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DawnM
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as a child (I'll say I was probably 7) my oldest sister (I'm the youngest of 7 living)  implemented a dishes rule.  She wrote names on all the kid's dishes.  Each kid got one plate, cup, etc.  We would have to wash our own stuff if we wanted a plate to use at the next meal.  She implemented the rule because her and my oldest brother were in charge of dishes.  It lasted awhile and my parents didn't mind her implementing the rule since she had to deal with all the backlash that came from it at the start.  Eventually it died away and my oldest brother (who was working while in college, living at home, and getting paid to attend college because of scholarships and free tuition)  started paying us to do the dishes so he didn't have to.  My parents were also fine with this since he chose to spend his own money instead of doing his assigned chore.

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go to the thrift store and purchase 3 different looking plates, silverware, and cups and assign one to each child…..they have to WASH it to eat the next meal.

 

I am sick of the mess in the kitchen.

 

That is all.

That is brilliant!  Why didn't I think of that!  Excellent New Year's resolution!

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but what do you do when one child wants to pay for their own disposable paper plates?

 

I would say no. This will increase our amount of garbage.  We haul our garbage to the dump and this would increase our costs but I would say no even if we had garbage service because it would fill the can very quickly.

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My BIL, when he ended up divorced (unexpectedly and not his choice) and raising 3 kids while working full-time, implemented this same plan with great success.  He kept dishes for guests in a box, so others would have something to eat on if they came over, but for the boys and for him, they each had their own set and if you wanted to eat, you kept your set clean.  If it wasn't clean, you didn't get the option of disposable anything.  You went and washed your dishes.  It kept things a lot more manageable.

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Good point….

 

Well, in the mood I am in, this is what I would say:

 

If you want part of your allowance to go for paper plates, have at it, you will now also be in charge of taking out all garbage from the kitchen as well as replacing the liner each day.

 

Dawn

 

 

I would say no. This will increase our amount of garbage.  We haul our garbage to the dump and this would increase our costs but I would say no even if we had garbage service because it would fill the can very quickly.

 

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Good point….

 

Well, in the mood I am in, this is what I would say:

 

If you want part of your allowance to go for paper plates, have at it, you will now also be in charge of taking out all garbage from the kitchen as well as replacing the liner each day.

 

Dawn

 

But what about recycling. :p

 

If we wanted to use disposable we would have to:

 

1. If styrofoam we would have to wash them and personally take them to the dump.

2. If paper rinse them and recycle them and put them in the blue bin for paper

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We did a color thing in our family. We were living in a tiny apartment in Brussels. There was no room for extra anything. We bought plastic plates/bowls/cups in four colors and assigned a color to each member. We've been back here for a long time--my kids are grown--and every so often I reach for the orange cup and think N. :) Kind of a fun memory.

 

 

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We went to color coded drinking glasses and mugs last spring. For all family members, not just young ones! Now it is easy to see who is not doing their fair share and also to catch those sneaky culprits who would "accidentally" grab the next glass available and use it. We also had to resort to a similar thing with bath towels. My 15yo dd with very long hair manages to use a number of towels frequently, and somehow usually forgets to hang them back up to dry.

 

So I know that I use the green drinking glasses and mugs and dh and I use the green bath towels. And if it's green, no one else had better have their mitts on it!!!

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  • 2 weeks later...

We went to color coded drinking glasses and mugs last spring. For all family members, not just young ones! Now it is easy to see who is not doing their fair share and also to catch those sneaky culprits who would "accidentally" grab the next glass available and use it. We also had to resort to a similar thing with bath towels. My 15yo dd with very long hair manages to use a number of towels frequently, and somehow usually forgets to hang them back up to dry.

 

So I know that I use the green drinking glasses and mugs and dh and I use the green bath towels. And if it's green, no one else had better have their mitts on it!!!

I hadn't thought of color coding the towels!  Awesome!

