Around the time my eldest daughter became mobile, I decided it was much easier to do the household chores when she was sleeping.
I mean, have you ever tried to complete any household chore with a mobile baby or toddler around? As the saying goes, its “like brushing your teeth while eating oreos” or “it’s like raking leaves during a hurricane.”
In other words, it felt like I was accomplishing NOTHING.
In order to make my life “easier”, I started doing the dishes, the laundry, the sweeping and mopping, the dusting and the bathroom cleaning all while my children were sleeping.
And then one day it hit me. No, I should not be doing all this while they are sleeping. Instead, I should be doing the basic household chores while they are awake. And not only that, but they should be doing the household chores WITH me.
My first reason for this is completely selfish: I love naptime. Can I get an amen? Naptime and bedtime in our household are when Mommy has “me time”. I read a book, I blog, I watch an episode on Netflix and I eat a pack of M&Ms without any grubby fingers getting involved. I found that when I took the time during naptime to recharge my own batteries, I was much more effective when my children were awake.
Secondly, I want to teach my children from a young age that Moms do work. I am not only a babysitter or a nanny, I am also a cook, a maid, a teacher and a wife. I want my children to know that while they are my #1 priority, I also have lots of other tasks to balance. I want them to know that as a stay at home Mom, I do have work to do and tasks to fulfill.
Thirdly, I want to teach my kids how to do these chores. I want them to be able to do the dishes and wash their own laundry and clean their own bathroom. Not just so I don’t have to scrub the toilets, but so that they are prepared to be adults with tasks and responsibilities.
Is it easy getting chores done WITH my toddle helping? No. Does it take twice as long to throw all the laundry in the washing machine? Yes. Do I cringe when she wants to help me hold the toilet brush? Yes. Does the floor actually get swept when she is wielding her own broom? Not likely. But is all that worth it in the end? Yes, absolutely.
What about you? Do you do your household chores with or without your kids?
I love this!! My little one LOVES helping out and I always try to make it fun!
I love my “Me Time”, too!! Lol! I have two teens, so they are able to do house chores independently. I am glad you mentioned teaching young children to do chores. I recently started having my 3 year old help one of my big kids with chores. I give her two small tasks to complete. She always feels so proud and happy to help. I agree with you– it’s important to teach children even from a young age how to do house chores.
Love this post! I laughed out loud at that picture about cleaning with your toddler – SO true! I feel bad cleaning when she’s awake sometimes so it’s awesome to hear other mamas are doing the same.
Love these ideas! I do a lot of this with my boys and I think it’s so good for them! Even my one year old loves clearing the table after meals
Love this! My oldest always wants to help and I’m more than happy to let him.
I couldn’t agree more with you! I grew up doing chores and I plan to do it early with my kids! My two year old and my one year old can’t do much, but I still put my two year old on “small chores”!!
I so agree with all of this!! My little one who just turned 2 in May helps me all the time. It doesn’t get done quick of always right, but she loves helping and I’m reaching her how important it is.
We try to include our 3 year old as much as we can! He loves to help with laundry, vacuuming, dishes & I couldn’t agree more on the reasons why we should do this. Great post!
We all have our designated chores.. Jayden is old enough to do it on his own and he gets and allowance 🙂
Love this!! It’s a great way to get them participating in household maintenance and you’re instilling that so early!
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