cleaning

i don't remember how old i was when i started helping my mom out around the house. i don't ever remember  a time in my life when i was assigned chores either. matt and i differ a bit about how to go about teaching our kids to "help" out around the house. i am more of the persuasion that if we raise kind and thoughtful children they will naturally want to help out. as far as i know all my siblings are pretty tidy and i think that all of us are very helpful as well. matt on the other hand was raised to have assigned chores and a cleaning schedule. he is extremely tidy, when he wants to be. you can't make that guy do anything. he will do laundry, clean toilets, iron and fold clothes, and wash dishes, however there is no sense of obligation coming out of that guy. he does it when he is ready to do it. over the years he has defiantly gotten better at doing it if i request it though. anyway, two days ago micah and i had picked beatrix up from school and as soon as she got in the car it was "can we go swimming? can we go on a walk? will you play a game with us?" on and on. i hadn't gotten anything done around the house except for laundry all week, so i told them i had to clean. then the kids surprised me and asked if they could help. even though i knew it would take ten times longer i decided to let them help out since that was going along with my way of thinking when it comes to cleaning. encourage when they want to help out. i told beatrix she could get her swim suit on and clean the shower. 

 micah got to vacuum our bedroom floors. 

and yes, we use a shop vac to vacuum. 

 they both told me they were so tired after we finished! i said, "tell me about it! i do this all the time and in every room." and lest you think it was such a utopia time of learning and that i am such a great mom...the only way we got to halfway finish the bathroom was by letting little miss cry in her swing. it's hard to find time to clean, please the older children and hold a baby all at once! :)