Organising Your Kitchen

A Place for Everything and Everything In Its Place is a mantra that most home makers are familiar with and if you are not, you should be! It is the key to organisation!This is helpful whether you are looking at organising your Living Room or your Kitchen. In our home, my kitchen is actually the tidiest place in the entire home and this is entirely due to the lack of space in there! That’s right – we have a tiny kitchen for a family of 8.

In order to cook and prepare food efficiently, I am forced to put away everything that I do not use and to streamline everything possible. And this is reviewed periodically since our needs are always changing and we sometimes acquire new tools to help me.

I also have a cupboard shelf and a drawer that I set aside to allow my toddlers to go through when I cook. This allows me to do food preparation in peace while they play near me. But they are only allowed to that shelf and drawer. And they need to pack everything up when we leave the kitchen.

In order to work fast – key word when you have many young children in the house! – is to make sure that what I need regularly is all within reach at my work “station”, near the sink. This means not putting my regularly used pots and pans up in the top shelf of the cabinets. It also means keeping soya sauce, salt, corn flour near my work “station”. And it means putting away my little used crockpot* away in the cabinet.

Things that are used together are placed in the same shelf or cabinet. Example – all baking ware and equipment belong in the same cabinet, not hidden away in various shelves. Likewise, all coffee, tea, hot chocolate, sugar belong in the same shelf.

To further organise my Kitchen, every child has his/her own cup. At the moment, all have their assigned cutlery and crockery. This will soon change as the older ones will soon need bigger plates! These cutlery and crockery are not put aside after each meal. After they are washed, I just leave them in the dish rack holder till the next meal. We do not use a dishwasher so all everything is dripped dry on the dish rack after they are washed.

And please, please throw out those containers you have been meaning to reuse or recyle! If haven’t used it in the last 6 months, it is highly unlikely you will use it. And those that have missing covers, they do not belong in the kitchen either! I understand Tupperware will replace your covers for free since they have a lifetime guarantee. If you can’t bear to throw them out, then do what I do – give them to the children to add on to their doll house toy collection.

If you want to spend as little time in the Kitchen as possible, being organised – not just in meal planning but also in space organisation , is necessary.

* I do not use our crockpot as regularly now. Dh says the meat cooked in the crockpot tends to be dry. So we have switched to using a Thermal Cooker or Cooking Pot .

Getting Back To Basics

The last few weeks leading up to the birth of the precious baby that God has blessed us with is not easy for me. In fact, it is down right hard !!! It is hard physically and emotional and spiritually!

This is the time when my nesting instinct turns ugly. Where I want to just withdraw into myself and be quiet and alone. But try doing that with a houseful of children 9 years and below! Of course I didn’t have this issue to grapple with when I had my first nor my second child. Afterall, when you are pregnant with your first, you can basically continue to live life as you had – eat when you want, sleep when you want, be alone when you want.

But when you have many littles who need your attention and help, you will have to learn to put their needs before your own.

And so it gets more and more challenging for me when the Lord keeps on increasing our family size! Everything irritates me at this point. People talking too loudly, people talking too softly. People touching me, people ignoring me. People asking too many questions, people not bothering to ask how I am. Yes I morph into this unreasonable creature.

And then there are the tears. Crying at the drop of the hat. Being overly sensitive over everything. Like I said – no fun! To me and to those who have to live with me! And it doesn’t help when I tend to go over my EDD! But life has to go on, right? And that’s why I title the post “Getting Back To Basics”. As I hit the last stretch, I start to slow down and pare down life to the basic essentials. This helps me to not feel ovewhelmed and it also helps me conserve energy for the birth.

Quiet Time
This is basic that needs to be done each day. And yet, it is something that is the easiest to push aside when I hit this last stretch . It is always easy to be busy and do things especially when the “To-Do” List is a mile long! But that is exactly why I feel overwhelmed. I need to stop and remember the words of Moses as he stood between the Red Sea and the advancing Egyptian army (talk about being overwhelmed!) :

And Moses said to the people,
“Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today.” Exodus 14:13

If I rush around like a headless chicken, I am taking things into my own hands – again! I need to stop and choose to rest in the Lord and not miss what He wants to do in my life. He is working something out in these last weeks. I can choose to make it meaningful and draw closer to Him or I can whine and grumble till I birth. Which will I choose?

