The Rooted Home

How to reset your life as a Christian homemaker before the new year.

✨ Free workshop: Is there one area of your home you dread every single day (the laundry, the kitchen, the mornings)? Let's fix it together. In this free workshop, I'll help you build one simple rhythm that brings peace back to the place you need it most. Watch now → https://www.laurenmefford.com/free-training

It's October, and there are only three months left in the year. But it's not too late to reset your life as a homemaker and walk into the new year with real traction in your home. Grab a warm drink or your basket of laundry, and come hang out with me for a bit.

↓ Let's connect ↓

✨ Find me on Instagram: ➡︎ https://www.instagram.com/laurenmichellemefford/

✨ Ask questions/contact me: https://laurenmefford.com/contact

✨ Listen to the Podcast → Need to get away from the screen? You can listen to all my episodes on The Rooted Home Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/30DE890RxyjqmWe9WSe702 | Apple https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-rooted-home/id1879655340

✨ If you're curious about some of my favorite products and resources, check out our Amazon storefront: https://www.amazon.com/shop/laurenmeffordphdfnp-bc

This video is NOT sponsored. Some product links are affiliate links, which means if you buy something we'll receive a small commission.

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Thank you so much for being here today. ♥️

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Resources and Products Mentioned in this video (and some):

✨ How I do a weekly reset (full walkthrough): https://youtu.be/UhtPFpgTRuo

✨ My favorite notebook for all my planning: https://amzn.to/4oIMcID

✨ How I plan using just one notebook (A walk through): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5zdDeKeZ80

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When life as a Christian homemaker feels scattered, it's easy to look at the end of the year and feel like it's too late to change anything. I've been there. In this video, I'm sharing where I actually start when I want to reset my life and my home, and it begins smaller than you'd expect. There's one weekly habit that takes about 30 minutes, and I've found it gives back so much more time and peace through the rest of the week. (Admiral William McRaven's famous "make your bed" advice comes into this one too.) From there, I walk you through how I think about my God-given priorities using what I call the six spheres of fruitfulness. These are the different areas so many of us are called to steward, and getting specific about my goals in each one has helped me see where I actually want to go instead of keeping it all vague and in my head. And I share the one mistake that will completely backfire if you try to reset everything at once, along with what I've found really works for building habits and rhythms that last in a real home with real limits. If your home has been running you lately and you'd love to finish this year well, I hope this gives you a gentle, practical place to start this week. Slow change is lasting change.

Let me know in the comments which sphere of your home you want to focus on first this fall. I love hearing what other families are working on. 🌿

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------MY EQUIPMENT:

Shure MV7+ mic: https://amzn.to/4vKypVt

MOTU M2 USB-C Audio Interface: https://amzn.to/4pvuhHv

Camera: https://amzn.to/4vCOcpb

Aputure amaran 60dS Video Lighting: https://amzn.to/4jybYy4

Aputure Lantern Softbox: https://amzn.to/3NdQqej

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- #ChristianHomemaker #ResetYourLife #WeeklyReset #HomemakingRhythms #BiblicalHomemaking #ChristianMom #HomemakerRoutine #FaithfulInTheLittleThings #IntentionalLiving #NewYearReset #HomeschoolMom #MealPlanning #ChristianLiving #homemaking

CHAPTERS

00:00 It's Not Too Late to Reset Your Year

00:22 The Weekly Reset Habit I Never Skip

01:28 How 30 Minutes of Planning Saves Your Whole Week

03:28 What to Focus On as a Christian Homemaker

04:06 The Six Spheres of Fruitfulness

07:37 Why Resetting Everything at Once Backfires

08:50 How to Build Habits That Actually Last

✨ Wish your home felt more peaceful and joyful, without having to hold every detail in your head? The Rooted Homemakers Collective is Lauren's membership where she walks you step by step through building the rhythms and habits that make it happen. → https://laurenmefford.com/rooted-homemakers

Life is too short to be boring, and that includes your marriage.

