Preparing for the Lord's Day

Here is a list of things that I do during the week in preparation for the LORD's Day:

1. Wash dark church clothes with tights (my girls wear tights in the wintertime, and socks for summer), put away one pair of tights for each of my girls..
2. Gather church shoes & put in a special place.
3. Wash whites with socks & put away one pair for each of my boys.
4. Pack diaper bag & make wet wipes if necessary. I try to pack the diaper bag with the following items: change of clothes for baby, change of clothes for the one who's potty training, diapers, 2 pull-ups, wet wipes, books for baby, snack for baby, 3 drink cups if fellowship Sunday, water & snack for mom for low blood sugar (if pregnant), allergy medicine for child w/milk allergy if fellowship Sunday, bags for stinky diapers, diaper rash cream, mini baby powder, towel & receiving blanket (if nursing).
   
5. Press dresses, shirts, and pants to make ready for Sunday.
6. On the first & third Sundays we have fellowship meals, therefore one hot dish & one cold dish or dessert needs to be made (I generally make something that my daughter with the milk allergy can eat). Usually this is done on Saturday & the hot dish is put in the crockpot.
7. Gather Bibles, pens, sharpened pencils, & notebooks; put these items in Dad's briefcase.
8. Saturday evenings ALL the children get showers or baths.
9. Sunday mornings, after I have dressed, I fix the girls hair, & get them dressed after breakfast, which is usually cold cereal. The boys get themselves dressed and when we are ready to go, they help the little girls with their coats and get them in the van.
10. I try to take a shower or bath during the day on Saturday so my hair can dry naturally.

The goal is not only to get to church on time, but to have a peaceful morning getting ready as well. When we are well prepared, our LORD's Day morning is much more relaxed and goes more smoothly.