As an aside, I remember when I was waiting to birth #4. Everyone around me was telling me that she will definitely be early since she’s the 4th child And so by Week 38 I was more than ready to have her. Week 39 came and went. So did Week 40. I was getting grumpier by the day and complaining non-stop. I was huge and hot and tired. Despite taking lots of pineapples and walking around a lot (we were at the zoo on her EDD!) the baby was just not ready to come out. It was only after I realised that I was being silly – you can’t make a baby come out when it is not time – that I started to rest in the Lord and let Him take over. She finally joined us 5 days past EDD.

Housework
I de-clutter like a maniac in the last weeks. This helps to cut down the amount of time needed to clean up the house in the last weeks as well as after the baby’s arrival. And …it gives me something to do instead of moping around and feeling sorry for myself.

This time round, I am engaging the services of part-time home cleaners to come in once a week from Week 38. So even if I go beyond EDD, I won’t have to bother about housework. While I didn’t take up a part time cleaner after #4 and #5, I shall take it real easy this time and get them to come in. I am obviously not as young nor as energetic as I was before! Lol!

I will probably use them for a minimum of 2months, if not 3. I have realised that resting more in the post partum days helps me recover much faster than trying to get many things done immediately.

Cooking
I look through my menus and start listing my final month of cooking before I take a break – yay! (I don’t cook after I birth. My mil helps out in the first month and then I switch to catered tingkat food in the second month.) This is one break I look forward to! No need to think about food and cooking for 2 whole months! Ok – so the children dislike catered food but hey! they have to learn to think of mom!

Homeschooling
I would love to be able to just take the last month off and another 3months off after baby’s arrival. But having done it with the last pregnancy, I shall not be doing it again!

Taking off school for too long a break is not good for all. Children get bored and into each other’s faces. Mom gets lazy and find re-starting school a chore. Instead, I push for all to finish up what is planned in view of the much lighter load we will be having post partum. But the workload lightens considerably.

Everyone will take one whole month off when baby arrives! Then in the second month, we will re-start our SOW devotions (Outline/Topic/Setting/Character/Commentary). The pre-schoolers will do their own devotions with me.

In the third month, we will add in English, Maths and Science (for the 9year old only) by doing just assessment papers/ worksheets from Popular. The pre-schoolers will do just Reading and Math.

All things will swing back to “normal” in the fourth month – God willing!

It is tempting to say “I give up” especially to homeschooling when you are pregnant or just had a baby. But as a wiser mom said to me before – Life doesn’t stop when you are pregnant or when you just have a baby. It just slows down. Since we believe that God is in control and He has given us all these children with homeschooling thrown into the mix, we just have to work pregnancy and nursing into our lifestyle.

Being Frugal

How does one save money with the increasing cost of living?First things first – there is a cost to everything. . Unless you have an infinite source of time or money, something has to go! If you want to save money, then you have to do more work. If you have no time to do the work, you have to pay someone to do it for you. In other words, you can’t have your cake and eat it too!

Here are certain things we do to cut down unnecessary costs. I am fully aware that there are certain seasons in our lives where we have to adjust our spending pattern – eg when mom is ill/pregnant/just had a baby and so need to spend money to get outside help. Then other costs has to be trimmed so accommodate this extra but temporary expense.

I will just share a few that has worked for me without taking up too much of my time.

1. Never buy at full retail price
I try my best never to buy at full retail price on items such as clothes and even toiletries. But I also do not go all the way out to shop at sales. I cannot be bringing all 5 children with me just to save some dollars . So I weigh my pros and cons. If the savings are going to be huge (either because of the number of items to be bought or because the item is a big ticket item) then I may arrange for babysitting for the older kids and bring just the baby or get dh to shop for me.

If it is for the smaller items like toiletries, if I see something on sale, I would buy as much as our finances allow for at that time. Things that get used up fast (toothpaste for 5 children get used up really fast!), would obviously be bought in greater quantities.

2. Shop at the auctions
I am a fan of online auctions! Yahoo and eBay offer lots of bargains for one willing to spend time trawling it. Just use the search button to get what you want. Narrow it down if possible to be more efficient. Eg. I often have a budget for an item I am looking for. So I use the Advance Search button to narrow down the thousands of similar items placed on the auction site for a faster search.

If I do not need an item urgently, I can place it on the search machine and let it notify me when the item is available! No need to waste any time!

Just remember to check that the seller has great feedback and do email the seller to see how fast he/she responds to you to get a gauge of his/her sincerity.

