"How Do You Do IT?"

This question is a loaded, double-edge sword for me. I wish I could always answer, "We do IT just like everyone else!" IT being coping/staying sane with 3 Teenagers, 1 Medically Fragile/Special Needs 6 yr old, and now 3 Greyhound dogs, and the activities and responsibilities of everyday family life...

Fact is though, we DON'T DO IT like everyone else, we do it OUR WAY!  What works for us, for our 4 kids, may not work or even seem SANE for any other family. {It wouldn't be the first time we ended up in a class of one!}

First and foremost, we stay organized easier with the increased square footage added in 2007-08. It truly has been an AMAZING factor in keeping IT all running smoothly. That being said, one major part of our construction efforts focused on adding space for Oliver to be Oliver.  He needs to have formal Therapy sessions and Tutoring time in our home as well as have room to play, learn, be taken care of, and grow healthier.  Our Fitness/Health Room and Medical Supply rooms are HIGHLY ORGANIZED and feature:A Strict Rule:

"A Place for Everything and Everything in it's Place"

Labels, Labels, Labels...on almost every shelf & on every plastic bin, etc

Rubber Flooring, for Safety and easy Clean-up

Non-Toxic/Homemade/People & Pet Friendly Cleaners

Mobile Retail Shelving Units for Toy/Book/Therapy Item Storage

 Oliver's Educational Supplies are kept in Cabinets in Fitness/Health Room

Oliver's Changing Table is a converted 5 ft section of lower cabinets with a Padded Top

Oliver spends very little time before bed, actually upstairs in our room, but still he requires his Oxygen supply {duh, I know!}, Books to read before bed, and 2 drawers of Supplies in a dresser of ours. These things STAY in our room and STAY STOCKED.  He has several items {pieces of medical equipment} that still have to be transported back & forth from 3rd floor Master Bedroom to 1st floor Fitness/Health Room and Family Room, where he spends his days. Oliver's clothing is split between his bedroom closet {remember? It's the bedroom he WON'T USE yet!} and a supply of seasonally appropriate outfits, socks and shoes. We often allow Oliver's Nurse(s) to choose his daily outfits.

Another component of making things work around our house is

CHORES FOR THE TEENAGERS

We are FIRM believers in the idea that teenagers need to not only know the value of work, but also need to learn certain "homemaking" skills so that they can take care of themselves well when they eventually fly the coop. No, we do NOT pay for/give an allowance for chores...This is a learning experience and our children are PART OF THIS FAMILY. It takes everyone doing their part to keep IT together! So, what chores do our 3 teenagers have?

Well, we keep it simple...3 Chores, 3 Teens, 3 Days per Week!

Chores are done Monday, Wednesday, and Friday:

Complete Kitchen Duty: Dishes, Sink, Counters, Floors, Trash/Recycle

Main Bathroom & Nurse's Bathroom: Top to Bottom cleaning

Game Room, Hallway & 2 sets of Stairs:  Top to Bottom cleaning of Game Room, Sweep & Dust Hallway, Sweep Stairs

Additionally, each Teenager has a Laundry Day assigned to them, 1 Day per Week. This is THEIR OWN DAY to do THEIR OWN LAUNDRY!  On our older Washer and Dryer, we took a black marker and made DOTS next to the proper settings on each appliance. This way {since the kids were younger and Hubby &/or I were apt to change the dials for other household laundry} they always washed/dried correctly.  Now, with our new Washer and Dryer, the Teenagers are...Teenagers and now know that "Quick Wash" and "Regular Dry" work for EVERYTHING.

One other division of labor delegated to the Teenagers...Teenage BOYS to be specific...is Trash & Recycling duties.  With one for each boy, we get the house emptied of trash and recycling every week and Bins taken to the curb on Garbage Day.  {Do not fret, trash and recyclables are taken out MORE THAN ONCE PER WEEK, but as for the "assignment" of said duty to specific person... that is just once per week.

As for other miscellaneous parts of keeping IT running smoothly:

Everyone has their own desk

Everyone has their own computer

We have an awesome, QUIET dishwasher {thank goodness}

Everyone knows how to cook for themselves, if & when needed

Snack, Homework and Chores come before Play after School

Yes, we feed our Teenager's Friends, but the Teenagers have to clean-up

Television, Music & Gaming are available in Multiple Rooms of our House

Only Mom & Dad use the Master Bathroom {Oliver does occasionally}

The Game Room has a Bed & a Futon for Teenager's to have overnight guests

Drink & snacks for Teenagers' School Lunches are done by Hubby or myself; Teens make their own sandwich

We do still GROUND our Teenagers, but we also sometimes give them ALL THE CHORES instead

We have the dreaded Family Mini-Van but couldn't make do without space for 8 and room for all things Oliver

2 Furnaces & 2 Air Conditioner Units, and 2 Hepa Filter Air Purifiers keep our indoor climate nicely controlled for Oliver & other's with Asthma

Our large backyard shrunk in size with construction, but became completely fenced-in as well, which is required for Greyhound safety.

Oliver's Teacher, Therapists and Supply deliveries come to the backdoor

Oliver's Private Duty Nurses use the front door

Our driveway has a widened area near front sidewalk for Nurse Parking

We have Surround Sound in 3 rooms, for Oliver's benefit

An "All-in-One" Scanner/Printer/Copier/Fax enables us to do a lot of Medical Business from home, as well as a Laminator for Educational needs

Bills are paid once or twice a month, keeping the task under control

Grocery shopping and shopping for OTC/Homeopathic/Rx meds is as needed

We use Homemade Diaper Wipes so ingredients & cost are minimal

We use Diaper Coupons & make 1 trip for Huggies/Pampers every 3-4 months

Our Rx's are on Auto-Refill, we get a phone call to come pick-up when ready

All appoinments are kept on one wall calendar and on Google calendar in my cell phone which Hubby can see from his phone as well

This is all I can think of for now. Surely, you have at least SOME idea now of {How We Do It} and how we keep IT all going.  We don't pretend that our house is spotless and never is disarray...but chaos is definitely kept to a minimum. It has to be.

Organization is EVERYTHING! and It's all in the details!... These are my mottos, folks. We'd fall apart otherwise!

{Thanks for Reading}

-Renee'