It truly feels like spring has arrived in our little corner of the world! The changing seasons always prompt me to spring clean our family’s life: home, homeschooling, routines, schedules, chores, etc. Along the way, I tend to pick up a book to help me persevere in what can sometimes be an arduous task.
Long on my list to read was Managers of Their Homes by Teri Maxwell. I felt now would be the perfect time to read MOTH. Adding little Butchie to our numbers last summer has meant scheduling and orderly homemaking has become even more of a priority. Do you find that every time you add a baby you are compelled to bring your organization and simplicity of life to an even greater level? Or is that just me?
So I finally coughed up the $25 and ordered the book. That is a pretty steep price for a book! So before you spend your money, I encourage you to read this review. I hope it will help you access whether MOTH is really worth your hard earned money.
The Gist of Managers of Their Homes (MOTH):
The whole book is about creating a workable schedule for your family and using it to accomplish your homemaking, homeschooling, and other goals.
Mrs. Maxwell begins by convincing you that a schedule is a crucial part of a peaceful and productive family life. Then, she helps you create a personalized schedule for your family (the book comes with a scheduling kit if purchased new). The third portion of the spiral-bound book is filled with lots of tips, tricks, and example schedules of real homeschoolers.
Who is MOTH for?
Managers of Their Homes is geared to homeschooling mothers, but its principals could apply to anyone who shoulders the responsibility of maintaining a home.
What I liked about MOTH:
I am a veteran scheduler. Since my oldest was two, (nearly 7 years ago) we have had a schedule (more like a routine) in place in our home. This schedule has grown and evolved as our needs have changed. Year-by-year, there are more tasks filling our daily plates and this schedule becomes more of a sanity-saver and necessity. Even though I’ve read a lot of books on succeeding as a homemaker, I still unearthed several gems while reading MOTH.
That said, the bulk of the material presented in MOTH is for those completely new to the concept or workings of a schedule within the home. If you are a new scheduler, I would encourage you to only implement part of your schedule at a time. Maxwell’s approach is sure to drive a free spirit a little batty!
What I liked best about Maxwell’s book was the nitty-gritty of how she has made time for things in her life and has made her schedule work for her and the needs of her family.
Here are a few of the gems from her book:
- Schedule playtime one-on-one with a younger and older child.
- Rotate kitchen duty from youngest to oldest (or visa versa)
- Post the schedule and go over it with everyone (so it isn’t just in mom’s head!)
- If there is a goal you want to accomplish (sewing, time with daughter, etc.) put it on the schedule even if for just a half hour a day.
- Schedule a training time where you work on chore training, etiquette, etc.
Maxwell advocates putting anything you want to see in your life on the schedule. I tend to agree – to an extent. There are so many things I want to accomplish, especially little non-urgent, but important things (like liturgical teas, family devotions, one-on-one time) that get pushed out by urgent but not important matters. I really loved her suggestion of a “training time” where you set aside a time to train for chores, etiquette, and habits.
The idea of actually scheduling a time with a younger child to play with an older sibling was another great idea. This keeps them occupied and out of mischief as well as develops bonds between siblings. We’ve only just started implementing this in our family. I had my oldest do “brother school” with his little sister while I work with the 5 year old on his reading lesson the other day. It was beautiful! But I can see the novelty may quickly wear off!
What I didn’t like about MOTH:
- Notes from the test group in the margins.
- Planning kit.
- Minute-to-minute planning.
- The talk about Biblical mandate for planning.
I didn’t care for all the notes from the test group in the margins. I found them distracting and few of them offered any valuable insight or practical tips. They all read like a bad advertisement for MOTH with only a handful offering something helpful for readers.
The price of the book is a little hefty (currently $25), and I’m wishing I would have purchased a used copy as I haven’t even opened my scheduling kit. If you really want the scheduling kit, then by all means get the new copy; however, you are absolutely able to work out your schedule using pen and paper or Excel. In fact, Excel is my preferred method because things are so easy to move around.
I thought Maxwell seemed a little uptight about the schedule. Every half hour of her day is scheduled. Maybe I will get to the point where I need to have such a strict schedule someday, but right now, such a filled schedule would be a recipe for burnout and exhaustion. I prefer to have a structured routine in place (especially in the morning), but allow lots of open time slots for interruptions, impromptu changes, and general relaxation.
Maxwell spent some time in the beginning chapters pointing readers to where they can find the mandate for scheduling in the Bible. It is one of my pet-peeves when authors feel they must prove EVERYTHING from the Bible. Of course, I just glossed over this section and jumped to the more helpful sections.
There is also an audio seminar talk (you can find it here) on the Maxwell’s website that I believe contains the majority of useful information from the book. This can be had for $4 and would be a lot better way to spend you money, in my opinion.
(Here is our schedule- easy to see at a glance on my homebinder.)
What I’m going to change after reading MOTH:
Even though I didn’t follow Maxwell’s guide for developing a schedule, it did encourage me to take a renewed look at the schedule I already have in place. I find I must refresh and rework our family routines/chores/schedule every few months to allow for the fluid nature (maturing children, new commitments, etc.) of family life. Over the course of a week, I took time to update and fine-tune our schedule, chore system, and housework routines.
(Here is our updated chore checklist on the fridge!)
Like I said, I did enjoy Maxwell’s little tips and tricks for working out family life. I’ve since scheduled a training time for chores and etiquette to fill the days where we happen to not have laundry. I didn’t see the necessity of having this training time everyday, but that one or two days a week (if I am so lucky) when we don’t have laundry will now be filled with teaching children chores, habits, and etiquette. First on the list to teach is What-to-do-when-we-come-in-the-door: take off shoes, place neatly on the shoe rack, hang up your coat, and wash hands.
And just in case you are interested, here is a copy of our completed schedule. I always find other people’s plans to be the most helpful in developing my own family’s schedule. Hopefully, mine will inspire some ideas that may work in your home.
If you would like to purchase Managers of Their Homes you can find it here.
*I was not reimbursed for this review, and if you purchase MOTH through my link, I will not receive a commission of any sort. This is just a open, honest review of a program I know many homeschoolers use. I hope you find it helpful!
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