As For Me and My House-Part 2

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creative parenting-

I think every parent will agree that disciplining children is such a huge responsibility. Huge because they will only be “children” for so long and those traits, habits, practices we help them build up will be with them in their teens, as young adults and eventually they will become parents themselves.

All of those amazing characteristics I believe children of God should have and good future spouse’s I truly believe we need to help instill now. I cannot expect my daughter to wake up one day when she is 16 and wake overnight gifted with knowledge how to cook a great meal and bake, how to be a wise steward, virtuous, meek or respect her elders, etc., yet these are all so important in a marriage and as an adult. I cannot expect my boys to wake up when they are 18 and say you know what I think I will start making my bed from now on; I will clean my clothes, help mom in the kitchen, learn to change my oil in my car, and learn how to use a hammer. Didn’t you just grin reading that (especially the clothes and bed, ladies you get me right?) but it’s so true, these things don’t happen overnight.

When I think of my children getting married all these wonderful things my husband and I have in our marriage I want my children to have. So if I want this great husband and wife for my child, are we as parents doing the same so our children are a blessing for whomever God blesses them with?

I want my son and daughter to know God is the center of our lives. When things get tough do my children see who I go to? Do they know where I get my strength from? When I make mistakes do they see admitting them and asking God for forgiveness and wisdom? Do they see my worn Bible from all the reading or do they see me changing my phone case because of the wear?

I typically read my Bible in Chronological order but this year I found a system that has you reading the Bible by day: The Law, History, Psalms, Poetry, Prophecy, Gospels and Letters. I really liked it in the beginning but it’s so confusing now. I have to constantly go through my notes to remember what I read in “Law” last Monday, I will stick through it to the end but it’s definitely a bad experiment (don’t try it ;)..). Anyhow, a few days ago I was reading about Eli (while I was working on this post, God’s timing is fantastic!). He was such a man of God, he had such a great passion to serve God. Yet 1 Sam 3:13 tells tells us he knew his children’s ways and their iniquities yet he did not restrain them (ne obyzdival ih). I just cannot grasped my mind around that. Then in 4:14 it says Eli was sitting the they wayside watching when Eli was told of the ark of God had been captured, that he fell off the seat backward by the side of the gate; and his neck was broken and he died, for the man was old and heavy. He LOVED God so much that the mention of the ark being captured really took his life yet in that same verse he found out his two sons died as well. Such a great example of us to have this desire for God and in the same time train our children!.

discipline-

Setting the rules for a household is so easy. Point one, point two and so forth. It’s the disciplining that is really hard. We have five children and they are all so unique and stand apart. I think the biggest struggle as a parent is finding what will work with each child. My husband can sit down and tell our oldest son you cannot talk to your mother in that tone and he will understand. Our second will need it broken down you cannot talk to you mother like that; she is older than you, she is my wife, she loves you and it hurts her when you talk in that tone and so on and that will need to be repeated over time. Two children that belong to the same parents yet are so different.

When disciplining, my motive as a parent isn’t for my child to feel guilty, shameful and belittled for their wrongdoing. It’s to train with love and concern so they will mature and not commit what was wrong. I cannot say go sit and timeout and the story end there. He must get while he is being discipline so we can together build him. Whenever I feel parenting is hopeless, my child will never learn, I am so gently reminded of my relationship with God and 1 Corinthians 3 comes to mind; it says we should be eating solids and we are yet like babe drinking milk. I know oh so well what the Bible say’s yet every single day I stumble in this way or that way. Can you imagine if God treated us like sometimes shamefully to admit we act with our children? When I am at the store and I sometimes hear parents call their toddler’s names and say such hurtful things, it just breaks my heart. I was at a checkout recently Sam’s Club once and there was a mother with two toddlers behind me. She was calling them s*****d, hopeless, dumb, how many times have I told you, and seriously the list went on. It was so late in the evening; the children were so exhausted, what do you want from them? When a child hears this what is happening to their self-worth and image of themselves? They believe they are what she tells them. Can you imagine if in Heaven God told me that, oh Valentina how many times can I repeat that? You heard it in church yesterday, I told you through my Word a few days ago and reminded you at prayer; how can you possibly do this again, you are hopeless. Shaking His stern finger He tells me you just won’t get it. As I imagine God doing this I quickly shake my head oh no way but God is love, he could never do that. I am 33 and He still tenderly cares for me and at times is probably like Valentina on a spiritual level you should be on desserts yet you at times you are like that babe and require milk from a bottle with a flow of SLOW.

