Simply Convivial: Biblical Homemaking, Homeschooling & Mom Life—Without Burnout

Stefani Mons, a Texas homeschool mom and Convivial Circle Community Manager, chats about what to do when you find yourself too easily irritated with your kids.

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanTime Budget Resources: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/timeJust like Dave Ramsey has you use cash envelopes for your spending budgets, we can reserve envelopes of time for our various responsibilities across the week.Rather than scheduling 20 minutes for folding laundry, 10 minutes for sweeping, and so forth for every task we have on our list, we can look at our days and weeks as a whole and reserve chunks of time for types of tasks. Then when that chunk of time begins, we can assess the current state of things and decide what comes first and what’s next.A week is never going to play out the way we budget our time, but it’s still a valuable exercise because as we mark out the time commitments we have, we start to see where we have margin, where we need to create margin, and perhaps why things like grocery shopping or phone calls are so stressful – there’s no place for them in the flow of our week!As we start filling in the overview of our weeks with our commitments and responsibilities, we also need to keep an eye on whether or not we have healthy amounts of rest built into our weeks. We can’t function in go-go-go mode all day, every day. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanFree pantry printables: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/pantryDawn has worked hard to make meals meaningful times of family relationship-building. She shares her insights and best tips from her years of practice. Meal planning, menu making, cooking, and feeding our family takes a lot of our time - and that's how it should be! 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanTime budgeting help: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/timeMost of our overwhelm as moms comes from feeling like we don't have enough time to do all the things we need to do.We don't have enough time to do all the things, but we do have enough time to do what we must. We have to be sure we're telling ourselves the truth and choose a right response rather than overwhelm. When time is short, prioritize your family and your vocations without concern for appearances. Humbly serve your family, whether it meets your personal standards or not. We do have the time to do all God's called us to do.Time budgeting help: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/time 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanFree overwhelm workshop: answeroverwhelm.comWith teens, activities, homeschooling, and work, Dawn Garrett juggles many plates. She is the community manager for Your Morning Basket with Pam Barnhill and she homeschools her three high schoolers who are each busy and active.Dawn shares how she juggles it all and what she does when she feels overwhelmed - and why she doesn't think it's so bad to feel overwhelm. You'll be encouraged by Dawn's down-to-earth and practical insights! 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanFree brain dump guide: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/braindumpWhat you say to your kids and to yourself matters immensely. Rachael Younger, a mentor-level member of the Simply Convivial Community, shares how she manages and teaches her own self-talk and fixes her attitude by doing so.Find out about Rachael's lego business here: http://youngerandson.net/category/lego/Simplified Organization is a Christian podcast for busy moms who are looking for practical help in managing their homes, families, and lives for God's glory. We keep it real without complaining and we help women overcome the overwhelm and perfectionism that comes from the comparison game. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanFind your organization score: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/quizRachael Younger is a busy homeschool mom with multiple projects and interests who knows what it feels like to snap in irritation when kids seem to interrupt. However, our kids aren't interruptions. They're the point. We need to reject our irritation if we want to love our families well. After all, love is not irritable or resentful. This conversation with Rachael, a mentor-level member of the Simply Convivial community, will inspire and encourage you to organize your attitude and love your family intentionally.Find Rachael's Lego business here: http://youngerandson.net/category/lego/ 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanGet started: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelmMost of us began our lives as wives and mothers not only without any training or instruction in running a home, but also without any real examples in our own history and life to follow. We want to identify as a homemaker, but still feel uncomfortable doing so.We so desperately want to do a good job, and we jump in with both feet and suddenly find we’re drowning.Modern society conditioned us to think that the job of a homemaker and mom was mundane, simple, outsource-able, unfulfilling work. “So,” we unwittingly think, “I should totally be able to manage this and do a good job.”Then, to our surprise, we find that it’s a lot of work and that we’re wholly unprepared for all it demands of us.​We’ve had no training in how to be homemakers.