Getting into a Routine

It has been almost 2 weeks since my last post, I know I'm a slacker, but I have been trying to get organized.  Each school year causes change with trying to get into a routine to include homework, chores, bedtimes...the whole enchilada.  Each year is different because with it comes new teachers with different ways of doing things.  For example last year my son's homework was due every Friday, this year a BIG packet of homework is sent home at the 1st of the month and due at end of the month.  So I have been trying to find a way get into a good routine so we can accomplish everything and I found a great help from Abby at A Feathered Nest.  She has Job Jars for chores with pom poms, or puffys as she calls them, that can be earned and then cashed in for rewards.
So I took her idea and made it work for own family, which meant expanding it into daily, weekly and "as needed" chores that were appropriate for different age levels.  I took her idea of "other" ways to earn different colored puffys as Abby calls them (we adopted her terminology).  Different chores earn different colored puffys which can be collected to cash in for different rewards according to the color.  Does that make sense?  If not click on the image to get a up-close look at our Puffy Job Chart and it might make more sense.
Once I made up the chart I put it into a sheet protector, cut off the holes on the side and stick some magnets on the back so I could put it on our fridge.
Each child gets a jar (mason) to collect their puffys and then one big "bank" jar, that I bought at our local Wal*mart to keep all of those puffys to be earned.  I bought two 100 count packages of multicolored pom poms but am finding I need another package to have enough. I also found that I had to keep all jars on top of the fridge so as not to have little colored balls all over my house and to keep children from fighting over who's was who's.
I also needed help setting up a weekday routine but found so many ideas out there that I was almost overwhelmed with them all so... I took a little inspiration from about 20 different blogs and came up with an idea of my own.  A visual reminder of what our routine is, also posted on my fridge the same way as the puffy job chart.  It has helped to keep my kids on task and the pictures are a nice help for my kindergartner who is just learning to read.
The last thing that I needed was a way to discipline, without taking away rewards earned.  I've tried that...doesn't work and ends up backfiring on you.  After lots of thought and searching again I came up with my own idea.
My kids LOVE baseball and understand the concept of 3 strikes = your out.  So I applied that concept to a new discipline plan.  I will ask nicely once, ask again more firmly and finely they get a "strike", in the form of a special magnet on a very simple chart.  Once they get 3 strikes in one day, they get grounded to the house for one day, with no TV, video games or computer of any kind.  With this I've also added the option on their rewards chart of cashing in 20 puffys to earn a free pass, which let's them become un-grounded for one day, but they have to do A LOT of chores to earn enough for that.  At the end of each day the slate is wiped clean and we start anew.

My Fridge

So far, so good.  It has just taken a couple of weeks to implement, but of course we continue to adjust as needed for those things that don't work out.  Luckily I made room for those little adjustment under my "other ideas" list, for example they can earn puffy's under "doing the right thing" when they do something kind for someone else.  We will continue to learn and grow and I'm sure that future tweaks will be needed.  For now my kids know what is expected of them, the consequences of making wrong choices and how to redeem themselves.    I love when I can put in little hidden lessons that they don't know they are learning, and let me tell you, this has saved me so many days of stress/frustration from fighting with my kids.
Good luck with your own journey of trying to figure out what works best for your family and I hope that this gives you some inspiration.