Habeebee Homeschooling

 What great way to show you care, by adding a personal touch your way and style for those whom you care about! Alhamdulilah I was selected to participate in this great project, to share with you all a nice way to brighten someones day with Touchnote.  I was recently in the ER and not feeling so great, when I returned home, I saw this wonderful project and felt so good inside doing this for someone else, I totally forgot about my ER visit!

Here’s how it works:

Now, until Eid al-Adha Touchnote wants to see how creative we can get in using their wonderful app and website that turns your digital pictures into physical postcards…Yes, postcards mailed to your family & friends. Pretty cool huh? Send those lovely arts and crafts activities in a nice postcard for Grandma, for eid, friends, and other loved ones. We know our Habeebee Homeschooling friends can get real creative!

Are you up for the challenge?

1. Touchnote, and American Muslim Mom wants us to Show & Tell how we can creatively use Touchnote to send personalized postcards from Eid al-Fitr to Eid al-Adha. With social media and computers, it feels rare to have mail sent to your home that is made with love and care. Wouldn’t you enjoy a nice personal Touchnote in the mail and not just the typical bills? Let’s get creative and fun with this! Add a personal touch with a Touchnote and put a smile on someones face.

Moms have often said schedules do not work for them, they don’t stick to them and it becomes more of a task to write one and then they feel overwhelmed. They say No to schedules! It’s not that they do not want their life organized, or have some structure and order, they just have to go about it in a different way.

What works for your family may not work for others inshaAllah we will share 2 ways to get the order and structure we need to keep going,  to keep going without stress and without chaos, even if all that existed we would still keep going, but how much easier would it be to keep going if things were in order? Much easier.

1. To Do List- This is simple and easy to do, each morning or the night before. Write out the goals for the following day or for the week. If you need to go slowly, baby steps. Write the days goals and things you want to get accomplished.   A calendar and dry erase board, for those quick notes, jot down thoughts, calls to make through the week and all the doctor appointments you have to get to.  Have a to do list for errands and a to do list for house task. You are giving yourself flexibility in the day by not placing a time on it,  but you also know what you should accomplish before the day is over
2. Routines- Not confined to the what seems like a firm strict schedule, keeping a routine for homeschool, afterschool,house work etc is having an outline with room for flexibility.  Creating a healthy habit and one that does not make you feel like you are having an unrealistic day  and you may feel like you have that with a schedule, having everything down to the minute is too much for some moms. As moms our days do not always go as planned but with keeping a consistent routine we are teaching our children good habits and not stressing ourselves planning our lives to the very second. A great benefit is that our bodies get into the routine.. sleeping and waking the same time! We must create a routine for the body, practicing good routines will give great outcomes.  If anything be consistent with bed times, wake up times, and meal times.

The life of a mom! My day can get hectic homeschooling, house duties, husband, errands, cooking, and the list goes on. It’s a way we can manage it all, and make our days successful and peaceful

You aren’t the only one that feels like there is too much going on and only one of you.  After being tired of being tired and all over the place, I had to sit down and write a schedule. Below is my schedule for the task that do not happen every day, it’s in a system based on the first letter of the day of the week. It helps me remember what is happening for that particular day! All the details that are in between are in another schedule!

I do not have to go to the grocery store every day, and so the market is designated for Mondays along with mopping and cleaning the mirrors.  This system works for me, and every family does things differently you just have to find your way.

Allah makes things easy for us. I made another schedule based around the 5 prayers. I have a list of task to accomplish between Fajr and Zhur.. Zhur and Asr.. etc keeps me in reminder of my prayers and not have to fit prayers into my life, but have my life revolve around my salat time. Allah has set the schedule for the prayers and I schedule my life around that alhamdulilah! Allah’s scheduled times for Salat trumps whatever I want to do. This second schedule involves homeschooling time, dinner time, every day house duties like sweeping and dishes etc.

Take a look at how your family moves through the day, do you all do the same things at the same time everyday..we all have a schedule whether its planned or not.  Some of us rush to watch a show at 8 p.m. so we know to have dinner cooked by then, children in bed and lights out. Whether you know it or not, you’re on a schedule.

The question is are you following a schedule that is beneficial and productive? Are you putting first things first? What is important in your life that you must take a more organized approach in. It’s not hard, it only becomes hard when we tell ourselves its hard. We convince ourselves that we can’t do it and thus we live up to our expectations.  Only to our detriment and our families.  Do not set yourself up for failure. It’s called self sabotaging and at times we are own worst enemy.

Write out tonight or when you have some free time, what are the important matters you have to become more organized in, even write the pros and cons of scheduling your time. Who will benefit from this positive change you are making? Really journal out your feelings and see how you feel afterwards.

I have my calendar for my purse, big calendar for home, journal, planner and timer, with those 5 items I can change my world, my children’s world and maybe the whole world a small step at a time… my 5 prayers have the ability to change my life and help me get my life in order :) because a life focused on the Creator puts everything in balance, order, and perspective

It is morning, you open your eyes, look at the clock and say: “I’m late!!!” Breakfast to be done,wake up the kids,make sure the hubby is ready for work,lundry,lunch,homeschool,groceries,dinner and… “Aaaaaaaaaaaah, it is time to stop procastinating and get myself organized!” How many times have you tried to go to bed without worrying about the things that you couldn’t get them done? Once,twice or maybe…more often than you’d love to??

