I thought I’d take this opportunity to share about a fun new strategy we are trying this year.  I need help, and lots of it. Housekeeping tends to fall by the wayside during our busy season, but I desire to include hospitality as one of our many activities, and worrying over dirty bathrooms and laundry strewn across the floor is something that certainly inhibits my creativity energy! Plus a messy house is a real morale-killer, and with a family our size, a small mess quickly attracts larger messes and things get out of control fast.

Introducing the Ticket Chore Chart

This is different than previous chore charts and lists I’ve tried. But it is not unique, nor was it my brainchild. I had read about similar methods before, and I finally decided to try it. I am so glad I did.

This New Years, I sat down and created 3 lists—one for each of my biggest kids. It included mostly jobs they already know how to do, plus a few new things I would teach them. It balances their work across 6 days of the week, based on our typical weekly schedule and needs. It includes flexibility for those chores that don’t really have to be done every day, but should at least be checked on in case they need doing. And it includes an opportunity to quickly reclaim the house every evening after a busy day of school, work, and play. We call that part the “House Blitz.”

It fits us and our unique needs. But that’s not the best part.

You see, previously I offered pay as the compensation for a job well done. But I discovered two things about that method: Kids don’t really get that excited about money, at least not in their very young years. Second, Mommies don’t get excited about money, either, when it turns into a “Mommy, can I shop for a toy on your phone?”

I don’t know about you, but my kids are total junk-magnets! They are constantly attracted to the “as seen on TV” type rubbish that is so bright, colorful, and noisy. I know from too much experience, those toys only last a few hours and then there’s only heartache and more garbage to be dealt with. The reward is short-lived and self-defeating.

Setting that aside for a moment… There’s another problem inextricable to farming, and that is finding time for leisure and fun. Don’t get me wrong—we do take the occasional vacation (though sometimes it feels like we just do double the work the week before we leave so we can “not work” for a week, haha). But it’s a rather deadly combination to have two very driven engineers trained in a very grueling university program, with dreams bigger than two lifetimes put together, who have been planted on a brand-new farm with a mile-long task list. It’s hard to accept the fact that we will simply never be able to finish everything that needs to be done. So it can be hard to fit in “just fun” time with family on a regular basis.

Don’t hear what I’m not saying. We get lots of quality time together! For one thing, our 3-times-daily meals together are a treasured blessing that make the sweaty, long hours of farming totally worth it. And there are other times, too—nightly story reading. Delivery trips together. Weekly movie and game night.

But we needed something more. Something extra, outside the routine. It can be hard to feel justified just “playing” when there’s so much left undone. I felt the same way in college while studying engineering. I remember feeling guilty about taking a nap, because I “should have been” working on homework or getting ahead on one of the many semester projects. Not your average college experience, eh? I told you we were crazy!

So I had an idea. Someone gave me the idea, actually. Don’t reward the kids with money. Reward them with FUN TIME. Nothing too complicated or unreachable. Just simple things we always want to do but never “have time.” I made the list. “Play-dough with Mom. Choose the Movie on Movie Night. Stay up 15 Minutes Late. Nature Hike. Go Out for Pizza. Kite Day.”

They earn “tickets” to spend by completing a week’s worth of chores. There are opportunities for bonus tickets for character traits we wish to encourage: “Exceptional Workmanship. Helping Siblings. Exceptional Attitude.” They can pool tickets to earn rewards sooner. And when one gets the reward, all do. There are penalties and a chance to lose tickets, too: “Dishonesty. Poor Teamwork. Bad Attitude.”

I realize it’s probably premature to be singing the praises of this new system, since we’ve been doing it for barely a week. But I can’t express to you how JOYOUS their attitudes have been over chores. And what FUN we had doing our first Kite Day over the weekend. It was beautiful and restful. It’s so different than before!

What’s the difference? I think it’s that since we know the kids have EARNED the reward, we can release the stress of what-am-I-not-getting-done and just relish the leisure time together knowing there was a job well done. Is that weird? Maybe it is. But I wanted to share it anyway in case it helps you in the same way it has helped me. My kids are more excited than ever about helping. I know I can reward them sooner and in a way that is so much more meaningful and long-lasting than some junky overpriced toy. And our house is cleaner than ever! Bonus!

Farming is tough. I think the toughest aspect is the SLOW progress in so many areas. We love seeing things get done. But so many times I feel like a tiny little ant pushing a giant boulder. I absolutely couldn’t do it without my helpers, big and small. Thanks for reading. Happy New Year! And now enjoy the fun photos I took of our adventures during Kite Day!

Jerica