I feel like I should get a bumper sticker made.
I experienced a Proud Mama Moment while cleaning my daughter’s room this morning.
(Not that I’m proud of cleaning her room. I’m totally un-proud that I still haven’t mastered the art of getting my kids to keep their rooms clean.)
(Or of keeping my own room clean . . . )
But as I cleaned/de-disasterized her room before our first Brownie meeting here today, I did experience a moment of delight when I looked in her trash can.
She decluttered a headless Barbie. All by herself.
My little girl is growing up!
(We won’t discuss the wrapper for string cheese that is NOT supposed to be in her room!)
--Nony
That IS a proud Mama moment!!! I hear you! Granted, I hear you on the string cheese wrapper too, but hey, we’ll celebrate our victories nonetheless. I’m trying to decide if I should “prep” my daughter’s room to cut down on the time & headache after school to get her to clean it up. Decisions, decisions.
I find string cheese wrappers in no-food bedrooms, too!!! At least it’s neat, unlike goldfish!
the cheese wrappers reproduce in my son’s room and are Never in the trash…they drive me INSANE
Yay for kids decluttering at a young age!
Also, my number 1 tip for keeping kids’ rooms clean: don’t put stuff in them. Truly. Our bedrooms are for clothes and beds. They also have bedtime stories in there but the rule is that they have to make a trade if they want to read a new story at night. Super easy to just pick up the dirty laundry once a week in their room…… we’re still working on the laundry basket thing.
Tried something new last week and it worked! I held the 4 children’s clothes hostage. The ransom? All clothing items put away correctly and the floor clean. Going to try it again tomorrow. .. maybe every week 😉
4 sisters with 16 kids between us, here are our top tips for tidier kids rooms:
Handle all fabric first- clothes, beds, stuffed toys
garbage out- a garbage can in every room
If they keep up with these 2 things, it makes a huge difference
We also hang all shirts on hangers, straight from the dryer. Drawers are for socks, undies, and bottoms only- so much easier for the little ones to handle.
Yay for your daughter! You should be proud, Mom. Not all kids are like that. When my kids were small enough for toys, I would periodically have to sort through and get rid of broken toys (because they wouldn’t get rid of anything). My son was really annoyed about it once and said, “You know this is child abuse, don’t you?” I won’t go into detail about the next hour, but the off and on lecture about what child abuse really was, and the invitation for him to call and report me (while I packed his bags), cleared that little misconception up in a hurry. Some kids are extremely attached to toys…broken or not, lol.
I should clarify that I didn’t actually pack his bags…it was just part of the invitation. 🙂
That is great! It really feels good when the kids get the itch to clean or toss the stuff that is broken. My dd used to toss things out… I’ld say it’s broken toss… now she keeps it all…working on it though. ;O)
So has anyone found a box of 1/2 eaten ice cream in there kids closet yet? I have the best kids and the most creative at hiding when they want too!!1
I love your blog….I’ve been lurking for a couple of years. I just had to comment here though. I think it’s okay to help your kid’s develop a system for cleaning and decluttering, but I think it’s a huge disservice to them to clean their rooms. (Trust me, i have the urge to do so myself , but I resist.) I had a conversation with my Mom about this the other day. Growing up she always cleaned my room , ironed my clothes etc. She would send me outside to play while she cleaned my room. She says that it was because I was born a pack rat and that I thought everything was sentimental and therefore wanted to keep EVERYTHING! As an adult, I look back on it now and wished she would have made me stay in and clean my own room . She should have told me I was not going outside to play or do whatever else I was interested in until it was cleaned, inspected and approved. Today I struggle to keep my home clean and I feel that it’s a direct result of this. It is so embarrassing to always have to a cluttered house and to never seem to be able to get it together even when you try your hardest– especially when you’re married with children.
I’ll even celebrate with you finding the string cheese wrapper, says the mama who has found apple cores in the bottom of the closet many months after they had become compost.