Sarah found a new game to play, and it’s based on the children’s TV show “Big Comfy Couch”. She pulls all of the books/toys/videos from their shelves and says, “Who made this mess? ME?! I better clean it up…it’s only fair!” Cute…I know. But there’s a glitch. When she cleans it up, instead of putting all of this stuff where it belongs, she sticks it behind a chair in the family room. It was adorable the first time…after about 20 times it’s becoming a lot of work - for me.
That brings me to my major annoyance this week. No matter how hard I work, nothing ever seems to be done. When I was working in the nursing world, I had tasks to do that could actually be completed. I would dress a wound, chart, report any problems, and then I would be done…on to the next task. Even if that task was, say, an enema or a catheter, I would be happy to help. Mainly because I was getting paid, people were appreciative (for the most part), and I wouldn’t have to do it over and over again.
Since I’ve been staying home with my kids, I’ve been really missing the feeling I get when I complete a task. I just don’t get the same sense of satisfaction when I finish a load of laundry, because there are usually a few loads waiting for me. When I’m cleaning the bathroom upstairs, chances are good that someone is peeing on the floor in the other bathroom. And, as I’m washing the floor in the front hall, I can be sure that one of the kids is walking through the back door with muddy boots…or God forbid they step in something much nastier.
I hope as the kids get older, keeping the house clean will get easier. By then they’ll be able to pitch in. Maybe I’ll have a chore chart stuck on my fridge, and they’ll all follow it religiously. I’ll be careful not to give indoor tasks to the girls and outdoor tasks to Ryan. (I hate it when people assume that girls should be doing the dishes and boys cutting the grass.) They’ll do their own laundry, and actually put it away. They’ll always hang up their coat in the closet and put their boots on the tray. Before going to bed every night they’ll make sure their room is tidy, and before they leave in the morning their bed will always be made.
If I really want them to do this, I should probably try doing it myself, first.
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God, I'm really feeling for you. And I hate to tell you this, but I still think it's really cute when Sarah does this.
ReplyDeleteI also hate to tell you that they don't nessecarily get better...and that chore charts are an urban myth some stupid mom somewhere made up to make us feel bad. I'm blaming Supernanny.