Well we are about three months in of living in the camper full time so I thought I would share our daily routine and how we function as a family of 4 with 3 doggies in less than 500 sq ft! Dont get me wrong, its a daily challenge working together as a team and giving each other grace throughout every new place and through every new obstacle we face. But we're happy to say we are doing very well now that we have a routine down for our days we are staying put and a system for moving/travel days.
Every morning Chris and I start our day with coffee and bible study, everyday! No weapon formed against us will prosper when we pray and fight our battles together! And no child will come ask for snacks before coffee! ;)
THEN the kids come crawl into our bed with their Bibles and we do a children's Bible study and prayer for our day. We are currently going through "Everything a Child Needs to Know About God" and "About Prayer" by Kenneth N. Taylor. Sometimes we pick a short study to do from the YouVersion Bible app as well.
After that we clean up which includes making beds, cleaning bathrooms and vacuuming floors. Our dogs are most definitely not hypoallergenic so vacuuming is a must everyday, usually twice a day. The kids take turns who vacuums and who goes to pick up dog doo-doo outside, then we walk at minimum one mile and play with the dogs.
We eat breakfast when we get back from our walk and the kids start on their school and Chris starts his work day. Chris works in our bedroom at the front of the camper and we do school outside, on top of the camper, in a hammock, in the woods or in the living room.
Our school day consists of reviewing the previous days work, spelling and vocabulary words, math facts and Bible verse memorization. Then we start with Math. We use Masterbooks which is a Christian based curriculum that I love! Its a simple layout for the kids and it has little to no prep-work for me. The kids love that there is a storyline about two little kids that goes throughout all the math books. Connor does most of his work on his own and then we check it together, unless its a brand new concept. Connor or I will help Maddi with her math lesson and then we move on to our unit lessons. On Fridays they play educational games on their tablets for the morning time or that's when we try to go on a field trip.
For the bulk of our school, we use Gather 'Round Homeschool which is a curriculum designed to be all your subjects but math for every grade from Preschool to Grade 12. You can choose different units to study for 4-6 weeks at a time.
My ADD-self loves to switch things up so this curriculum has totally changed the game for me and also keeps everyone interested. Its a win-win! Maddi does the Ready to Read books instead of units until she can read on her own (which is coming fast!) and Connor is about to start his next unit on Transportation. (Side-note: I have become quite passionate about making your homeschool work for you so if you are needing help with choosing curriculum or getting started with homeschooling, I would love to help you!)
Anyways! We usually fill our day with school, games, read alouds, crafts or coloring and are done by about 2-3pm. Then we workout...sometimes...ha! The kids have free time when they usually choose to ride bikes, go to the park, get toys out, play a game or play with the dogs or anything else crazy they come up with.
Chris and I use that time for planning our next stops, making phone calls, planning grocery stops, meals, hiking trails, activities, etc. Then I start preparing dinner. Dinners are pretty much the same as when we were in the house. A little more crockpot meals to help save on propane. While dinner is cooking we practice guitar. (Oh my, do we need the practice! Ha!)
Showers are part of our nightly routine as well but we have to be strategic. We have a very small hot water heater so usually one child showers before dinner and the next after dinner that way water has time to get hot again.
Cleaning up from dinner is a teamwork chore; with no dishwasher and not a lot of counter space its 100% necessary to have everything washed, dried and put away before bedtime so the next morning can go smoothly. We usually rotate who does what for clean up, including taking the trash out. Everything else that may still be left out from the day is then cleaned up and If we have time, we watch TV and then a half hour, sometimes more, before bed we read outloud as a family. We are currently reading The Little House series.
On the weekends we go on a hike, our goal is to hike at least 10 miles in every state we stay. So far we have reached that goal except for one state!
We are also always on the lookout for volunteer opportunities so Mondays or Fridays we schedule in time for that. We have been shopping for kids for Halloween trunk or treats, the Samaritan's Purse Operation and recently volunteered at a local thrift store. So rewarding! So grateful!
We usually move spots on the weekends so the kids also have the chore of cleaning out the truck on the day before each move. That includes taking out car seats, vacuuming and wiping everything down. On move days everything inside gets put away as well. We each have a section of the house to do and within about two hours on moving mornings we are ready to go.
I think that about sums up our days of living in the camper! Always on the move, always learning, being very intentional with our time, working as a team in all things and learning how to give each other grace throughout it all. We have a much better understanding of the term "grace" now living in such close proximity. Its very easy to get under eachothers skin, literally and figuratively, so its been so important to talk about grace and space when we each need it. Knowing and teaching the kids that yes, we are good willed people at heart but also sinners, which means we must truly understand the meaning of grace in order to have successful and loving relationships. So to close, heres a just few things about grace I found that helped me better understand it.
1. Grace is most needed, and best understood in the midst of sin, suffering, and brokenness. We live in a world of earning, deserving, and merit, and these result in judgment. That is why everyone wants and needs grace. Judgment kills. Only grace makes us alive. [From christianitydotcom]
2. Christians live every day by the grace of God. We receive forgiveness according to the riches of God’s grace, and grace drives our sanctification. Paul tells us, “the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives” (Titus 2:11). Spiritual growth doesn’t happen overnight; we “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 2:18). Grace transforms our desires, motivations, and behavior. [Christianitydotcom]
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