A Jar Full

CHORE JARS

I am a little obsessed with systems... They give me a sense of control around our house and help me split and organize big jobs and the daily chores into small pieces that I feel able to accomplish. Over the years, I have gotten some great tips and ideas from the Flylady and would highly recommend her site to anyone looking for a way to keep life flowing well in their home.

One of the things we do around here are chores...when my oldest was able (and so excited) to help out around the house I was suprised at how wonderful it was to have her working beside me. We would wash windows, vaccum and cook meals together. She continues to take such ownership of the way our home runs and she actually enjoys it!

Discovering when she was old enough to have responsibility and real "chores" all her own was tough to figure out for us. We saw how much she just loved doing things to being a part of our family and we didn't want to squash her joy...we wished we had the same enthusiasm! But, as the other kids began to be ready to help out too and the list of jobs kept growing and growing, we saw the need for some order in the process of cleaning up our house each day. Most of all, we wanted a spirit of joy to permeate our daily life and "work" around here. Inspired by foam counters at the Dollar Store and leftover mason jars from my failed attempts at canning last summer, we eventually settled on these chore jars.

The big jar is filled with the chores that need to be done each day. The night before I divy them up into the girls smaller jars (I try to mix it up for some variety) and during "chore time" the girls draw a chore from their jar and complete it or are responsible for that job as it pops up throughout the day. The chores currently up for grabs are:

-sweeping
-laundry helper
-wipe sinks
-clean windows
-set table
-clear table
-empty garbage
-feed bunny
-empty dishes
-dusting

When its done they put it back in the big jar so its ready to go the next day. At seven and four years old, they can do this independently (Halle helps Maia read her chores) and their little two year old brother is asked to help them. We usually blast music and dance and get crazy...we just have a big whoosh of cleaning for about 20 minutes after breakfast. Its the perfect time for us to get our house ready for school or any guests that might arrive.

One BIG word of wisdom here is that we believe so strongly that our kids need to be trained to do these tasks well before they are set loose. That means mommy or daddy take time to work alongside the child and give them tools to be successful, offer encouragement and smiles, and prepare them for what will later be required.

This step can be hard work and take time, but if you do decide to implement chores in your home, please just hang on and be patient. This season of training has such tremendous benefits! It is a delight to see your children take on a task with confidence and know they can do it with excellence because you have gently layed a foundation for their success! Those little smiles of "helpers" are priceless and so is the freedom it brings as they share jobs around the house!