Days of the Week

A wonderful treasure…

When I first got married and we bought our first home, I had no idea I would be where I am today.  Walking through an empty home in town with my belly expanding from the growth of our first son, I dreamed of what I would fill each room with.  As I walked through room after room, I just could not believe how “huge” our home was.  My husband would lovingly remind me of my rose colored glasses and that the reality was that it was a nice house but that it was NOT “huge”.  It was a 5 bedroom 1 1/2 story home on a regular city lot (1,200 sq ft).  To me it was a palace!  I came across this box that was shoved into a closet.  As I opened the dust covered box, I felt like I stepped back into time as the aroma of old book hit my nose and I was transported.I remember sitting there for hours paging through these 1920s encyclopedia books.  One in particular stood out to me, It was the book of Mothering!  The encouragement on mothering was just what I needed since I was expecting my first child and I did not know the first thing about being a mother.  I found this picture of little dutch children working through the week.  It fascinated me beyond words.  Even to this day, I look at this picture and it inspires me.Both of my grandmothers are from Holland, and they were both keepers of the home.  They did certain jobs on certain days.  It was the order of life in their era, not to mention the way it had been for centuries before them.They did a certain weekly routine because it simplified life.

My Amish friends had the same routine.  They always washed on Mondays, ironed on Tuesdays, shopped on Wednesdays, mended or sewed on Thursdays, baked on Fridays, and on Saturdays they would clean the home from top to bottom.  


You could drive down the lane in Amishland and see the wash in everyones yard just waving in the breeze and you could hear the occasional snap of a towel being caught with a sharp change in the speed of the wind.  Blue pants, pink and green dresses, little white diapers, and towels, just seeing it makes a woman feel good.  I do not know what it is about the wash line, what it is that gives me such a good feeling. Maybe because it makes me feel the presence of yesteryear or maybe it is the stirring up of the senses-the sweet smell of fresh laundry mixed with sounds and colors.  At any rate, the Amish still do their wash on Monday like grandma did and great grandma did before her.  It is a custom that is kinda lost in our culture today. The invent of the electric machines made it easy to throw a load in each day rather than making a day of laundering.

When I lived in Amishland, wash day was a very big deal.  It was an all morning affair.

You got up early, made your piles of white, darks, and colored clothing.  Other piles were of towels or sheets, blankets, coats, or socks.  The wringer washer would splash and slosh the clothing back and forth while you filled the rinse tubs.  Load after load, you would wash, then wring, rinse, and then wring out.  After the girls would hang each piece on the line or the drying rack, wow, such a good feeling would come over me.  I could relax in the afternoon and know that as the sun was setting, my wash was ready to be taken down and folded.   Simple.  More work, but simple.

Picture

I would like to revive this custom of the days of the week on my blog.  Maybe not in the same exact pattern like washing, mending, baking, etc, but designating days of the week to cover different topics on my blog.Keeper of the Homestead Days of the Week…

Meals on Mondays:

This will be the day I share recipes, canning, and other cooking related topicsTips on Tuesdays:
On this day, I will share tips in homemaking, housekeeping, mothering, homeschooling, etiquette, and other related topics that will be helpful.  Soon I will be filming “Tea Time” which will be different talks with other ladies in my community.  We will talk about mothering and housekeeping, trying to have a fresh perspective with lots of great tips on organization and running the home.Winners Wednesdays:
We will be offering giveaway contests on Wednesday and announcing winners.  We will endeavor to have useful products that help the homesteader or homemaker.

Homestead Thursdays:
I will always recap the week on our homestead, the new things we learn, do-it-yourself projects, animal care, and other fun topics.  Daily life on our homestead, with video demos and other fun interviews with other people in the community here.

Faith Filled Fridays:
On Fridays, I will always share my faith, my heart, my personal experiences balanced with things I learned from the bible.  I will try to do different series of encouraging studies on subjects related to women, marriage, mothering and charity.

When I make a nice routine and have order in each area of my life, it simplifies and brings peace.  It is nice to sit down and know what I will write about each day.  I know it would be nice for you to count on certain topics each week.  If  you like recipes, you can count on me for Monday to give you some nice recipe cards and ideas.  If you are interested in homesteading, you can pop in on Thursdays to check out what is going on with that.  Some people will enjoy homemaking, and other Faith Filled Fridays.  Others will enjoy every topic for the week.

Let me know by commenting below, what you think of this new format.  I just love reading your comments.  They mean so much to me.  It encourages me to work harder at making my site even more helpful in the future.
God bless your weekend!

~Erin Harrison

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6 thoughts on “Days of the Week”

  1. Erin – I just love the idea of a routine in my home and think I will start keeping one this following week. Housework is always is so chaotic in my house with four children and a baby that seems to want to nurse around the clock. But if the children and I know exactly what it is expected of us on each day I am sure we would get so much more accomplished and have such a feeling of satisfaction when the job is completed. Now I feel like I am never done.Laundry everyday, sweep the floors, mop, dust, so on…I feel like I need to squeeze as much as possible into everyday and never get ahead.
    I am so excitied that you are making more DVD’s I have enjoyed your homesteading videos so much and am sure I will love the new one too.

  2. I LOVE this post, it reminds me so much of the way I grew up, certain “chores” were done on certain days. I have to agree, that having a “schedule” seems to bring a calming to life, at least for me. Now days, everything seems so chaotic & stressful with no organization. Thank you for bringing back some sweet memories & am looking forward to all your posts.

  3. I’m really enjoying your blog and like the idea of different topics for different days. I’ve been trying to do something similar with life here but have difficulty at this point getting past the basics of dishes and laundry. I’ve much organizing to do. Your blog is helping. 🙂

  4. I love your blog. I am working on developing a routine. We are also a homeschooling family. Our dream is to one day own property with a few acres. Right now we are learning all we can right in the heart of Urban America. We are teaching ourselves how to make cheese, bread and anything in between. I really wish our town allowed us to keep chickens.
    Have a blessed weekend.

  5. I enjoy reading your blog. I have all your DVDs and my family and I. Enjoy them all. We are a homeschooling family and The Lord has blessed us with 6 children. We just started raising animals 2 years ago and we have hens and have raised turkeys for meat. This year we will also raise meat chickens.

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