Friday—the 169th day of the year
June 18, 2010 by Stephanie · Leave a Comment
169
We just finished the first week of summer vacation, and I’m impressed with what we did. The kids had a playdate each day, and we have gone to the movies, the park, two softball practices, two dentist appointments (one was for me. I have a cavity. I knew that going in.), the county fair, the library, and had a lemonade stand. We also cleared out 5 bags of garbage and 2 bags for goodwill.
The girls spent all of Monday fighting, but by Wednesday seemed to remember how to play together and even un-earthed the Barbies. Those poor Barbies hadn’t seen the light of day for about 8 months.
Today:
plan weekend fun. Father’s Day is Sunday—all ready?
make concrete plans for the 4th of July so you aren’t scrambling
Chores. aka: but that’s why we had you!
June 17, 2010 by Stephanie · 18 Comments
But That’s Why We Had You!
Children make messes. It’s part of their job.
Before I had children of my own, I ran preschool centers for under-privileged children. Because I could get a room full of twenty-four kids to mind me and pick up after themselves, I thought that certainly my own flesh and blood would follow suit and tidy up without complaint.
I was dead wrong.
It takes daily effort to get my children to put their clothes, toys, school stuff, and random paraphernalia away. That’s just how it works. If I slack off, the kids slack off. If I put my dishes onto the counter because it’s “too much work” to open the dishwasher and stash it away, the kids do the same.
they’re awfully smart and crafty, those buggers…
That said, here is a general guideline of age-appropriate chores. Do not expect your kids to instantly adhere to a strict list of chores. Monitor closely and always show your child exactly how to perform any new tasks.
One to Two Years of Age
Babies and young children enjoy being “big helpers,” and can begin to participate in the following household chores with adult supervision, help, and guidance:
- sort laundry
- empty wastebaskets
- bring in the mail/newspaper
- match socks
- pull up bed clothes
- empty spoons and plasticware from the dishwasher caddy
- put toys away in appropriate containers
- “dust and clean” with a baby wipe
Three to Six Years of Age
Preschool-age children can continue to help with all of the chores listed above, along with the following added responsibilities:
- make their own beds
- load and unload the dishwasher with assistance
- help younger siblings clean up strewn toys
- feed and water pets
- pull weeds
- water plants
- use a whisk broom to clean up crumbs under the dinner table
- use a handheld vacuum cleaner to spot-clean, or to vacuum the stairs
- put away their own laundry
- set the table for meals
Seven to Ten Years of Age
School-age children are capable of fulfilling all of the tasks listed above, as well as these new additions:
- complete an entire load of wash
- help younger siblings put away laundry
- vacuum their own rooms
- maintain order in their bedrooms
– sweep the kitchen
- load and unload the dishwasher independently
- walk the dog
- clear the table after meals
Pre-teen through Teenage Years
Although teenagers would rather lie around and talk on the phone (or text, whatever) all day, they are fully able to help their parents out with most of the housekeeping duties, inside and out, including these new ones listed below:
- vacuum the house
- sweep the house
- clean the refrigerator
- wipe down the bathrooms
- wipe down the kitchen countertops
- help younger siblings as needed
- perform more strenuous work in the garden
This may seem like a lot (and it does to me, now that I see it all in writing!), but remember back in the “olden days,” children were expected to be productive members of the household. Whenever I start to feel “mean,” I think of The Long Winter and remember all that Laura and Mary did to help out. I also think of my friend Alison, who homeschools her nine children. Alison once told me that a parent’s job was to raise adults, not children. By the time children leave for college, they should be able to make a meal, sew on a button, do laundry, mow the lawn, and milk a goat.
Today, day 168:
revamp the chores if needbe
make sure father’s day is all set
Raising kids is part joy, part guerilla warfare. –Ed Asner
Want even more? Buy the book! Totally Together: Shortcuts to an Organized Life is available now. This handy-dandy weekly planner will hold your hand throughout the year and will give you all the reminders and helpful prods you need to have the Very Best Year, ever. No need to wait for the New Year to start your organization mission, you can start at any time. Enjoy!
it’s the middle of the week. woah.
June 16, 2010 by Stephanie · 2 Comments
167
Okay. I STILL haven’t written anything up about chores, and I hate that. It’s on my to-do list, I promise.
But just like every good to-do list, wants get shoved to another day in order to deal with needs.
I’ve spent the last few days putting out fires via email and then firefighting the sibling squabbles which occur each time I sit down to the computer.
Today:
speed dust, vacuum, and quick mop
super quick: have the kids PROM their dresser drawers (again? yes, again. you’ll be surprised at how often you need to do this!). Set a timer for 10 minutes, make a game out of it. be nice. 
