2020 has challenged me in all sorts of ways. We started the year with a cross-country road trip to visit family in Alabama and Tennessee. We headed back to Oregon, mid January, only to turn around 3 weeks later and fly back to Alabama for 2 weeks for a family emergency. It wasn’t long after our return to Oregon that things began to shutdown and quarantine was put into place. At first, it was a whirlwind of events. It was pretty chaotic trying to learn how to live in an unpredictable world. I felt overwhelmed and behind on everything. For weeks we felt like we were just surviving.
My husband and I decided to take some time off from homeschooling, to get acclimated to our new climate and culture. It was a refreshing time of rest and renewing. We slowed down to a snail pace and de-stressed. We basked in the slow lifestyle which ended up being a healing balm we didn’t know we needed. We rested A LOT and allowed our bodies to catch up from our fast-paced norm. During normal times, our schedule moves with a very swift tempo, so the abnormal slowing was therapeutic.
During this time I was able to reset and plan for the new routine of being home around the clock. As I thought through our new schedule, one place I found inspiration was on Jordan Page’s YouTube channel. I incorporated some of her suggestions and our new routine has proven to be very good for our family. We have found a new groove and we are digging in and moving forward. I want to share what we have implemented for the oh-so-crazy times we are living in. I’ve listed four things we have done. They are things you can do as well. It is guaranteed to change the culture of your home during quarantine.
1. Create a New Block Schedule
Block scheduling is not a new idea, but for this phase of life, I needed to create one that encompassed the whole day from the time we wake up to the time we go to bed, since we are home 24 hours a day. Breaking things into blocks is helping us get things done more efficiently and I am not so worn out from trying to do all the things for all the people. (I used the block schedule printout available here.)
Our life right now looks the same each day because of the stay-at-home order, so it is easier to maintain the same schedule, but once activities resume our block schedule will continue to guide us with the flexible structure that we need.
Here’s what our block schedule looks like:
Here’s just a quick look at the breakdown:
Block Type Time
Morning 8:00-9:30 I get up at 6:00, shower, and spend time with the Lord. At 8:00 I get the kids up for morning hygiene, start laundry, family Bible time, and breakfast.
School 9:30-12:00 Our daughter does online school and I homeschool the boys.
Lunch/PE 12:00-1:00 Kids participate in an active activity outside while I fix lunch. We eat lunch and complete lunch contributions.
School 1:00-2:00 Finish up schoolwork, if not complete, and work on art or music.
Free Time/Work Time 2:00-4:30 Kids get earned screen time from the completed contributions from the day before. They can play outside, or use their earned screen time. This is my work time. This block is very intentional and I focus on blog work, church work, home management work, or use this time to pick up groceries.
Contributions 4:30-6:00 Everyone in the family participates in contributions (or chores). I give each child multiple jobs during this time. I assign jobs from my Room By Room Cleaning Charts. I begin cooking dinner during this time as well. If there is extra time after the work is done, they can go play outside or in their room.
Evening 6:00-8:00 We eat dinner around 6:00 and do a quick dinner clean up. With the kitchen and eating areas clean, we decide on a family activity. Sometimes it’s walking. Sometimes it’s playing outside together or watching our favorite show together. Sometimes it is reading a book as a family.
Bedtime 8:00-9:00 Kids start taking baths and getting ready for bed. They get ready for the next day and do one last pickup around the house of anything out of place. In bed at 9:00. This gives me 1 hour to have time with my husband before I go to bed at 10:00.
Having a focused and consistent, yet flexible, schedule has been so beneficial. It is not restrictive or confining. The schedule allows some flexibility within the time blocks, enabling you to complete each task, no matter how different each day maybe. But let’s also be honest, if you don’t accomplish each task that presents itself, brush it off and move on. This is not a test of perfection!
2. Ask For Help
Please, please don’t feel like you have to do everything alone. You should not do everything alone. Ask your family to help you carry the load. If you try to do it all, you will burn out. There are too many tasks to accomplish each day to keep up with it on your own. Even if your family doesn’t want to help, show them how important it is for them to pitch in. Another tip would be to let them earn something in return for the work they put in. Our kids are very motivated by screen time, that is what they work towards when they are contributing.
3. Make Your Expectations Clear
My husband and I had a family meeting with our kids to explain to them what we expected during this time at home and how they can contribute. Our kids always have to contribute something to help around the house, but during our full-time at home period there needed to be a different set of expectations. It helps our kids to be able to visually see some of the tasks that are expected, so we write it on our dry erase board. This also helps them become more independent instead of having to ask me every time what they need to do.
(These are not new tasks just because we are in quarantine, they are expected to do these things on a regular basis. It is just helpful to have them visually available.)
If you are struggling in this area, think about the area that is most stressful right now, break it down into bite-size tasks and assign everyone their small portion, then give direction and expectations for those tasks.
Here’s the honest truth, this is not easy. There is a lot of coaching, teaching, correcting, and encouraging that goes into training your children to contribute. Hang in there! It is so worth it, for them and for you.
4. Make The Most Of Your Block Time
This is another key point that Jordan talks about in her systems, be present in the moment and plan out tasks according to your blocks. If you have work that you are trying to do from home, set a time and stick to it. Don’t feel guilty or focus on the million other things you need to do, focus on one block at a time.
Another important key is to stop when the block time expires. It is so hard for me to do this! I am a task finisher. I have been known to skip meals just so I can finish a task I am involved in. It kills me to have to put something down before I am finished, but the blocks help me allocate my time so much more efficiently. I am learning the job will still be there waiting for me when I come back to it another day.
Another tip is to group like items or tasks into the same time block. This is essential for good management of your time blocks. Write out the things that need to be accomplished, then pair them with like items and schedule them into a block.
A Word of Encouragement
Life right now is just really different and challenging, so give yourself loads of grace. Everything doesn’t have to be perfect and it won’t be perfect, that is okay. Just keep moving forward! When we decide not to allow our circumstances to paralyze us, we can move obstacles out of the way that we didn’t think were movable. Be encouraged friend and just keep moving forward. You got this!
