Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

Anyone up for one of these? It has been a while. :)

With all of our appointments and classes and work canceled - our house is getting messier faster, the kids are watching too much tv, and also my kids are at an age to pick up more chores. I'm trying to get more organized with chores and teach them to do more, so I thought reviving one of these challenges might be a good way for all of us here to band together and help the time pass. :) And maybe at the end of this all, we will all have cleaner, more efficient households. :shifty :rofl Probably not but we can hope.

I am adding in some "challenges" specific to this outbreak.

Daily Chores:

Spiritual/Emotional:
10 Min Quiet Time - 10 minutes of what ever sustains you spiritually. Read your bible, pray quietly, sit outside and breathe in nature 100pts
10 Min Mama Time - 10 minutes of something just for you; take a hot shower, paint your nails, squirrel away with a book. Making a little time for yourself earns you 100pts
Bonding time - It can be hard during a busy day to make time to really focus on relationships. 10 minutes one on one time with who ever you feel you need it with (hubby, kids) 100pts

Dishes:
Per 'load' 20pts
Bonus points per sinkful handwashed 5pts
Empty sink when you go “off duty” 40pts

Laundry:
Each load of laundry: washed 10pts
Dried in the dryer 10pts
Hung out to try 15pts
Folded 15pts
Put away 15pts

Beds:
Each bed made (or helped to make) 20pts

Misc:
Hot Spots - the 3 top areas that accumulate clutter in your home (max of 45pts/day) 5 min=15pts
5 Minute Challenge/To Do List Thread 50pts
Tidying 5 min=15pts
Decluttering - 5mins = 5pts Bonus points for each shopping bag size load that leaves your house 10pts
New Habit #1 50pts
New Habit #2 50pts
Table/Counters wiped before bed 25pts
Animal Care (per type of pet) 25pts
Rubbish/Recycling (per bag) 25pts
Wipe down the sink/surround (daily, per sink - bathrooms and kitchen) 25pts
Toilet (per toilet) 50pts
Dusting (per 5 min) 5pts
Each room vacuumed/swept 50pts
Each room mopped 50pts, 75 if by hand
Meal Prep (per 5 min) 10pts
Clean Windows (each window) 20pts


Weekly Chores:

Plan Your Week:
Calendar Review 25pts
Assign HBC tasks to your weekly calendar 25pts
Plan a weekly menu 25pts for 1meal a day planned, 50pts for 2 meals a day, 75pts for 3meals a day
Make a To-Do List and check it often 25
Desk Time- scheduling appointments, sorting paper work etc 100pts
Clean Windows (each window) 20pts

Kitchen:
Away with Non-Kitchen Clutter! 25pts
Wipe Down Appliance Exteriors 25pts
Wipe Down Cabinet Doors & Drawers 100pts
Quick Clean Fridge 50pts
Microwave/Toaster Oven interior cleaned 25pts
Each switchplate, doorknob, cabinet handle, drawer pull wiped 5pts

Bathroom: (claim as many times as you clean your bathroom per week!)
Clean Mirror(s), (each) 5pts
Bathtub/Shower 50pts
Each switchplate, doorknob, cabinet handle, drawer pull wiped 5pts
Finished all bathrooms in the house 100pts

Bedding:
Sheets changed (per bed) 30pts
Wash comforter/quilt/etc (per bed) 30pts

Your Room on Wheels:
Empty the trash 15pts
Wipe out the cup holders 15pts
Vacuum the carpet/upholstery 50pts
Dust the dashboards 15pts
Clean the interior windows 30pts

Whole Home Blessing: Best done on a Friday
Spend no more than 15 minutes in each room doing a general tidy up. Run the vacuum through the middle of each room, straighten things up, etc., per room 50 pts


COVID-19 Challenges:

Social Distancing:
Each day you limit your exposure to people from outside your family (obviously if you have to go to work because it can't be done from home, that can't be helped and is not what I mean): 50pts
Organize Pantry and eat off of it to avoid the grocery store: 200pts for organizing pantry and 50pts per meal you avoid the grocery store by eating out of your pantry. This is once you have run out of what you would consider "essentials" in a typical week and are forced to be creative with what you have left.

Activities at home:
Playing a game with your family: 100pts (per day)
Teaching your child a new chore and directly overseeing it: add 15pts per chore/per child
Organize a movie night: 100pts

Community
If you work an essential job that puts you at risk for this, thank you and take 600 points (or whatever you think appropriate - you all win as far as I'm concerned) every day you work. Seriously, thank you to all of our nurses, doctors, other hospital and medical care workers, government workers, including any of the armed forces, and grocery store clerks that are showing up in high risk jobs to care for your community. (Let me know if I missed anyone)
Donate non-perishables to a local food bank (be sure to call and see if they are still able to operate!). 10pts per item. This does not count against any social distancing points. (try and see if curbside drop off is an option!)
Buy a gift card for the restaurant you would normally visit on a typical week/month but can't right now because you are practicing social distancing or order take-out/delivery. 100pts.


Seasonal Challenges: It is about springtime after all!

Clean out a room or closet - 300pts
Change out clothes for the season - 100pts per person
Plant a garden - 300pts
Insert big project of your choice - 300pts


The challenge will run at least 4 weeks and there are no prizes but bragging rights. I'll update each week's thread with the winner. It runs Monday to Sunday.