This week we're sitting down with our dear friends Nick and Lena Gavrilov. They've been married almost 20 years and have nine kids, ages 18 down to almost 1. If you've ever been around their family, you know joy is the first thing you notice. It shows in their marriage, in their parenting and all over their kids' faces.

We talk about how they went from high school sweethearts to a long-distance season that taught them to communicate. We also get into how their view of children changed during their fourth pregnancy, and how they keep their marriage strong through first-trimester nausea and exhaustion. Lena and Nick share openly about the hardest season of their marriage, when Nick confessed a struggle with pornography, and how honesty, boundaries and ongoing check-ins rebuilt their trust. Plus we talk weekly date nights, raising joyful homeschooled kids, and the family worship times their kids still talk about (including a Bible study in the bathtub).

This one's full of honesty and laughter, and lots of practical ideas for bringing more joy into your home.

IN THIS EPISODE

• How Nick and Lena met at 14 and 15, and why five years of dating helped them grow up together instead of apart
• "Always Be Courting," the marriage advice Nick got from an 82-year-old mentor, and their family motto, #noaverage
• Why being part of a church that challenges you matters for your marriage and family
• Keeping your marriage strong through pregnancy nausea, cravings and exhaustion
• The hardest season of their marriage, and how confession, accountability and practical boundaries changed the way they communicate
• Why they've done weekly date nights since 2018, and the one question that opened up their conversations
• "Tell God the negatives, tell your husband the positives"
• Learning to understand each other instead of trying to win
• Raising joyful kids through prayer, humility, and parents who say sorry
• Keeping family worship fun: trampolines, a boat, a bathtub, and the two-minute "action" skits their kids love

CHAPTERS

00:00 Why Life Is Too Short for a Boring Marriage

00:30 Teen Sweethearts to 20 Years Married

08:17 Where Real Joy in Marriage Comes From

11:20 Keeping Marriage Alive Through 9 Pregnancies

20:11 The Hardest Season of Our Marriage

26:58 The Date Night Question That Changed Everything

28:44 Tell God the Negatives, Tell Your Husband the Positives

32:28 What the Tower of Babel Teaches About Marriage

35:35 How to Raise Joyful Kids (Even During Discipline)

46:22 Making Family Worship Fun

RESOURCES MENTIONED

• His Needs, Her Needs: Making Romantic Love Last | How to Identify and Satisfy 10 Vital Needs in Your Marriage | A Practical Relationship Guide for Couples
• The 5 Love Languages Hardcover Special Edition: The Secret to Love That Lasts
• 8 Errors Parents Make and How to Avoid Them: Parenting Book, Practical Guide for Christian Parenting, Positive Parenting Book for Parents

SCRIPTURE MENTIONED

• Psalm 127:3-5: Children are a blessing, and blessed is the man whose quiver is full
• Matthew 4:1-11: Jesus tempted in the wilderness
• Genesis 11:1-9: The Tower of Babel
• Galatians 5:22-23: The fruit of the Spirit
• James 4:6: God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble
• Lamentations 3:22-23: His mercies are new every morning
• The Book of Jonah
• Matthew 7:7: Ask, seek, knock

—CONNECT WITH NICK & LENA—

• Podcast: The Full House Life The FULL HOUSE Life
• Follow them on Instagram
• @‌nickygavrilov & @‌raising.our.arrows

—CONNECT WITH THE HOSTS —

Ask questions/contact us: https://laurenmefford.com/contact

Youtube: Lauren Mefford, PhD

How do I keep a CLEAN HOUSE with 6 children? It's 7 SIMPLE daily habits that keep our home tidy without all-day cleaning.

As a full-time homemaker, I don't aim for spotless, I aim for manageable. These are the small rhythms that make our 65 homemaking routine work in real life with a big family — morning resets, team tidies, and a weekly plan for actual 68 cleaning . If you need 60 cleaning motivation or want to build a home that stays tidy on autopilot, start here.