​Our society is set up to believe that education is meant to prepare you for your work. We go into debt, spend 4 or more years of life, and plan to come out of that ready for a fulfilling career.On the one hand, then, we buy the argument that homemaking is fulfilling and meaningful work, yet on the other hand, we don’t think it takes any real training or education to do it. In what other meaningful work is that the case?Past societies didn’t have the university system. Instead, they relied on apprenticeships and relational training. Children learned how to survive and work from their parents. Tradesmen learned their craft from an experienced master. Knowledge and skill were past on through relationship over time.But mom is home alone with her small children, no one there helping her see what the next thing she ought to do really is. Who will help sort out the details and make it all fit into a manageable whole? We can blame our mothers, but even our mothers, at this point, didn’t have mothers who taught them either.​I designed Simplified Organization Community Coaching to be the mentorship most of us never had, the encouraging cheerleading squad many of us can't find, with the gospel-centered base all of us need.​Starting now and continuing together all year long, we are going to take baby step after baby step and finally find our feet as homemakers.​With Simplified Organization Community Coaching, you'll get the personal development and mentorship you've been seeking, but that Google and Facebook just can never give you.​Enroll today. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanHow to handle overwhelm: answeroverwhelm.comMoms have a lot to do. Sarah Mackenzie is no exception. While homeschooling her six kids, she also runs Readaloudrevival.com - a podcast and community to help your family fall in love with reading together. This quick conversation with Sarah will give you ideas you can apply to your own life to find time for what matters most and not let the mundane chores crowd out reading and conversation. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanFree Overwhelm Workshop: answeroverwhelm.comSarah Mackenzie, founder of Readaloudrevival.com, is one busy mama. She and her husband homeschool their six kids - including twin boys! - and run a thriving online community and podcast.How does she do it? How does she keep her plates spinning? Is the ever-enthusiastic Sarah ever overwhelmed? You bet. Tune in to find out how she handles it and what she tells herself when faced with an overwhelming to do list. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

Homeschooling is hard. Here are 10 reasons why you may need to give up.

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanGet my new book! https://amzn.to/31nKs2AIt’s one thing to start the school year strong, but quite another to keep at it after the weeks start blurring together. Motivation to homeschool ebbs away, and we can’t wait for some natural, overwhelming incoming tide to return.Instead of being tossed about on the waves of our emotions and hormones (which turn into tropical storms when they crash into the emotions and hormones of our children), we need to treat motivation like a garden and cultivate it. A garden has variety; it’s not made up of one thing. It’s the same with motivation. There are a number of things we can plant in our motivation garden that will keep it blooming and growing.We need homeschool motivation because it’s our responsibility as the parent-teacher to educate our children. It’s not optional and we set the tone for the day and the standard for the behavior. If we can’t muster up the motivation to start the homeschool day, how can we expect our children to have the motivation to do their work? We must model ourselves what we expect from them.Much of the time, what we call a lack of motivation is simply inertia. It’s hard to get started. It’s hard to get up and get moving. It’s hard to focus our attention and summon the energy.Overcome inertia by making it easy to get started with an energetic, upbeat attitude.These ten practices will increase your motivation for average homeschool days.Have a morning routine.Start with a song.Use a checklist.Keep several favorite quotes in view.Smile at your kids.Listen to encouraging podcasts.Get everything ready to go the night before.Share learning with your kids.Ask what they learned or read at dinner.Live life alongside your kids.Share your favorite homeschool quote, podcast, or tip in the comments! 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanGet The Convivial Homeschool book: https://amzn.to/3reVougWhen homeschool days go bad, we wonder if we are missing something or if there are better ways out there we’re missing. We want a lovely homeschool lifestyle, full of laughter and joy and definitely lots of learning – without tears. How’s a homeschool mom to make that happen?These techniques are how I work toward a better homeschool every day.Best Homeschool Technique #1 – Manage ExpectationsBest Homeschool Technique #2 – Pay AttentionBest Homeschool Technique #3 – Repent Always 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanSee how your homeschool is doing with the REAL homeschool quiz: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/homeschoolI don’t know about you, but I always start off the year thinking that this year will be more awesome than last because this year I’m committed to really being, well, awesome.This school year will be different because I will be different.So, a decade into homeschooling and having rounded the bend of my thirties, maybe that idealism and optimism is tempered a bit, but I still feel it even if I try to suppress it.Maybe we won’t wake up whole new people on Monday morning, transformed into mothers who do the right thing every time, yet each year – depending on the year – we should try to take the next step in growing, maturing, and increasing.Rather than start the school year with strong but unrealistic goals to be 100% consistent, to never yell, or to always follow the plan, we should go into the year with concrete strategies for exactly how we will improve our teaching and leading skills this year.Be a better homeschool teacher by controlling our toneHaving taught classes to homeschool kids before teaching my own, it didn’t take