Update on chores

I posted a while back about my new plan for chores for the kids. I have to say that parts of it have worked really well and other parts are still "works in progress". Last week when the kids were sick, we didn't really enforce any chores, but this week we've gotten back to them. Alex and Ashley are doing a great job at helping clear the dishes at night and help clean up the kitchen. They haven't quite gotten into the habit of making their bed, but their rooms are generally more picked up and I'm not seeing the piles of clothes on their floors that I was seeing before (though there may be piles hiding under stuff... I haven't investigated yet this week). They are taking care of their clothes more and instead of just tossing everything in the hamper they are thinking and looking at it to see if it is clean or dirty and putting it away correctly. They've realized the more clothes they toss in the hamper, the more clothes they have to put away after I've cleaned them. In a few more months when school is out they are going to start folding their clothes and sorting them too instead of just putting them away after they are sorted and folded. :)

They are responding pretty good to the group clean up effort in the afternoons. I've been trying to keep the little kids from having toys all over the front room before the big kids get home from school, so then the big kids are just asked to help the little ones pick up a few toys each night and it is a lot easier for them to feel that sense of accomplishment of doing the job together.

We still have a long way to go, but I'm excited that this time we seem to be working harder and it seems to be helping us change our habits and incorportate cleaning into our days without it being the power struggle it has been in the past.