IN THIS VIDEO:

• Make your bed in 2 minutes for a quick win
• 60-second bathroom clear during your morning routine
• Pick up as you go with my "touch it once" rule
• 10-minute tidy before meals the kids actually help with
• Evening wrap-up: kitchen + living room team reset
• Weekly deep clean focused only on bathrooms & floors
• How to tell the difference between tidy vs. clean

This is simple living for moms — realistic habits that actually work and bring more order to the home.

✨ FREE MASTERCLASS + WORKBOOK: I made a free masterclass with a printable workbook to help you build personalized rhythms for your home and tackle your biggest pain points. Grab it here — it's totally free and you can start using it today: https://www.laurenmefford.com/free-training

✨ WATCH NEXT: How to train your kids for chores & build an age-appropriate chore system: Why Chore Systems Fail — And How to Build One That Works

If this helped you, please like and subscribe so you don't miss my weekly videos!

#cleanwithme #homemaking #cleaningmotivation #cleaninghabits #tidyhome #cleaningroutine #cleaningmotivation #cleanwithme #bigfamily #largefamily #homemaking #christianhomemaker #homeschoolmom #momofsix #stayathomemom #dailyroutine #homeorganization #simpleliving #momlife

Grab a warm drink or your basket of laundry, and come hang out with me for a bit.

↓ Let's connect ↓

✨ Find Lauren on Instagram: ➡︎ Lauren Mefford, PhD, FNP-BC (@laurenmichellemefford) • Instagram profile

✨ Check out our podcast: Apple Podcasts The Rooted Home | Spotify The Rooted Home | ✨YouTube Lauren Mefford, PhD

✨ If you're curious about some of my favorite products and resources, check out our Amazon storefront: Lauren Mefford's Amazon Page

Thank you so much for being here today. ♥️

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CHAPTERS

00:00 Morning Reset Basics

02:37 The "Touch It Once" Rule That Saves Me So Much Time

04:06 Family 10 Minute Tidy System

06:01 Wrapping Up the Home Together Before Bed

07:30 Tidy vs. Clean: My Weekly Deep Cleaning Rhythm

✨ Wondering what it would look like to have rhythms and habits that help you run your home instead of it running you? Check out the Rooted Homemakers Collective, Lauren's membership where she walks you through exactly how. → https://laurenmefford.com/rooted-homemakers

Last episode was all about the kids bickering. This time Lauren and Jeremy turn the spotlight on themselves and talk about what happens when the parents are the ones losing patience, getting sharp, or letting their emotions take over. They talk about why so much of today's conversation around emotional regulation and the nervous system falls short when it leaves out the heart. Our backgrounds are real, but they don't change the answer. The way out is still repentance and the power of the gospel.

They also share why they apologize to their children and ask for forgiveness, and how doing that shows their kids what a humble Christian does after sinning against someone. Lauren and Jeremy also talk about how they help each other in the hard moments, including the code phrases they use to gently rein each other in without undermining one another in front of the kids.

— RESOURCES —

✨Proverbs 16:32: "He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city."

✨Free workshop: Struggling to build rhythms that actually work in your home? In this workshop, Lauren shows you how to create simple routines that are rooted in biblical priorities and actually work. Watch it here: https://www.laurenmefford.com/free-training

✨ Wondering what it would look like to have rhythms and habits that help you run your home instead of it running you? Check out the Rooted Homemakers Collective, Lauren's membership where she walks you through exactly how. → https://laurenmefford.com/rooted-homemakers

This episode is NOT sponsored. Some product links are affiliate links, which means if you buy something we'll receive a small commission.

—CHAPTERS—

00:00 When the Parents Are the Ones Losing Their Temper

00:48 Why Nervous System Talk Doesn't Tell the Whole Story

04:09 Does Your Past Really Explain Your Short Temper?