I’ve noticed that one thing about parents is that no matter what stage your child is in, the parents who have older children always tell you the next stage is worse. –Dave Berry
day 166: Tuesday, run your errands
166
Good morning! I’ve had a few people ask about how to change the timing of the email feed, so it arrives bright and early in the morning instead of the afternoon. I don’t know how to do it! It’s annoying to me, too, and I’ve tried to search for an answer, but can’t seem to find it. Does anyone know how to change the feedburner settings? I set the post to auto-post at about 2am pacific…
We’re on day 2 of summer vacation, and day 1 started off and then ended well. The part in the middle? lots of bickering. lots of crankiness. lots of tears.
my fingers are crossed that we got through the angst and today will be much better.
I haven’t had the opportunity to write up the article I wanted to about chores—
Today:
remember to breathe deeply and be thankful that at least the kids listen to their teachers…
The truth is that parents are not really interested in justice. They just want quiet.–Bill Cosby
Monday, June 14: day 165
165
Happy Monday! I hope you had a wonderful weekend. Ours was fantastic—we had an All Stars softball tournament, and although my little All Star struck out each and every time, and seemed to forget how to field, it was wonderful to be outside and together cheering her on.
We talked a lot about character building the last few days.
There are so many things “they” never tell you when you’re sent home from the hospital with a baby! I’m beginning to think the first sleep-deprived year is actually the easiest!
School is out for my kids, and they’ll be home with me while I work from home. I’ve tried to limit my schedule, but I still have a quite a few freelance and book editing deadlines I’ve got to meet. I’m going to have to step up the chores for the kids over the summer. It’s time—the last time we had a chore discussion was a good six months ago, and they’re ready for some more challenging tasks.
I’m ready for them to have more challenging tasks!
I’ll report back with what we come up with.
Today:
revamp the chores
I’m not going to vacuum until Sears makes one you can ride on. ~Roseanne Barr
the first weekend of (our) summer vacation!
163 & 164
It is finally summer vacation in our house. It seems like our school was the last to get out for the year, and I’m thrilled that we’ve made it through the school year and can sleep in a bit.
The kids are spent. They need a vacation.
This weekend:
play outside
garden; do yard work if applicable
family meeting about chores. step it up a bit for the summer—if the kids are home with you, the house will get messier. Write out a chore schedule.
162–Friday, June 11
June 11, 2010 by Stephanie · Leave a Comment
162
I have a kindergarten graduate in the house! I plan to spend much of the day walking around in a daze wondering where the time has gone.
and make cookies
and brownies
and buy ice cream
Today:
gear up for the weekend—we’re spending the days (starting tonight) on the softball field, and I need to make sure we’ve got lots of somewhat-healthy snacks in the house so I don’t eat nothing but nachos (I’m a sucker for that jalapeno cheese stuff from a can) for three days.
count your blessings, and weekly reflection.
day 161, Thursday!
June 10, 2010 by Stephanie · Leave a Comment
161
Happy Thursday! The Office is in reruns now, right? I can’t remember. I took the day off yesterday from work, and spent the entire day on the floor with the baby. We watched 4 hours of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. Now I’m all caught up! 
I should really get some work done today.
Today:
clean off the tops of all the dressers in the house. Walk through with a garbage bag and dump all of the obvious garbage, and PROM the rest of the stuff. (my kids collect gum wrappers. seriously. I’m going to put them in an empty Altoids container I found as a surprise.)
Wednesday–the 160th day of the year
160
Happy Wednesday! Today we’re going to speed dust and vacuum, and make sure to bring out the furniture polish and shine up any wood that needs some extra love.
I had a lovely surprise yesterday when I read a review of my Make it Fast, Cook it Slow cookbook on Balancing Everything. If you’re not familiar with Jessica, you should be. Not only is she a fabulous mother of four, she owns her own business, does web design, homeschools, and is one of the most gifted writers on the whole entire Internet. I hope to meet her in person one day.
Today:
speed dust, vacuum, and wood polish (I like lemon oil, but mayonnaise or olive oil works in a pinch!)
Happy Tuesday–day 159
June 8, 2010 by Stephanie · 2 Comments
159
I hope your week started off well. There are primary and local elections today in many areas. Make sure to vote. It’s the last week of school, and things are beyond bonkers in our house.
Today:
meal plan if you haven’t done so already
run errands—make sure you’ve got teacher/graduation/father’s day/upcoming wedding gifts purchased or in the works
I’m going to be reading The Help, and will host an online discussion July 15 (it’s a thursday)
