Spontaneous Sewing and Related Activitites

I collected some sewing items and placed them in a basket for my 7-year-old. My favorite item is a small hoop that I filled with an old sleeve from a men's dress shirt. The other items include a needle threader, spools of thread, and scissors. My daughter has now added tape, much preferring to tape the thread on the back of her sewing project over tying knots (how do you teach knotting thread - I can't do it either).



My eldest does not do anything in a tedious fashion - coloring is barely within the lines. When I talked about sewing in rows or with small stitches, she responded with "I don't like to do it like that." I'm just glad she likes to sew. After finishing this first sampler for her brother's birthday, she sewed a simple dress for a bunny rabbit and embellished it with a pretty button. Her momma was darn proud.



I bought a salt shaker at the grocery so my little ones could enjoy decorating the lid with sewing pins. My almost-5-year-old much preferred decorating the pin cushion and using the salt shaker as part of the "pin cushion bug".



This needle threader is a jewel of a find. I had no idea what it was until I saw it on someone's blog (wish I could remember where and give them credit). I, the mechanical engineer, could not figure out how to use it (a failed presentation). But my 7-year-old figured it out by herself and now uses it with ease to thread a needle - very convenient if the artist likes to use lots of colors.



The 24-month-old found a new use for our marbles. She made a noise machine with the sewing tin lid. She enjoyed dropping the marbles on the tin and rolling them around and around. Then she had fun putting the marbles back into an old spray bottle, showing more patience than usual with the large quantity of marbles. She has had lots of practice, so she can now pick up 4 or 5 at a time and use her hand as a funnel.

My dear children must learn many things on their own. Their mother does not have many skills in the homemaking arena - though God is teaching me day by day! Many times I will try to teach or "present" something to my kids and it's literally the first time I have ever attempted the procedure. We have many frustrations and failures. And sewing was no different...until I set out the needed equipment and let the my eldest child teach herself and wow - she took off on it and does not want to stop.

There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven--
   ...A time to tear apart and a time to sew together;
   A time to be silent and a time to speak.
Ecclesiastes 3:1,7

Washing and Peeling Potatoes Outside

Today we washed and peeled potatoes outside. I would love to get back to the roots of food preparation - inspired by nomads and others that posh society deems as uncivilized. It is so much more fun to do anything outside for children - even in bad weather. Today it was 80 degrees and sunny so damp clothing was no big deal.



Children love produce and and they love water. So it doesn't get much better than dunking potatoes in a bowl of water and scrubbing them with a wash rag. This is a popular activity at our house and begins about when they can sit in a high chair. The children will spend so much time washing the produce that I will eventually have to order them to give over the vegetable for food prep. Today the almost-5-yr and 24 mos. were participating.



After washing the potatoes, the almost-5-yr and 7 yr olds were given the task of peeling potatoes while I helped the 24 mos. use the potato water to water the plants (so she would not be trying to take their peelers away). She loved pouring the water from the bowl through the funnel this time, but I made the mistake of using all the water in one trip so the distraction activity was not nearly long enough.



It just so happened that the 7 yr who is well acquainted with a peeler was using her peeler to stab the potato and therefore lost the privilege of peeling and given the privilege of distracting the 24 month old. Oh, the joys of parenting.



I greatly assisted in the orderliness of these pictures, though it is my hope that I will some day succeed in teaching my children the "clean up" routine so that it will become habit, requiring no thought from them nor direction from me.



There were other things I wanted to add to this post, but this will have to do for now!

May the LORD reward your work, and your wages be full from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge.
Ruth 2:12

Laundry Detail

Laundry used to be a constant burden on the whole household - me because I couldn't get it all washed, folded, and put away before the next big heave-ho, my husband because he never knew the location of his socks (he's not allowed to do the laundry - I'm way too picky on how it has to be done), and the children because they never had clean underwear and they could not walk 5 feet before tripping over dirty or clean stacks of laundry. Oh, how times have changed. The kids and I (almost 2, 4, 7) now sort and wash all the laundry on Monday, and then sort, fold, and put away all the laundry on Tuesday. It's a miracle and still continues to amaze me.

Our best strategy has been to sort the clean laundry into piles on the floor. One stack for Daddy, one for Mommy, one for Daddy socks, one for Mommy socks, etc. Whatever makes sense to your system. If you're a clean and tidy person, you could lay a sheet or blanket on the floor. Then we divide up the piles and get to work.

Note we do get a little complaining once the skills have been acquired, but during the training process the kiddos really enjoyed these practical life activities (when I was not being critical mommy over their shoulder). My 7-year-old literally sings the whole time she sorts or folds, so it must not be too bad.

Toddler Jobs
- throw items in specified stack (clean or dirty)
- stretch out washcloths or socks or anything else
- hang small items on racks
- carry small stacks to drawers
- pour clothes detergent, etc.
- push buttons on laundry machines
- put clothes in washer, dryer, basket

Toddler Graduate Jobs
- sort clean clothes (even 2 year olds know which socks are Daddy's)
- stack matched socks
- fold socks
- roll/fold washcloths

Pre-Preschooler
- put specified clothes into waasher, dryer, basket independently
- fold their own clothes (don't be too picky) on the floor
- put away their own clothes
- fold towels
- hang their shirts on the floor
- match socks
- fold socks inside one another

Preschooler
- sort most of the family's clean clothes
- sort most of the family's dirty clothes
- fold any type of clothing
- change setting on washer or dryer

School Age
- all of it


BONUS FEATURES
- play texture game (match socks by blindly feeling row of socks)
- fold blankets and sheets with kiddos and give kisses when matching corners

CURRENT SCHEDULE
(changes every couple months)

Sunday Night
Mom - carry baskets of dirty laundry downstairs Sunday night
Mom - throw in load of towels and set aside sheet load for morning

Monday Morning
Mom - thow towels in dryer and throw sheets in washer
4 Yr - sort the dirty clothes with Mom while 7 Yr fixes breakfast
2 Yr - help sort or cook or stack plates and bowls from dishwasher

Monday throughout Day
Mom (and whoever is available) - Keep running loads and dumping clean clothes baskets upstairs

Monday Night
Mom - carry up baskets and hang wet clothes

Tuesday Morning
7 or 4 yr - sort clean clothes while others work in kitchen

Tuesday Mid-Morning
Mom - fold Mom and Dad's clothes, Dad's socks, and sheets
7 yr - fold Mom and Dad's white socks, kitchen items, own clothes (not many), baby clothes
4 yr - fold own clothes (has LOTS of clean clothes), towels
2 yr - play by hanging washcloths or stretching out small items
All (esp. 2 yr) - put everything you folded away

Every one of the above steps requires some training time but then let them fly. Currently, I do alot of the moving clothes from washer to dryer and carrying baskets just because it suits our current work routine. But they do ALOT and I am so proud of them. My daugher was 6 when she first folded the entire family's laundry - not that I ask her to do that on a regular basis - but I was amazed that we could raise such independent, capable kids (though they have their issues). It took me 34 years to do what she did at 6 years old. WOW!

I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing And I will cause showers to come down in their season; they will be showers of blessing.
Ezekiel 34:26