06:58 Why We Apologize to Our Kids (and Mean It)

12:17 Saying Sorry vs. Actually Changing

13:36 "The Problem Isn't That Your Buttons Got Pushed"

15:57 The Secret Code Phrases We Use When One of Us Is Losing It

21:36 Why We're Thankful When Our Spouse Steps In

24:14 When It's More Than Just Impatience

29:16 The Gospel Is Strong Enough for the Ugliest Moments

—CONNECT WITH THE HOSTS —

Ask questions/contact us: https://laurenmefford.com/contact

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LaurenMefford/videos

✨ Feel like your home is running you instead of the other way around? I created a free masterclass with a workbook that walks you through exactly how to change that — and it's completely free. Grab it here → https://www.laurenmefford.com/free-training

How can your home keep running when you physically can't. That's the question I was forced to answer during a week flat on the couch with debilitating neck pain — with six kids still needing to be fed, taught, and loved on.

By God's grace, our home kept going without me contributing a single thing. In this video I'm walking you through the three pieces that made that possible, so you can start building the same kind of home — one that doesn't fall apart the moment mom is down.

We'll talk about what family teamwork actually looks like day to day (not just chores, but a whole culture), the "bare minimum blueprint" that keeps the essentials covered on your hardest days, and the mindset shift that makes it possible to actually receive help instead of micromanaging it.

✨ Grab the free masterclass + workbook here → https://www.laurenmefford.com/free-training

Grab a warm drink or your basket of laundry, and come hang out with me for a bit.

✨ Find Lauren on Instagram: Lauren Mefford, PhD, FNP-BC (@laurenmichellemefford) • Instagram profile

This video is NOT sponsored. Some product links are affiliate links, which means if you buy something we'll receive a small commission.

Resources and Products Mentioned in this video:

✨ How to build a chore system for your home: https://youtu.be/-WDfJsQcAgA?si=0_sWLctbhL4df0n6

Let me know in the comments: what's the one thing your home needs most right now to be able to run without you? I love hearing what other families are working on. 🤿

CHAPTERS

00:00 A Week I Physically Couldn't Show Up For My Family

00:31 The Family Culture That Kept Everything Running

02:22 What Actually Happened When I Couldn't Get Off the Couch

04:21 The Morning Routine My Kids Run Without Me

07:49 The Non-Negotiables My Home Runs On, No Matter What

11:35 Why Receiving Help Is Harder Than Giving It

14:32 What This Hard Week Taught Me

✨ Wondering what it would look like to build realistic rhythms that help you run your home instead of it running you? Come join us inside the Rooted Homemakers Collective, my membership where I walk you through exactly how. → https://laurenmefford.com/rooted-homemakers

In this episode, I'm walking you through our curriculum choices and our whole homeschool schedule — from our morning family learning time (Bible, catechism, scripture memory, history, and science) to our more independent work block (reading, math, writing, and Latin), all the way to our lighter fifth day for catching up, deep cleaning, and field trips. I'll share the curriculum we're using at every stage, how we manage a toddler and littles while teaching older kids, and the "wait your turn" rule that's saved my sanity.

In this episode:

-Our two-phase homeschool day

-Bible reading, catechism, and our scripture memory box system

-The hymn of the month and where we find it

-History and science from a biblical worldview

-How I teach reading, phonics, spelling, and writing across different ages

-Math, piano, and Latin — and who's teaching what

-Managing a toddler and baby while working with older kids

-What our flexible fifth day looks like

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

-Biblioplan (history/Bible/literature curriculum): BiblioPlan - Cool Classical History and Literature Curriculum

-Apologia (science): Exploring Creation with Human Anatomy and Physiology (Young Explorer Series)

-I Belong to God Catechism by Rich Lusk: I Belong to God: A Catechism for Covenant Children

-Simply Charlotte Mason scripture memory box system: Memorize Scripture in Just Five Minutes Each Day

- @‌HappyHymnody

-Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons: Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons: Revised and Updated Second Edition

-Chickadee Readers (Canon Press)

-Math Mammoth (for all grades): Math Mammoth Kindergarten Worktext A

-Voetberg Music Academy: Voetberg Music Academy

This episode is NOT sponsored. Some product links are affiliate links, which means if you buy something we'll receive a small commission.

