Them's the Rules: Part I (7 Quick Takes)

Remember way back when I wrote that post on Living the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy in the Home (with Frankie)? Well, it just happens to mention one of our Family Rules: Don't take your pants off without a plan. In the comments of that post, Annie asked if I would make it into a printable. Maybe . . . PROBABLY, she was joking. But I was thirty-nine weeks pregnant, so . . . I spent the entire next day making that rule and ALL of our house rules into printables. My nesting is kinda graphic design-y, I guess. And I kind of really, really love them. But I keep not being able to figure out what to do with them, blog-wise. That ends today. Today, I'm just going to throw seven of them up here, and call it my quick takes. And there are more where these came from. Many more. You'll just never know when I'm gonna drop 'em on ya. 1. What are YOU doing to help our family? So, some of them aren't "rules" so much as "things I say all day long." Take this one for example. You're probably going to hear this if you are, say, standing leaning against the counter while other folks are doing the dishes, or laying on the couch staring at the ceiling for no particular reason. 2. No whinin,' no cryin,' no beggin,' for food, and you carry your own coat. This is the rule that begat ALL the rules. My mother-in-law said this to her kids. And she says it to mine. And I say it to them too, if they ever have coats, which is almost never. 3. Cryin' Babies Go to Bed You guys already know this one. It has a whole blog post. 4. Whistling is an Outside Activity This one isn't the end of the world. But, we just find that the comfort of our home and the productivity of its occupants is increased by there not being ANY whistling inside the house. They can go outside and whistle all they please. I think it's okay to insist upon a certain level of volume inside. 5. Don't Rush Off to do a Job I Gave to Someone Else Kids don't love getting assigned chores, right? Right. But, somehow, they DO love to rush off to do something I asked someone ELSE to do. Why? WHY? I don't know. But having this rule keeps my kids from pushing, tripping, and elbowing past one another in their rush to do someone else's job. They're such weirdos. 6. Sit in a Seat That Someone Isn't Sitting In Another one that seems like it shouldn't be necessary, yes? But it really, really is. There are enough seats on our couch for everyone to sit and watch a movie. There are enough chairs at our table for everyone to sit and eat dinner. But nothing looks better than a seat momentarily vacated by a sibling going to grab a drink. And maybe you've been bickering with that particular sibling all day, but NOW if you don't get to sit next to him by squeezing into a spot that means you're mostly sitting on top of your sister, you'll JUST DIE. But then . . . so much unhappiness. So we have this rule. 7. Don't Take Your Pants Off Without a Plan And here it is . . . the rule that launched a couple dozen printables. I think it's good advice for kids and grownups alike, ya know? We were getting a lot of: 1. Take pants off. 2. Realize you don't have any pajamas in your drawer. 3. Kinda pull shirt down, come out to the living room where we have company over to alert mom to the pajama situation. But NOW, we have a rule. Acceptable plans around here include: "1. Take off pants. 2. Get in bathtub," "1. Take off pants. 2. Put on pajamas (that are RIGHT THERE)," and "1. Take off pants. 2. Use as floatation device." But that last one only works if you happen to be wearing sailor pants. AND . . . the winner of the back to school giveaway of a copy of