me long into teaching my own to notice that for a class of other children, my tone immediately changes and I go into “teacher mode.” With my own children, I just stay in “me mode” which seems like it should be better, but isn’t. Maybe it’s “authentic” but it isn’t as helpful.I admit that one reason I still teach classes with other students mixed in with my own is to make it easier for me to enter “teacher zone” and give my kids the benefit of more conscious, purposeful, self-controlled teaching style.Mom’s tone matters. We don’t want our children to feel alone in their troubles and challenges even while they’re sitting next to us. To accomplish that, we can take a positive step and a negative step.Be a better homeschool teacher by controlling our wordsThis could be counted as controlling our tone, but I’m thinking of a more specific situation. In a homeschool day, we have to communicate many things to several people. Have you ever felt frustratingly incapable of that? Have you ever blamed the child for your lack of ability to communicate with him? I know I have (and do).Maybe I’m right and maybe I’m blame-shifting, but what I need is a strategy of communication that lets me cut through the blame and move our day forward.Classical education to the rescue. There’s this thing called Socratic teaching, and it applies in helping with math as much as it applies in literary discussions.Steven Covey made it a principle, a habit, of highly effective people, and highly effective people is exactly what we’re trying to be. He wrote:Seek first to understand, then to be understood.Usually I’m seeking to be finished. That’s where the trouble arises.Be a better homeschool teacher by controlling our thoughtsOur words and our tone are merely overflows of our heart, and we are commanded to take every thought captive. That means it’s possible.We might need to understand and direct our kids’ thought-trains, but we also need to be aware of our own and redirect our own as needed as well.Our thoughts are not inevitable, but our words and tone will flow inevitably from them.So if we want to control our tone and control our words, we need to also control our thoughts. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3 ways to handle perfectionism and get rid of perfectionist tendencies

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanSNAP into organization QUIZ: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/quizI had put dinner on the table.Wasn’t that enough for one day?To get up and then face the collection of plates, cups, pans, utensils, pots – not to mention the counters themselves.Ugh.Soaking seemed to be the best solution.If the dishes wait, no harm is done.Really, I was being a better housekeeper for putting it all off until the morning.It would take me so much less time, I told myself, to wait until the morning. The dishes would have soaked. I would have coffee. I could knock it out in no time – in the morning.For now, I’ll just go read and forget about this room. I’ve always been good at justifying my procrastination.And so for quite some time I always spent the first part of my day cleaning up from the day before. I refused to feel bad about it. I had made it my deliberate choice and strategy. It wasn’t the worst choice I’ve made in my life, but it didn’t help me, despite my protestations that it did.The idea that helped me break out of this procrastination rut was “clearing to neutral.”If the dishes wait, procrastination wins. Here's one cleaning strategy to beat procrastination.What’s the point?I used to think like this:“What is the point of making my bed? I’ll only sleep in it again.”“What is the point of cleaning the island? I’ll only cook on it again.”“What is the point of washing the dishes? We’ll only use them again.”The dishes can wait because we don’t need them again this instant. Why do them now?But the change started with the dishes. Then I realized it applied to the island. Finally, I even started making my bed due to the same reasoning.We wash the dishes because we’ll use them again.I need to clean the island so that it’s ready to cook on again.Actually, the reason I need to make my bed is so that we can sleep in it again, welcomed to our rest like decent and orderly people rather than collapsing in a mess like slobs.The story we tell ourselves matters.Clearing to neutral is a concept to save us both from perfectionism on the one hand and sloppiness on the other.Perfectionism thinks the point of a kitchen is to be a pristine showpiece. If it is anything other than perfect, it is not acceptable. This can make us either strive ceaselessly to make our kitchen look like no one lives in the house or, on the other hand, give up all attempts to make it look nice because we will never reach our too-high expectations.Sloppiness thinks the point of a kitchen is merely to hold things and to perform certain tasks in. Its state does not matter.Elisabeth Elliot once wrote:The way you keep your house, the way you organize your time, the care you take in your personal appearance, the things you spend your money on, all speak loudly about what you believe. The beauty of Thy peace shines forth in an ordered life. A disordered life speaks loudly of disorder in the soul.Our homes are tools to be used for the building up of people. Tools must be cared for, or they aren’t going to last long or be as effective. But the point is never to have a perfectly organized wall of tools that are never used. The use is the important part, but caring for them is essential to their being able to be used. