…by getting organized. Organization is the greatest single thing I learned from being an event planner. That and “be flexible”… I think I get the question “How do you do it?” more than any other. We’ll here’s a peek at how:

On Sundays, each child is assigned a duty (or two), which corresponds to that of a Benedictine Obedientiary of old. This duty belongs to him or her all week long. We have:

Novice Master/Mistress (charged with minding the littles)
Porter (answers door, telephone, collects mail)
Hosteller (makes guests comfortable)
Sacristan (makes home home-y)
Sub-Cellarer (keeps inventory - foodstuffs, etc.)
Matricularius (charged with preparing work/school space)
Cantor (chimes the bells, leads prayer with Papa)

Each morning, following prayers, the children receive their chore cards, which include everything from personal care, to regular housekeeping, to seasonal chores (like raking or shoveling). The tags are attached to a lanyard (with retractable cord) that they attach to a belt-loop and keep with them all day. The completed cards are put into a mailbox, each child’s cards in his own pouch. Brian and I can go in at any time and collect the cards, and check that the chores are done properly. When all chores are completed for the day, the child receives a round tag to hang on his/her name peg. When he has collected seven tags, he is presented with an age-appropriate reward (monetary for the older children, tangible treats for the younger ones). I know that this is a controversial topic. Truth be told, we’ve been back and forth on the concept of rewarding children for chores. However, we feel that our children understand that there are rewards of all kinds that come from Mama and Papa completing their own work, one of those is monetary. We try to balance their rewards with an illustration of the myriad other rewards that come from a job well done, namely, a pleasant environment, peace of mind, congeniality, free time, self esteem, and a sense that they are in accord with God’s will. The Rule of St. Benedict requires us to work hard and to make work our prayer; and prayer our work.

In addition to the duties and chores, we post a weekly virtue (from a beautiful sheet created by Julie, another super busy mom. Whenever a child displays that virtue in any way, a glass bead is added to a jar. When the jar is finished, we plan a special family treat - like a movie or dinner out. The teamwork has been phenomenal, we have lots more free time in a day, and far fewer interruptions. Brian has doubled his productive hours of work, and I feel I’m getting projects completed in a more timely manner.

Posted: 01|21|08 at 10:25 am. Filed under: from our hearth and home.
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