Week #11

That's my motto the past couple years.
I first saw the block letter word used as decor in my friend Shannon's house.
Shannon really understands this word, and I have learned a lot from her about how to function in a small home with a large family.

I found my own "SIMPLIFY" the other day, and it fits perfectly over the fireplace in our living room, and it was half off so I bought it.

I used to think that Simplifying meant having less, but recently I have discovered that is not necessarily the case. Living in a large house now, I find that it makes more sense to have multiples of certain things.

One of those is sippy cups.
Historically I've only allowed one cup per child. Each child had a different color, and they took it with them into town, to the dinner table, and to bed at night.
I was proud of this plan which had worked well for so long! I don't know how, but we managed to keep track of those cups for quite a long time, only occasionally losing them between the bed and the wall, or under the couch.

This 5000 square foot house is a different matter!
When the children climbed into bed, they had left their cups upstairs, and when climbing into the car, their cups were (of course) left in their beds and so on. When tucking four or five little ones into bed, I am not excited about cutting one loose to go look for a cup!
I say "climbed" past tense because I found a solution to my frustrating problem.

*I bought four cups for the bedroom - one for each child, each a different color.

*I bought four more for the car - one for each child and the same color as their bedroom cup.
I also bought a little carrying tote for the cups going into and out of the car.

One child is responsible for filling the cups before we leave, and then for rounding them up and getting them back into the tote, and ultimately the house.

Zachary is responsible for filling cups before we leave the house, and then for collecting them before coming back into the house. This tote has four compartments the perfect size for our cups plus room for a couple diapers! - Maybe some sunscreen and bug repellent too.

*Finally I bought four water bottles for the kitchen.
They are to stay in the kitchen, they sit on the edge of the counter and are available for reach at any time (staying in the kitchen), and are easy to take to to table at meal times.

So far, I am very happy with this arrangement. It seems to be working very well.
My favorite brand of Sippy is Playtex, so that's what eight of the new cups are.

The kitchen ones are Wal Mart cheapies - small clear water bottles with pop top lids. The only real chagrin with them is that Daddy wishes they weren't clear - you know... eating at the dinner table together? A two-year-old? Need I explain further?