AMJ Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 DDalmost13 is now grumbling about how life would be so much easier if she had a robot maid, as she asked for on her birthday wish list. I had just asked her to fold SOME of her clothes from one load of laundry, while I hung and folded the rest (all of the load was her clothes). "You have been at it less than 5 minutes!", I replied. Apparently that is 10 minutes too long! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PinkyandtheBrains. Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Maybe it's time to take charge if her own laundry. My boys grumble about it too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Χά�ων Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Tell her what my now 10 year old does: From me: He does ALL the laundry including starting a load, moving the load and folding and putting the clothes away as needed. He takes the trash to the curb. The drive way is over 400ft long Keep his room clean (actually not so much from me, he is a neat freak) His own request: He cares for and maintains a flock of 40+ chickens and guineas. He collects the eggs and works with his own customers He is currently building a larger coop for them and when that is done he is going to be building chicken tractors for meat birds for next spring. His goal is to raise a 200+ meat birds next spring. Sport related: He is responsible for his own dry-land workout and conditioning (he speed skates). I dropped the gym membership because it was no longer possible to get to the gym daily so he does his exercises on his own with minimal help from me. At most, I will join him or work a stopwatch or change the CD for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Critterfixer Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 They'll put me in the slammer, too. We lost the dishwasher last week with a leak, I've got plank boards strung up over the wet spot in the floor and frankly, I'm tired of doing the dishes. So I'm planning Dishwashing 101 beginning summer term tomorrow for Home Ec. We will also be starting Advanced Laundry: Towels, Blankets and Sheets. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
---- Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 SLAVEDRIVER!!!!!!!! ;) ;) ;) . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 A young man in our college group was just telling me that so many students don't have a clue how to do their laundry much less regularly. You are doing her a favor. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fraidycat Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 DDalmost13 is now grumbling about how life would be so much easier if she had a robot maid, as she asked for on her birthday wish list. I had just asked her to fold SOME of her clothes from one load of laundry, while I hung and folded the rest (all of the load was her clothes). "You have been at it less than 5 minutes!", I replied. Apparently that is 10 minutes too long! Whew! It's not just our home. I was beginning to think I am a parenting failure when it comes to work ethic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paige Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 My DS(12) acted the same way about simply putting his clean and folded clothes into the drawers about 2yrs ago. He then became responsible for doing all of his laundry. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 I saw this on facebook today: My daughter wanted a Cinderella themed party. So I invited all her friends over and made them clean my house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 My 9 yo told me yesterday he felt child labor laws were horribly unfair... because children should be able to work for money for a full day if they want to. Ha. I should make him do his own laundry and maybe he'd rethink. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 My 9 yo told me yesterday he felt child labor laws were horribly unfair... because children should be able to work for money for a full day if they want to. Ha. I should make him do his own laundry and maybe he'd rethink. But ... are you paying him? :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeschoolingHearts&Minds Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 DS14 and DD10 do their own laundry. If it doesn't get folded and put away, that's their problem. If they find they have no clean underwear? Also their problem. :laugh: There has been no more griping about folding their clothes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abba12 Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 My 3yo BEGS to be able to 'do coathangers' when we fold laundry lol, I expect that will change in a few years! At almost 13 I was working full saturdays for my dad's small business (paid), folded laundry, did dishes and helped clean the lounge room daily. Though, I wanted a robot maid too... And I currently hire a housecleaner due to various health reasons... perhaps I am not the best example to use ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMJ Posted July 7, 2014 Author Share Posted July 7, 2014 They'll put me in the slammer, too. We lost the dishwasher last week with a leak, I've got plank boards strung up over the wet