just to clarify...

In a recent post, I displayed my new daily home schedule--

Well, some of the comments kinda took me by surprise a little bit.

To start, I want to be the first to admit that I am far from perfect and any 'super mom' parallels that one might draw are greatly exaggerated. Don't think for a second that things are that easy for me or that they just come naturally.

The reason I've needed to implement a rather rigid schedule is so that lots of time isn't wasted trying to figure out what's next and because, without it, my typical day would have the possibility of becoming chaotic and unproductive.

But even with the schedule in place, I do have to realize that I run the schedule and not the other way around-- the schedule does NOT run me. Getting too legalistic about it can be equally as bad.

It's not that I'm trying to win the mom of the year award (do they have one?), I'm just willing to admit that there's always room for improvement. Sometimes it's a little tweak or a minor adjustment. Other times it's a major overhaul and revamping of the entire system.

I do struggle with perfectionist tendencies so I have to keep reminding myself that if things aren't running like a well oiled machine-- it's still okay. What good will it do to my children if I tyrannically stick to the schedule at the expense of lovingly training them? The law never saved anybody (that's Biblical reference). I want our home to be loving-- and fun!

Some things are certainly easier said than done, and it does require a concerted effort to not become stressed or overwhelmed because you're always gonna have those days when nothing works like it should. And it doesn't matter whether you have one child or eight, those days will happen. I know.

The truth is: I had to make this schedule for my own sanity. I really needed something to refer to throughout the day. This way, things can get done and we can have fun. Don't tell my children, but I wish there was no such thing as 'school' in the mandatory school book sense. But school we must do and with 8 young children, I had to find a way to make it work for the kids and for me.

No matter how much I despise STICKING-TO -A-SCHEDULE, I need it. But I have to realize that it mustn't be boring & controlling. It's there to help me.