Mar. 13, 2008 - Parenting Wisdom - toy tidy up time
I think what worked the best for me through the years is a tidy up before lunch, before supper and before bed. Cleaning up wasn't an option - I left time for it before each meal. No eating until everything is picked up.
I think it works better to do a little tidy 3X a day because then it isn't so overwhelming for little ones AND it becomes a routine so quickly.
Even with bigger kids in the house, the little kids still needed to learn to pick up. Watch your littles and make sure they help, too.
I would watch sometimes, and if a little kid (that was old enough to help) was kinda standing around (or looking busy - but not doing anything), I would say, "ok - everyone but _______ go to the table. They get to finish up cleaning by themselves". Too often, the youngest gets
away with not doing anything, because they are the youngest. I'm still dealing with this, with Jewel. sigh
I think unless you are intensely organised (and what young mom of many can be?) the lists fall by the wayside too quickly. Please take that with a grain of salt - I do have a tentative schedule in
the kitchen that I see all the time. It helps to remind me of the extras - but that simple clean up idea I shared above - became the foundation of keeping my house clean when I had many
kids in my house w/ babysitting.
I also limited / rotated toys about every 2 to 3 months AND had appropriate baskets for each set. My pet peeve is throwing all toys together and not sorting when cleaning up. My kids soon learned I expected them to put things in the right baskets. So much more fun to play with when toys are sorted. smile
I do agree with having a good attitude and just expecting right behavior. I don't know that I got upset very often - unless I was waiting for them to finish (meal was ready) and they were still
fooling around. THEN, it becomes a discipline issue. Do they listen to you? Do they do what you say?
Young mom, do not do it yourself. Anything they can do, they should be doing. If you don't want to be a maid for the rest of their lives, have them do it. Oh, and often my mantra would be - "Let's all work together". I'd be tidying cushions and blankets AND giving direction when needed when they were little. _____, pick up the dolls. ______, pick up the Duplo and so on. I think I even ended up having one major toy set in the living room, so it was easier to put away.
Oh, and I also had a rule. Play with one basket / one bag of toys. When you are done, put it away before pulling out more. That helps, too. I had one little boy here that emptied every bag of
toys I had and tipped every puzzle in the living room. It was SOOOO miserable to clean up, I couldn't believe it.
Just thought I would share some tips I have accumulated over the years -