Just 2 weeks ago, I bought an almost new maternity swimsuit for just below S$19 from a US seller! Yep! Including postage! And 2 years ago, I bought a never used, 3 + 1 L-shaped, simulated leather sofa for just $200. But I had to spend money to transport it. But even then, it was still a steal! In this case, dh went to check it out before purchasing it.

And if you are hardworking, you can even make money by selling your unwanted stuff on the auctions as well! I know there are moms who have a tidy profit buying and selling on eBay. And if you need more information on this, check out the library for books to help you.

3. DIY
And the easiest way to save money? Do It Yourself! From sewing to baking to making your own books for your children! Yep, with a little creativity and time, you can do all and more of those things I mentioned. Not only will you save money, you also get a sense of satisfaction when you and your loved ones enjoy your handiwork.

4. Cut down the unhealthy stuff
Stop drinking juice, Ribena and the like. Switch to water. It’s healthier in the long run. Save the juice & stuff for special occasion. Eat out less. Again, healthier in the long run. You don’t really know what goes into your meal when you eat outside!

5. Use the Free facilities
Make full use of free facilities like the library and parks and playground. And nowadays there are even free concerts and orchestra performances!

These are just some of the things I do that help me be a better steward of our money. We have been very blessed with the Lord has blessed us with but that does not mean we do need not to be careful with what we have.

Just a word of caution (for myself as well!) : We need to be careful that our frugality does not become an expression of a fear that God will not provide for us or that we become stingy pokers! Happy saving!

How To Get More Done In A Day

There are two little known and highly unpopular secrets to getting more done in a day for SAHMs!

1. Stay at home more than going out!
2. Self-Discipline

No kidding! Now you know why I say they are highly unpopular tips? I have learnt in the past 8 years of being a wife, mother, housekeeper, cook….that staying home helps me accomplish much more.

Being self-disciplined alone is not enough because no matter how disciplined you are, you are losing time by being out. And staying home without being self-disciplined means nothing either.

Does that mean we are doomed to a life of being trapped at home? Noooo! You just need to make certain sacrifices and work your routine around it. Eg. You don’t need to go out everyday to run your errands. Plan your trips out carefully. Not only are you saving time and money (petrol cost if you drive or taxi fare) you are also saving energy – yours!

Going out too often zaps you of your energy so that when you return, you have no energy todo what you are supposed to do. So things pile up, stuff grows! Chaos reigns yet again and you feel overwhelmed.

But if you can plan out your outings carefully and limit them to once or twice a week, you will be able to get more done. Does that take spontaneity out of your life? Probably! But the trade-off of accomplishing what you need to do will certainly offset whatever benefits of being spontaneous. And like I said, I am not advocating staying home 365 days a year!

I know some who say that staying out leaves the house cleaner – coz there’s no one at home to mess it up, you see? I guess that would be ok if you had one or two children. I certainly cannot imagine me staying out all day, everyday with 5 children! Besides the overstimulation will probably make them hyper!

So try it – stay home for a week and do what you planned to do. You’ll see that much more gets accomplished!

My Nesting Instinct

Everytime we are blessed with a child, our home gets a revamp.Once the 1st trimester blahs go away, my new burst of energy almost always leads to the re-organising and de-cluttering of the home. This nesting mode often makes my dh very wary since he is the one who has to haul the furniture around the house. Our previous 2 homes were single storey apartments, so moving cupboards/shelves/beds around wasn’t too bad. However, our current home is a 2-storey apartment. So moving the heavier and bulkier furniture up and down is going to be a challenge! Any one wants to volunteer their dhs?

One of the 1st things we did was to prepare to move our 22mth old toddler to the girls’ room. Upgrading her to a toddler bed was the 1st step. Soon, she’ll move in with her 2 older sisters. Now that is another story since she is one gal who hates changes!

De-cluttering is a major exercise when the nesting instinct hits. All of a sudden, the clutter and messiness of the house gets to me and I start thowing out stuff and do really deep cleaning! Ahh! As if the baby cares, eh? But I take advantage of this feeling to get stuff out of the house! Afterall, we need to make space for one more body in the house!

How do I de-clutter?

My modus operandi is to attack room-by-room. In this case, I attacked the rooms on the lower floor 1st. The balcony with the toy shelves was the 1st to be dealth with.

Then the study. Each child gets his/her own shelf. All their school books/files and pencil cases go into that shelf. Completed workbooks are placed in a box to be filed away for at least 1 yr before being thrown out.

The kitchen was next. Thankfully, not much clutter has accumulated in the cabinets as I had done a very thorough job when we moved. Everything that did not get used or did not match were given away or thrown out.

The main source of “clutter” in the living room is the bookshelves. Not much can be de-cluttered there as that’s where we store our referral books and curriculum.

I then tackle the 3 bedrooms as ONE entity. The boys’ room contains 2 bookshelves of children’s fiction books, 2 boxes of puzzles(already purged) and our photo albums. The girls’ rooms houses a linen cupboard (only the children’s bedsheets and pillowcases) and a chest that holds their old clothes. So there’s actually very little to de-clutter. The biggest item is clothes! Simply because there are 7, soon to be 8, of us in the house. Even if each of us only had 5pieces of clothing, that works out to be a lot of clothes to keep!

How do I decide what stays and what goes?

Toys – toys that are not played with will be either thrown out or given away. This includes board games. Even “educational” toys. Gasp! Yep. I get quite heartless. There are toys/games that I feel are good but if no one is playing with them, then it has become clutter. I might as well bless someone with them. As we have been blessed, so should we be a blessing. Those that I really, really like and think I can convince them that they are great games, I put aside in a box. I have told myself that if after 3 – 6mths, no one, including me, has asked about them, I shall pass them on.

Books - the same principle applies to books. Obviously, solid Christian and/or creation based books are to be kept. Fluff will be thrown out. I try to have books that are suitable for the different age groups so that at any one time, any child can go to the bookshelves and pull out a few books to keep themselves occupied.

Clothes - this has been easy to pare down. Those that are immodest or scruffy will not be considered. What’s considered immodest to us are obviously short skirts and spaghetti tops/dresses. Outfits that are too sheer also get the boot. I keep a few tight fitting tees for the girls to wear under their too large dresses so that they don’t expose their bodies inadvertently.

Because we are open to have as many children as the Lord blesses us, I’ve always kept a few pieces of boy and girl baby clothes. But realistically speaking, since my younger ds is almost 5, I will be passing on all the boy clothes that are too small for him. If the Lord should bless us with another baby, it’ll be at least another 2yrs or so. And what if it is a girl, again? Then I’ll be hanging on to a huge bagful of clothes that is gathering dust and occupying space! I can trust the Lord to provide if and when He blesses us with a boy. I do not want to end up hoarding stuff.

Knick Knacks - put simply, we don’t have these in the house. Yes, I know they can beautify the home but practically, they just add to our workload. The only knick knacks we have in the home are photographs of our family.

I hope this gives you some idea of what to do when you wish to de-clutter your own home. And no, you don’t have to wait till you are pregnant to do this! I was determined to de-clutter coz I realise that it was difficult for my ds to vacuum the house when he had to keep on moving pieces of “stuff” around. So if you are finding it hard to keep up with your chores, or that cleaning the house is taking too long, then it is probably time for you to de-clutter.

Another tip - try to not have stuff on the floor. Leave your floors as bare as possible so that vacuuming and mopping are a breeze. You don’t have to waste time moving items from place to place as you vacuum/mop.

Having A Routine Helps

Our home tends to run like clockwork here, much to the horror of those who prefer a free and spontaneous lifestyle!

Now, if you are happy having each day surprise you, do not read today’s posting! But if you are wondering how to bring organisation to chaos, read on and see if what helps me can help you too.

I first learnt about order and organisation with my first child when we put him on a loose 3hr feeding schedule when he was about 4mths old. Before that, I could never figure out what each day would bring. When he would eat and sleep was always a hit and miss affair. Most stressful for a 1st time mother!

Then my aunt introduced me to Gary & Anne Marie Ezzo’s book Preparation for Parenting . Once I put in place the basic principle of eat-play-sleep cycle for him, life became so much more manageable. I started enjoying being at home and being a mother more! He also became a much more contented baby. I was now able to cook, do housework, and even have ME time!

With that in place, I was able to face accepting another baby into the family with confidence. With each baby added to the family, he/she would be slowly integrated into our routine and it was mostly peace and harmony.

But there were other issues that need to be settled. With more children in the house it was difficult to find time to do everything without staying up late every night. I then chanced upon Teri Maxwell’s book Managers of the Home or MOTH . (Our Book Store carries this book and other books from Titus 2 now!) For more details about MOTH can be found at the Maxwell’s website www.Titus2.com) Wow! It helped put so many things into place. Now that we have a routine in place, everyone knew what they were supposed to be doing.

