Creative Cleaning

Here is a 3-step process to make clean up time fun for kids.

I know I am not the only one with messy kids, right?

Sometimes it is just easier to clean up the mess myself.

I decided I needed a different approach than the threats and restrictions for kids who don't clean up, so I came up with a fun challenge. {My kids always love a good friendly competition.}

First, come up with a few prizes. You are going to reward them for a job well-done. I avoid giving out more toys, 'cause heaven's knows the excess of toys is how we got into this mess in the first place! I like to reward them with a special privilege, like staying up 5 minutes past bedtime or something.

Then,

    I bring all the kids into the same room and I tell them that whoever can make the biggest pile of "stuff" will get a prize. We (yes, I work right along next to them) hurry around the room and form our own separate piles with everything in the room that is not in it's proper place. This only takes a minute, and the person with the biggest pile wins the first prize.     Now with the piles of toys sitting on the floor, I tell the kids that whoever can have all the toys in their piles put away before I count to 30 will get another prize. The race is on, and I never have to slow down my counting- everything gets put away in under 30 seconds! If your room is especially messy and your piles are quite large, you may want to set a timer for an appropriate amount of time. But don't give more than just a few minutes, 'cause too much time won't seem urgent enough and the kids may get burned out or uninterested. Finally, the last part of the challenge:     I give each of the kids a baby wipe and tell them there will be a prize for whoever comes back to me with the dirtiest wipe! The kids go crazy dusting the blinds, wiping the tile in the entry way, getting the fingerprints off the banister... and they usually end up laughing while they do it! FYI- Keep the garage off limits. My sneaky child decided he'd try to win this challenge by wiping down my tires! His wipe was very dirty, but this wasn't what I was looking for! :) At the end of the challenge, you should have happy kids, a clean house and one very happy momma! Enjoy!