Q & A...

Received the following comment:

Dear Queen,You make routines seem so easy. Routines are difficult for me because of lifes unexpected or unprepared for demands. We have limited TV time to 1hr per day, but whem things come up I find myself allowing my son to watch a video. I get side tracked easily and the schedule goes out the window. Then there are the times that I feel bad because he has no one to play with and we go to a friends house. I just need help. At any rate, I am encouraged by your blog and thanks for the sharing. Oh yes, will you post something about potty training? I am a WannaBe Titus 2 wife, mother, servant, friend. This is Miriam in Tulsa.

Hi Miriam!

Routines: For me routines are about getting in the habit of doing certain things. When something is a habit you do it automatically without thinking about it. Now I am able to do things more efficiently and spend more time with the kids. And I rarely get to the end of the day exhausted, with a messy house, thinking, "What did I do all day?"

The key to making it stick is to start small. I started with Flylady's basic morning and before bed routines.

Before Bed: shine kitchen sink, lay out clothes for next day, brush teeth
Morning: make bed, get dressed to shoes, unload dishwasher

I did just that for at least a month, then added one load of laundry per day and stayed there a month. Now my morning and before bed routines are much longer, but I built them up slowly and they are habits. Some days I miss a few things and add them on to the next day. Some days we are crunched for time and I leave some things out. But as with any habit, when I get off my routine I go right back to it as soon as I can.

TV: One hour a day isn't bad and an extra video here and there doesn't hurt anything, IMO.

If you are having trouble keeping your son busy, try letting him help you with things. I think your son is 3, right? Jazzy is 3 and she picks up her toys, clears the table, helps me load the dishwasher (I wash the dish and she puts it on the rack), folds small towels and underwear, helps me make her bed, helps me clean the bathroom, holds the dust pan when I sweep, helps me bathe and lotion the baby and sets the table. It does take longer to have her help, but eventually she will able to do more on her own like my son does.

Friends: I don't think you should feel guilty that your son has no one to play with. He has a mom and a dad and that's really all he "needs". That being said, there's nothing wrong with going to a friend's house for the afternoon as long as the interaction is positive and you're not taking time away from more important things. I will admit I was a teeny bit bored when I only had 1 and we spent a lot of time going to the park, the mall, etc.

Potty Training: I am lazy so my short answer is - my husband does it. I asked him about it and his short answer is "have your husband do it". I am out of time so I'll post the long answer later. There is also info on potty training on the Raising Godly Tomatoes website. I have only trained 2 and she has trained 10 so her info is probably more reliable.

Let me know if there's any other questions. I will try to come see you next time we come to Tulsa.