CHAPTERS

00:13 Introduction and Personal Update

00:13 Homeschooling Overview and Curriculum Decisions

01:32 Daily Homeschool Routine

04:04 Family Learning Time

08:18 History and Science Curriculum

13:35 Independent Learning

20:08 Flexibility in the Homeschool Schedule

— CONNECT WITH THE HOST —

Ask questions/contact: https://laurenmefford.com/contact

Youtube: Lauren Mefford, PhD

✨ Struggling to build rhythms that actually work in your home? My free masterclass shows you how to create simple routines that are rooted in biblical priorities and actually work. Watch it here: https://www.laurenmefford.com/free-training

Lauren is homeschooling six kids ten and under, including a toddler and an infant, and if she is not intentional, their mornings can get chaotic fast. In this episode, Lauren walks through the three simple systems that took a lot of that chaos out of peak learning hours, and made the school day much more enjoyable for everyone.

Key Takeaways:

• Why the evening reset is key to a smooth homeschool morning
• How prepping breakfast the night before saves precious morning minutes (and only takes about three minutes)
• What family learning time at the table actually looks like with six kids and a baby in the mix
• Why breakfast time and keeping the toddler busy with their hands at the table makes teaching everyone else possible
• How carpet time keeps a toddler content and engaged during one-on-one reading lessons
• Why she changed the order of subjects this year, and what happened when she did

— RESOURCES MENTIONED —

✨ Rooted Homemakers Collective — my monthly membership for building personalized home management rhythms: https://laurenmefford.com/rooted-homemakers

NeoLife protein shake — NeoLife

*I am a promoter for Neolife, which means if you purchase a shake through this link I will get a small commission :)

Happy Hymnody — Happy Hymnody

Toddler's carpet/floor pad — PAPAMAT 1.3" Thick Baby Floor Play Mat 50x50 Foam Kids Play Mat, Dark Grey | Memory Mat for Baby to Play, Waterproof Easy Care with Non-Slip Tummy Time Play Mat for Nursery Playroom Classroom

CONNECT WITH THE HOST —

Youtube: Lauren Mefford, PhD

Instagram: Lauren Mefford, PhD, FNP-BC (@laurenmichellemefford) • Instagram profile

Website/Contact Us_:http://www.laurenmefford.com

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Homeschooling 6 Kids 10 and Under (With a Baby and a Toddler)

00:24 The evening reset and why it's counterintuitive but essential

03:18 Family table time (Family Learning Time): Bible, recitation, and lessons while everyone eats

08:05 How I manage one-on-one teaching time with little ones underfoot

✨ Wondering what it would look like to build realistic rhythms that help you run your home instead of it running you? Come join us inside the Rooted Homemakers Collective, my membership where I walk you through exactly how. → https://laurenmefford.com/rooted-homemakers

In this episode, Lauren and Jeremy sit down to talk about something almost every family with more than one child wrestles with: sibling bickering, and how to actually cultivate love between siblings instead of just refereeing conflict all day. They are quick to say this isn't meant to be a how-to, more just what they have learned raising six kids and watching the Lord work in their home.

KEY TOPICS

• The discussion centers on teaching children to love others well using biblical principles, especially 1 Corinthians 13 and the command to love your neighbor.
• How to handle tattling
• What they do with bickering children
• The episode distinguishes between communal toys and personal property, teaching both generosity and respect for ownership.
• Lauren and her husband discuss how age matters, especially when toddlers are involved, and how older children can be asked to help, serve, and play with younger siblings.
• Family rhythms like dinner table sharing, birthdays, and noticing generosity are presented as ways to cultivate a home where siblings enjoy one another.

RESOURCES MENTIONED

• Don't Make Me Count to Three by Ginger Hubbard: Don't Make Me Count to Three
• Loving the Little Years by Rachel Jankovic: Loving the Little Years: Motherhood in the Trenches - Grace Based Christian Parenting

This episode is NOT sponsored. Some product links are affiliate links, which means if you buy something we'll receive a small commission.

