Sunday Family Meeting

Photo "annihilated" using Instagram.  ;o) Yes, Gromit, this is a post processing ruining of an image. 

I talked about Lil's allowance a couple of days ago, and mentioned we give her her allowance at family meeting on Sunday night.  I thought I would share what our very brief and simple family meeting involves.

We begin by going around the table and sharing what things went well that week, what was fun, what we enjoyed.  In other words, we share the good of the previous week, and everyone gets a turn.

Next, we each share what areas we would like to see improve in the coming week.  For example, Lil has said she would like to work harder on being a better listener.  Previous weeks she's wanted to work harder on keeping her room clean--which was a happy share this past week. :o)  Me?  I'm working on getting moving again...:sigh:  It should be noted that Brien and I do not tell Lily what her weekly goal is going to be, she decides that on her own. 

Next up, I pull out the household binder and look at the calendar for the week.  I lay out what we are doing this week as far as appointments, activities, etc. go--that way we are all on the same page and no one is surprised by any "unknown" event.  It is also the time for me to add to the calendar if needed.

Then, I let Lil know what our chore schedule for the week looks like and what my expectations are for the two of us.  I pull out our To Do list and see what B and I could get checked off during the following week or need to put on the weekend list.

Finally, I make sure there is nothing else that needs to be shared and that there are no questions and we move on to Lil's nickle jars. 

We count her nickles, give her her allowance and then have her count out nickles for the following week.  This is a great time for her to practice counting by 5's to 100 as well as working on money and money counting.  (Everything is a learning lesson when your mom is a teacher--poor Bitty.)

And, that's about it.  It's quick, it's down and dirty, and we begin each week fresh on the same page.  Everyone knows what's going on, we all know each other's goals and expectations and it's what works for us. :o)

Does anyone else have anything they do at family meetings that works for them?  I'd love to hear! :o)

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Today's Sparklies:

1. Two kitties cuddled up with Lil and me as we read this afternoon. 
2.  Reading 6 books in a row with Lil--Ellie took a fantastic afternoon nap--almost THREE hours! :o)
3.  Reading Doggies with Ellie--many times.  Now, usually this wouldn't be a sparkly, except the child laughs so hard when you're reading it. :o)
4.  Big fat salad for dinner.  Mm.
5.  Getting caught up on the laundry once more.  How have I let it get away from me so badly?!?

No milestones.