Something New

When B and I picked up the big kids from the grandparents, we noticed something different.  I'm telling you, our children, who are typically well-behaved and pleasant to be around, came home from the time with their grandparents even more helpful and fabulous and willing to chip in.  

And so, à la Elsie Marley, I'm sharing our new responsibilities.  I have yet to hear a complaint about the actual tasks set for each child.  (They are just very concerned that everything is FAIR.  I don't blame them.)  Things like putting away toys, making beds, and attending to general hygiene don't count as additional chores.

Z, who is now 8:
rinsing dishes and loading the dishwasher--every meal
folding all laundry
putting away everyone's clothing but M's
cleaning up after T, occasionally with his help


M, who is now 6:
taking out trash and recycling with B
clearing table and scraping dishes
putting away clean silverware
cleaning up after T, occasionally with his help


They take turns setting the table and doing other random jobs that crop up in a day, like carrying bags in from the car, or entertaining T.

Until this summer, I had been fairly inconsistent in my enforcement of such duties, and mostly because I had a hard time letting the kids work at their level (I have a habit of micromanaging).  But this evening, after close to a week of consistent dish-washing, I noticed several things that convinced me that the chores had sunk in.  Z not only figured out how to organize the silverware in the dishwasher, but she also learned how to close the dishwasher door without displacing any plates (or making that horrible crashing sound).  I call that progress!