I heard a really wise story once and it stuck with me like glue, regardless whether it is true or not I love it. He said in Israel when a mother nurses her babe she tells him from day one how wise he is, what a leader he will be, how he will help change the world, how successful he will be in life, what a great Christian he will be, etc. Isn’t that powerful? If this child from day one of his life hears all of the great potential for his life he just kind of grows into it. It really stuck with me and I try to do the same. I’m sure you as a wife can relate, how good does it feel for your husband to come home and say hon I just love this dinner, the house is so peaceful, kids are clean and cared for; this truly is my haven from the stress and work.

Enjoy some examples from our lives!

index

making the Bed-

Our children have been making their bed since they were about 3 1/2. Many of you question our logic and think that is so young and they cannot make it right, true to all of points. Yes, sometimes the blanket looked so uneven you would think they did it with their eyes closed, that’s ok though. With every bed they made it got better and by the time they are 6, they are pros. When my husband would be in ear shot I would say “honey you have got to go see how Benjamin made his bed this morning”. That validation that he did a great job from daddy and mom just boosts his self-confidence. When I would come in and that blanket is still crooked but he is soo excited to show me he did a good job it’s a great time for correction. “Wow, sweet heart you did such a good job, did you do this all by yourself?” and he beams at me with the biggest smile he can offer. After I tell him he did great and hug him I say, “you know what though, if you just pull on this side of the blanket it will be straight and look even better”. Together we pull and I applaud him for his efforts. What does this do? Keeps his confidence sky high and subconsciously he registered that the blanket is better straight.

Now our older boys are 10 and 11. Do they always make their beds, is it always perfect? For the most part yes and if not, we still correct them. Not because a bed unmade will be tragic, not at all, but because there needs to be consequences for their actions. Our oldest is one of the greatest kids; he will not only make his bed but come and help me make my bed. Now our second son is a bit of a challenge and that is okay, he just needs more attention and discipline. We kept trying to think of a way to discipline him with his serious desire for not making the bed. We came up with a pretty fantastic plan. When his bed is unmade I come with him and sit while he throws everything off the bed, and makes the bed. Then throws everything off the bed and remakes it. Oh what torture you might say!. It works though. The next time he doesn’t make the bed he is throwing everything off and remaking his bed 5 times as I sit there and make sure it’s to my standards, the following time 6 and so on. Does it work? SURE DOES!!.. He thinks ten times about whether it’s worth not making the bed the way. Ha, ha.

clothing-

The older boys have a medium sized laundry basket in their room. They are to bring up their laundry frequently. If their basket fills with clothing more than ¾ of the way they are doing their own laundry and ironing. They are old enough to understand that it takes a lot for mom to do laundry and iron. Their clothes needs to be brought up regularly so there isn’t a large load. They also know if they fill it up full they are separating the clothes, washing whites and darks separately. They will put the clothes in the dryer, fold the clothes that need folded and each iron their clothes that need ironed. They did this once and let me tell you it won’t happen again. What do we get? Laundry always in the laundry room and they are grateful for their mother’s hard work for keeping their clothes washed and ironed.