I already had our meals and sleeping times fixed but the book gave me ideas on how to schedule homeschooling and housekeeping as well. Once the system was set up, I had to get everyone used to the new routine. After a few weeks, everyone knows exactly what they are supposed to be doing when. Isn’t that great?

Every once in a while, the system needs to be tweaked. Like when the toddler outgrows his morning nap or when we add another baby to the family Or when the older child needs to spend more time on school. We have gone through at least 4 or 5 versions of MOTH since I bought the book when were expecting our 3rd child.

But as Teri Maxwell says in her book – the schedule, any schedule , is not our master but our tool. It is a tool that helps us manage our households better and in a more productive and efficient way. I have tweaked it so much that I am now only following the MOTH principle, not its exact implementation. I made it work for our family.

As the years have gone by, I have become much more relaxed. I think having more children have also forced me to relax a bit more So I can testify that a routine does not necessarily need to stifle your spontaneous style but will allow you more accountability.

A routine is helpful for a 2-child family but definitely crucial for a large family. This is yet another way we manage our large family. May it help yours!

Time To De-Clutter Again!

Space, like time, is finite. Well, as long as we are here on earth anyway! Decluttering is a great way to ensure that we use our space efficiently.

With a larger than normal family size, space is a premium product in this house! Many friends have commented that our house is large by average standards. Yes it is but we do not have an average sized family. Lol! So we will still end up with “no space” if we do not declutter our house periodically. And with each child growing up, they will physically take up more space in time to come!

To some, decluttering is a painful exercise. For me, it is cathartic When I see the amount of stuff we have bought which have ended up as white elephants, it really makes me more wary and careful the next time I purchase something.

I had previously tried to offload the items on auction sites but I have found out that Singaporeans are generally not keen on 2nd hand items unless they are dirt cheap. Also if they are purchasing items for their children, they would prefer to purchase them new.

It really wasn’t worth my time taking pictures, loading them, writing out descriptions, wrapping them carefully, going to the post office, etc to find my item selling for $2.00 or $5.00. And meanwhile, the items sit in my house, taking up valuable space while I wait for buyers. I’d rather bless someone else who needs the item and will use it or donate it to some homes. That’s just my opinion of course.

So how and where does one start decluttering? It would be too overwhelming to do the whole house all at one go. As Flylady says 15min a day is good! Meaning, you just plan to declutter one room of the house at a time for just 15min a day. Of course if you can devote the whole day to this exercise without interruptions, then you go girl! But most of us can’t.

So 15 min a day or better still, 15min in the morning, 15min in the afternoon and 15min in the evening can accomplish much.

I usually do the bedrooms first. Firstly, it is a smaller area to declutter. Secondly, I can then see what space I have released in these rooms in case I need to store stuff from the living room in here. Then I work on the living room and then the kitchen. Now we have a balcony so I would have to work on that too.

Decluttering doesn’t mean moving stuff from room to another OR pushing everything into the storeroom! It means throwing out! Flylady has another tip that I like – throw out whatever you do not like! But this is easier said than done. Sometimes we keep things out of sentimental reasons even tho the item is really ugly!!! Or keep it in the hopes that one day we will use it. My friends, this is called hoarding! If you haven’t used it in 6months, you probably won’t ever use it.

Why do we hoard? Usually out of fear. The fear that keeps us thinking “Maybe one day I will…..” I have yet another easier-said-than-done solution Trust God! Yes, trust that He will provide when you need it. there’s no need to hoard.

If you are quiverful llike us, then you’ll need to keep some baby clothes, toys and books in the house longer than most people. But babies don’t need a lot of stuff to keep them happy. So please don’t keep them by the boxful!

Toys to me are easy to declutter. Anything that occupies the children’s attention for all of 10 min is not a keeper in this house. Toys with missing or broken parts also get tossed out.

Clothes that don’t fit anymore or are not in line with our standards of modesty also get booted out. We have been blessed by many friends willing to pass down their almost pristine clothing and even shoes to the children! So we can afford to be alittle more choosy. But I’d rather have a few pieces of modestly cut clothing than lots of skimpy spaghetti tops!