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I would say no. This will increase our amount of garbage.  We haul our garbage to the dump and this would increase our costs but I would say no even if we had garbage service because it would fill the can very quickly.

 

I hadn't thought about that.  Here, we'd just throw used paper plates in the yard waste bin.  Ours never gets filled up over the course of a week, so a bunch of paper plates wouldn't be an issue.

 

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We went to color coded drinking glasses and mugs last spring. For all family members, not just young ones! Now it is easy to see who is not doing their fair share and also to catch those sneaky culprits who would "accidentally" grab the next glass available and use it. We also had to resort to a similar thing with bath towels. My 15yo dd with very long hair manages to use a number of towels frequently, and somehow usually forgets to hang them back up to dry.

 

So I know that I use the green drinking glasses and mugs and dh and I use the green bath towels. And if it's green, no one else had better have their mitts on it!!!

 

:lol: When I was about 12, my dad "grounded" me from bath towels because I had a bad habit of leaving them in wet mounds on the floor. It didn't take many nights of having to stand in the bathroom and air dry after my shower to break that one! And yes, I did consider him a complete ogre at the time...

 

I think the color-coding ideas are genius!!

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I have been contemplating this very thing for about 6 months or more. Except, I was going big - dreaming about Fiestaware. ;)

 

Tonight at Walmart I happened to walk past the dishes aisle and my Corelle pattern caught my eye. There were a whole bunch of patterns available in individual pieces. So, I bought a dinner plate, lunch plate, and bowl in 3 patterns different from the one we have. Now, we each have our own!

 

I had already put away all but 4 place settings to cut down on dishes, but now I'll be able to track the culprit leaving it laying out. And, Anyone caught using someone else's dish gets to wash ALL of them. :D

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In September I bought each of my children two place settings in the color of their choice (Fiestiaware).  They are responsible for getting them in the dishwasher.  If they use more dishes than they have then they must wash one or ask to borrow one.  Has worked wonders.  I now know quickly who to remind. 

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Ok, now you all have me dreaming of Fiestaware too!

 

BBB has them for $26 per setting with a 20% off coupon.  Is that the best deal?

 

The thing I keep reading is that they don't have the chipping issues many of the other dishes seem to have.

 

I went to BBB last night and found they DO NOT carry them in the stores, you have to order them online.  They have their own knock-off brand they were trying to sell me, but I don't like the colors as much and I honestly don't think they would hold up as much.

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May I add another perspective?

 

While I could so get on board with different colors of Fiestaware (it's so pretty!), there's part of me that does not want to foster an "every man for himself" type mentality in my home.

 

I remember my son asking why everyone couldn't just load their own dishes. I told him that part of living here at home was learning how to serve one's community; doing the dishes, cleaning a room that YOU didn't make "dirty," etc., were part of learning that it's not all about you, it's about helping the family. 

 

That said, the kids here did do their own laundry, but they also washed towels from everyone's bins (mostly b/c they take hot water). 

 

I just wanted more of a servant's heart in my kiddos, and taking care of someone else's mess seems a part of that. 

 

What do you think? Maybe a mix? Like, taking out your own plate after dinner, but then someone else is responsible for clearing the rest of the table, so a mix of community and personal responsibility?

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That is the way we do it now.  But I can tell you that at 16 and 14 they still don't say, "Hey, let me do the dishes for the 3rd time in a row.  You just go ahead and relax."

 

They do their OWN laundry……they don't offer to do their brothers.  

 

I am not the best housekeeper.  I am just not.  I know that sets a bad example……but I just hate cleaning.  

 

May I add another perspective?

 

While I could so get on board with different colors of Fiestaware (it's so pretty!), there's part of me that does not want to foster an "every man for himself" type mentality in my home.

 

I remember my son asking why everyone couldn't just load their own dishes. I told him that part of living here at home was learning how to serve one's community; doing the dishes, cleaning a room that YOU didn't make "dirty," etc., were part of learning that it's not all about you, it's about helping the family. 

