I love the quirky and finicky habits pets create. Jazz's other favorite place to sleep? On the hood of my Chevy Tahoe, especially right after I have driven it. I think she likes the heat. And she is very picky about fresh water, although I don't consider toilet water to be fresh, she seems to prefer it over sharing with the dogs. She will meow crazily at the bathroom door after we shower because she wants in to lick the pools of water in the tub.
And speaking of pets, I wanted to answer a few questions that arose from my post yesterday about allowances and chores. When I said their are tasks that are expected of my kids they mostly related to cleaning up after themselves as I am a NEAT freak. So when they take off their shoes, they have to put them in their shoe bins, when they get dressed they have to put their clothes in the hamper and if they bring toys into the living room, they can only be playing with one thing at a time. So say for example, Jadyn is playing with her princess and castle and wants to start building with Legos. She would have to clean up the princesses and then get out the Legos. And nothing gets left out in the living room at night. If they build or play with something in their rooms and want to leave it out, fine. But my living room has to be tidy by bedtime.
As for chores that 3 and 5 years old can do, here is a short list. Many of them relate to caring for our pets and some of them create more work for me but I figure it will pay off in the long run when they really can do it by themselves:
Feed the dogs dinner
Make sure Jazz has food and fresh water
Brush the dogs
Help give dogs a bath
Pick up the dog poop in the yard (with pooper scooper)
Help water the plants (if and when we have any that are alive)
Help wash the cars
Set the table for dinner
Help prepare meals
Put recyclables in the bin outside.
Sort laundry (good for learning colors - whites, mediums, darks, etc)
Help load and unload dishwasher
Help put away groceries
If you have your 5 and under children do chores I don't have listed, I would love to get more ideas.
As for the piggy banks, they are actually called The Money Savvy Pig and can be purchased at the Money Saving Generation by clicking this link.
Put recyclables in the bin outside.
Sort laundry (good for learning colors - whites, mediums, darks, etc)
Help load and unload dishwasher
Help put away groceries
If you have your 5 and under children do chores I don't have listed, I would love to get more ideas.
As for the piggy banks, they are actually called The Money Savvy Pig and can be purchased at the Money Saving Generation by clicking this link.
5 comments:
What a pretty kitty. They always look so delicate and proper.
I expect the push for a pet cat to kick in hard fairly soon. Of course, this was my plan for getting a cat all along. I figured if we had a kid ruin everything, Andy wouldn't have our nice stuff as an excuse anymore.
Jazz is a cute cat. Sadly, cats are one area Ben and I do not agree on. He has banned them from our house. Somehow I think in a few years when there are two kids asking for a cat he may cave though. :)
Cooper has to bring his plate and cup to the kitchen when he is done eating, pick up his toys, etc. So far there are other things he really likes doing- like getting Bailey in and out of her kennel when we leave the house that are nice chores for him to do too.
I'm glad you mentioned where to find one of those banks, it was on my list of to do things today to try and order one. :)
Thanks for your suggestions, I will be copying them down.
Laundry- fold kitchen towels and put them away. match socks.
Dishwasher- 6 yo puts away the upper dishes. 3yo puts away all the lower dishes ie kids stuff, tupperware, and silverware.
Setting the table and helping clear the table.
I would love to have our dog sleep with the kids but since we haven't cured his not chewing on kids toys yet, he isn't allowed upstairs. Someday. I definitely think he will end up being Harry's dog though.
This is yet another reason why I love pets - they are great for introducing kids to the idea of responsibility and chores. J's favorite job is feeding the cats and the fish, and helping me clean the fish tank. He's also fascinated whenever I clean the litter box so I can't wait until he's old enough for that LOL.
His other jobs: put away his clothes after I fold them, unload the silverware basket (after knives are taken out), take his dishes to the sink and rinse them, wipe off the counters and mirrors in his bathroom everyday, hold the dustpan when I sweep the kitchen. He also likes to fill up the diaper stacker when it's empty and put diapers in the diaper Genie. Gotta love a helpful almost-4 year old.
I like your suggestion of Kenna. I have a problem in that I don't want to pick a name of someone I already know, or their child, etc. I have a co-worker with a granddaughter named McKenna, and since I talk to her all the time I would likely get the two of them confused. That's part of my hesitation with Sydney and Callie- I have a friend with a baby named Sydney and I knew a Callie growing up. Silly, isn't it, but I still think about that!
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