I love our clothing ironed. With 5 kiddos plus my spouse and I that is A LOT of ironing. Older boys are to hang their clothes as soon as they get home from church. If there is clothing that isn’t hung but has been ironed, they will be ironing it themselves. It’s not a matter of I cannot iron it again, it’s the fact that they need to respect and appreciate what I do and if I as a mom do not instill that in them at a young age they won’t have that respect for their spouses either. The younger two (4 and 3) hang their clothes that needs hung on a hanger and put it on the closet knob (when I have the time I hang it), do the little ones always hang it? Daughter, yes she truly tries but our 3 year old, wow that kiddo is a handful. Seriously, I spend more energy on him that the 4 others combined. He is such a strong willed child and I don’t want to break that spirit he just needs it directed in the right path, Lord give me strength!!

chores-

When the kiddos were old enough to clear the table and help with prepping for a meal I used have to listen to “well I set the table yesterday” or “I wiped the dishes this week already”. It’s so hard to listen to my kids argue so we created a chore sheet for them. It hangs in our kitchen and broken down daily. Each day each child gets a different chore. We no longer have this: “I set the table”, “I took out the trash”, “I washed the dishes”, they look at their chore sheet and to their chores they go. If someone doesn’t complete what was needed I know who to go to and don’t have to listen as each is intent on explaining why he wasn’t the culprit, lol.

[The younger two set the table. Yes, they are so proud they can set a plate for each member, with a fork and a glass. That is some serious accomplishments. Mom, don’t you dare try to fix their table settings, wowza, pure insult (haha). Gatta love kids.] Speaking of setting the table, do you have little ones that just cannot seem to sit still and like to stand, sit, move, stand up again, sit back down etc. As I said before, our 3 year old is oh SOO much work. One day he had one of his “exercises” at the table even like I just listed. I did the same. I stood up, sat down, stood back up, mimicked everything he did. The child was terrified (yes I looked rather silly), but he saw what we see and it gets to them easier. I promised my older boys I would never embarrass them this way at someone’s house, lol :)..

{P.S. If any of you would like to try a chore sheet and don’t have one, you can let me know in the comments or e-mail me and I will send you ours. You can just fill in for your children’s name; it will save you some time creating one.}

toys-

My least favorite; keeping toys clean. I think this is the one that was the hardest to get each child to understand, or for me at least it was. When they were old enough to make a mess with their toys, I quit picking them up (before that we would do it together). I will never forget the very first time I had our oldest son pick up his toys. He was about under three and was a really intelligent child. He dumped almost all of his toys, along with some books (moms with kids, you know how skilled they are doing this). After playing for a whole 5 minutes, he was off to destroy the next room. We went to his room and I told him he was going to pick up his toys all by himself since he made the mess himself. He looked at me as if I had just told him he grew a third eye; then he began to cry and throw a tantrum and many no’s followed. I sat there calming him down and telling him he needed to pick them up that he was a big boy. Once I calmed him down and after some toys were picked up the crying began again. My insides were bursting with emotion; my child’s tears were tugging at my heart, his minus 10 an hr speed made me just want to hurry up and pick them up myself but I knew I needed to win this battle. If I didn’t he would always think his tears would get the best of me. We were there for what was probably an hour, not exaggerating!. Towards the end I began to cry it was so hard and painful. Guess what though!? He picked them all up, by himself, me cheering him on!. Next toy pick up session lasted less, and less tears. The following even less and then he knew whatever he threw down he was going to pick up. Kids are so smart; they just need to know where their boundaries are and if I clearly place my boundaries they will follow them. Yes, sometime they may test us to see if the boundaries have been extended but once I re-assure them they hadn’t, they continue to stay within them.

russian language-

We try to keep their language alive at home. There is so much work that goes into that. To learn new words we came up with a rather great system and if any of you can use it, Great!!. On my fridge I have a list of new words we are learning. Everyday words and church language is so different and that is what we are focusing on; introducing them to the church vocabulary. We learn two new words a week. I have a sheet I use for the month and in there we write that word in English and Russian and it’s definition. The fridge is opened SO often and they are able to glance it and through the week we repeat, ask, repeat and learn to use it. It has been a great success for our family. This is even a great way to begin Ukrainian or Russian if you are not doing so. We go back and review the old words so they don’t forget it. There are 52 weeks in a year so multiply that by two which is 104. That is 104 new words learned a year. Might not seem like a lot but it is, but it’s rather great I think:)..