 

That said, the kids here did do their own laundry, but they also washed towels from everyone's bins (mostly b/c they take hot water). 

 

I just wanted more of a servant's heart in my kiddos, and taking care of someone else's mess seems a part of that. 

 

What do you think? Maybe a mix? Like, taking out your own plate after dinner, but then someone else is responsible for clearing the rest of the table, so a mix of community and personal responsibility?

 

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That is the way we do it now.  But I can tell you that at 16 and 14 they still don't say, "Hey, let me do the dishes for the 3rd time in a row.  You just go ahead and relax."

 

They do their OWN laundry……they don't offer to do their brothers.  

 

I am not the best housekeeper.  I am just not.  I know that sets a bad example……but I just hate cleaning.  

 

same at my house - only they're older and they still don't seem to "get it".   Like Chris in VA we had everyone help clean, we talked about serving others, going out of your way to do it for MOM. etc. etc.  But still they're in the 20's and somehow it hasn't clicked yet.   It's a very defeating feeling actually.

 

Dawn, I hope you find a workable solution that you can live with.  I'm not the best housekeeper either.

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Yep, the kids' towels are color-coded. So are their water bottles, although not necessarily the same colors as the towels (that would have been brilliant). Each child, except for the infant (yet -- he'll get one sometime after a year), has one nice stainless steel water bottle. This is the only container that's allowed out of the kitchen (because it keeps spills on papers and electronics and beds way down), and it's the only container that they take in the car too. No more lost sippy cups, and we always know whose water bottle is whose.

 

My kids are responsible for clearing their own places at the table. DH or I clear the rest, although sometimes I do ask a kid to clear some or all of it. They put away their own laundry too, except for the boys' hanging stuff, because they can't reach the bar. (Well, the 8yo can, but it's just easier on me to fold the foldable stuff and stack it at their spots at the table, while tossing all the shirts in a basket and sorting them by boy when I take them up to their room and hang them.). As for cleaning up, they're responsible for their own rooms, and periodically, DH or I go in to assist with the small amounts of clutter that seem to build up, but each of the big three kids gets a room to clean up at the end of the day, regardless of whether or not they even ever stepped foot in that room. (I generally work it so that if DD, for instance, has gotten out a big project that day, she cleans the room it's in, but it's not foolproof, and yeah, sometimes they clean up toys that some else played with. Such is life.)

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Everybody having a different color dish hasn't fostered an every man for himself attitude in my home yet. A year ago this month I bought Fiestaware for each person in a different color. That just means that after breakfast and lunch you rinse your dish and after dinner you put it in the dishwasher. We still share group chores- setting table, cleaning kitchen, unloading dishwasher, doing the cooking and washing pans and serving dishes. Mostly this is so that at the end of the day, I am not left with more than a dishwashers worth of dishes and so people are accountable for leaving their stuff around. We run the dishwasher less now and I don't have to go looking for dishes before hand. And when someone is isn't feeling well, someone else will do their dish.

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May I add another perspective?

 

While I could so get on board with different colors of Fiestaware (it's so pretty!), there's part of me that does not want to foster an "every man for himself" type mentality in my home.

 

I remember my son asking why everyone couldn't just load their own dishes. I told him that part of living here at home was learning how to serve one's community; doing the dishes, cleaning a room that YOU didn't make "dirty," etc., were part of learning that it's not all about you, it's about helping the family. 

 

That said, the kids here did do their own laundry, but they also washed towels from everyone's bins (mostly b/c they take hot water). 

 

I just wanted more of a servant's heart in my kiddos, and taking care of someone else's mess seems a part of that. 

 

What do you think? Maybe a mix? Like, taking out your own plate after dinner, but then someone else is responsible for clearing the rest of the table, so a mix of community and personal responsibility?

