My girls are generally pretty good kids. Except now they are at an age where they fight a lot. They are always bickering about this or that, and there is no rhyme or reason to it. I see a little competing but I don't really understand it. What the hell are they competing for?
We have always tried to teach them about respect and courtesy and that kind of thing. And for the most part they get it. They are nice and polite outside of the home. Their school teachers tell us how wonderful they are and that they wish they had more students like them.
"My kids!" I think to myself. "Have you met my kids?"
Now that they are older we have had them doing a number of chores around the house. Since they wanted animals, we've been very adamant that they take care of them. They get to change the kitty litter on garbage day and clean up after all the critters they have. After school they load the dishwasher and put the clean ones away. Or we have them run a load of clothes in the washer. But the biggest thing is just getting them to clean up after themselves. They just don't do it. You can literally watch them leave a trail behind them as they go about their day.
It starts with a water glass that gets left on the table and then maybe a plate or a napkin. After a while there are potato chip wrappers that have been discarded here and there. Pretty soon you don't even notice them because they have been kicked under the couch or table. And then the clothes start to pile up. The ones that they washed and dried and never put away. Then you notice that they have been sitting on half a couch because the other half is full of laundry.
I'm beginning to think it's time to take away their allowance (if we haven't already) and use some other sort of incentive.
I guess it's a good thing that they don't care about an allowance.
4 comments:
man...that's the same stuff my wife says about me....and she's right. Maybe I need to have my allowence taken away too. = )
I was once paid in gum. Or more accurately, they guy at the taco stand didn't have enough change, so part of my change was in gum.
Your kids sound nice. I was such a terror at that age.
My grown children would tell I was a bit of a nag. I say it takes 3 years of saying something 3 times a day before it enters a child's brain. The funny thing is I miss the pile of books and shoes that used to accumulate around the kitchen table...
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