2014 Summer Goals for the Children

I feel like summer is really upon us, like there's not much time left!  So we have already begun to work on these goals, and I'm just codifying them here to remind my September self.

Genevieve (age 8)

1. sewing lessons with Mom 

2. piano lessons with Mom

3. cooking lessons with Mom

4. mother's helper to two families (possibly - this depends on how it goes)

5. learn to hang up and take down laundry

All ready to be a mother's helper - a little present she put together for the child.

Ben (age 6)

1. ironing lessons with Mom

2. piano lessons with Mom

3. cooking lessons with Mom

4. read aloud to keep reading skills current

He wanted to make tapioca.

I'm a little vague on how the cooking and sewing lessons will progress.  I'm going to wing those. I'll try to report on the progress.

Ben has just started piano with me, and I have started a very successful new policy for screen time.  However many minutes of piano they practice, that's how many minutes they get to spend on the computer on a parent-approved site or activity.  This is a great motivational tool because they have no other regular screen time - it happens by chance or parental tolerance.

I have some freelance work, so I've been telling the kids to babysit themselves in the afternoon for one to

two hours while I edit.  They may only interrupt me in an emergency.  It's rather rocky yet, but we're persevering.  I also bought a laptop so I can sit under a tree at the pool and work while they swim.  Setting up this laptop makes me feel confused and old (Windows 8, sigh).  I persevere.

Sweet siblings occasionally.

Typical wrestling.

Recently I've started having the kids do the Friday cleaning (dusting/vacuuming) and then the bathroom cleaning on Saturday by themselves.  I work on other cleaning projects and occasionally check on their progress.  It's been wonderful!  They don't clean very thoroughly because they are still learning, but I'm more interested in developing their work ethic right now than the actual results.  Occasionally I re-teach a specific job or make them go back and do a shoddy job over again, but mostly I just accept a kid-cleaned house because I didn't have to do it all by myself.  Wow, I love this stage!

I didn't do a day-by-day schedule, but I did put a wipe-off sheet on the fridge with the weekly events and extras.  I'm just feeling my way into this summer, and so far, we are really enjoying the break from the school schedule.