Is listening to me share about my large family and our organization even interesting? How could Jen really want me to share about this on her blog.

Then I remembered that families of 8 land big Cable Reality Shows and get to take fantastic vacations with their kidlets and drive cars that have built in movie theaters… and some even get a year supply of diapers… though I’d prefer chocolate instead.

For those of you who wonder, “How on earth does she manage with 6 kids?” I offer this: The chore chart to top all others. Okay, well admittedly this won’t top all others because this one is ugly.
Sometimes order is ugly… this chart looks more like a Wal-Mart Organizational Flow Chart than a family chore chart.

The fact is: I forget everything.

I completely forget that my kids earned themselves a whoppin grounding for 2 weeks because my intense love for these little punk-a-noodles overshadows my memory of things they’ve done to deserve my wrath.

I forget that a family of 8 requires laundry to be done several times EVERY DAY.

Aren’t we all trying to forget about the laundry… it just won’t go away! I’m even at fault to forget a couple of days in a row… until I’ve worn that stretched out bra that I should have thrown away months ago for the second straight day and I have to start acting surprised when friends see the stains on my shirt, “Kids! Darn. I guess I’ll have to get this in the wash.” That excuse works incredibly well when you have a ton of kiddos. You’re always bound to have something stuck to your shoulder or belly. It’s sad however, when the same friends hear that excuse several times over the same shirt… BUSTED!

So here’s command central at my house.

Open up document to see our Family Meal and Cleaning Schedule.

This baby has earned it’s rightful place on the fridge next to the Scouting schedule and the realtor magnets.


It’s divided into 3 sections:  Routines that I need to remember.

Meal schedule: For Breakfast and Lunch (dinners are always different)

Laundry Schedule: This shows me who has laundry on what day. If you want to see my octo-laundry routine check out this post.

Family Job Rotations: This is the meat of the schedule. (Applies to 4 older kids)
It details my kids daily Personal jobs, Trash assignments, Dinner Prep and Clean-up assignments, Weekly Zone, Weekly Job, and Saturday job assignments. WHEW!

There you have it. Functionality at it’s finest. You can thank the hubby for that one. I’m always worried about whether or not the colors I choose in the chart coordinate with the eyes and personality of the child they represent, and match the hues of the current season.
We’re a perfect match!

Any other questions on family efficiency or routines? What are you struggling with in your home?

Photo Credits: SouthernLiving.com