CHAPTERS

05:51 What We Do First When a Child Comes Tattling

12:00 How to Handle Bickering as a Mom Solo Parenting During the Day

14:16 When Telling on a Sibling Isn't Actually Tattling

17:28 The Walk We Make Our Children Take When They're Unkind

20:42 The Toy Rule That Ends Almost Every Argument

24:07 Why We Don't Squelch a Generous Heart

28:26 How We Think About Sibling Hospitality in Our Home

35:31 Teaching Older Children to Help With the Littles

39:28 The One Question We Come Back to When We're Stuck

—CONNECT WITH THE HOSTS —

Ask questions/contact us: https://laurenmefford.com/contact

Youtube: Lauren Mefford, PhD, FNP-BC

✨ If you've been moving all day but nothing seems to get done — start here. A daily rhythm to help you get food on the table, laundry moving, and peace back in your home. $27. Instant access. → https://go.laurenmefford.com/faithful-in-the-little-things-page
✨Overwhelmed by meals, laundry, and endless to-dos? Learn the simple system that makes home feel manageable again in my FREE Masterclass → https://www.laurenmefford.com/free-training

✨ Ready for a small reset? Get the free guide here 👉 https://www.laurenmefford.com/rooted-reset-sign-up-page

If your home feels chaotic and you're constantly overwhelmed, you're not alone. I used to feel completely unqualified to manage my home—until I began living out these 5 biblical habits that transformed my life as a Christian homemaker.
In this video, I’m walking you through the exact rhythms I’ve built that brought structure and peace to our home. These simple but powerful routines are rooted in Scripture, and they’ve made a massive difference in how I manage my home and love my role as a wife and mother.
Whether you’re in survival mode or just craving more stability, these biblical homemaking habits will give you a framework to build from.

✨ Watch the notebook video I mentioned → https://youtu.be/N5zdDeKeZ80
✨ Follow along on Instagram for the full wellness challenge → https://www.instagram.com/laurenmichellemefford/
✨ Check out the supplements I mentioned 👉https://shopneolife.com/rootedvitality/shop/product/2996G

✨Overwhelmed by meals, laundry, and endless to-dos? Learn the simple system that makes home feel manageable again in my FREE Masterclass → https://www.laurenmefford.com/free-training

CONNECT WITH THE HOST

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LaurenMefford/videos

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurenmichellemefford/ 

Website/Contact Us: http://www.laurenmefford.com

✨ Wondering what it would look like to have rhythms that help you run your home instead of it running you? Come join us inside the Rooted Homemakers Collective, my membership where I walk you through exactly how. → https://laurenmefford.com/rooted-homemakers 

Lauren shares her seven-year journey of finding a way to stay connected to the outside world without being pulled away from her home and family. She discusses the pros and cons of using dumb phones and the transition to a smarter smartphone solution that allows for customization and reduced distractions.

Takeaways

• The journey of finding the right balance between staying connected and being present at home.
• The transition from a dumb phone to a smarter smartphone solution that allows for customization and reduced distractions.

-RESOURCES MENTIONED-

✨ How to actually dumify your Android (full tutorial): https://youtu.be/RZZl7_m2tDg 

✨ Why texts drop between iPhone and Android, explained: https://youtu.be/yZAWF_Fq758 

✨ The refurbished Google Pixel I bought to dumify: https://amzn.to/4gzYvGe 

✨ O Launcher (the app I use for my minimalist home screen): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=app.olauncher&hl=en_US&pli=1 

✨ The Sunbeam F1 Pro (the flip phone I used and loved): https://sunbeamwireless.com/by/31010/ 

This video is NOT sponsored. Some product links are affiliate links, which means if you buy something we'll receive a small commission.

CHAPTERS
00:00 Why I Went the Flip Phone Route 
01:45 Pros and Cons of Dumb Phones (and How I Adapted) 

06:18 The Transition to a Smarter Smartphone

09:27 What I Kept (and Cut) + My Final Verdict

—CONNECT WITH THE HOST —

Ask questions/contact me: https://laurenmefford.com/contact
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LaurenMefford/videos

#DumbPhone #DigitalMinimalism #FlipPhone #ChristianHomemaking #HomeschoolMom