spot in the floor and frankly, I'm tired of doing the dishes. So I'm planning Dishwashing 101 beginning summer term tomorrow for Home Ec. We will also be starting Advanced Laundry: Towels, Blankets and Sheets. :tongue_smilie: Yup! At Aunt Shirley's house (when we visited in April) all of the dishes were done by hand. They were conscripted to wipe dry and help put away, and didn't seem to mind too much. They've been getting cooking lessons (you say you are tired of eggs for breakfast? Well, you can fix yourself something else. You need protein, and that's not negotiable), laundry lessons (DD10 is much better and more willing to run hers), cleaning lessons (both expected to swish and swipe bathrooms, straighten their covers, put laundry IN the hamper and not on top of it or beside it, pick up tripping hazards, put stuff away if you want to know where it is, put it away if you don't plan to share it, tidy up living spaces, dust, gather trash. feed fish and the cat). They have had a somewhat easy summer and the past few days were even easier, due to the holiday. I was rather surprised to hear a gripe come out of DDalmost13; I thought she had figured out by now that griping will get her MORE work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 But ... are you paying him? :D Oh heck no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMJ Posted July 7, 2014 Author Share Posted July 7, 2014 My 3yo BEGS to be able to 'do coathangers' when we fold laundry lol, I expect that will change in a few years! At almost 13 I was working full saturdays for my dad's small business (paid), folded laundry, did dishes and helped clean the lounge room daily. Though, I wanted a robot maid too... And I currently hire a housecleaner due to various health reasons... perhaps I am not the best example to use ;) By 13 I was doing farm chores (we moved to the family farm when I was 12), cooking, cleaning (everywhere), doing laundry, taking care of my kid sister. By 15 I was also babysitting for the neighbors, and riding into town (12 mile round trip down and up some serious river bluffs) on my bicycle to visit the library and fetch some stuff from the store (since I was going anyway....). Maybe I need to start telling the kids about all of the stuff I was expected to handle ON MY OWN when I was their ages. :nopity: (my heart bleeds for you....) ...in 3 feet of snow, uphill both ways, while it was raining....*martyred tone* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gentlemommy Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Tell me about it. Mine (aged 6 and 9)- Daily- Make their beds Feed, water, and walk their dogs Sweep/wipe the kitchen after every meal Make breakfast Unload dishwasher Weekly- Vacuum living/school/bed rooms Dust living/school/bedrooms Wipe bathrooms-counters, mirrors, toilet, tub Mop bathrooms Fold all of their laundry Strip bedding, wash, and re-make their beds Wipe baseboards and windowsills Gymnastics practice-5 hours Riding lessons/grooming-2 hours They get chore money every Monday. I fine them if at the end of each day their chores aren't done. I go down the list and fine them a quarter for each thing. I don't have to nag, remind, or follow them around to make sure it gets done-they know the check will come at bedtime and they'll be fined. AND they will have to do their undone chores. Any of their belongings left out until bedtime become mine until they prove responsible enough to take care of them and put them away. On Sunday, I take them to the store and they can spend their money. I actually want to add some more to their list....mean mommy. Apparently I'm horrid because they are the last two children on planet earth without a phone/iPod/iPad of their own. I never wanted to be so strict, but after years of. Trying the whole, 'We'll work together because we are part of a family' method, and not getting any cooperation or appreciation, I got mean. It works, my house is picked up, they are much more appreciative of not only the mess they make, but how much I do on a daily basis, and they are happy that they get regular pocket money to spend on anything they want. Even a two pound bag of Twizzlers. Lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2scouts Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Haha! My 11 year old son had to clean up his room today and he insisted we ask his engineer brother to make a robot maid for us. Robot maids seem to be in high demand! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SemiSweet Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 My kids have it pretty rough too. They have to do their own laundry, all the dishes (loading and unloading the dishwasher), trash and recycles, and keep the living room and school room picked up daily. Every week they have to sweep and vacuum the lanai, do dog poop a couple times, dust the whole house, wipe down bathrooms, vacuum upstairs and down, and any extra things that pop up. It sounds like a lot but their morning chores only take about 15-20 minutes. My daughter will whine and stretch it out much longer sometimes, but she can't do anything fun until they're done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBasil Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 