"Insanity is hereditary. You can get it form your children" -Sam Levenson
Many women find the effort spent in trying to motivate a family to do their part of the household chores is often more energy-draining and tiring than doing them ourselves. It is a major cleaning problem in most women's lives, and the only way it can be handled is with psychological muscles.
Oh how we wished that there really was a little man who rowed around in the toilet tank. We would instruct him to scream at the little ones as they were leaving the bathroom, "Don't forget to flush!" That giant sized, bald headed jinni in the liquid cleaner commercials could have come in handy to to pop in every morning and intimidate the kids into making their beds. But most of all, think of having a ssparkling knight on a white charger always trotting down the street to remind your husband that if you stumble over those cast iron work boots in the front room one more time, there is an alternative (Of course, it would be worse to run off with the knight. Can you imagine polishing that gold plated armor, everyday, scrubbing down a mangy horse, and bleaching his mud splattered doublet and hose: The grass isn't always greener on the other side, especially if horse droppings are doing the fertilizing.)
"Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing, is like shoveling the walk before it stops snowing"- Phyllis Diller
Like so many other mothers, I peeked in at my sleeping children at nap time and thought how peaceful and angelic they looked while they slept. I had to run over to the neighbors to return a borrowed item, so I quietly slipped out of the house for a few moments. When I returned there was a layer of extra small Styrofoam balls cover the family room. I ran in a panic. The little balls were stuck to every everything and you couldn't even wipe them off because of the static electricity.
As I was tryings to stay calm I said "What are you doing?"
The boys answered we just wanted it to snow.
Come to find out what those little balls were our of was a neck pillow that they cut open.
Instead of screaming and yelling at the boys I was furious at this point because I spent all day cleaning house, I call my poor husband at work. He answered and before he could say anything, I said I am going to yell at you but you didn't do anything wrong, it is best I take it out on your instead of beating your kids. After I talked to him I calmed down and dealt with the kids. It took me a good 2 hours to clean it up. This was about 2 years ago and I am still finding those little balls when we move the couches and stuff they just fall out. Now that I look back on it, I wish that I had allowed myself a little chuckle. Cursing or laughing, I still had to clean it up.
I have not found anyway to prevent children from having those "creative accidents," but I learned one thing that made me feel better about them. Almost every cleaning disaster is humorous after a little time passes.
"Before I got married I had six theories about bringing up children; now I have six children and no theories" -Lord Rochester (1647-1680)
The messes that our children make are not the only challenge for a parent. I hope it is an obvious fact that children need to learn how to work when they are very young. It not only takes some of the burden from the household chores, but it makes children feel needed and important. If a child is having trouble in school, on of the first things a wise teacher or psychologist will ask is, "Do you give him/her responsibilities at home?"
"The person hardest to convince they're at the retirement are are children at bedtime." Shannon Fife
David O. McKay once said, "Let us realize that the privilege to work is a gift, that power to work is a blessing, that love of work is success" Children need this gift to be successful and happy. Parents can help them obtain it by whistling, singing, and smiling when they are doing their own work; inventing little games and rewards for their children on work day, and giving each child a job that he or she can accomplish with pride.
Some parents keep a job chart. One of my friend's daughters has a job dart board. The children throw the darts and whatever chore it hits is theirs for the day. Another friend has a candy store in her bedroom. Each chore is worth a certain number of points. When her children have finished their work, they can use their points to go shopping in the candy store.
Rewards and games are fun, but remember that work has its own built in prizes as well. Straightening Mom and Dad's shoes teaches a child to find pairs. Helping sort out the dirty laundry is a good time to learn colors. While setting the table, a child learns to count. Folding towels help exercise fine hand coordination, and vacuuming and sweeping builds up large motor coordination. Children take pride in these skills as well as in their work.
"By the time the youngest children have learned to keep the place tidy, the oldest grandchildren are on hand to tear it to pieces again." Christopher Morley
There are always favorite chores and chores that children consider nasty. Most children love to dust or to spray windows and mirrors and wipe fingerprints away. These tasks hold a kind of magic for children of the "now you see it, now you don't" variety. Cleaning the bedroom, however, seems to be the most tedious and hated job for any child. Clothes never land in the hamper if it has a lid. Try using a new tall round garbage pail for dirty clothes. Make a game of throwing the clothes like a basketball or football into the target. If you or your husband are handy, you could even install a hoop above the hamper. Both boys and girls really go for this.
"Bachelors' wives and old maids' children are always perfect." S.R.N. Chamfort
Beds should be as simple as possible to make. The fancy, frilly coverlet is really not all that necessary at first. In the summer, a single sheet has to be pulled over the pillow is quite sufficient. In winter an added quilt isn't too difficult even for a preschooler to manage. At first, it may not look as good as you would like it to, but remember that a child is proud of any little accomplishment. Don't shatter their world by doing it over for them or by being critical of their efforts.
With luck, you can get your children motivated by work charts, games, and humor. When these things do not move them, however, I still believe that at times a child to be raised "from the bottom up."
"To bring a child up in the way he should go, travel that way yourself once in a while." Josh Billings
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