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanAre you a perfectionist? Is the reason for your chaos actually perfectionism?Show notes: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/blog/slob-perfectionist/Those who want all or nothing generally get nothing. I used to think I was not a perfectionist, because nothing I did was perfect. I was a slob, so how could I be a perfectionist?If all-or-nothing perfectionism is our tendency, then we shouldn’t be surprised when we can’t get up off the couch. Why start when we know we won’t accomplish what we’d like?Such perfectionism is debilitating, and it’s that debilitation that causes us to end up in chaos and discouragement that we can’t pull up out of.So how do we, then, pull up out of it? How can we pull up out of ourselves?Recover from perfectionism by practicing baby steps.Perfectionism is the mother of boom and bust cycles: a spurt of energy and enthusiasm propels us forward, but goals give way to reality and, because we didn’t meet the unrealistic goals, we sputter to a halt and give up.Baby steps are not glamorous, they don’t seem significant, but they lead to real, noticeable, tangible progress when we are content to stick with them.When we feel resistance to doing what needs to be done, instead of either trying to grit our teeth and power through, we can make it simpler to start by reducing what we’re expecting from ourselves.Perfectionism is false expectation. We envision the end we want, and if we know it won’t happen, we don’t begin. The best way out is to change what we envision, to take a humbler view of ourselves and our efforts, and submit to imperfect yet faithful next steps. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanFind out about our community: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/membershipHear from a number of women about personalizing and customizing a planner to make it work for your life and needs.Planners don't have to be one-size-fits-all and they don't have to be confining or busy work.Keeping a weekly dashboard - in any format - will help you keep your plates spinning when life is hectic and busy. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanTake the "get organized" quiz: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/quizHow to set up and organize any planner so that it works for you. Planner organization can seem complicated, but it really doesn't need to be.We can waste a lot of time setting up our planners. Here's the brass tacks of planner set-up:List current projects.Update your calendar so it's complete and correct, with the next 3 months visible.Have a set of lists for your weekHave a list of your daily top 3Have a space for taking notes and keeping running lists and thoughts. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanWork Your Plan: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm A functional planner depends more on the user than the page templates and formats. You are the secret to your own functional planner, no matter what system you use. Three Rules to a Working Planner: It has a place for projects, notes, and a daily top three You carry it around with you and look at it throughout the day You update it every day, every week, and every quarter It's not the pages, but the process that makes a planner effective and functional. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanStop getting distracted and find the motivation you need to get momentum, find focus, make progress.Moms need to know how to stop getting distracted, because it's too easy to lose track of what's important and what needs to be done. We don't want to waste our time.To stop wasting time, we need better time management skills. Those skills include the simple practice of writing things down.We wonder how to stay focused, but it's as simple as writing things down, as brain dumping, to know what's actually on our plate.SHOW LESS 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanDownload the free guide: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/braindumpWe all know the feeling. You can't focus, you can't think straight. You can't get a handle on life.The truth is that your mind is for having ideas, not holding them.Clear the clutter to free up your creative energy.Three steps:Spend 10-15 minutes everyday writing down the 1. thoughts that make you anxious, 2. the thoughts that repeat themselves, 3. the nagging questions and tasksWhen your mind is uncluttered, you come up with out of the box solutions you'd never have been able to think about when your mind was full of junk. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanFind my free brain dump guide here: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/braindumpWhen you're feeling unmotivated, it's hard to get things done. We want to be more productive, but when we're feeling that lack of motivation we drag and dawdle. This one practice is the golden key to overcoming a lack of motivation and kicking your productivity motor into gear.You might wonder how to be more productive when you're feeling unmotivated, and the answer often comes down to acting in the way you want to feel. Whether you're working from home or working at home or both, you want to feel motivated and productive, but it's easy to feel stuck instead. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanGet help ending overwhelm & stress: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/braindumpMy quick hack for busy moms will save your sanity when you have so much to juggle. When you're looking for hacks, you usually want a secret you're missing - and I have that for you today.Too often busy moms are go go go and get confused and overwhelmed about what's next. We risk missing life because we were so busy juggling details.My quick and unexpected hack today - a brain dump - is the key process to stopping the cycle and getting clear about what needs to happen next and what is truly important. Your situation is probably not as bad as your imagination is spinning it; brain dump and see reality instead of drama.#busymoms #momlife 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

Menu planning doesn't need to take a long time. These tips will get you to meal time peace.

