Ugh... can ANY of you parents out there give me some tips on how to get Nicole to KEEP her room clean after its been cleaned?
I mean, we are in the process of turning her room from little girl to tween-like.
I spent two whole days in there cleaning stuff out, throwing a ton of crap away and making a mountain of yet more stuff to give away. Most of this is clothes and toys she has outgrown.
I had a fair amount of it cleared away, you could see her shelves now, neatly done. All thats left to tackle is the floor of her closet and then her desk and at the foot of her bed on the floor.
Yet for the past couple of days I haven't had the chance to get in there. I walked in there yesterday morning and just about went ballistic.
It doesn't look like I did anything. Now I know I'm NOT a domestic goddess and NO ONE will ever claim me to be one. ( yes I know Hallie claimed the same thing this morning...)
But its kind of the old adage - Do as I say NOT as I do.
I guess I expected what was done to still be done when I went in there. So that means this weekend is given up to redoing what I did and then finsihing the rest. Her dad can then hang her new posters up.
But I'm just afraid after a few days it will again look like nothing was done to it.
Please, Please Please tell me how I can keep that from happening...
( we have already tried threatening her with throwing her things out, grounding her ( shes not really old enough for that to work much), make her do it ( 3 hours later it doesn't look like shes done much...)
I'm at my wits end... please help:)
8 comments:
I just spent last week doing the same thing to both the boys' room and the girls' room. I made them do it with me and so far the want to keep it that way. I know eventually it will slowly get back to where it was -minus half of the stuff- if they don't have to keep it picked up every day. So I try to get them to pick it up a few times a day so it doesn't get back to where there's no way they can do it alone. Good luck! I think the secret is less stuff (especially with 3 boys in one room and 2 girls in the other!)and picking it up constantly. If you find a better way- please share!!
Umm, I'm with you on the tossing stuff that gets out of place too badly (we actually put it in our room and they have to earn it back). And to keep things clean, we have a list of what needs to be cleaned up (e.g., trains in the drawer, bed made, stuffed animals on the shelf) which seems to help give some direction so it isn't so overwhelming. Good luck! I think a blindfold is the other solution for you! ;)
Today is OFFICIALLY DECLARED to be NON-DOMESTIC GODDESS DAY. End of discussion.
Hallie :)
You do realize of course that if you can truly solve this problem you wil be a gazillionaire many times over!!!
She has to grow up, move out and when you walk into her perfectly clean apartment you will be shocked...otherwise, close the door!
I totally gave up years ago... told the kids as long as there is NO FOOD left in the bed room that as long as it does nto spill into the rest of the house I dont care how messy it is... OK I lie I care but I wont fuss unless bad smells come out... then I get loud and ugly... well lemmie tell you ... sonce cory has moved out Martha has been keeping her room and bathroom CLEAN... unbelieveably CLEAN... but it has taken 17 years LOL.... pick and choose you battles my friend... some things are just more important than a clean bed room.
Help her get it clean..Throwing or getting rid of everything she has outgrown..Then the next time it's messy..Throw another basket or bag of her stuff out that she likes, and enjoys repeat till it stays clean..She'll get the message, If I wanna keep my stuff I have to keep it clean..Worked for me..
Cause if you don't help her now, when she is an adult, she will be CLEAN HOUSE to the whole world..heheh..Love that show!
I love to organize stuff!! Yeah, really - sad huh??
Anyway, what exactly is the "mess" consisting of?
Clothes? Put a hamper in her room
Small things? Accessories? Get an over the door shoe holder. They make clear ones so things are organized and you can see where everything is.
I also love those lidded storage boxes.
Get a system for keeping things straight, and then have clear rules on what is ok, and what is not, and the consequences. Every kid has their special "thing". Take it away and you WILL get their attention!
Good luck!
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