Our kitchen floor - more than any surface in our house - is regularly stomped on, slid across, spilled on, and generally abused in every imaginable way. Yet, mop-averse mama that I am, I rarely pay any attention to it. Like, almost never. It's a sad state. (A certain friend of mine and loyal reader with hard-working German roots would be horrified.)
But we have - in theory - two small laborers who live rent-free upstairs and I decided it was time to give them the job of cleaning the floor. The last few weekends, I've set them up with soapy buckets and, per their request, played "It's a Hardknock Life" at a startlingly high volume, over and over. Then I leave them to it.
It's wild. They get sopping wet, they dance, they slide, they use every dishtowel and rag in the house, and it takes about an hour. Yesterday, things got so out of control at the end that I had to send them upstairs for a five minute time out, during which I hastily pulled out the mop, ran it over their uneven work, and hid it behind the fridge before calling them back downstairs. I didn't want to demoralize them.
Because despite their crazy approach to cleaning, they do take pride in their work. This year is our most scheduled yet with children, and in keeping with that, we have introduced regular chores in a more routinized way. It's a good thing, and they have taken to their new duties relatively well, but...for a sometimes lazy mama, it can be a daunting enterprise, this chore enforcement business.
Because let's face it, when overseeing a four and seven year old, one has to tolerate sloppiness, slowness, incompetence, and dilly-dallying taken to stunning heights. I believe in chores. I believe in shared family responsibility for the work of maintaining a home. I believe in the dignity of domestic endeavors! But lord, it can be tedious to impart these values.
So, can we get down to the nitty gritty? The challenge seems to be finding tasks that are realistically accomplish-able yet require some effort and will impart that real feeling of pride when done with care. I will tell you what our kids do. Then will you tell what your kids do, how you approach it, and if you ever go crazy in the process?
Right now, the kids take turns every morning putting away the silverware from the dishwasher (this works pretty well), set the table most nights, and help clear. Bed-making is nonexistent, but mostly because I can't figure out how to teach them to make their rather challenging beds (Gabriel's is a bunk bed with difficult tucks, and Frances's is a day bed with the same problem - metalwork on three sides. Advice welcome on this one.) On weekends they pick up their rooms (torture) and attempt the above-described floor cleaning.
Please weigh in! I can't be the only one of us interested in reading about the chores other kids are doing, and with what degree of success/family harmony. Our investments of time and energy at this age will - hopefully - pay off later. So...how is it working in your house?
5 comments:
Hilarious! I love the image of "Hard-Knock Life" playing while your kids scrub the floor.
I'm not doing so well at this, although I have managed to schedule my husband to do more chores lately! I can give advice on *that* one. Mainly we've been working on table manners lately, as Henry's have somehow gotten atrocious. He's pretty good about picking up his room, but Agatha is hopeless. I await nuggets of genius from your loyal readers!
I also loved the idea/image of floor washing & blasting the Annie soundtrack. Oh, how I LOVED those songs!!!
My kiddos are seemingly doing all the same chores as your kids. But, I too struggle with making them a daily, predictable part of our routine. More often I find myself saying "who will help mama with..." and then hear "nope, not me, no thanks."
So, I keep asking the boys, if you don't want to help with this, what would you be willing to help with? It always surprises me what they then offer to do on their own. And since they picked it, there is generally less grumbling. yay.
And here's a funny thing that happened recently. During the summer I gave Julian the chore of scrubbing the toilets b/c he had spit at his brother. In a moment of mama angst I tried to think of a chore that seemed as unpleasant as getting spit upon. Well, guess what- He LOVED scrubbing the toilets and now if I am doling out chores, he prectically begs to clean the bathrooms- turns out he likes spraying and wiping down the counters and sinks too! Wow....
so you just never know. And I say- keep the Annie playing! :))
We do picking up toys, and supposedly also table setting and clearing, though I am not as good as I want to be about consistency. I am comforted by the fact that my mother never had me do ANY chores, and it does not seem to have hurt my sense of responsibility... Perhaps I am fooling myself? It did lead to me never properly learning how to make a bed, which is therefore not something I can impart to my boys....
Mine is 10 and has to pick up after herself. She also is expected to put away her own laundry, which doesn't happen, but her father doesn't put his away either. I have extra laundry baskets he got to accomodate both of them in this and when they can't find something, it gives me the chance to tell them that if they would put their clothes away....
I have given up on her room - after all, it's her space. Occasionally I go in there, but more often than not, she convinces a friend to come 'help' her to clean it so that I don't have to.
I don't like to make beds. You're just going to mess it back up, so why bother? My daughter however, thinks it's 'fun', so she does tend to make hers, at least pull the covers up and straighten them almost daily.
At this age, when she points out the living room rug could stand to be vaccummed, I tend to assign her that task. As for the kitchen floor, years ago I had a black one with flecks of color (it looks like someone melted crayones on it) installed so that you can't see the dirt, you know to clean it when you start sticking. It's hard to clean, because well, you can't see where the dirt is. I get loads of compliments on it.
Amelia: yes please, as long as Michael doesn't mind (or won't read this), tell about scheduling husband-chores!
Christen: Does Julian wear gloves? I am imagining a disturbingly icky scene involving Gabriel and a toilet...but maybe when he's older the appeal will be less crazy bathroom humor and more about shiny surfaces...? (Also love the idea of asking, rather than telling, what they'd like to help with, thanks!)
Milena: making beds is overrated.
Becky: Thank you for weighing in from the land of older children! It is hard for me to imagine the kids having any investment in the state of the house, but I am sure the day will come when they notice that they are sticking to the floor and it actually bothers them. (Ours is dark-colored too, a blessing!)
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