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It’s time for the equally anticipated and dreaded time of the year: Spring cleaning. THIS is an instance where you would use the word “anxious” correctly. I’m anxious to get started on my Spring cleaning. Meaning, I’m looking forward to it-with dread. When you are trying to get some deep cleaning projects done with kids underfoot, it turns into “never-going-to-finish-so-why-bother-cleaning.” I believe that I may have a solution for you!
I have a friend that is one of those people who if you didn’t love them so much, you’d hate them. You know the kind I mean? She cooks, she cleans, she cans, she sews, she creates, she coupons, she’s involved in church ministries, she’s an amazing hostess, she’s bringing up FIVE beautiful girls and SHE’S SKINNY. I don’t know how that last one is even possible-I’ve seen the amazing food that comes out of her kitchen! We’ve been friends since elementary school- always pushing one another to do better, go farther, and be more. She wins at just about everything. Except having boys. I definitely beat her at that one. 🙂
So HERE’s how this “super mom” gets it all done- she’s generously sharing her ideas here today as a guest post while I finish recovering from having surgery this week! (See what I mean? She’s so nice, you just can’t hate her.) 🙂 Thanks, Crissie!
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I confess! I love to clean. I am that crazy person who does “Spring cleaning” four times a year (yes, I have a bit of OCD). However, as my family has grown I have realized that the spring cleaning ritual can be difficult when you throw in a husband, a child or two, or five. Add to that a steady stream of house guests and spring cleaning brings on a whole new meaning. I find myself frustrated and overwhelmed repeating the question: “Can’t anybody else see that there is work to be done?” After the birth of my fifth, I realized the answer to that was, “No.” Nobody else saw the lack of cleanliness the same way I did.
Although I make a list every time I do a “Spring Clean,” the list is often lost, overlooked, or misplaced. Until this year! This year, I decided that it was high time I revamped the “Spring Clean” to include every member of the family. The challenge was doing it in such a way that I was not required to nag or to ask the members of the family to participate.
This year instead of making a list on a sheet (or several sheets) of paper, I grabbed my handy-dandy 3″x 5″ cards. I took my cleaning list and assigned a color to each room. I then proceeded to write one project per card in the color assigned. For example, the kitchen was assigned the color red. So, every card that was written in red belonged to a job in the kitchen. On one card, I would write “clean the stainless,” another might state “clean the fixtures,” while yet another might say “wipe down walls and baseboards.” I did this for every room in the house. (Every bedroom and bathroom received a distinct color. The remaining areas such as hallways, laundry area, etc. were labeled “utility.”)
For Friday Family Fun Night, I cunningly set my trap. I gave each of my children a file folder, markers, and stickers. They decorated their folders beautifully, as girls tend to do, and labeled their names neatly at the top. We then placed the folders together in a file, and I proceeded to lay out the plan. I had placed the cards in pockets that I had divided into two categories: the Bigs (for the older children) and the Littles (for the younger children). Whenever a child had time in their day, they would blindly draw a card from the pocket. When they had completely the task, they were to get it checked by an adult. The completed card was then placed into their folder.
Every Sunday, my husband and I tally the number of cards in each folder. The child with the most cards receives a weekly prize. If all the tasks are accomplished by a set date (ours is April 11), then we will do a big family outing which will inevitably include ice cream.
This experiment has revolutionized our world. Everyone is able to “pitch in” as a member of the team. The children are keeping these areas a bit cleaner than before, as they are learning to respect property and take a bit of pride in a job “well done.” I enjoy that I am not breaking my neck trying to keep up with everything that I feel needs to be cleaned. I further enjoy the fact that I do not need to “remind” everyone that there is work to be done. All in all, I would say our experiment has been a success!
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I have to admit, this idea is just short of genius! I love the idea of letting the kids be “in charge” of doing the tasks on their own and eliminating the nagging and cajoling that we fall into so often! And just because it’s adorable, I’ll leave you with one more photo of this happy family! Sickening, isn’t it? 😉
Hi, I'm Nicole!I love chocolate chip cookies, good grammar, and trying new things. Pinterest is my happy place. Come follow me down the rabbit hole!
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[email protected]/wp says
Crissie is one of the most capable and lovely persons I know. She was like that when she helped out in the Cafe at college. I’m impressed with her plan.
Crissie says
Thank you for your kind comments! Sorry, I am just now reading them a year later. ?
Michelle @ A Dish of Daily Life says
Hmmmm….do you think this will work with teenagers?!
Nicole Burkholder says
I think so. I suppose it depends on how great the motivating award at the end of the project is.
Crissie says
So, this just popped up in my facebook feed as a memory, and I realized that I never read these comments! I am sorry. As a matter of fact, it actually works best for my teenagers as the prize often includes a $5 starbucks gift which is something they are really loving right now. They can be my best help! I hope this worked for your family. If not, there are a lot of great ideas floating around out there, so don’t stop trying. Many blessings!
Kimberly @ A time to freeze says
Love this idea! My kids are still a bit too young but I will definitely be pinning this for later use. I’ve actually never even thought to do an actual “spring cleaning” but it’s such a great idea for those things that you might not get to doing the normal house cleaning.
Nicole Burkholder says
I like the freedom to take as much time as you need to get all the extra chores done. No need to do it all in one day!
Wendy says
Cute pictures and ideas, ALMOST makes me want to have small children around 24/7 again!!!!
Nicole Burkholder says
You still get things done faster when you can do them yourself without little ones under foot 🙂
Crissie says
Wendy, I may send mine to you this summer just so you can see if you are really that interested. Lol, I miss you all bunches!
Mel says
Great idea Crissie, I love anything that gets the kids involved in helping.
Nicole Burkholder says
Yeah, put the little buggers to work! 🙂
Christina @ Juggling Real Food and Real Life says
HI Nicole! Thanks for sharing your friend, Crissie with us today. I can see why she is such a wonderful friend. I love this idea. I don’t know that my boys would care if their sister beat them at the cleaning game, but I’m willing to give it a try. I really feel that my kids should be helping more and I’m super frustrated that they do very little around the house. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Nicole Burkholder says
Well, it doesn’t just have to be the daily competition- getting it all done results in something special for the whole family! 😉 Good luck!