Creating a sense of home requires skills for nesting. Many of us likely agree that a clean home is a nice place to nest; although we may have different standards of “clean.” Knowing how to change sheets and launder linens, towels and clothing is important to your nesting skill-set. Taking care of vehicle maintenance includes several nesting skills for being safe on the road, and for getting us to and from home.
With nesting skills, we can create places we love to live and enjoy inviting others to visit. Without nesting skills, we may not feel at home. It’s never to late to learn a nesting skill. Consider the Netflix® episode in which Grace is teaching Frankie (in their 70s) how to fold a fitted sheet – never too old!
I know someone whose parents did not teach home-making skills such as cooking, laundry, and proper hygiene. It is unfortunate as it now affects other people at home and at work. I remember from my pre-teen and early teen years being taught to mow the lawn, bury the roses for winter, clean, dust, do laundry, iron (thank goodness most clothing no longer requires ironing – but I have the skills!), make beds, care for children, and so much more. Realizing that these skills are learned, I decided to support the child I’ve been raising with a Skills chart that works for home-making and serves as a job skills chart.
We began in 2014 and continue to add skills as they are mastered. The two columns show the Skills and the Date mastered. A Red Cross Babysitting class starts off the list and includes car maintenance, cleaning, money-management and more than 40 skills and skill-sets. To keep the listing activity fun, I recycled the remaining cardboard from a flipchart easel pad. Happily, the now-teen has mentioned this skills list to other adults with a sense of pride in herself! We all need nesting skills and are happy with ourselves when we can implement each of them well.
Consider your nesting skills. What would go onto your own nesting skills chart? Have you taught your children any of these skills? What can you teach them next?
Note: This Jana Kemp post first appeared online October 25, 2018.
Jana Kemp
