Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done - Homemaking, Life Organization, and Mom Productivity Tips

Join us for Art of Homeschooling: https://simplyconvivial.com/art-of-homeschooling

Imperviousness is a new word for many of us, but it's a word and a mode that we need to be successful homeschool moms who guide our children through their various phases into functioning adulthood. Homeschooling is not always going to be rainbows and roses, and we have to be prepared to weather the storms of our children's displeasure if we're going to effectively shape their loves and lifestyle.

Lauren Scott makes her home in the foothills of the Arkansas Ozarks, where she and her husband Nathaniel are raising their two energetic teenage boys on the Scriptures, living books, the great outdoors, and lots of meaningful work experiences. Lauren has been home educating now for over a decade and organizes a local co-op. She’s an avid gardener and reader, and she writes about the Christian life, books, and homeschooling at KeptandKeeping.com.

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Learn the Art of Homeschooling: https://simplyconvivial.com/art-of-homeschooling

Transforming Homeschooling with Joy and Preparation | Simplified Organization Podcast

Let's chat about the joys of homeschooling and homemaking. Rena shares practical tips and strategies from the 'Art of Homemaking' course that helped her manage her home and homeschooling with gratitude, even through challenging times like pregnancy and the COVID pandemic. 

They discuss the importance of setting a clear direction, using checklists, preparing in advance, and iterating routines to create a smoother and more joyful homeschooling experience. Rena also highlights the significance of starting the day with a positive mindset and the role of alignment cards in maintaining focus and gratitude.

00:00 Introduction to the Podcast
00:44 Meet Rena: A Convivial Circle Member
01:22 The Art of Homemaking and Homeschooling
02:20 Setting Direction and Vision
03:24 Practical Tips for Daily Routines
05:15 The Importance of Preparation
09:04 Iterating and Adapting Homeschool Plans
11:56 Starting the School Year Right
14:24 The Power of the Alignment Card
16:43 Concluding Thoughts and Gratitude

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Baby Step Bingo starts today: https://simplyconvivial.com/babystepbingo/

Gracie shares her experience with the 'Baby Step Bingo' challenge from the Convivial Circle community. They discuss how small steps can make a significant difference, particularly during life transitions such as expecting a new baby. Misty and Gracie explore how structured activities can enhance family productivity and joy, and they emphasize the importance of gratitude and personal choice in homemaking.
00:00 Introduction to the Simplified Organization Podcast
00:39 Meet Gracie Madwick: A Homeschooling Mom of Nine
01:35 Baby Step Bingo: A Fun Family Challenge
02:36 Implementing Baby Step Bingo in Family Life
04:30 Adapting Baby Step Bingo for Different Ages
06:08 Celebrating Success with Family Prizes
06:47 Adjustments and Iterations of Baby Step Bingo
07:40 Postpartum Pause and Future Plans
10:26 Mom's Baby Step Bingo: Thank You Notes
11:47 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Get your children helping around the house: simplyconvivial.com/ehap

Mystie and Anna Laura Farnham discuss effective methods for managing kids' chores and household tasks. Learn about the Baby Step Bingo challenge, chore charts, and decluttering techniques that turn everyday tasks into engaging activities. Discover how to keep kids motivated and foster a cooperative family environment, ultimately getting more done with gratitude and creativity.

Anna Laura and her husband, Gandalf, live in Indiana and have six children ranging in age from toddler to teenager. Before kids, she earned two music degrees in oboe performance and worked in a corporate office, but she has set aside those careers to focus on being a mom and homemaker. She and her family stay busy with church fellowship, several sports, music, reading and generally being creative.

 **Focus on Baby Steps:** Anna learned to tackle small tasks one at a time, like removing cobwebs or wiping down the washing machine. These small steps made a big difference, especially during hectic times like pregnancy or postpartum.
- **Gamified Chores:** Anna translated the lessons from Baby Step Bingo into practical training tools for her children. Tasks are broken into manageable chunks, and the kids get to experience a sense of accomplishment when they check off items from their bingo charts.
- **Customizing for Each Child:** Each child's bingo chart is slightly different, catering to their specific needs and capabilities. This ensures that chores aren't monotonous and helps keep the kids engaged.
- **Age Appropriateness:** For younger children, like her five-year-old, Anna uses a smaller 4x4 bingo chart and simpler tasks. This approach makes it easier for them to participate and feel involved.
- **Encouraging Early Participation:** While her two-year-old doesn't have a structured bingo chart, she imitates her older siblings and helps out in small ways, fostering a sense of contribution from a young age.

**Adding Excitement to Household Chores**

Anna finds that changing up daily routines with something like Baby Step Bingo can make a big difference. For example, before a holiday or trip, they might include tasks like vacuuming a vehicle or packing clothes in the bingo charts. This adds variety and makes mundane chores exciting.

Welcome to the Simplified Organization Podcast - 15 minute conversations with real moms about managing our homes and family life cheerfully to the glory of God. We can actually enjoy housework and love being homemakers when we focus on truth and work with gratitude.