How do you keep Russian/Ukrainian alive in your homes? I think this is SOOO hard, or at least for us it is? What do you use? I would love some creative ideas!!

sundays-

Those of you with kiddos or more will know when I say Sunday morning as well- A CHALLENGE. When we were first figuring out this parenting thing I would do everything Sunday morning, it was so stressful sometimes that by the time I calmed down at church from getting three kiddos out of the home service was almost over and I heard half the service or nothing, just being honest. While I am ironing this child’s shirt, that one is mammaing none stop. I cannot find the pants to go to this or her panty hose have miraculously disappeared from the drawer, mom’s please tell me you get me. This stress is now eliminated.

My diaper bag is ready the night before. All of my kids’ clothing is ironed and they all know what they are wearing. I know what we are having for breakfast and most items are set out and ready to go. My husband does his part, I do mine and Sunday morning is a time for us to get peacefully dressed, have time to pray before walk out and enjoy God’s word. This said though I think satan is oh very alert on Sunday mornings, he tries every way possible to get you to have a bad morning so your focus is lost in church. Example for you. When we had communion this month the night before my husband and I had such a great devotion. He was working on a sermon and we were both so excited for service Sunday morning. I have learned the closer you come to God, especially if I had a really powerful prayer or great opening through His Word watch out Valentina, a storm is a brewing. So that Sunday we are about to go sit down to enjoy breakfast. We have this large full size cabinet in the kitchen that is like the size of the fridge, really tall. My son opens that cabinet to get something and guess what one of the shelves breaks and everything I have in there comes tumbling down; pasta spills, sugar container busts open, cereal all comes crashing down. It looked like hurricane Katrina came through my kitchen. We are women can really make or break the peace in our home, right ladies? I am a CLEAN person, a PERFECTIONIST, I cannot fall asleep if I have a few dishes in my sink. I stood there and I can either act upon storm Katrina that is brewing in my heart or I can say not today satan. I chose the latter. My son stood there terrified because he is the one that opened this cabinet. As the storm in raging my heart I said aloud “not this morning Satan, Ben it’s my fault I should not have piled so much on this shelf that it could handle it.” We all go and enjoy breakfast in peace. Inside of me I  didn’t want to go to church, I wanted to stay and clean this mess I was so frustrated but I knew this was the works of Satan. The mess was untouched until I had time to clean it After church and there was peace in my heart.

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I have probably officially scared many of you with what I expect from my kiddos. It truly isn’t that bad. They are showered with so much love from both my spouse and I, we spend so much time together. Some of you may say how do you have the time? I truly don’t really have much of a life outside of my home and children. I dislike shopping (unless it’s with my spouse) and don’t really go out with girlfriends. All of my time and energy is spent on my spouse and children.. 🙂

In a few weeks I will share Part-3 and that is focusing on my husband and I. I think that is just as important as raising kiddos, but I will give you guys a break from all this babble and post a few recipes in between, do you even want to read a Part-3? Have these posts been a blessing to you?

<Dear mammas, please share you ideas!! What is your parenting style. I would love to learn from you and listen to what works for your family. Maybe it can be a blessing to our family and I am all up for new and creative ideas.

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52 Comments

  1. I am so encouraged by both posts. Wow. God bless your family for this. please do a post 3, please, please.

    1. Evelinochka, THANK YOU for the wonderful support. I am working on it and really appreciate your sweet comment! Sometime soon.

  2. You are a very devoted mama! I love all of your rules set for your home. Boundaries and rules are definitely a must with such a large family. I feel like I need some of those rules for myself! haha.. I love the language learning that you teach your children. I teach a Ukrainian school class at my church and make all of the worksheets for each lesson. It is a great way for me to review my Ukrainian as well!

