy. I was able to lay down for a bit, which is such a nice little quiet time for me! The boys came back in around 1:40 and we did our history lesson. My kids get about one hour of tv daily- I know this can be controversial, but it is our choice as their parents. We are very particular as to what they are allowed to watch and it is most often a nature, historic, or otherwise learning show.

In the afternoon, we have some sort of snack. Today it was cheese crackers and apple slices. We listened to our ‘states and capitals’ song and then it was back outside. My oldest is taking piano and has a judging event this weekend. He plays 2 pieces and does a theory test. My second oldest plays basketball with the local community and will have his last practice this Saturday. Today a piano theory practice test was taken while I got some laundry folded.

I love writing cards, but lately have fallen off on that. Today I was tickled to get two cards into the mailbox before the mail came. It was beautiful outside. I checked on our garlic and even saw some daffodil bulbs popping up. Nothing else yet. It is always such a thrilling time of year- to look out and see new life springing forth. Have you seen any robins in your yard yet? Ours fly south for the winter. My son said he has seen one flying, but I haven’t yet. I usually see them early March, right around my birthday!

Supper will be a simple fair tonight- spaghetti with salad and homemade sauerkraut. If you have read the ‘no buy February’ post, you know that salad is one of my purchases this month. I have just about gotten my homemade spaghetti sauce how we like it. Each summer I don’t can many specific tomato products. I stick to tomato juice and tomato sauce. Then, I take that sauce and add whatever I want to for a particular meal. Pizza sauce, spaghetti sauce, tomato soup… Yum!

In the evenings, we most often sit together in the living room and either read, play games/cards, talk… on Saturday evenings we have our weekly tradition of a ‘junk food picnic’ with a family movie. More on that another time. My Sweet Husband will occasionally read aloud from a collection of historical accounts of men and women who showed godly character. We have enjoyed those and learned a lot, too. We love picture books and lots of other reading as well.

What are your normal days like? Are there things you’d like to change about them? I’d love to hear your routine and why that is enjoyed!