00:00 Introduction to the Simplified Organization Podcast
00:32 Meet Anna Laura Farnham
01:15 Baby Step Bingo: A Game-Changer for Homemaking
03:04 Implementing Baby Step Bingo with Kids
03:48 Chore Charts and Rewards
07:54 Customizing Bingo Cards for Each Child
13:47 Gamifying Household Tasks
16:07 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Find Homemaking 101 here: https://shop.simplyconvivial.com/product/homemaking101/

Haley Williams, host of the Kindled Podcast, reflects on the challenges and lessons learned from managing a podcast while raising five children. She discusses the initial pressures to maintain a consistent publishing schedule and the eventual shift to a more flexible approach that accommodates her family life. 

Emphasizing the importance of being grounded in faith, she describes how she finds balance through regular prayer, Bible study, and prioritizing her family's needs. She also touches on engaging her children in meaningful discussions about current events and politics, highlighting the value of adapting expectations and focusing on what truly matters.

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Get Homemaking 101 here: https://shop.simplyconvivial.com/product/homemaking101/

Mystie Winckler and Haley Williams chat about managing home and family life from a biblical perspective. Feminism has poisoned our view of homemaking more than we realize, and Haley shares how she's seen that in her own life. They also discuss the challenge of balancing business and motherhood, and how they continue reevaluating priorities. 

Haley shares her personal journey of transitioning from focusing on her web design business to embracing her role at home as a homemaker. All moms need to figure out how to be sure external pursuits do not overshadow family responsibilities. Mystie and Haley provide insights on how to approach homemaking cheerfully, grounded in faith.

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Join the Empowered Wife bookclub, starting July 12: https://convivialcircle.com

In essence, by nature, the female is not necessarily floral, pastel, and soft. The female receives and productively transforms what she receives. She embodies and glorifies what she stewards. Feminism has taught women to be insulted when men treat them as special, open doors, carry heavy things, etc. Yet before feminism, women felt such special treatment was their due. 

Men honor women by giving them special treatment. Women honor men with respect and gratitude. A husband loves his wife by giving to her, by cherishing her - and a wife has to let him cherish her if she's going to get the love and intimacy she actually craves if she's vulnerable and honest enough to admit. 

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Now, I've read a lot of Christian marriage books that talk about love and respect, but none have actually ever given such specific examples like Empowered Wife. I think a Christian book these days could never be as pointed and blunt and specific as Laura Doyle is because specifies are immediately denounced as legalism.

I have been married for over 20 years and have always paid attention to trying to be respectful, but I found her specificity and examples clarifying and helpful. She pulls no punches in saying that a wife respecting her husband in very concrete ways is essential to an intimate marriage.

We really have bought the enlightenment and feminist assumptions of the world that if we give respect, we are diminished in some way, and I think Laura Doyle does a great job of giving stories and evidence that we are happier, more secure, more cherished and loved - that is, we are MORE and better when we give over respect and trust, even when it's scary. 

What have been your takeaways about showing respect? Which of her examples stood out to you or do you have examples of your own of changes you've been able to make to increase the respect you give your husband?

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Time management help: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Be a happy wife - at first it seems odd that the first intimacy skill is self-care, is about yourself, but it's all part of taking responsibility for yourself. Start with yourself, not with what other people are doing or saying. 

Many unhappy wives and homemakers think martyrdom is holiness, that sacrificial love means never thinking about yourself at all - but there is no guilt for taking showers, for enjoying beautifying yourself, for resting with a magazine and a hot cup of coffee, for doing an exercise class or taking music lessons. 

How can we help our families become flourishing people without also taking the time to flourish ourselves and show them how it's done? I think a lot of the examples of self-care in Empowered Wife are examples of how not to make your contentment and happiness dependent on other people, but just enjoy life as your own person.

Join Convivial Circle to read, discuss, and apply this book with Stefani: https://convivialcircle.com

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm

Join the Empowered Wife book club inside Convivial Circle: https://convivialcircle.com

The Simply Convivial team discusses what it takes to have a happy marriage - and why that's so important.

Empowered Wife (find on Amazon: https://amzn.to/45ju0wY ) sounds cringy and feminist, but it's actually about taking responsibility for yourself, about recognizing and stopping excuses and blaming and complaining, and embracing a femininity that enjoys masculinity. It's "empowered" because wives are the relationship keepers, connection-makers; we do a lot to make everyone around us either flourish or flounder in misery. 

Laura Doyle teaches 6 skills to foster connection, intimacy, with your husband and in a lot of ways, most of them boil down to learning how to be a happy, content, feminine woman - where feminine doesn't mean frilly and flowery, but biologically and culturally feminine - nurturing, relationship-fostering, connection-making, receptive, grateful home-builders. 

Then she also throughout admonishes women to not belittle men for being masculine, but be quiet when we're uncomfortable with masculine expressions and appreciate being given special treatment because we're women, and to not emasculate our husbands with disrespect - which she goes to great lengths of very normal examples to show how easily we slip into disrespectful expressions. 

So I'd love to hear some of your takeaways or thoughts from anywhere in the book, really, about what it means to embrace being a woman, being feminine. 

Mystie Winckler encourages moms to organize their attitudes and get traction at home so we are no longer overwhelmed or frustrated with homemaking. We are a community of Christian women striving to be competent, cheerful homemakers so we are fruitful, faithful, and hospitable. Subscribe for regular encouragement!

📖 Get my latest book - Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
https://www.simplifiedorganization.com

🏆 Enroll in Convivial Circle and get practical homemaking mentorship so you don't have to be overwhelmed anymore: 
https://www.simplyconvivial.com/stop-overwhelm