Books however are my downfall I find it extremely difficult to pare them down, especially my own books! But as space is tight, I have slowly released my books. It gets easier over time! Children’s books are a little easier to declutter. Books that promote backtalking, puts friends above parents, deal with the occult are of course weeded out. Some books are held in storage as they are not meant for younger readers. But when the children mature, we will be releasing these books to them so that we can have a dialogue on the topics the books deal with.

By the time I get to the kitchen, I often lose steam. So once in a while, I start decluttering the kitchen first. Storage containers with no covers are obviously to be thrown out unless they make good toys for the beach or for playing masak-masak. If that is the case, they then goes to the toy basket. Appliances that no longer work for us are also tossed out.

If done regularly, decluttering does not need to be a major affair. But as with all things, the first time is always the most difficult.

Start decluttering. Clear out the junk in your house and free up space!

I love it when we have lots of space surrounding us instead of having to squeeze pass stuff all the time. It is also easier and faster to clean the house when you don’t have to shift clutter from one place to another.

Have fun!

So What Is For Dinner?

Food, a major preoccupation with Singaporeans and a touchy topic with parents – always concerned about the amount their children are eating And recently, Organic Food is the hot topic of the day.

Most of us want to feed our families and ourselves healthy and nutritious food. But let us be realistic and practical. We cannot do it all the time. It could be a time or money constraint. Our resources are limited. But we have a responsibility to God to be good stewards of our earthly bodies. To eat junk food and pray that God will look after us is as presumptuous as dashing across the road and saying that angels will watch over us.

While eating good quality organic food sounds like the way to go, I find that it is just not practical in the long run. Especially in Singapore where such a high percentage of our food is imported. Unlike the US, where friends tell me that they either rear their own food (chicken, beef, goat, vegetables, etc) or they have neighbours who do. So save yourself the guilt trip if you can’t feed your family organic food all the time. I refuse to let it bug me.

What I do try my best to do is eat as little processed food as possible. Eating food as close to the way God created it is best, according to Rex Russell ( What The Bible Says About Healthy Living) and Jordan Rubin ( The Maker’s Diet)

So how are we to feed our families reasonably well and not bust our food budget. Oh! And not have to slave in the kitchen for hours? One way to get around this problem is to plan ahead.

I used to plan a weekly menu when we had less children and I had more time But now, I plan a whole month’s menu. By planning ahead, certain things are accomplished.

1. You don’t have to crack your head everyday thinking of what to cook.

2. There is no mad rush before mealtimes because you already know what you are going to cook and the necessary food item would have been defrosted or marinated.

3. In the same way, you will not discover just before cooking that you have run out of soya sauce or some other spice that you need for the dish you are cooking.

4. You don’t have to resort to calling take-aways for your dinner.

5. At a glance, you can at once see if you are eating too much of a single food group and space it out accordingly. This is esp helpful when you are avoiding certain food groups due to allergy issues.

6. You can stick to your food budget.

After planning the month’s menu, I then draw up my grocery list by the week. This allows dh to help me shop for groceries instead of me bringing all 6 to the supermarket. It may be educational for them but it is extremely tiring for me. But whenever possible, each of them get to take turns to follow daddy to the supermarket

Ideally, I should cut up and portion up all the meat items once the groceries are brought home (this will save even more time in food preparation) but generally I am too preoccupied with other things when the groceries come back. So it doesn’t get done.

Does this mean that we never eat junk food? OR that we follow the menu to a T? Of course not! Contrary to popular opinion, I am human too. Lol! And I, too, get lazy and uninspired. So sometimes we do order pizza or McDonald’s or KFC. But with planning, this becomes the exception, not the norm.

Does planning ahead spoil the spontaneity of life? Only if you let it rule your life. When I feel like cooking something else not on the menu OR if beef or duck (usually more expensive) is on offer, then I will cook it and just skip the original menu plan or save it for a rainy day. Let the menu plan help you, not frustrate you. It is a tool to simplify your life.

There is one more method I must share with you. It is called OAMC (Once a Month Cooking). It literally means what it says – you just cook once a month. For one day or two (if you are just starting out) you will cook everything on your menu and freeze it. And that’s it! You are done! All you need to do in the days aheasd is to pull out what you need and defrost it in the oven and voila! A meal is served in just a few minutes! If you need more details just google for it. You’ll be amazed at the amount of information out there. Why did it not work for me? Simple – I had no stamina to stand and cook for the whole day! I’d rather spend 15 – 30 min per meal each day to get my fresh food.

Happy planning!

