Daily Rhythm

Lately I have really been trying to figure out what my family's rhythm is. What we doing daily, weekly, monthly, and trying to do less. Less structured activities, less running around, and spending more time wisely doing what we really want to be doing. I have (for a while now) felt that so many of the items we use daily to make life easier actually cause more hassles and take just as much time. Say, the dishwasher for example, how much time do we actually save by having a machine do our dishes? We have to maintain the machine, and when my family had a dishwasher there were always dishes in the sink waiting to be put in the dishwasher. Then there were the discussions with my husband about a lid melting in the dishwasher, so we should not put ____ in the dishwasher any longer. Not to mention the dirty dishes that came out after the dishwasher was ran. We have since given up using a dishwasher (our new house doesn't even have one). At first I was annoyed that I had to use my valuable time to wash dishes, but honestly I rather enjoy slowing down a bit and having my daughter "help momma" or just stand on her step stool and watch.
How many other items in our home our actually making our lives more of a hassle? The washing machine? I am not saying this method is for everyone, but I do like how I now actually think about what I am doing, why I am doing it, and the cost-benefit analysis.

Some great inspiration for daily rhythms is the site www.rhythymofthehome.com. They have simple crafts to do with your family, recipes, celebrations, and all of these are under the theme of the season. They have just updated it to the spring season. It is a Waldorf-inspired site (it's a style of education).