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

I am up for something but our at home scedule feels a lot more hecktic with dh being home ( so we have to reduce volume during his calls) and the coop classes now being online. I have to figer out how to have both girls in seperat spaces on zoom atthe same time. I am so thankful I only have two

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Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

There are no prizes so nothing to lose by doing what you can and what makes sense for your family. ;)

Hopefully something like this helps everyone as we all make adjustments in our routines.

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

Thanks for starting this up again. Great idea with so many of us being at home right now.

I'll do what I can but am waiting on DH to get back from the doctors as he is not well :nails and with working from home it could get quite hairy around here. But I'm trying not to panic until I know more.

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

Great idea! I know many people are very disappointed over things being canceleled and closed and I do sympathize with that. I am actually relieved that the last 2 weeks of our co-op are cancelled because I'm exhausted and constantly feel behind in househole management.

I'm not going to tally points because I'm going to have my own list, if that's okay!

Go through all my science supplies, organize, and put in garage.
Go through all the hand-me-downs in my closet that my 4 yo threw all over while playing dress-up. Take at least half to donation center.
Dust whole house, top to bottom. I'll do one room at a time.
Deep clean all bathrooms, one at a time (we have FOUR :sigh).
Eventually I need to go through all my gardneing stuff. It's too cold, though.

That's enough for my extras, for now. I rarely get behind in daily chores.

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

So y’all print this or something to keep track of points...? I wouldn’t mind participating but idk how to track points lol

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

Some people print and then come update points daily in a post like this:

Monday 650
Tuesday 1240
Wednesday 300
Thursday 575
etc.

you get the point.

Others (what I like to do) have one post they update the whole week. each day they put colored numbers behind the thing they did. So you copy paste the whole thing into a post, then use [ COLOR="Red"] 15 (or however many points) [ /COLOR] (without the spaces) after each line to put in how many point you got for that item that day. Each day is a different color. This will make more sense by the end of tomorrow when I've posted. :)

Short example:


I tend to do rainbow colors for the days of the week so you can see on Wednesday in this example I did not make my bed, since I don't have a yellow 20. You can use any color scheme you want or no colors whatsoever. No real rules here. :)

Hopefully that makes sense.

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

I’m in! My home really needs me to bless it. :shifty

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

Thank you for this Dersdgirl. I need to stop spending so much time on social media and tv following the Coronavirus updates. Now that I know I'm supposed to social distance and I've prepared to be home for weeks (if necessary). Yesterday meds were renewed, today dog food was purchased. I'm set for the long haul if necessary. I need to settle into a healthier routine and this challenge will help. :yes

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

I got halfway through my science supplies!

I bought magic erasers today in preparation.

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

My log this week:




Monday: Pretty low day today, wrapping up loose ends so we can really isolate ourselves. Had to run to the school today so not social isolating (even though it was just adults there and a couple of kids on a far off playground), but there is no reason to leave the house after today, so I'm ready to roll in the points! :shifty :roll

Monday: 415

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

375. I didn’t even do social distancing because I needed to go to the store. I did take ten minutes when dd4 was sleeping to talk to ds1, who was having a hard time.

I am actually going to count nursing as a big project every day, though, so we will call it 675.

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

Nursing an infant is most definitely a big project! :barbell2



For everyone:

There is no pressure here, just a place to focus on something other than the big elephant in everyones community. The specific challenges around that elephant are mostly because I don't feel like I'm "doing enough" to help. I want to be out and actively help people but can't. Reminding myself of the small things I can do at home that make a difference helps me. I hope it helps others.

I'm going to add to the "elephant section." I've thought of some other ways to try and remind ourselves of what we are doing (or can do) positively for our communities.

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

Don't know if it's a local policy, or more likely national, but Salvation Army isn't taking donations until the risk lowers. Probably the same for other organizations. I've got the same task on my list...about 5 small boxes ready to go, and a 6th started...it's one of the main things I'd planned for spring cleaning as everyone has grown and fewer hand-me downs possible. I think I'm going to have to just stack them neatly in storage, folded and sorted.

It's not a bad policy. My dad has a story from boot camp in the 50's. He was ordered to pack up the personal belongings (mostly clothes) of some other recruit as soon as he arrived. Wasn't told why, just clear out his bunk. A week or two later, he found himself next to that young man in the infirmary, having caught one of those common diseases...maybe measles? Anyhow, being stuck in the infirmary until his own recovery, he missed out on the possibility of being assigned to officer training with his cohort, and he was always horrified that my mom and I are willing to shop secondhand stores. Doesn't bother me figuring that most people wash before donating, and we wash before wearing, but it makes sense to halt during an outbreak this highly contagious.

Re: Home Blessing Challenge - COVID 19 Edition - Week 1
 

Changed sheets today, swept under beds.

I do laundry and dishes every day, I cannot imagine keeping track!

Yesterday I started tackling my science supplies and the office. Still more to go but I got a great start and that's half my battle.

---------- Post added at 07:51 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:50 PM ----------

Good to know. We only have Goodwill and the animal shelter. If they aren't taking any, I have room to store in the garage.