Summer Routine for Normal Days

Since I had four children within five years, we were always in a lot of stages at the same time, but everything was constantly changing.  I was always planning as changes were happening, and they happened rapidly.

In my process of planning for new ages and stages I have always made out a spreadsheet of 15 to 30 minute blocks, not as an actual schedule, but as a framework to help me budget our time.  Often, once I figured out what I needed and wanted to fit in to those time periods, I wouldn't even look at the spreadsheet again.  I'm still using those spreadsheets, though our rapidly changing stages have slowed a bit.

For our summer break, I knew I wanted to keep up with a few things - reading, math facts practice, and a mini Morning Time (Bible, Life of Fred, and a read-aloud.)  I also needed to get some of the housework under control, do some chore training, and make sure to fit in exercise and reading for myself.

Our plan is for Normal Days.  A Normal Day might only happen once or twice a week, and I'm okay with that.  We just work best with a routine when we are home all day.  If grandparents come to visit, or we want to go swimming, or want to spend a few hours at the library, I'm not even a little hesitant to throw it out the window and enjoy Summer!

With all of that in mind, this is our Summer Routine for Normal Days.  It is laminated in spreadsheet form and hung on the refrigerator. This is an ideal.  We don't do all of those things all the time.  Life happens.  I'm pretty sure I've only hit my movement loops and hobby loops three times in our first week and a half of break.

7:30 Bible, Coffee, Planning, Cook Breakfast (me)
9:00 Breakfast + Meal Chores
9:30 Daily Chores
10:00 Morning Time
10:30 Movement Loop - Treadmill, Yoga, Refit Revolution (me) Free Play - outside if it's not storming (kids)
11:30 Hobby Loop - Piano, Photography, followed by lunch prep (me)
12:30 Lunch + Meal Chores
1:30 Quiet Hour
2:30 Reading, Xtra Math
3:30 5 minute tidy, then MW - Girls pick 2 Netflix shows, boys ipad time.  TTh - Boys shows, girls ipad
4:30 Board Game
5:00 Upstairs Cleaning Loop (me)  Free Time (them)
6:30 Dinner + Meal Chores
7:30 Gardening, Animal Care, Outdoor Play
8:30 Baths, Family Music/Reading/Movie
9:30 Bedtime

The next post will be about what all of our Summer chores look like this year.