    1. Katy, That language though, I am telling you what. I remind them at least 50 times a day to speak Russian. I get them though and understand their struggle. Everything they do and everywhere they go is English. Good for you to teach a Ukrainian class, may God reward you for that; it’s hard work. That is great for your daughter too though, she will know Ukrainian language.

    2. Valentina,

      First off, thank you for the the time and encouragement of these posts. It really is uplifting to read and gives us moms hope that each day should be better than the next. I have four kiddos ranging from 17-7. My older 3 understand Russian and Armenian, but my youngest reminds me of your 3yr old here – very strong willed and unwilling to cave in Or sit still. I’ve looked online at many chore charts and its overwhelming trying to create one that’s evenly spread out and reasonable for the different ages. We had a chart in our kitchen also as kids and it worked great for us . Can you please send me yours as an example?
      And to Katy, can you post some ideas on the language worksheet as I’m also trying to teach my younger kids Russian.
      Thank you in advance!

      1. You’re so kind, Luba. Praising God.
        I will get those out to you. Thank you so much for being a part of our online home and visiting.

  3. Truley inspiring. my kids walk all over me and this is amazing you can have these rules and they work!!!! I would like to see post 3 and am really grateful you took the time to do this… So many blessing on your family.

    1. Verochka, If you got the idea that things are “perfect” and “everything runs smooth” than I either worded it badly somehow or and maybe you misunderstood. They work but it’s an everyday battle and very hard. They are not perfect children and I am not a perfect mom and are very far from it. I am sorry to hear that your children walk all over you, there is always a time to slowly change though. You are a mother and wife and put so much time and energy into them, you need to be respected dear. In post 3 I will talk a lot about building respect, I am NO EXPECT but maybe it will be a blessing to you. My husband is from Uzbekistan where respect for elders is a MUST and so I learned a lot from him after I got married and I will share that in my last post. {This is from me to you sister-“Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her Proverbs 31:28}

  4. Valichka, I must ask, how could you have missed your calling?! There is so much wealth of information out there on how to cook, bake, and all kinds of recipes from A to Z, but not nearly enough encouragement for mamas (and dads) on how to raise their God-given treasures for His glory. I glimpsed so much wisdom in you, I have been greatly blessed and encouraged by your last two blog posts. I believe you are called to do this, you might not agree with me: encouraging words of spiritual growth for ourselves and for our children require so much more time and dedication (and lots more prayers!) I would love to see more (weekly?) posts like these from you, spiritual food is needed so much more in our corrupt world than physical food. Maybe you could partner up with your partner (ha!

    1. Marinochka, You are so kind and my face is beet red right now. I am NOT really all that wise or special all at but your words are extremely, extremely sweet. I am going to print them and keep them in my devotion journal for when I need encouragement, hehe. You will have a “special spot” in my journal. See what happens when one woman is kind to another? She get’s printed and her words get put into a strangers devotions journal with flowers decorating them and all. Haha, guess you will not think twice what to comment on this blog.

  5. Valentina, I stumbled upon your blog and now I see it was God. So if none of these exist in my house where would you recommend start, we really need change, pretty bad.? Also, please can I have a chore sheet?

    1. Grace, So happy to have you here and Welcome! I am no expect so I don’t really know where to direct you but I would say the biggest advice is pray about it and go to the Word. Change can be very scary for people of all ages. I am not a fan of change either and something it just takes baby steps. Whatever area needs worked on most or whatever the Holy Spirit is convicting you of most, maybe start there. Many times we as parents feel that if we tell our children we made a mistake or were wrong somewhere along the way they will see it as a weakness. For me it’s the other way around, I have no problem telling my children I messed up and need God’s guidance and forgiveness and we need to try something different. They take my example and do it themselves. I will be keeping you in my prayers and many, many, blessings to you and your family. P.S. Chore sheet sent.

