As we are gearing up for starting school in the next few months, I realize I need to get the rest of our home running smoothly so I can focus on schooling the little people. With all the interruptions I suffer through in a day, it will take some organization to actually finish a thought, much less complete a lesson. I also know that I need to get the Gang trained to help me. The twins are capable of Great Work now, but they still require supervision. So I’ve made it my goal for the next few months to get into good cleaning habits in the house and to train the Little People to help me.
First, I had to prioritize. I have five children. Little children. Realistically, my home will never sparkle. I made a list of the necessary chores to keep our house functional and tidy, not necessarily pristine and hypo-allergenic. I divided the chores up by those that I could teach the kids to do and ones that required ME. Finally, I made a schedule for the Roomba and Scooba so I could put them to good use. The schedule I made allows us to have cleaned all the important areas in the house by Friday so that we’re ready to enjoy the weekend.
The first week was the hardest. It involved Every Ounce Of Energy I Had to train the children in what was expected of them. I had to show them the new ropes, supervise their work, and then check for completion. The only way to get through it was to tell myself it was just temporary. The training was tough, but it was worth it the first time I told the twins to vacuum Mommy’s rugs and they did it all by themselves. Seriously! They only needed my help to wrap the cord up on the vacuum cleaner when they were done. I nearly wept with joy. (I’m keeping the Roomba busy upstairs on the carpet, so I’ve given the twins the job of keeping the two downstairs rugs clean.)
I’ve always read that when you have preschoolers, the best thing to do is to keep them close by and include them in any activity or housework that you are doing. I agree with this, in principle. If I just have Ellen and even Adam with me, cleaning a bathroom results in what I call Insanity - Lite. But if I have the twins with me too, we sort of explode into a ball of cleaning spray, paper towels, and tears (always mine).
But since telling my kids to “Just go play” is like saying “Mommy needs to clean a small, confined space. Go play just out of ear-shot so she can’t hear you when you start burning the house down,” I have had to find a way to keep the gang with me. (On occasion, I can send them off to play, but since I can’t go to the bathroom without them peeing in the yard, I’m pretty sure this isn’t something to make a habit of.) And I think I’ve finally hit upon a decent solution: Every child gets their own “help Mommy stuff.”
The children now have a cleaning supply carrier.
Or, as I like to call it in my head, The Magic Bucket. The bucket holds a rag for each child (clearly marked with their initials, so there is no confusion). There’s also a grout brush for each boy (also labeled) and a duster for each boy. (I didn’t buy a duster for Ellen and I have paid dearly for this mistake. It’s on my list to be purchased, trust me.) The box also holds a few sprayers of non-toxic cleaners. Oh, and one sprayer only has water in it. That’s Ellen’s special bottle.
In the morning after breakfast, each boy must wipe down his place at the table. They get two sprays from the bottle and they use their rag to clean their spot. (Whoever sits next to Ellen must also clean her place.) On the days that we dust, the kids follow me around with their dusters and “help me.” I do the high stuff and I point and direct to the stuff they can reach. It’s not perfect, but it sure beats the alternative which was dusting… never.
I’ve trained the twins how to vacuum the rugs and how to vacuum the stairs. Like I said, this sort of victory makes me weep with joy. And Andrew taught them how to gather trash from every room, so my trash cans no longer look like Mt. Vesuvius on any given day.
And then there’s the bathroom cleaning. I have managed to sneak away to clean the smaller bathrooms on my own or only with Adam and Ellen, but for the master bathroom, it’s All Hands On Deck. I put Ellen in the tub with a rag and her water bottle.
Then, I sprinkle a whole bunch of baking soda in the bottom of my shower and set the boys lose with their scrubbers. Baking soda is a mild abrasive, plus it kills odors, AND it won’t burn my kids’ fingers off or mutate them in any way. Bonus! The fellas clean my shower while I wipe down counters and scrub the toilet.
No, they don’t do it perfect. But every week I give them pointers on how to improve, how to be just a bit better. Mostly, however, I remind them that I appreciate their diligence in doing their jobs well and how honoring it is that they are helping Mommy. Since there’s no squabbling over brushes, wet baking soda is fun to play in, and they genuinely still want to help at this age, this plan is working for me. And my bathroom may not get totally clean, but I figure a mediocre cleaning every week sure beats a total cleansing… bi-annually.
I’m still tweaking and modifying things as I go, but I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made. Everything feels like it’s running smoother and I’m not quite as intimidated about fitting in time for school. I am counting on chaos. I’m counting on interruptions. But I’m also counting on our routine and The Magic Bucket to get us back on track without too much drama.
By the way, as an extra bonus, after the kids finish scrubbing the shower, I cut them lose to clean up. Then I turn the water on warm and rinse everything down. Since our shower is big enough that I can stay dry even if I’m in it, I roll up my pants and climb in to wipe everything off. I get the weird sensation of warm baking soda between my toes which is not unlike the feeling of walking on the beach at the edge of the ocean with my feet in the sand.
Hey, I gotta take my moments where I can get them, people, even if it does sound creepy when I type it out in complete sentences.