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Recommended Books :

The Maker’s Diet: The 40-day Health Experience That Will Change Your Life Forever
By Jordan S. Rubin / Siloam

After winning his battle with debilitating Crohn’s disease, Rubin has devoted his life to developing natural ways to overcome illness. Offering a new perspective on well-being, he examines historically healthy cultures; diet secrets and nutrition principles, including sources of whole foods that heal; and fitness protocols needed to restore and maintain strength and energy. 336 pages, softcover from Strang.

What the Bible Says About Healthy Living
By Rex Russell / Gospel Light

In a world infatuated with junk food and fad diets, why have we overlooked the simple instructions provided in the Bible that have guided and people for thousands of years toward better health? You don’t have to be Jewish or a Christian to discover wisdom for healthier living in this doctor’s scripturally-based book on eating and feeling better, and living longer. These simple principles will help you find energy, freedom from illness, and more vibrant health! Hardcover.

When Does The Housework Get Done?

I learnt very early on that if I would like to rest (& I do need rest to function), I would need to do as much as possible during the day while the children are awake. If I were to wait till they were asleep (either nap or bedtimes), I’ll never get the rest I need.So as much as it is possible, school, cooking & housework is done when the children are awake & around me. So how is this done?

Firstly, I teach the children to play by themselves as soon as possible. This starts from when they are babies. Now I must admit that I have not been very consistent with this. And I have reaped the consequences of this. But when I have been consistent with it, it is just so freeing to be able to put the baby or toddler in his crib/room with a few toys & tell him – “Playtime!” and he would happily stay in the room or crib (depending on the age) for at least 30min. Many things can be achieved in 30min.

Later on, when this is no longer necessary, when the child is able to sit still for a longer period of time on the couch, I will vacuum or mop with him sitting on the couch watching me or the tv. Yes, we do use the tv! This also means that I need to work fast. I do not have the luxury of dilly-dallying. Unless there is some great mess to be cleaned up, I vacuum the lower floor in 15min max. As for the deep cleaning, I vacuum, mop both upper & lower floors & wash all the toilets in 1.5hrs.

One big help in achieving such speed is making sure I do not have to move furniture around too much. IOW there is very little on the floor to transfer from place A to place B & then back to place A, know what I mean? However, clutter has been slowing building up & I need to de-clutter again soon. Also, a friend has blessed us with a 3 +2 seater sofa set which tho’ wonderful, is taking up more space than I would like. I need to re-configure the house layout again in order to help make my job easier.

Back to occupying the children when I do the housework – all of them have learnt through experience (including the 17mth old toddler) that if mama says “wet floor”, they had better stay put whereever they are or quickly get to a chair/sofa & sit there till I say “floor is dry now”. Now that I have older children, I sometimes pack all of them upstairs with the toddler while I do the lower floor. The older children will then occupy the toddler till I give the all-clear to come down.

So doing housework while the children are awake instead of waiting till they are asleep has helped me to accomplish much more in the day. This way has another side benefit – they see mama doing housework. Housework is not something that gets done with a wave of the wand By teaching the children to occupy themselves when I am working has allowed me to re-charge during the afternoon rest times and to do other stuff that require my complete attention at night when they have all gone to bed.

Home Management Introduction

How do you handle housework and homeschooling and find time to cook? This is one of the many oft asked questions we get all the time! This section will talk about houehold management topics such as scheduling, menu planning and even de-cluttering. All things that help our households run smoother and more efficiently.

Here are some articles that can help you along:

1. How I Manage Housework – Part 1
2. How I Manage Housework – Part 2
3. How I Manage Housework – Part 3
4. How I Manage Housework – Part 4
5. When Does The Housework Get Done?
6. So What Is For Dinner?
7. Time To De-Clutter Again!
8. Having A Routine Helps!
9. My Nesting Instinct
10. How To Get More Done In A Day
11. Being Frugal
12. Getting Back to Basics
13. Organising Your Kitchen
14. Going On A Vacation?
15. Being Organised
16. Dealing with rising costs
17. De-cluttering the Playroom
18. Being Frugal – Groceries
19. Being Frugal – Clothing
20. Cutting Down Your Laundry Load
21. Organising My Fridge
22. The Blessing of A Timer
23. My DIY Planner
24. Is Your Home A Place of Sanctuary?
25. Preparing for Baby’s Arrival
26. Schedules and Routines
27. Menu Planning (new!)