  6. Praise GOD I was really Blessed by reading your blog !:) yes I want post 3 and I want new post to keep coming LORD willing please with the strenght that GOD provides , it opened my eyes how important GODS Word is and how little I spend time with it GOD help me change that because HIS WORD is truely soo important ! Yeah I don’t have much advise because we are new parents kinda thing still lots too learn but what I do and see and notice GODS blessing, is when I CONCIEVE or want to have a baby like for some reason after having my first at about 5 months I really wanted another one and with the first I had some sickness soo I was like man that not fun so I prayed so I won’t have that for the next and so pregnancy would be blessed smooth and the baby healthy from head to toe and I was really happy I wanted to have another baby and when I got pregnant I was really happy and GOD really blessed my heart with soo much peace and happiness compared to the first, big difference ! With 1st pregnancy like I suffered with fear I had such a battle the devil was just sending me horrible thoughts I did not like being on my own but through it all at the end of this trial I seen GODS HAND AND MERCY AND SEEN MY FAITH GROW PRAISE GOD it wasn’t smooth but wow praise GOD HE helped me through that and it was over but I thank GOD both boys were healthy I Prayed for no colic no gassy stomachs, sleep good at night and so forth and GOD IS MERCIFUL AND HEARS ALSO CALM and both boys praise GOD ALL THE GLORY BE TO GOD WERE !! I also from conception would try to read the BIBLE out loud as much as possible for the baby to hear and after they are born as well with GODS HELP HE HELPS ME CONTINUE I sure hope we will I keep on reading , I like to read in Russian psalm 1,90,102,121 or 122 I get confused with the numbering with Russian and English and praise GOD HE even helped me memorize those Psalms from reading them to the kids I am a huge believer that GODS WORD does not come back void even if they are playing but I am reading GOD will still do HIS WORK , my kids are young but I try with GODS HELP to do daily devotions on weekdays we read those psalms and more and then I try a kids story here and there and try to sing a hymnal but my personal devotional time is not suffering I don’t do enough reading alone so please Pray for me sisters I have a need for that ! I just do the daily bread but I realize I need to devote more time to GOD, I try soo hard to finish the Old Testament I tried soo many times but used to fail especially when I get lost in understanding boy … And sometimes loose interest praise the LORD at least the NEW TESTEMENT is dear to my heart and GOD has mercy to reveal things too me he also does in the OLD TESTIMENT WHEN I UNDERSTAND it blows me away GODS love and mercy yet wrath wow I do Learn when GOD has mercy and grace to reveal things too me it’s like a revelation ! So bacily that’s what I do with kids !:)

    1. Svetochka, Thank you so much for sharing. This is so beautiful, you are such a Wonderful mom/wife and I love how sincere you are. Yes, I agree it is sometimes hard to read when you cannot completely understand what is going on, especially prophetic books. I too prefer the new Testament. You know what I have noticed with myself is when I stick to a “Read the Bible in a Year” layout it’s easier to read. It helps you keep going and knowing what to read when and if you skip a day or two you know how much you need to read to catch up.

  7. Valichka also I have a really big question to ask how did you potty train your boys I need some insight ! Seems like every mother has her own kinda thing but I would love to hear your maybe it might work for my boys one is ready the other one is still young :)yes and I agree wow kids are all soo different

    1. Can’t help much here. Every mama is different and every child is different. Some take a day, some take weeks to get it. It’s such a sigh of relief though once they start going right?

  8. I have been so encouraged by both posts. I love all of your rules set for your home. You are so wise and devoted mother. Looking forward to post 3.And would love to see chore sheet! Gods Blessing to your wonderful family!

    1. Lyubochka. Thank you for the feedback, it’s really nice to hear it. I promise you I am a very simple person and no different than you but I still appreciate the comment very much so. Chore sheet sent!

  9. Valechka,
    God bless your heart and your whole family! Thank you so much for sharing!! I think I wouldn’t mind to read posts like this everyday as an encouragement! Please keep those coming! love how open you are, and how kind (доброжелательная) you are!!
    I’d love to hear how do you get your older kids interested in reading Bible on daily basis, especially alone? Do you have reward system or do you do some sort of activities? I’ve notice a change in my family and am in desperate need of somesort of advise. Thanks so much for all the advise! God bless you all!