Oh, and when the kids track baking soda all over my bedroom? No big whoop. We’ll just vacuum it up and call it “odor treatment.” If I can call rinsing my shower a “trip to the beach,” I can redefine anything!
5.20.2009
Thanks for this reminder of how much they are capable of doing. I recently started having my children put away their own laundry as I fold it. It is a big help. I would love to hear more things that you are doing to help you prepare for next year.
5.21.2009
When I was pregnant with my 3rd and the older two were under 3, I had an anxiety attack of life. The fruitful result was a similar tasking/training plan to keep the house from being condemned and me from being insane.
Years later I’ve got a 12, 11, and 8 year old that can whip this house into shape better than the Merry Maids. I’m still weeping for joy myself.
March on, friend. The Magic Bucket is a pot of gold.
5.21.2009
This is fabulous! My son finishes kindergarten tomorrow (sob) and having three kids home with me all summer long is undoubtedly going to create new cleaning challenges. I’m curious about the vacuuming– do you have a small vacuum or just very strong kids?
I think I’m foreseeing a cleaning bucket in my boys’ future. I love how your kids clean the shower– what a great idea.
My kids also love cleaning windows because of the squeaky sound their rags make. They don’t do a beautiful job, but as you said, it’s better than never!
5.21.2009
April - I have a Kids’ closet so my kids can put away their own laundry, too. And, oh, irony, I called this post “The Magic Closet.” http://www.vitafamiliae.com/?p=631
We’ve also been working on some character issues that I want to get in hand before we start school. I have the “Brother Offended” chart from Doorposts and we’re memorizing all the steps on that so they can handle conflict better on their own.
http://www.doorposts.com/details.aspx?id=5
5.21.2009
Erin - It’s a big Hoover, but it’s self-propelled. My boys are pretty small but they manage it okay. Usually one of them pushes and Adam (who is 3) holds the cord up and out of their way.
5.21.2009
LOL the shower squeegee is a big hit at our house.
5.21.2009
You are Pure D Genius.
5.21.2009
I love your ideas on how to involve the kids, especially the shower cleaning. Thanks for sharing.
5.21.2009
I always knew you were really really smart but I think you’ve moved up to the brilliant category! You really are laying such a good foundation for your munchkins. I’m sure it will pay off in so many ways in the years to come. Oh and can they come to my house to help me clean?
5.21.2009
I’m very impressed. I love the idea of the magic bucket and may borrow that one for the summer. I have to admit that I’m guilty of getting frustrated with trying to teach them how to help so I give up. Thanks for the tips!
5.21.2009
These are awesome ideas, and I think my kids would love to have a magic bucket!
5.22.2009
I love these ideas! I have three under five, and my bathroom has reached a state of scariness I don’t even want to contemplate. In my defense I’ll say, we’ve been renovating for the last three weeks, and I was gone for ten days before that (not that my husband is to blame for the dirt in the bathroom). But still. I could give them scrubbing brushes, and let them deal with the soap scum. Excellent!
5.22.2009
Wow, you are amazing! I love popping on your blog! I totally expect you to write a parenting book any day now! I would buy it!
I really need more help around here with cleaning and maintaining our home but, I tend to think they are too little (5,2, and 6 weeks). Thanks for the inspiration! Could you post a schedule for what you clean each day so I can get an idea of what my kids could handle? Do you limit to one chore a day or just a certain amount of time? I think this would be awesome. The only thing holding me back would be the “training period” but, I guess it is just like potty training. You stick with it for a very long and messy week and then you get HUGE payoff of not changing diapers, not buying diapers plus the child’s self esteem soars because they are so proud of their new accomplishment! Hope you do a part two off this post…I need more cleaning details!
No pressure though…I know you are busy training on cleaning right now!
~ Ali
5.25.2009
I can’t tell you how encouraging it is to see that it IS possible to get things done with little ones underfoot. It’s amazing what little people can do if we expect them to do it — whatever “it” is!
Child labor is great, isn’t it?
5.26.2009
Yay for you for getting your children involved with cleaning. My older 2 kids are boys - 8 1/2 (almost 9) and 7 - and I have been dealing out chores/cleaning since they were 3-maybe 2? We also homeschool so it can be quite trying at times, but I’m glad my kids know that everyone has a hand in helping around the house. Last week at my oldest sons’s baseball game he got to 2nd base and STARTED CLEANING IT!! The mom’s around me were laughing me and asked me what I have him doing at home! It was funny though, b/c I do put them to work! I loved your post though, b/c I typically clean (especially the bathroom) when the younger 2 are taking naps or in bed at night. I dont seem to have the emotional fortitude to imagine letting all 4 actually help me, but you’ve given me food for thought.
6.1.2009
[...] I know I promised you more on the kids’ cleaning jobs. And it’s coming. But as I sat down with my list of chores to type you a blog post, Ellen [...]
6.2.2009
[...] Ali asked me for more details on how the kids and I do chores, and since you know I have no problem with the over-sharing of information, I am happy to oblige. For the original post, go here. [...]