 

This is a great thing, something wonderful to foster in the kids.  I agree that a mix, though, is more realistic or maybe better for helping foster personal responsibility, too.  I have members in my family that automatically think of others before themselves, but they end up with the lions share of the work.  My mother was this way, but she ended up doing the bulk of the work and did not foster a sense of personal responsibility in us.  We just took her for granted.  She would ask for our help and we had certain responsibilities to the household but we really weren't responsible for our own upkeep as individuals and it made functioning as an independent adult more challenging.  I want the kids to take responsibility for their own personal care as well as see us as part of a larger whole.   Everyone needs to support our family and the greater community, but also take care of their own self.  I DO have the kids rotate duties around the house.   We have a list, and it is understood that we ALL pitch in for the maintenance of the house.  We work on Executive Function issues since none of us have strong EF, and make it a team thing.  One person sets the table and the next person clears the table, etc.

 

That being said, when I am working on paperwork for the business and I come back in the kitchen to find the sink piled high with dishes after it was cleaned out that morning, I would really like to limit how many dishes can get piled and be able to point specifically to the person or persons who were piling up dishes and remind them that they were supposed to rinse their dish and immediately put it in the dishwasher, not just dump it in the sink.  I think color coded dishes might help them to feel more personally responsible for the pile in the sink.  I know it worked for my BIL's kids quite well.  They work as a team to keep their apartment taken care of but they also realize that they need to take care of their personal items so they aren't adding additional unnecessary work to the rest of the family.  

 

Color-coding the towels could work the same way.  We all pitch in and take turns doing laundry, but if one person in particular seems to be using a LOT of towels, then they need to take responsibility and realize they are creating additional work for the rest of the family and are not being responsible for their own upkeep.  If we each had our own towel, I think the visual aspect would help them to see "Oh, yes that is my towel and I should keep it off the floor, make certain it gets in the laundry, gets washed, etc."

 

My dad's family NEVER taught him to be personally responsible for his own things.  My mom, after the kids moved out of the house, got really tired of always being the one to clean up dishes, since Dad plowed through piles of dishes.  He snacked a lot.  But Dad genuinely didn't realize how many dishes he was generating, even when she tried to point it out to him, and because he would SOMETIMES clean a dish, he really though he was pulling his weight.  They both worked long hours, so they needed to both pitch in.  Finally, Mom began only washing her own dishes...period.  She had one bowl, plate, cup and set of utensils.  She used them at every meal and washed them afterwards.  The sink got piled so high with Dad's stuff that she couldn't wash her dishes anymore.  Dad kept assuming that all those dishes were both of theirs and finally asked why she wasn't cleaning out the sink.  She pointed out that they were all HIS dishes and he needed to take some personal responsibility.   He felt bad, realized he really did use a LOT of dishes, and agreed they needed to work as a team to take care of the dishes.  He just needed to realize what a burden his constant use of dishes were.  

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Ok, now you all have me dreaming of Fiestaware too!

 

BBB has them for $26 per setting with a 20% off coupon. Is that the best deal?

 

The thing I keep reading is that they don't have the chipping issues many of the other dishes seem to have.

 

I went to BBB last night and found they DO NOT carry them in the stores, you have to order them online. They have their own knock-off brand they were trying to sell me, but I don't like the colors as much and I honestly don't think they would hold up as much.

I think that is a fair price for this time of year. Christmas time Macy's and Kohls usually have great deals. Macys also runs good deals in the summer, but this time of year $26 is good. I didn't order full sets as they wouldn't really use the mugs. For the big kids (10+) I ordered them each 2 dinner plates, 2 luncheon plates (this is what we typically use), 2 salad plates and two bowls. For my little guy (5) I ordered 2 luncheon plates, 2 salad plates and two small bowls. Total was $172.

 

When they go to college they can take their dishes with them. ;-).

