However Imperfectly

Raising children is the best way to find out one’s weaknesses. Perhaps you thought you were a fairly good citizen. You always thought of others when taking turns at the post office and you never took more than your portion of ice cream at the birthday party.

But having children seems to expose the lazy and selfish parts of ourselves. That’s why we need the help from others who’ve been there too and can help us navigate through the cultural sludge and learn to see our work as an act of worship. 

We truly can learn to love the work that must be done. I’m pleased to share with you my interview with my homemaking mentor Mystie Winkler. She recently released her spectacular book, Simplified Organization where she helps us understand that the work we have to do is truly good work and that we can learn to love it.

This interview and Mystie’s book wrap up our miniseries here on However Imperfectly about Routines That Bless.

You will see that Mystie has also needed to work on her habits to weave peace and blessing into her home and we are confident that you can do the same in yours. Enjoy!

In my years of motherhood, I’ve met many friends who are better housekeepers than I am. Some of them just come by it naturally.

I come by it with effort and thoughtful deliberation.

I’m easily distracted by the dimples on my children’s faces, the lure of a good book and the conversation with a friend. If you are naturally clean and tidy, you may not understand the need for a pep talk to keep your home in order and to do thus on repeat until that last little one grows up gets married and, Lord willing, brings grandchildren into your home to make messes all over again.

For the rest of us, we need the reminder that keeping a reasonably clean house is worth the effort and will bear fruit for years to come in the form of memories set on the stage of a home that is peaceful to live in. We would all like to sow peace.

Let’s take a look at six practical reasons to do this good work!

One of the gifts of motherhood is to overhear a child humming or singing softly while playing or doing chores only to discover they are singing a hymn we learned in church or during our family devotions. Is there anything more precious than listening to children’s voices singing praises to God? 

To hear a child sing as loud as possible: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God almighty, all thy works shall praise thy name in earth and sky and sea” is to enter into the eternal throne room where we will all be lifting up our voices in worship. It’s a gift and duty to teach our children about their creator…

Today I have a treat for you. We are going to step back in time to 1905. At this time, Ms. Mason was sending out her Mother’s Education Course correspondences and farmers were leaving the countryside to find work in the cities of America. This was a time filled with innovation and excitement for new discoveries and technologies were being made to make life more comfortable for more people. But as the Industrial Revolution made its way through the Western World, it affected the way American Women were seeing themselves and their work in the home. In 1905, most women stayed home and raised their children and even if they worked, their children were right there with them. World War I changed that. It took women out of the home and they haven’t returned since. 

But, just before this, President Teddy Roosevelt saw the importance of the work of mothers and what it means for a healthy and thriving society. He understood that a mother’s work is irreplaceable. And the American home, he shows, is a true growing ground for the nation.

My husband, Kevin, kindly offered to read Teddy Roosevelt's speech, titled “On American Motherhood”, as he presented it in Washington, D.C. to the National Congress of Mothers on March 13, 1905.

You will find that Teddy is speaking to mothers of all times and all places to be encouraged to continue in the good work we’ve been called to do. Enjoy!

Picture: Maternal Caress, Mary Cassatt 1896

 “Wash on Monday. Iron on Tuesday. Mend on Wednesday. Churn on Thursday. Clean on Friday. Bake on Saturday. Rest on Sunday.” -Little House in the Big Woods.

Welcome to, However Imperfectly where homeschooling and homemaking intersect. This podcast is for the homeschool mom who desires to educate her children with a rich Charlotte Mason education, and also has meals to put on the table and laundry sort each day. I am your host, Joy Cherrick. I hope you find encouragement as we explore the ideas of Charlotte Mason in the context of our modern homes. Mason provides the playbook for living and learning with our children that not only gives us an education unlike the one we received, but a full life together. We don’t have time for the latest educational fad. We need time-tested tools to help us raise and educate our children in truth, beauty, and goodness. I'm sure you will come to find, as I have, “that the education we are giving, however imperfectly, exceeds all that we intended or imagined.”)

Children need to eat at regular intervals. They seem to grow grumpy when not fed on time or in a regular rhythm.

As a young mother, I knew this to be true, however, I found myself always surprised by how quickly the meals came. For each meal, I’d scramble together what we had. I was not a “planner” nor was I sure how to manage the home in a way that would make this part of the day seamless.

Once I had three small children with one on the way, I knew it was time to apply my creative energy toward feeding my family well. Instead of being surprised, I developed a plan. Instead of being frazzled, I cultivated peace. You can too. 

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Welcome to, However Imperfectly where homeschooling and homemaking intersect. This podcast is for the homeschool mom who desires to educate her children with a rich Charlotte Mason education, and also has meals to put on the table and laundry sort each day. I am your host, Joy Cherrick.

I hope you find encouragement as we explore the ideas of Charlotte Mason in the context of our modern homes. Mason provides the playbook for living and learning with our children that not only gives us an education unlike the one we received, but a full life together. We don’t have time for the latest educational fad. We need time-tested tools to help us raise and educate our children in truth, beauty, and goodness. I'm sure you will come to find, as I have, “that the education we are giving, however imperfectly, exceeds all that we intended or imagined.”

Picture: Millet, Feeding the Young or La Becquée

When Cinderella’s fairy godmother turned a pumpkin into a carriage - she did more than just help the servant girl get to a ball… The pumpkin, at the time Charles Perrault wrote down his version of Cinderella, was synonymous with poor, common people. It was the food of peasants.

But how did the pumpkin end up in pies at Thanksgiving or carved into Jack-O-Lanterns?

I’m Joy Cherrick. I write about natural history, folklore and exploring how people have interacted with God’s creation through time. On Naturalist Kids Podcast, we bring many of the forgotten stories of nature to life to encourage you in your quest to learn more about this great world.  We’ll tell you the stories behind why a black cat crossing your path is bad luck. Why the pumpkin is the staple of a Thanksgiving feast. And why a mother cottontail rabbit is hardly ever found near her nest of kits. In each episode, I am joined by one of my six children.

In our first episode, we are going to tell you about Native American’s, Pilgrims, Cinderella and how many types of flowers the pumpkin vine creates in order to get a pumpkin.

Naturalist Kids Podcast starts on October 5, 2020.

Don’t miss a single episode by subscribing today on Applepodcasts. Naturalist Kids Podcast: forgotten stories from nature, brought to life.