What Happens in a Day at Home?

Heartwork, Housework, and Schoolwork

Dear Abiding Homemakers,

I hope you are having a lovely winter so far. We have had quite a bit of sickness, followed by a few weeks of me needing to focus all of my efforts on homemaking and homeschooling to catch up from the sickness. Because of this, I haven’t been able to get a new youtube video up in a very long time, but thankfully I was able to just hit publish on a new one.

This is the most requested video I have received on my Instagram: a full day in the life from start to finish. Putting this together was definitely a challenge and labor of love as I had to cut down a full day into a 30 minute video, but I believe I was able to capture the heart of what our days look like. In this video I share tons of family homemaking logistics and Biblical encouragements for mothers. I hope that you find it to be a blessing! It blesses me so much when you all watch, like, comment, and subscribe.

For those who don’t have time to watch or would rather read; here are a few highlights from the day in the life video.

Heartwork

“Molding”

I took a piece of common clay,

And idly fashioned it one day;

And as my fingers pressed it still,

It moved and yielded at my will.

I came upon when days were past,

The bit of clay was hard at last;

The form I gave it still it bore,

But I could change that form no more.

I took a piece of living clay,

And gently formed it day by day,

And molded with my power and art

A young child’s soft and yielded heart.

I came again when days were gone;

It was a man I looked upon,

He still that early impress bore,

And I could change it nevermore.

from the book Soul Sculpture

What a stewardship we have been given by God, to shape and form the children He has given us. The work may seem mundane, but it is actually eternal work we do. Sure, it would be easier to send the children off to school and to have time to ourselves, but we would miss out on the gift of being the primary shaper of our children’s hearts. Being together day in a day out provides us the opportunity to obey the commandment given in Deuteronomy 6:6-9

“And these words which I command you shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”

The Word of God is to be our primary tool and guide when it comes to teaching and training our children. 2 Timothy3 16-17 says,

“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Isn’t this exactly what we want for our children! So as we go throughout our days at home seeking to check off the never ending to do list, let’s not forget that the Word of God is to be in our hearts and on our lips as we do the basic things of life together.

Housework

The children have certain chores that they do every day, and then on certain days I will assign specific tasks that need our attention. Some people don’t believe children should be given chores, but I completely disagree. Giving our children daily work helps strengthen their ability to do work; and work is a part of the productive adult’s life. If we want to train up our children to be trustworthy and hard-working adults, then we should give them daily responsibilities.

Again I will emphasize the importance of teaching our children diligence and hard work, whether its daily practice to learn to play a musical instrument, working a math problem, cleaning the house, or fixing a bedframe. We want to teach our children that whatever they do, they should do it heartily as unto the Lord and that life is about glorifying God and not about the pursuit of temporary pleasures. Not that we should never have fun or do things we enjoy, but that isn’t the purpose for which we should live.

We are warned time and time again in the Proverbs of the dangers of laziness, and to one degree or another this is something each of us has to war against. Our example is one of the greatest teachers, more is caught than taught. I know this is an area of my own life that I’m continually seeking to grow in because it can be a struggle for me, especially if I’m feeling tired or sick. As a mother, we must keep working on ourselves to build our own good habits of diligence. And our children take notice of our improvements. I think it’s also important to admit when we have been falling short in an area, and tell our children that we are working to improve.

An example from my own life is that I struggle with waking up early, and being prepared for the day ahead of time before the children wake up. This is something I’ve openly told my children that I’m working to change, and they can see my efforts. I don’t want to make excuses for this bad habit, though I could blame my auto-immune issues or that the baby isn’t sleeping through the night, but that will plant seeds of making excuses for their own laziness. We all have obstacles we must overcome, and while it’s important to give ourselves grace and proper rest; it’s also important not to let laziness grow by making excuses for it. This is what we see in the Proverbs when the lazy man says, “there’s a lion in the road”, he is making an excuse for his laziness.  Hopefully this will be an area that I completely master at some point and I can be an example to them of how we must work to discipline ourselves even as adults.  

So if you have an area of your life that still needs work, don’t despair! Pray about it and work on it while being honest with your children about your struggle. This is so much better than pretending this flaw isn’t there or teaching them by example to make excuses. Like I said in the last video, a Godly homemaker is a humble woman, and she knows and admits that there is always some way she could grow and improve.

Schoolwork

So often mothers will ask me what curriculum I recommend, and honestly there are so many wonderful options out there and families have different personalities and preferences so it’s hard to give a 100% recommendation. What I do recommend is going to a homeschooling conference such as the Teach them Diligently conference and spending a few hours in the curriculum fair browsing through the materials and finding out what you like, because if you like it, then you will enjoy teaching it, and your children will pick up on your enthusiasm.

I’ve discovered that my personality is best suited for curriculum that is open and go and that doesn’t require gathering extra supplies. I utilize workbooks and more traditional curriculum for the core of my homeschool, and then I add in art, handicrafts, nature study, music, read alouds, and other things to round out our homeschool. Some are opposed to workbooks, and I understand the sentiment, but the truth is, they do work and they are simple to use. They keep us on track. And while many want to get their hands on the “best curriculum out there”, the actual best curriculum is the one you will actually use and complete.

As Christians I believe we should seek to homeschool with excellence and do our best to give our children a good education that will prepare them for whatever the Lord has for them in their adult lives. It will take time, energy, and effort. Homeschooling is not an easy task, and there may even be days that you want to give up, but remember why you are doing what you’re doing, and continue to be faithful and diligent with your child’s education, even when it’s hard. Seek the Lord for strength and keep showing up to the task.

“And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” Galatians 6:9

Way More

There was SO MUCH in this video that it could be 5 or 6 substack letters, so I do encourage you to go watch it if you enjoyed the things I shared here. I pray this letter finds you well and gives you some encouragement!

Abiding in Christ,

Stacey