Do you ever listen to something and it makes you happy, or you hear a noise, and it makes you smile? It could be the sound of spring birds outside on a beautiful day, or the rustling of leaves on a fall afternoon. One of my most favourite sounds is….. the vacuum! I know it may sound odd, but It’s true.
It’s been more than once that someone has laughed at me for this, or made a ‘smart’ comment toward me at the fact that …… well, I LOVE to vacuum! The sound of this wonderful machine running along my rugs, picking up the mess a big family has left behind, puts me in a great mood.
It’s part of the things I delight in – Keeping my home. Back during the first year of my marriage, I realized that this place I lived in with my husband wasn’t just a house, it was our home! A home where we would find peace in, our company would find joy in, and our children would enjoy living in. The verse in Proverbs 31 :27 says ‘She carefully watches all that goes on in her household and does not have to bear the consequences of laziness’.
There’s a lot of fulfillment in taking care of such an awesome gift such as a home. I know not everyone is in love with this as much I am, or full time jobs may hold you back from doing more than you’d like, but it really is easy to do a few simple things each day to make your home a joy to be in. Don’t get me wrong, my home isn’t always neat and tidy, or picture perfect. In fact just yesterday I wanted to cry because it was so disorganized, but, I grabbed my girls, and little by little we got it cleaned up.
There are a few reasons why I love this so much….. first, I want to be a good witness to my kids!. I want them to grow up knowing how to look after a home, and not be shocked when they get one of their own. We train them young to do age appropriate chores. I also want to be able to honor God in the home. Second, I find it’s a lost art. I find a lot of children (and teenagers) these days don’t know how to clean up after themselves, do a simple load of laundry, or make a sandwich!. Yes, that may sound a little extreme, but you get my point. Third, I believe in hospitality! I love when people come over! I also want them to feel comfortable in my home. There are many more, but these are just a few.
One of the things I’ve taught my 7yr, 5yr and 3yr old to do is laundry. I get everyone to come together, bring all the laundry in one place, get each child to press buttons, pour detergent etc….. when all the clothes are dry, we dump it all out on the floor and the kids work at finding everyone’s clothes – It’s like a game!. Then we neatly pile them to be put away. When everything is done, the kids are so satisfied that they were helping with the big task, It’s great!
If you are looking for some new ideas for your home, check these sites out! I’ve found some great stuff here. Happy Homemaking!
1. Organizing made fun http://organizingmadefun.blogspot.ca/
2. Raising Homemakers (one of my fav’s!) http://raisinghomemakers.com/
3. The Family Homestead http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/homemaking.htm
homemakersheart.wordpress.com 
My favorite is opening my windows and hanging laundry out to dry. We all get a better nights sleep in fresh bedding and windows open:) Another awesome message girl!!!
It’s so easy to overlook training our children to do the household chores, because, well we can do it ‘better’ than they can. I agree with you though, helping train them to help out with the work around the house is such a wise investment. Thanks for this great reminder!