 

I find it has fostered more responsibility in my kids. They now put their dishes away without argument. (They do need reminding sometimes.) I also find they are more responsible with how many dishes they use. One of mine used to blow thru dishes like crazy, each food on a seperate plate. Now that he knows he has to wash the dish by hand if he runs out we don't have that problem.

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I don't necessarily need the mugs either, but I don't think it is any cheaper to get individual plates and bowls.   I will have to take a look.

 

However, if I have 20% off one item, buying them individually could take a while!

 

 

I think that is a fair price for this time of year. Christmas time Macy's and Kohls usually have great deals. Macys also runs good deals in the summer, but this time of year $26 is good. I didn't order full sets as they wouldn't really use the mugs. For the big kids (10+) I ordered them each 2 dinner plates, 2 luncheon plates (this is what we typically use), 2 salad plates and two bowls. For my little guy (5) I ordered 2 luncheon plates, 2 salad plates and two small bowls. Total was $172.

When they go to college they can take their dishes with them. ;-).

I find it has fostered more responsibility in my kids. They now put their dishes away without argument. (They do need reminding sometimes.) I also find they are more responsible with how many dishes they use. One of mine used to blow thru dishes like crazy, each food on a seperate plate. Now that he knows he has to wash the dish by hand if he runs out we don't have that problem.

 

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I ordered 3 sets!  One for each kid.  I let them pick the colors.  I will order two more from Kohl's when the 30% kicks in tomorrow as I have a gift card for Kohl's and need to use it up.

 

That will at least get our immediate family served.  I can get more later as I can.

 

I looked at CL, but they are selling them for about what I can get them for on sale.  I would rather buy new and pick it out myself if that is the case.

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So excited.  

 

I bought 3 sets of Fiestaware from BBB and got them home and was quite disappointed.  I don't like the small mug and the small plate was not luncheon size.  It is called "salad" and I guess that 6" salad could be if you only put 4 green leaves on it!  We will never use it.  

 

So for each 4 piece set, there were 2 items that would get little to no use.

 

I did some digging.  

 

Apparently the factory store has an outlet with seconds.   They also have blowout sales twice per year where everything in the warehouse goes to super dirt cheap. However, they are far away (5 hours and 8 hours) and not in a direction we usually travel for holidays.

 

BUT, there are two older ladies in my area (40 min. away) who make a twice yearly trek up there and get TONS and then resell it here!  They sell it for VERY low prices.  

 

I went up there yesterday and came home with 8 person place settings in exactly what I wanted…….a huge 18 ounce mug instead of the small one, a dinner plate, a luncheon plate, and two sizes of bowls per person.  Each person now has a 5 piece place setting that is fully useable.    I also got 4 serving bowls and 2 small serving platters.  All for $180 total.  I got a total of 45 pieces.

 

I could have gone even crazier and there was more that I wanted, but that was all the money I had this time around!  I will go back maybe in the summer after her next Spring trip up to the factories.

 

Dawn

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  • 4 weeks later...

You are such a lucky duck! We live in the Houston area, and though I think about going to one of the sales there in WV, but then, the money we saved at the outlet would be spent ( and then some!) in traveling expenses! Enjoy your dishes :) . And if there is anyone you know who would be up to doing some personal shopping for a small profit sometime, please let me know!!

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I wonder how much they would cost to ship?

 

You are such a lucky duck! We live in the Houston area, and though I think about going to one of the sales there in WV, but then, the money we saved at the outlet would be spent ( and then some!) in traveling expenses! Enjoy your dishes :) . And if there is anyone you know who would be up to doing some personal shopping for a small profit sometime, please let me know!!

 

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I don't know.....Fiesta is heavy and postage has increased. But, I do know that the people who are selling it on ebay are making a big profit, between marking the seconds way up, and then making a bit more on the shipping and handling charges. If I lived close, I might make a little home business of selling seconds at more reasonable prices. There are a couple of sellers who seem to be more fair, though.

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