There was a celebrity that went for a photo shoot for a top magazine. The celebrity is a biological mother of twins! The photo was taken with a vacuum cleaner in the background. Supposedly the magazine thought it would make her look 'real'. Okay out there, how many Mothers of twins would agree to have their picture taken with a vacuum cleaner? Not many. Clearly, the celebrity has help. LOTS of help. If you had millions would you be home vacuuming or spending quality time with your kids? Wouldn't it be nice to make homemade cupcakes in the kitchen, frost them and go outside to play ball with your kids while your kitchen staff cleaned up the mess? Imagine the headlines.... Celebrity turns down leading role because of the demanding needs of housework. Right.
The majority of parents of multiple birth children housework is not an option. Going through kids closets, vacuuming all that dust under the bed, finding video rentals or library books due long ago, picking up toys left and right is what being a parent is all about. Wouldn't it be nice to earn a dollar for every toy you picked up? When you are parents of multiple birth children you've got enough chores without adding housekeeping to the mix . Well, we are going to help you learn to break it down. Do three things each week. Better yet, get your children involved in the day to day tasks by age..
Here are a few age appropriate suggestions for chores that your children can help out with.
Age 2-4 -- *Can help pick up toys. Get a basket and set a timer! Make it fun! *Put plastic bowls away. Great stacking fun. (create a plastic bowl only cabinet low) *Scoop up toys in the bathtub. *Put the papers in cup cake tins. *Separate socks by color. Big and small. *Help wash the car.
Age 5-7 *Set the table for Dinner. *Clear the table for Dinner. *Water your plants. *Dust lamp shades with a clean paint brush. *Dust furniture. *Pick up toys, books etc., *Wash off counter. *Check pockets for washing laundry clothes. *Make a picture grocery list. (fun and keepsake too! i.e.,little circles for eggs etc.,)
Age 7-9 All of the above *Make beds. *Bring laundry to laundry room. *Carry in groceries and help put them away. *Vacuum (with instruction and safety do's and don'ts) *Feed pets, exercise pets, clean up after pets. *Take out the trash. *Dishwasher duties dirty or clean *Fold laundry. *Separate/match up socks. *Check the mail.
Age 10-13 *All of the above *Make grilled cheese sandwiches (with adult supervision and safety instruction) *Cut the grass with a reel mower. *Rake or pull weeds. *Clean the garage. *Help feed the baby. *Do at least one load of wash each week.
Get a jar for each age group. Choose a set number of chores or let your children roll dice to determine how many chores they pull from the jar. This works great at eliminating complaints like .... how come he got the easier job! This way, they choose the chore. Fair and square. Create a time frame for completing the task. Offer bonus points for siblings that help each other get the chores done so they can go and play quicker. Reward with a privilege prize like pizza night, movie night or going out on a family picnic. You can also choose the privilege from a jar too! Teach your children that doing chores together and helping each other is what families do.
You can tie allowances into this on a weekly or monthly basis. You can tie it to friends sleeping over or play dates. It doesn't always have to be about money. It can be stars or smiley face on a chart. Compliment your children on a job well done. Find them doing something good. Say things like "How proud you must be of yourself! You did a great job putting your toy away!"
