I’m going to be real with you for a moment. My house looks like a dumpster.
I cringe at the thought of anyone dropping by unannounced right now. Everything you can think of is on the floor or in the sink. The dishes are backed up, I don’t remember the last time I mopped the kitchen floor, the toilet needs to be cleaned, I have no clean pans to cook with, blankets and toys litter the floor. It’s getting to the point where one can call it disgusting. But I just can’t bring myself to get up and clean it by myself.
Why, you ask? Because my kids are lazy and it makes me very mad. They truly are. They drop things on the floor and leave them there. They unfold every blanket in the house. They dirty every dish and don’t help wash them. They change their clothes 15 times a day but can’t even manage to make it to the dirty laundry basket.
And why do I have a room full of toys on the floor when my son hasn’t touched a toy unless it was an Ipad or video game all summer? I just don’t get it. Are moms allowed to go on strike?
Maybe it’s my fault. Maybe I never got the memo that being a mom also makes you a maid. Maybe I didn’t do a good job teaching them about responsibility and taking care of your space. Maybe I didn’t do a good job cleaning up after them, so they just assumed that it was ok to live in a dump. But when did this become ok? When did living in a dirty house become status quo?
I’m at the point now where it is just not ok anymore. My children are getting older (they will be 13 and 10 in less than a month), so I think it’s about time they take some responsibility and start helping out around the house more.
But where do I start? I’ve tried chore charts. They last about a week, and then they are over them. I’ve tried bribing them, I’ve yelled and screamed, I’ve cried, I’ve begged. And they just continue to be lazy. Do they realize that the house doesn’t magically clean itself?
Side note: Wouldn’t it be great if there was a magic button to push and the house would be clean?
My entitled, lazy children have a rude awakening coming up. Unfortunately for them their soft, cushy lifestyle is about to end, and they are going to have to start picking up after themselves. We will no longer live in a dumpster home. I’m not asking for something perfect. All I’m asking for is that if someone drops by unexpectedly, I can allow them to come into my home without being mortified.
I really hope we can make some positive changes as a family and start being better at tidying up, myself included. Being a mom is challenging enough. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a smooth transition into a clean home with less clutter, stress, and negativity?
One can wish, right? Until then, I will continue to look for the genie in a bottle and ask for 3 wishes—one for a magic cleaning button, one for laundry that puts itself away, and one for kids who are less lazy and more helpful around the house.
Steph Hightree is a hot mess mom who is fueled by stress and too much caffeine. She is a Three Rivers native who talks about the good, the bad, and well, everything else about parenthood.
Any views or opinions expressed in “#MomLife” are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the Watershed Voice staff or its board of directors.