    1. Julie, You are so kind yourself. I am not all that special though, I’m very simple and down to earth mama/wife that just really wants to serve God with her family. Read the comment in Part 1 to someone else so I don’t repeat myself. I think you will really, really enjoy the series for the summer.

  10. Yes! This post was a huge blessing to me. I’m 24 years old with a son who is almost 3 and a 4 month old daughter. Just this past Sunday I was crying saying God I don’t know how to do this parenting thing. The part about one of your kids mamaing in the background made me laugh. Happens all the time here. We are still struggling with our Sunday mornings, picking up toys (destroying rooms), and too much screen time. For part 3 my question would be: how do you and your husband come to agreement on parenting decisions?

    Thank you

    1. Natashenka, To be 24 again, hehe, Mrs. Youngin;). Our youngest is 9 months and oh so loveable, and not too far from yours.:)! Don’t be discouraged though, things do get better the older they get and learn to help out and become more responsible. Parenting can be very overwhelming especially those of us that have young children back to back, but with God all things are possible. When I have one of those days I just feel like crying, I am so uplifted knowing that I serve a God who is right there to pick me up and wipe away my tears and give me strength to keep going. When I feel like things are kind of messy and I don’t exactly know what I will do next I can turn to Him and say Lord I can really use you right now cause it’s not really happening on my own and he has never failed, never. My husband and I were raised completely different, like COMPLETELY, so I will share in Part 3 how we found common ground. Thanks so much for your comment. Many, many blessings to your family.

  11. Thank u for being so open. These posts about raising kids are very helpful and I agree with you completely, raising kids in the way they should go is a difficult tasks but it is possible with God’s strength. Please post more posts to encourage us parents in this daily battle. Please send me the chore sheet, I think that would help me. Thank you and may God bless you and your family. U r an inspiration to many 🙂 Be blessed

    1. Elenochka, Thank YOU so much for your comment and support, it’s so appreciated. I tried to e-mail you the chore sheet for some reason it says there is an error in the e-mail.

  12. Oh I don’t know why it didn’t go…the info is correct…can u try sending it again …Thank you 🙂

  13. About picking up the toys… I remember my mother always telling us that if our rooms are messy, clothes on the floor, toys all over the place then our angel hranitel’ ne smozhet nas ohranyat’ nochyu, on zaydyot i ne smozhet perestypit’ cherez igryshki chtob k nam podoiti i nam bydet plohoe snitsa. She also said chto Bog kogda sozdal nebo i zemlyi yvidel chto eto harasho, znachet Bog lyubit poryadok i mi Hristiani dolzhni tozhe lyubit’ poryadok. And you know, it worked!! We always cleaned our rooms before going to bed. Now I tell my kids the same thing!! 🙂

    1. Innochka, I love how sweet the memory of your mom instilling these values into you is and especially love how you are passing that down to your children. How creative of your mamma, especially the creation part (what a Godly woman, I can just feel it). My daddy used to always tell us that when we were driving if you speed your guardian angels can’t keep up and can’t protect you (though that is kind of like not telling the truth because they can keep up, but hey kept us all from speeding.

  14. Thank you so much for this helpful post! May you please email me the word chart and chore chart?

    1. Allochka,
      THANK YOU so much for the sweet comment. The chore sheet and words have been sent to your e-mail. Have a lovely summer!

  15. Hi,
    I just came across this post after seeing your part 3. But I have 2 girls so far, and recently am having more trouble with discipline, especially with the 3 year old. We too are more strict (especially my husband lol) with our kids than maybe other parents and expect them to learn how to do things on their own and help out, although there are times when it’s really hard to wait while they calm down and get something done.

    Can you send me the chore list? And how do you come up with the words for russian vocab? Do you have a specific way or just whatever words come up that you know your kids aren’t familiar with?