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanMore tips here: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/2019/how-to-grocery-shop/Improve your grocery shopping skill! These 3 grocery store tips will save you time and money and make grocery shopping simple. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanWatch the "Save Time in the Kitchen" Workshop! https://www.simplyconvivial.info/pantryI know it seems overwhelming.I know even just planning dinner sometimes seems overwhelming.But, seriously, who wants to wake up and decide in the pre-coffee fog what to feed the troops for breakfast?It has to be decided ahead of time.Everyone talks about how much planning out dinners saves you from mental effort and decision fatigue, but that’s only 1/3 of the meals you feed people! Imagine if all the meals were planned – how much mental effort and decision fatigue would that reduce?Personally, I think the reason we balk at planning all the meals is that we build dinner menu planning into this herculean effort. Do we want to do that 2 more times over? No way! But if we simplify not only the two lighter meals, but also the dinner effort, we can have our plan and our peace of mind as well.Make an Easier Dinner PlanYou don’t need to have elaborate dinners every night to have a complete, healthy meal. Try thinking in threes and keeping easy to prepare vegetables always on hand. Rather than browse Pinterest or magazines to come up with dinner ideas, keep a list of your family’s go-to meals. Or, use Simplified Dinners, which is your list and guideline already put together.Make an Easier Lunch PlanLunch, whether you have to pack it or pause the other business of the day to prepare it, it always seems to get in the way. While taking a lunch break is refreshing, taking the time to prepare it is not.Make an Easier Breakfast PlanBreakfast hits us out of the blue, first thing in the morning. Rather than rolling out of bed without a clue about what to feed the troops, you need a plan in order to get things moving without feeling out of control.A solid breakfast starts the day off on the right foot, so planning it is essential. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanWatch the "Save Time in the Kitchen" Workshop! https://www.simplyconvivial.info/pantryDoes menu planning seem impossibly hard? It really can be. So today let's talk about a simple way to make it easier. We will talk about building your own meal templates that will take the thinking out of menu planning. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanDo the Daily Card Challenge: https://www.simplyconvivial.info/daily-card/What if you made a plan, you picked your real top three priorities for the day, and then you did none of them and you have no excuses. There is no good reason why you didn't do what you ought to do. Are we just bad planners or are we just hopeless? No. Neither.How do we make progress without giving up and without making the same mistakes, again, figuring out the mistakes we made so that we can learn from them. That's the important lesson that we need to talk about and need to figure out.What if you just didn't do the right thing? What then you are not worthless or helpless or hopeless. You are just normal human, maybe tired, maybe worn out, maybe burnt out. Maybe there's some kind of roadblock preventing you from getting those things done that you haven't identified. There all kinds of reasons that the top priority things don't happen. Sometimes we just don't have the energy or attention that we need to make them happen. Sometimes the high priority task actually has to take a back seat to catching up on sleep or maybe doing an exercise program. I know, I know don't shoot the messenger, but the reality is that we need to be sure that the fundamentals, the foundation of our productivity is taken care of before we can have that productivity to work in before we can get some of those big things done, we need to have sleep. We need to have energy. We need to have the time available. And sometimes we just don't have those foundational pieces. And so we have to scale back our expectations and focus on building the building blocks of managing life. Before we do the things that give us progress. Sometimes we don't really have any excuse at all, though. It happens. It happens to me. And I know it just happens to all of us. We just don't do what we ought to do. No good reason, no excuses. And that just needs to be confessed repented of before God who has given us the time he's given us the responsibility is he has given us the resources. And when we don't use them, when we just get stuck in self-indulgence or a lethargy or acedia, we can turn to repentance, which is not beating ourselves up and feeling bad. It's confessing and turning from the sin and asking God for the forgiveness and the grace and the motivation to move forward to obey. And he gives us the ability and the strength when we don't have it ourselves. And sometimes that's the lesson that we need to learn. Sometimes we need to recognize that we were trying to move forward and work in our own strength. Sometimes just making decisions or purchasing materials, just little steps that actually have to happen before the big project can move forward before the actual task can get done.Turn what you think is one task into a project and list out every single step and then identify what is the one next thing that needs to happen out of these various steps. Pick one that's next and break that bigger overwhelming task down into just a getting started task. And a lot of times that is all we need to start seeing traction and getting some momentum. We just haven't broken things down into small enough pieces to actually manage and move forward. The daily card is a great way to make that happen because we can just flip it over and use the backside to brain dump, to figure out where you're stuck and why write down a prayer, write down the next, the real next step so that you can figure make a better choice. Tomorrow. The daily card really is the planner that we all need to see some progress in our day to day life. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanFree 5-Day Daily Card Challenge: https://www.simplyconvivial.info/daily-card/So you've been using the daily card writing down your top three or what you think are your top three, but then other stuff comes up. Was your plan a waste of time? What do you do when your top three is not what you do in the day?So, so often when we get those top three items chosen and we write them down on our daily card, something else comes up and we don't do those things. Not because we were lazy or self-indulgent or apathetic, but just because other stuff came up, other priorities took precedence. That does not mean that the daily card doesn't work. It doesn't mean that it's not the right option for you. It just means that we're learning what life is like. And we are living the life that we are given, not the life that we are making or trying to claim for ourselves. And that's a better option to live within the Providence of God and recognize that he sends his plan, which is often different from ours. And so, even though we are making a plan to attempt to identify our top priorities, sometimes we're wrong. Sometimes we don't have enough information. And so a big way that the daily card can help us is when we use it to, to actually identify and remind ourselves, tell ourselves of where our plans need to be, where our attention needs to be. And that's sometimes the things that we would not normally count, but it really is our primary responsibility for that day. Sometimes it's just errands, just doctor's appointments, just chauffeuring, children around cheerfully, and maybe using that time in the car to have conversations with them. Sometimes it's just feeding and clothing people, and a read aloud or audio book would be a good bonus. We can use our daily card not to create the life that we think we ought to have or write down what we think we ought to get done, but really out of everything, out of all the options, what's the best way we can spend our time today and identify those and write them down. And at the end of the day, if what we wrote down does not get done, we can ask ourselves really truly is it because I picked the wrong things, what were the right things? And maybe write those down instead, like cross out what you wrote and write down the priorities that actually happened that day. And over time, we can learn about ourselves, about our life and about how to make an appropriate plan for the current season in life that we're at in the current responsibilities that we have. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanFree 5-Day Daily Card Challenge: https://www.simplyconvivial.info/daily-card/So I have one planner secret that will make all the difference, no matter what planner you use, even if that planner is just a post-it note, there is a secret that applies and makes that planner actually useful in your day-to-day life. You're ready. You've got to look at your list and you've got to do what it says. I know ground breaking, planning secrets here. Stay tuned for more where that came from. A post-it note is great because it's small. And so it reminds you that your day is finite and you have to make some tough choices about how to spend that time. The other benefit of using a post-it note or an index card is that it is portable and portability helps with visibility. We need to be looking at our planner throughout the day. That's not a write it and forget it kind of an activity if we want that plan to actually make a difference in our day. So a great way to keep your post-it note handy is to pop it on the back of your phone or stick an index card in your back pocket. If you have a planner or a calendar that you like, and that you do use a post-it note can be a great addition because you can stick it on the calendar and see your calendar, as well as your top three for the day. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanSo often we try buying a new planner, printing a new planner, creating a new planner from scratch in hopes that the planner will keep us on track. But the reality is that it's actually our time and attention to what's written to filling it out and then looking at it that makes a planner work. The format of the planner, the colors, the layout, the options are sometimes more of a distraction and a hindrance than they are a help to us getting more done. Sometimes the amount of space and options in a planner actually makes us too optimistic and over plan. Sometimes, a planner can make us more stressed out rather than less. I want to show you how to keep a simple plan that will help you be more productive and do the right things without getting overwhelmed. We are going to create a clutter free planner with a post-it note or an index card. That's all, it takes a small little something that will keep you on target with the bare minimum list that stays in front of your face. So let's talk today about clutter free planner. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanInstead of focusing on the hurting or the tiredness, focus on the growing.It is good to want to grow up, and along the way the growing will cause pains, aches, and tiredness. If we look at the growth, we will be encouraged and be able to bear the aches. If we focus exclusively on how we feel, we will be discouraged, sad, and upset.When your heart and mind fight to be cranky, and you struggle to win the fight and stay cheerful, and you win it, you have a real success to be cheerful about, even if you feel worn out by it. Remember, prayer is the most effective weapon in the fight against a bad attitude. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanDo you think your story is all about you? That might be your biggest problem in living out a good story. Get hope and help telling a truer, better story: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/story for a free module from my course Organize Your Attitude all about Living in Story. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

Your life is truly a fairy tale.