You are doing her a favor. I was never allowed to use the washing machine, dryer, dish washer, or vacuum cleaner growing up. I had never cleaned a bathroom, washed a load of dishes, done any laundry(including sorting), or mopped or swept a floor until I moved out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brehon Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 You know, it never ceases to amaze me how long a 10 minute chore actually takes. I've been known to use a chess timer, time how long a child whines and complains about working v. how long the actual work takes, and have him or her figure out the difference. The last time eldest ds made a stink about working I told him he could walk the waterwheel 14 hours a day and I'd lovingly prepare and serve him a nice gruel. You can probably guess what his response was. ;). :) (He had just finished reading "Oliver Twist".) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbara H Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 I will I've been known to use a timer on myself - remember that from the Fly Lady. Set the timer for 15 minutes and get moving. Even though I know it won't take that long and I will feel better once it is done, I still struggle to get started sometimes too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyS Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 I hope you laughed in her face. She obviously needs a great deal more housework to do in order to get some perspective. DDalmost13 is now grumbling about how life would be so much easier if she had a robot maid, as she asked for on her birthday wish list. I had just asked her to fold SOME of her clothes from one load of laundry, while I hung and folded the rest (all of the load was her clothes). "You have been at it less than 5 minutes!", I replied. Apparently that is 10 minutes too long! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChemMommy Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Bwaaaahhhaahaaaa.......Mine once told me that I gave birth to them just so they could do the chores. And they were serious! Nope, you shouldn't go to the slammer. You should write this down for the moment HER child says something similar to her one day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMJ Posted July 8, 2014 Author Share Posted July 8, 2014 You are doing her a favor. I was never allowed to use the washing machine, dryer, dish washer, or vacuum cleaner growing up. I had never cleaned a bathroom, washed a load of dishes, done any laundry(including sorting), or mopped or swept a floor until I moved out. When I was in college one of my part-time jobs was working at a (rather nice) laundromat. I ended up giving laundry lessons to several young men who had never learned how when they lived at home. My MIL made sure that all 3 of her boys (no girls) knew how to cook, clean, do laundry, etc. She said she expected them to only marry once in their lives, and to pick a good spouse. None of this marrying someone who knows how to take care of the house business. My girls have had lessons, and will have more lessons. Eldest is at an age where she resists being told what to do and how to do it. At least her comments were just to me. My niece once loudly bemoaned her Cinderella status to extended family. What was she moaning about? She had to bring her dirty laundry downstairs to the machine so her mother could wash it. She had to feed the dog she begged her mother to let her get. She had to empty the dishwasher. She had to tidy her room and do her homework. "I have to work my fingers to the bone while Mom sits and drinks coffee!" Her mother to date hasn't yet had an opportunity I know of to actually pour a cup of coffee and drink it while it was hot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMJ Posted July 8, 2014 Author Share Posted July 8, 2014 I hope you laughed in her face. She obviously needs a great deal more housework to do in order to get some perspective. She's getting it. :D AND I'm ramping up the homeschool this coming fall, and we've already ramped up the level of personal training and Aikido class. To date the punishment that has worked best where she is concerned is denial of privileges (mostly electronic entertainments). However, increasing the chores workload might be a new and effective method. I'll have to be careful about how I try it out, though, so I don't undermine the life lessons in chore training and assignments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMJ Posted July 8, 2014 Author Share Posted July 8, 2014 You know, it never ceases to amaze me how long a 10 minute chore actually takes. I've been known to use a chess timer, time how long a child whines and complains about working v. how long the actual work takes, and have him or her figure out the difference. The last time eldest ds made a stink about working I told him he could walk the waterwheel 14 hours a day and I'd lovingly prepare and serve him a nice gruel. You can probably guess what his response was. ;). :) (He had just finished reading "Oliver Twist".) A chess clock -- what a great idea! I have a birthday coming up in a few months. I'll have to add that to my wish list. :w00t: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMJ Posted July 8, 2014 Author Share Posted July 8, 2014 I will I've been known to use a timer on myself - remember that from the Fly Lady. Set the timer for 15 minutes and get moving. Even though I know it won't take that long and I will feel better once it is done, I still struggle to get started sometimes too. We do use timers when I want them to spend a certain amount of time on something, and the kids even asked for their own timers a while back. Unfortunately, one (and sometimes the other) seems to spend more time watching the timer tick down than doing what they were supposed to do in the first place. This fall I'm going to have to offer the threat of actual homework (school work to be done outside of class times) if they don't stay on task when they are supposed to. None of this making math last 90 minutes or more (when I've seen them get it ALL done in 20 minutes at times when they were motivated). Whatever they don't get done during the scheduled time allotment will have to be done that evening, or on Friday before we do any of the non-classroom stuff we have scheduled for Fridays. They don't want to mess with Fridays. They like having these as "special days". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wingedradical Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 She's 13. She's probably going to feel like it's asking too much to do anything, lol. Which doesn't mean you don't make her or, depending upon your child training philosophy, allow her to complain. But I'd only worry if she refused. And my kids did all their own laundry starting at age 10 or so. I generally didn't ask them to help fold towels and stuff on an ongoing basis, but I sometimes did/do. Heck, I feel like complaining about folding laundry sometimes myself! Sometimes (I don't know if this is the time or not), maybe we should just be sympathetic and agree, "Yep, it sucks. I sometimes feel like it takes forever, too. A robot WOULD be nice!" A little camaraderie may sometimes work better than "Straighten up and do your share." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie4b Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 DS14 and DD10 do their own laundry. If it doesn't get folded and put away, that's their problem. If they find they have no clean underwear? Also their problem. :laugh: There has been no more griping about folding their clothes. Yeah, same here. When the two oldest ds's were 11 and 13 respectively, I told them it was time to do their own laundry. Ds #1: No one else's mother makes them do their own laundry. Me: Well, you'll still need to do it here. Ds#1: Well, I'm not doing it. Me: That's okay, but I'm not either. Laundry is one of those lovely things where natural consequences take over. Ds #1 did it when he realized that I wasn't going to. Ds #2 recycled for a while rather than do it. Not my problem. As a friend said about hers, when one of their peers comments, they'll get on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiMi 4under3 Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 DD10 just handed me a list of chores she's willing to "help" with for extra allowance (she's saving up for a puppy.) This is what it reads... Clean kitchen $5 Vacuum kitchen $5 Vacuum living room $5 Vacuum family room $5 Fold towels and put in closet $5 Walk, brush, and feed dogs $10 :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HRAAB Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Well, I'd probably get a life sentence. So far all my children still like me though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chocolatechip Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 DD10 just handed me a list of chores she's willing to "help" with for extra allowance (she's saving up for a puppy.) This is what it reads... Clean kitchen $5 Vacuum kitchen $5 Vacuum living room $5 Vacuum family room $5 Fold towels and put in closet $5 Walk, brush, and feed dogs $10 :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Wow, she's expensive for vacuuming. . . Around here, housecleaning runs $10/hr. That's some rate for each room! Or you have really giant rooms that each take 30 minutes to vacuum! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiMi 4under3 Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Wow, she's expensive for vacuuming. . . Around here, housecleaning runs $10/hr. That's some rate for each room! Or you have really giant rooms that each take 30 minutes to vacuum! :lol: I'd just laugh and point for a long, long time. Well of course I did NOT agree to this! We settled on $2 per chore for a total of $12... (not $35) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyS Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 I like that she's the one who wants a puppy and also wants you to pay her to take care of the dogs! :smilielol5: DD10 just handed me a list of chores she's willing to "help" with for extra allowance (she's saving up for a puppy.) This is what it reads... Clean kitchen $5 Vacuum kitchen $5 Vacuum living room $5 Vacuum family room $5 Fold towels and put in closet $5 Walk, brush, and feed dogs $10 :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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