 Many of us have felt like that before. What about stop letting the time “manage” you and from now on you “manage” the time?Here on Habeebee Homeschooling, we try our best to keep track of our time in order to have a balanced life without getting overwhelmed that being a housewife,a mother and a homeschooler isn’t possible. Actually it is possible if you ORGANIZE yourself.

After my baby daughter was born, I thought that it would be hard to keep up with the same routine that my family and I used to have. At the beginning my house was a total chaos;too much laundry,meals not ready on time,homeschool activities undone and, I felt myself drained (from the inside out). So, one night, after Isha prayer, I sat down on my knees and suplicated ” Oh ALLAH,Insha’Allah, please help me find a way out to take good care of myself and my family;help me keep my commitment that, if everything is on its place, my family’s daily routine  will be smoother and we will have a productive day .” So, after the kids were asleep, I grabbed a piece of paper and pen and made a list of the things that were making my day unproductive and, aside I made another one with things that  I would like to improve on my “New daily routine.”

Unproductive List:                                                                                    

* Always too much laundry to be folded;                               

* Unplanned meals;                                                                          

* Homeschool lessons undone;                                                  

* House chores unfinished;                                                          

* Not praying on time;                                                                               

*Less “Quality Family Time”;                                                        

* Less “Me Time”.                                                                             

 Improved List:

 * Wash,dry,fold and put it away the clothes rule;

 * Plan the meal ahead (At least the night before);

 * Organize and plan homeschool lessons for the whole week;

 * Make a shedule for the housechores (and stick to it);

 * Pray on time and have the kids engaged to it too;      

 * Spend more time with the family,when everybody is around;

 * Take MORE care of myself from the inside out.

Well, after making the list it was easier for me to “pay close attention” to the things that needed to be changed and,also was a REMINDER on how an “Unproductived Life” my whole family was having because I was unable to do my job correctly.Everyone in your family has its role and, if someone doesn’t do his,it will affect everybody else’s role. We, as housewives,wives,mothers, homeschoolers (or not) have  a very important role in our family (and Islamic Society) and, we know that if we are not unable to stand up,to keep on track of our duties,make sure that everything on our list are up to date,for sure, our kids and husband will have negative consequences on their roles as well.

So, what if, from now on, we (you and I)together start planning our day?

Some things to keep in mind:

1) Make intentions: Ask ALLAH for guidance, for strenght;

2) Make  a commitment: to yourself and family;

3) Take good care of yourself: You need to be fresh from the inside (and from the outside too) so you will be able to take care of your family and the house too;

4) Be a Planner:  Plan your kid’s routine and let them feel responsible for themselves;make a schedule for house cleaning; plan your meals ahead;

5) Have more Family Quality Time together: Avoid being busy with the house when your whole family is together.

6) Never give up: In anything you do, accept criticism but, never let it  put you down, do not give up if something went wrong but instead expect an improvement for each time you keep up your good work.

 (Najla Carolina K. Gharbi)

A two year old and a four year old, wake up, they check their schedule as they follow what’s on the list and little do they know, they have taken steps towards becoming organized and productive adults.

This effective and simple chart made by Creative Motivations (see www.facebook.com/Creative.Motivations.Charts) has been a great tool in teaching our children organization. Children thrive off of routine, they love it, they love to know what is happening next in their world. Hanging this chart on the wall has taught them responsibility. They feel a sense of control when they hold their dry erase marker and check off the list. When they missed a step they tell us and we help them do it, if they need the help.

How to get your child on a schedule:

1.) Start by announcing when a transition will be made. If there is play time, announce that okay in 10 mins it will be time to put the toys away and time to eat lunch. This gives them time to prepare, it was not sprung up on them and they know what is next. Even using a timer and saying, okay when the buzz comes on, it means it is time to stop and clean up. If you do not have a chart on the wall, always talking to children about what is happening is important. Not only are you informing them but you are teaching them to communicate.

2.) Do the same thing, same time –everyday (unless the day calls for a different routine i.e. doctors, errands etc) Be consistent, they may not get it the first day or the second but if you do it long enough they will fall into the habit before you even have to announce it. Be firm with yourself, some of us get into the mode that once we did something a few times, we pat ourselves on the back and then we stop. Used to do it is not the same as still doing it. Teaching our children consistency and how to learn time management, takes… time!

3.) Tools: Charts, like the one above, it shows pictures for children who are not reading so they can understand what is next. If you cannot buy one, you can always make one to your family needs and style. Keep it at eye level and show children how to use it..say to them “First we went to the potty, then we wash our hands..what’s next?” on our chart it says Eat Breakfast, so the children will tell us “Time to eat!” Tools to succeed..we can’t stress it enough in our organization post.

4.) Rewards are not always a bad thing, how much and how often is to be determined by the parents. Every now and then a reward for a job well done will always boost a child’s morale. Praise when doing good and they will want to do good more often. Everyone loves a kind word and always let your child know you are proud of them and they are doing a good job. Remember keep using positive reinforcement and you will see positive results.