    Thanks!

    1. Marina, I am so soo sorry. I somehow missed your comment. Two girls? What a blessing. At this time we have ages of 11, 10, 5, 3, 1. Kind of went through it all and that 1 thru 3 age is such a difficult age. Though I am NO EXPERT, I do think (from our experience) that is when kiddos really are trying to push boundaries and see what they can get away with. Some kids are just A LOT of work and are very very independent and it’s especially true that those kiddos really need a lot of love because they are trying to really find themselves. Out of all those ages our current 3 year old (boy) has been SOOO much work. Seriously, it has been so hard going through the 2 to 3 age, we are finally slowly seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. I must be honest though (face blushing) I think God gave us a child so strong willed like him so I could “understand” other parent’s in my situation. Our kids before him were so easy, I seriously almost at times couldn’t understand how some kids are just so OUTGOING AND CANNOT SIT for one minute, that is until I had one like that too.. Guess God teaches us, sometimes the hard way.
      Good for you guys for being strict with your kiddos. It will be hard now but when they are 7 and up you will look back and pat each other on the pack and just say we did it honey. It does get better. (Well that’s until they hit TEEN year. I hear that’s a nightmare.
      Words-I do for older boys and now that Elizabeth will be starting school I will have her start as well. We attend a Russian/Ukrainian speaking church so they take journals and write down what they learn during service and at time they will write down words they don’t understand or when we are reading the Bible and it’s a word they don’t understand, I write it down. We are really trying to focus on “Church” language so when they go to church they can grow. I hope that made sense. Sounds like your kiddos are younger so you can start our small like simple words like Angel, Sin, Hell, Heaven, Pray etc. Things that are simple and yet they will start to catch on. Look at this response, I really need to learn to respond in less words, hehe.

      1. Hi,
        Thanks a lot for the post, i enjoyed reading it. Could you please send me your chore list?
        Thank you
        God Bless you and your family.

    1. Sophie,
      Thank you so much and I am so happy you found something on these posts that spoke to your heart as well.

  16. Valentina, I stumbled across your blog and cant get enough of your posts! You seem to be a humble, God-loving/God-fearing woman! It amazes me how you have your life together in every aspect and you have 5 children and seem to find time for a blog as well! I’m amazed! I have 4 kiddos, but at times I feel like life’s a mess and I’m a perfectionist as well, and it drives me crazy when my house is disorganized, etc. I’d love to talk to you more on a personal level. I would love to obtain your chore and financial spreadsheets (at your earliest convenience). Thank you in advance!

    1. Nadya, Thank you for visiting. Ha. Oh I can relate about being a perfectionist. It’s terrible, I know the feeling. As you can see, I blog very little and far apart, just don’t have the time but I enjoy it so much so I try to keep up.
      I sent you an e-mail.

  17. Hi, could you please send me your chore sheets as well? Thank you very much. Enjoy your recipes. Enjoy reading how you are raising your children. It’s been a blessing. God bless you.

  18. This blog is really a blessing to me! I was searching for some ideas on discipline and how other moms do it with more kids, I too have 5 kids ages 7- 6mo and it gets hard sometimes with discipline and teaching the kids to help out and do their chores, I would love the chores sheet, thank you so much for finding some time to bless other moms like me with your awesome blog posts I really love it! GOD Bless you and your family!

  19. Hello Valentina! I am very blessed to find your corner!!!!!! This is my second time here. I am mom of 2 Boys, and 3 girls. We do homeschool and teach our kids Ukrainian and Russian. Every day they read Ukrainian Bible aloud and we learn Psalms from Bible in the Russian. Also, they rewrite Psalms in to notebook and then learn them. Sorry for my English, I wish to read all your post on Ukr. or Rus…… Thank you so much for your post can you please email chore sheet? God bless your wonderful family and your not easy work here.

  20. Thank you so much for your posts! Could you please email me the chore sheet? I am very interested! I have 4 little people to raise for the Lord!