How To Create Simplicity and a Nurturing Home Environment

Have you been feeling as though everything has been chaotic in your household and family life?  You are not alone, and these are challenging times.  We are all yearning to create simplicity and a nurturing environment for our families, as best we can.

The question is, what is a nurturing environment?  This will be different for every family, but some key tips that can be incorporated by almost everyone will be discussed in this post.  The term denotes care and love for a growing human being, and creating an environment that supports that. Your whole family can benefit from such an environment.

When it comes to parenting, it’s becoming clear that for humans at least, most of parenting is a learned behavior. Since it is something that you learn, you can also unlearn bad habits and create new, better habits.  As the saying goes, babies don’t come with instruction manuals!

Get Organized in Your Efforts Toward Simplicity for Your Family

Creating systems can go far in avoiding chaos in childhood. This is not to say you should become so rigid and tied to a calendar that you go the other way, but there is something to be said about a good family calendar to keeping order in the household.

Create simplicity by making plans in advance.

Whether it’s work or pleasure, planning is the key to success. Write down all plans with specific goals for the best results.

When everyone knows what the goals are, and when the steps to attain family goals are made clear, the journey won’t seem as daunting.

Create an easily accessible family calendar.

When a plan is concrete, add it to the family calendar in order to set it in stone. Have the calendar placed where everyone can see it, and make notes to it.

We have a large magnetic calendar on our fridge, and we buy fun stickers so that the kids can add them to the calendar when a task or a day is complete. They love it!

Simplify housework by making a family chore list – and rotate it.

Almost all children and family members are capable of helping with family chores. Taking care of the home is the domain of all who share the space, not just one or two people. Do some research on age-appropriate chores, and try to get everyone involved.

Once a rhythm is created, it becomes routine. Everyone feels better when they have responsibilities, and know what is expected of them.

Get everyone involved in the meal planning, and simplify family meals.

Nothing helps children and grownups alike to feel nurtured quite like a healthy meal on the table! If you are particularly busy in the evenings, cook ahead, and rethink what constitutes a dinner.

We do lots of slow cooker meals in the winter, and simplify this process even further by making slow cooker freezer meals in advance. In the summer, try some salad wraps and a bowl of fruit.  Food like wraps and tacos are great for getting everyone involved, and complaints are at a minimum as everyone can choose their own ingredients.

Go through items seasonally and clear out what you no longer need.

It is amazing how quickly things can accumulate in the home, isn’t it?  The more time that passes without going through things and getting rid of what we no longer need, the more of an undertaking it becomes.

I find that I have to go through the whole house room by room, and make a solid commitment to myself to give away anything we have not used in a year.

Keep everything in its place.

Storage is essential to keeping a house peaceful and calm. As mentioned above, the more clutter that is about, the more chaotic everything will seem, even if the attitudes are right. Simplify by ensuring everything has a ‘home’, so that everyone knows where things go.

Keep your expectations realistic.

Understand child development so that you can set the right expectations. For example, if you work until 7pm, make sure everyone know not to expect a four-course meal on the table on weeknights.

Get everyone involved in coming up with ideas on how to make dinner work for everyone on late nights.

Don’t overextend the kids.

One or two after school activities is enough for any child and any family. Plus, more activities just don’t add to anyone’s quality of life as much as game night with Mom and Dad or dinner at the table as often as possible.

Outsource where reasonable.

Some people scoff at this idea, especially when it comes to domestic chores. After all, you want your children to learn the basics of what it takes to run a household. But if you still find that you can never quite catch up, there is no reason why you can’t outsource some of it and still teach children what to do.

Repurpose, reuse, recycle and upcycle!

Teaching children respect for their own environment, the natural environment and the environment of others will go far in cutting down on ‘entitlement syndrome’. Plus, it can be fun to figure out what to do with that old rusted table.

Automate where possible.

Most of us have our bills automated these days. Whether it’s paying bills, or a set time and date for your hair appointment, set up an automated system where possible. Automate as many things as you can reasonably do in order to take some stress off of your mental plate. For example, set up appointments with your massage therapist in advance. Just like the dentist.

Once you have cleared and organized, it’s time to begin creating a nurturing home environment for the whole family.

Don’t let your zeal for organization ruin family game night by setting the clock too tightly, but do ensure that you schedule in family fun, work, and private time too. Being a more organized family will cut down on the daily chaotic environment and make life a lot more peaceful at home.

Create a nurturing space in your home, on your porch, or in your yard (or all three!).

The size does not really matter; the important thing is to make a space that is comfortable and peaceful.  Once you have established such a space (or spaces), the following tips will be easier to implement.

Meet the physical needs of yourself and your family.

Children have a need to move, and not meeting that need can result in difficult, hyper behavior.  Adults need exercise too, of course.  Spend time exercising together, preferably outdoors, whether it’s biking, gardening, or yard work.

Make use of simple objects, and that which you have on hand, to create a fun and playful haven that will be enjoyed by you and your children. Choose an activity that involves everyone to promote communication (essential to a nurturing environment).

Meet your family’s nutritional needs and your own.

Good nutrition is essential in the development of healthy, happy children and families.  Focus on eating and preparing whole, organic foods as much as possible, and let the whole family participate in the food preparation.

If possible, it is incredibly rewarding in every way to grow your own food and let the whole family help with the process!

Let nature, nurture.

It is such a simple concept that we all comprehend well, but it can be difficult to keep up with in our age of technological advancements and gadgets.  Children love to be outside.

Promote a nurturing environment by getting out, even if you have to travel to a park or state forest.  If you have a nurturing space outside or on your porch, go there often.

Listen.  Children who feel heard are children who feel nurtured.

Remember that children’s behavior is often communication – it means something.  Try to “hear” what your child is saying with his or her behavior, and get to the root of the problem.

For example, a “disobedient” child who keeps jumping on the couch after you have told him not to may have a need to bounce around and move.

You don’t need to bend on your rule – no jumping on the couch is no jumping on the couch – but find an alternative (trampoline? jump rope?) and nurture your child’s need.

Eat together as a family.

Gather around the table, and try to avoid the television at dinner time.  This is a wonderful opportunity for everyone to connect and compare notes about their day.

Read together, including doing some reading in your nurturing space.

Talk about the book, look at your surroundings, and take in the nurturing environment.  For more tips and ideas on how to bring books back into your life (and into your family life), check out my post on how to let go of electronics and fall in love with books again.