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanWe're all constantly narrating a story about what's going on around us. Inside our head, the ticker tape comments never stop. Is the story you're seeing and telling yourself accurate? Have you ever stopped to think about the perspective your own narrator has? Reality doesn't change based on what you think or say, but what you think or say can give you a skewed vision of reality. We should make sure the interpretations we tell ourself, the stories we spin inside our own head, line up with reality before we believe them or persist in them.Telling yourself a true story is the basic step in organizing your attitude.Need more help with this? You'll find it at www.simplyconvivial.com 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanSo, we know that our home is for hospitality, but it seems so hard – it’s extra, and we have no room for extra. We want to know how to be hospitable, but it doesn’t come naturally.The one thing that makes hospitality so difficult is that we are out of practice.It is easy to slip into selfish patterns: doing what needs to be done on our own agendas, taking a break, keeping to ourselves and our own thoughts. Instead, we need to practice the habit of hospitality.The being hospitable includes but is much broader than having people over for dinner. It means inviting people into our lives – even the people that live in our houses.It is not enough to simply share a roof with people. We need to share a life – a full life, a conversational life – with them.And that sort of life will overflow into the lives of others through invitations and conversations, but mostly through our demeanor. The way we treat people is either selfish or welcoming, inviting, and interested. When we practice that mindset and manner with our family, it will become how we treat others as well. The habit of hospitality will shape all our interactions.The ways we are hospitable to others are the same ways we are hospitable to our family. And if we are not first hospitable to our family, we cannot be truly hospitable to anyone else. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanBut when we get our picture of what hospitality should look like from the magazine rack or HGTV, we stress out and shut down.The kind of hospitality God wants us to offer, however, is not according to worldly standards. The world’s goal for hospitality is to impress. God’s goal for hospitality is to knit. Through opening our doors and our lives to one another, we grow as a community. When we gather as a church body and share a meal and our lives, our love and fellowship deepens. When we gather in those outside, we show them what it’s like inside – inside the bounds of God’s family, God’s body, God’s community.Hospitality is not about showing off or impressing others. So we do not have to postpone it until the kitchen reno is complete, until the yard is gorgeous, or until we feel ready. We simply invite others into life, as is.That said, there are 3 ways I simplify the process and make it less stressful, less burdensome, to regularly have people over. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanhttps://www.simplyconvivial.com/Pursue hospitality. It’s a command. It’s a duty. But it doesn’t mean that we all need to be having people over for dinner every week.Well, except for our people – we feed them every day, every week – three times a day, even. That’s hospitality, too.The goal of hospitality means that we see our homes as tools in the formation of people, not as trophies to be kept beautiful.As G.K. Chesterton reminds us: The business done in the home is nothing less than the shaping of the body and soul of humanity.As homemakers, we’re making hospitable homes, homes that shape the bodies and souls of humanity.Those souls’ bodies might have been shaped in our wombs or not. Those bodies might sleep between sheets we wash or not. But our goal is that all the bodies and souls under our roof for years or for hours be shaped for good by the time spent in our homes.That’s our business.Our home is for the service of building up people. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanNeed to overcome chaos? Check out this article with a free housecleaning guide: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/clean/No matter how much we clean and organize, it never stays that way. What gives? What are we doing wrong? The only thing we’re doing wrong is thinking it would be otherwise.Entropy is real. Disorder happens. That’s exactly why we have a job, a responsibility, as homemakers, to keep things running. It’s a truth universally acknowledged that a home with many small children will be messy. And, if you ever find a magazine, tv show, or blog that does not acknowledge that reality, run. Run away. They don’t actually have help for you, only marketing facades and wishful thinking. If we’re going to be effective homemakers, we need to be walking in light of truth and reality. Did you assume you’d be a more organized mother and homemaker than you are? Did you think it’d be easier than it turned out to be? I’m right there with you. I hear from women all the time who say that before kids they *were* so organized and they don’t know why they can’t figure it out now with life with kids.I’ll tell ya: The problem isn’t with the kids or your house. It’s with your mindset and your expectations. Family life is different from project-based work and homemaking is different from a job with a boss and a schedule. Children need attention and response in the moment. Children’s needs cannot be predicted and planned, only addressed as needed. That takes a different skill set. Homemaking requires us to be self-directed, self-managed, and self-motivated - a different skill set than being a good employee. At Simply Convivial continuing education we learn and practice the skill sets this family life at home requires, all while remembering that the people are the point and our work is a calling and service given to us by God. When we practice in this mindset we not only improve our skill, we also find contentment and satisfaction, even when things don’t go our way. Remember to pop on over to https://www.simplyconvivial.com/attitude to get your free attitude adjustment audit and reclaim and renew your mindset.And always remember to Repent. Rejoice. Repeat. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanDon't miss the ABCs of decluttering workshop: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/2021/the-abcs-of-doable-decluttering-with-free-workshop-replay/What is clutter? If you’re going to declutter, you have to be able to answer that question. It’s harder than it seems, and knowing the difference between clutter and not-clutter might just be the difference between success and failure in your decluttering project. Clutter is stuff that doesn’t belong where it happens to be.Clutter is not only things you don’t want or need.So to declutter means to remove the things that don’t belong. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanDeclutter Workshop with slide deck download: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/2021/the-abcs-of-doable-decluttering-with-free-workshop-replay/ (no email signup required)How long is it going to take you to declutter?Decluttering can be an overwhelming project. It might feel like there’s no end and no hope in sight. You might be right about that.Declutter in 10 minutes a day and change your perspective on the task of decluttering.Did you assume you’d be a more organized mother and homemaker than you are? Did you think it’d be easier than it turned out to be? I’m right there with you. I hear from women all the time who say that before kids they *were* so organized and they don’t know why they can’t figure it out now with life with kids.I’ll tell ya: The problem isn’t with the kids or your house. It’s with your mindset and your expectations. Family life is different from project-based work and homemaking is different from a job with a boss and a schedule. Children need attention and response in the moment. Children’s needs cannot be predicted and planned, only addressed as needed. That takes a different skill set. Homemaking requires us to be self-directed, self-managed, and self-motivated - a different skill set than being a good employee. At Simply Convivial continuing education we learn and practice the skill sets this family life at home requires, all while remembering that the people are the point and our work is a calling and service given to us by God. When we practice in this mindset we not only improve our skill, we also find contentment and satisfaction, even when things don’t go our way. Remember to pop on over to https://simplyconvivial.com/attitude to get your free attitude adjustment audit and reclaim and renew your mindset.And always remember to Repent. Rejoice. Repeat. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanPerfectionism is the most likely reason that we procrastinate doing a weekly review. Perfectionism trips us up and tricks us into thinking that we will do more and do better - later, not now. In this episode, we learn how to identify perfectionism and defeat it. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanWe have a lot of options for planners. From paper planners to online apps, there are myriads of resources available to choose from. Yet even with all of these resources, we often find ourselves overwhelmed by overplanning, overconfident in our abilities to accomplish what "needs" to get done. In this exerpt from a members-only mentoring session, Mystie delves into this problem and explores different answers. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanHowever, to use this tool to its fullest extent, a few guidelines must be followed. Among them: don't overplan. Seems simple, right? Yet all too often, we pile too much on our plates, thinking that it would be good to start another project, start another book club, etc etc. All these projects simply degrade the usefulness of your calendar. Rather than being a list and schedule of the things you will do, it becomes a wish list of things you want to do. So reevaluate your calendar, cut off the flabby, unnecessary projects that are stressing you out, and, of course, repent, rejoice, repeat. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanIf you don't have a weekly review in place, all your time setting up a new planner and calendar for the year is wasted. Plans only work if you look at them and keep them current and correct.A weekly review does exactly that. It's a time to make your planner and your planning systems work for you. Be sure that the time you spend getting organized actually helps you stay organized by sticking with it regularly through a weekly review.Look at your lists to make them work! 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanNot only is ready the fifth step of preparing for 2021, it is also an acronym that the members of Simplified Organization Community Coaching will be doing as a deep dive.In this video, Mystie briefly discusses the first, familiar element of the acronym as well as the final, surprising component. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanIt seems patently obvious: of course you have to buy a new planner. I mean, it's a new year, you at least need a new calendar, right? True, but think about what is connected with that calendar: the entire way you plan out you year, months, and days. What worked and, more importantly, what didn't in 2020? What do you need to fix for 2021?Next reset some of your routines. Now, this doesn't mean going all the way back to the drawing board. Just pick one of your routines that was not ideal and hard to hold to throughout the year and reset it, reevaluating your strategy.And of course, we all need to reset our attitude, no matter what. There's no doubt, 2020 has produced some bad memories, bad habits, and bad attitudes. As we all know, the attitude is the starting point of everything. So evaluate yourself, replace the bad attitude that you find with one grounded in Christ, whose birth we are celebrating this week. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean

3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/cleanOne cannot rejoice if one is weary, exhausted, and cranky. And let's face it, 2020 has probably left us all three. So if we want to have any semblance of a productive 2021, we will need to renew ourselves.And how does that happen? Through the Word, of course. That is the point of this season: to renew ourselves, not necessarily through the copious consumption of candy, but through the memory and reverence of the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Without Him, we will not find true renewal, and we will remain the tired, exhausted, cranky creatures we naturally are.So take a moment and reflect. Review the year, and while doing so, look to Christ to become renewed, ready for another year with which to glorify Him. 3Rs of Meaningful Housework: simplyconvivial.com/clean