"With these everyday hands, we birth usefulness and purpose."

I know I am filling a lot of my blog space summarizing the book "Seven Times the Sun" these days, but I am so enjoying it and it's just meeting me right where I am. I want to record my thoughts here so that I can look back in the months/years to come to see how our family rhythm is coming along in each of these areas. So, onto Chapter 4, "Celebrating Work".

Last night I was baking muffins at around 9pm, and Joel and our friend Evan were standing in the kitchen and we were all chatting away. In the middle of the conversation Joelie paused and said, "Who is this Jenny? This Jenny that is in the kitchen at 9pm at night? " He was referring to my former distaste of kitchen work. Poor guy, for the first 8 years of our marriage the kitchen was the last place I wanted to be! In fact, my homemaking skills in all areas were completely lacking. I just wasn't motivated. Looking back, I think my disappointment of being unable to conceive for so long spilled over into all areas of my life. I loved being a wife to Joel, a research assistant, a college student, a clerk at Down to Earth Natural Foods, an ESL teacher, a friend, a youth worker, a daughter and a sister. I loved all of the things that were my life prior to Sam and Amelia. I am thankful for the purposes the Lord gave me for those 8 years. For some reason, though, true motivation showed up the day they were born, in the area of home especially. Now, if there are any women out there reading this who may be longing to have children but have not been given them yet, listen up! If I could go back and do it again, I would be more prayerful about my motivation in the area of keeping my home. Make it a haven for you and your husband and all those who enter it. Take the time to develop those skills of cooking and cleaning and organizing. Most importantly, though, I hope you are able to realize the importance of those every day tasks whether a child is there or not. Being keepers of our home is refining work. We can literally bring life to every inch of it.

Ahem, back to chapter 4. Have I not even begun discussing the chapter?

Well, let me just say that since Sam and Amelia were born, my desire to have a home that is organized, welcoming, efficient, and peaceful has been so strong. But it takes hard work and it is so daily! So, this chapter really spoke to my heart. How I long to see the work of my hands as purposeful and useful and to do it with joy. I know that I will not always be humming happily as I go about my chores. But an overall contentment and peace about these tasks I have been given--I truly believe this is possible.

Here are some simple rituals the author gives to celebrate work:

Pick Up Quick: Create a clean-up ritual with your child by having several energetic songs that you sing while picking up after play time.

Fresh From the Oven: She suggests making bread weekly with your children as children enjoy foods that have been made by the work of their own hands. Of course, making an extra loaf for friends or family and letting the child deliver it would be wonderful as well.

Needles and Pins: Hand crafts can be very rewarding work for both adults and children. My mama is so talented in this area and I really love to watch her knit, crochet, make jewelery, etc. Joel's mama Shari loves to embroider and his dad is a wonderful woodworker ( we love the wooden trucks, ect. that he has made for the babes!). The dress that Anne sewed for Amelia's birthday was so treasured and adorable and all of Tara's hand made goodness is just fabulous. I am so impatient with learning hand-crafts and give up so easily, but sometimes my hands just ache to create something. Once again, I just need to be willing to put in the hard work to reap the benefits!

How do they do it? : the author suggests taking one day a month and seek out opportunities to observe the work of different occupations with your children. Dancers, violinists, potters, cement layers, garbage collectors, bookbinders, etc. I remember in our homeschooling years having the opportunity to do this a few times and it was so fascinating.

Next, she discusses ways to get your children involved in your work. " Since young children learn through imitation, one of the most significant gifts we may share with them is a love and appreciation for the work of our own hands." Right now I find that Sam and Amelia like to be given a simple task to work on while I work. This is the only way I have effectively cleaned while they are awake. Yes, I may have to wipe up an extra mess or sweep again when they are through, but it is worth it for them to develop concentration and focus and confidence from their tasks.

Some of my favorite songs from this chapter,

" I will work with joy, my task has now begun, I will work with joy until my task is done. Persistence and pride, purpose unfolds, as I work hard to reach my goals."

"Many hands make light work. Many hands make light work. Work together, work together, many hands."

I'll leave you with a few pictures of Sam and Amelia hard at work:) May God bless us all in our pursuits to care for our families and homes and to find joy as we do it, Jen

P.S. It is already very plain to see that Sammy is very task oriented and works hard at cleaning up after himself and his sister. Amelia, on the other hand, is a mess. She leaves a path of destruction wherever she goes and finds great delight in spilling, throwing, tossing, and scattering anything that she has had enough of. Sammy usually buzzes around and cleans it up for her! It looks like she might take after her mama and will need lots of encouragement to develop the discipline to complete her tasks with joy.