When Eleanor was about 1 I made a list to help me clean the kitchen. It had the important tasks in the order I thought it made sense to do them, so I wouldn't start on one thing and randomly clean up bits of the kitchen... I also like figuring out the "critical path" for getting the project done in the least time and most efficiently. My list began with things like "Put away clean dishes" and ended with things like "Wash the floor" which never got done because I was always fed up with cleaning by the time I got halfway down the list (to "Wipe down the counters", actually). I eventually memorized the list and didn't need to look at it for a long time.
I looked at the list again when we moved to our new house when Eleanor was about 2.5 and Amanda was a baby. The very first thing on the list was "Clean the floor". I could not figure out what I had meant, I had no memory of writing that step on the list. It didn't mean washing the floors, that wouldn't make sense to do first anyway. It took another year, until Amanda was 1, to remember why that instruction was necessary.
"Clean the floor" means "Pick up all the tupperware, children's dishes, toys, silverware from the dishwasher, etc. from the kitchen floor so you can walk across the floor without hurting yourself." My life would have been easier, I suppose, if I had locked all the cabinets and made the kids play somewhere other than the kitchen, but frankly, it is easier to have the little one underfoot playing than in the living room getting into more trouble.
Luke is now 1. He has outdone his sisters (although I think he had Amanda's help) in making the floor so cluttered that the only way across the kitchen is to pick your way slowly from clean spot to clean spot. Sigh. I need to remember that this stage does not last forever, and some day I will forget again what "Clean the floor" refers to. However, tonight I may only get through the first step on my list.
I looked at the list again when we moved to our new house when Eleanor was about 2.5 and Amanda was a baby. The very first thing on the list was "Clean the floor". I could not figure out what I had meant, I had no memory of writing that step on the list. It didn't mean washing the floors, that wouldn't make sense to do first anyway. It took another year, until Amanda was 1, to remember why that instruction was necessary.
"Clean the floor" means "Pick up all the tupperware, children's dishes, toys, silverware from the dishwasher, etc. from the kitchen floor so you can walk across the floor without hurting yourself." My life would have been easier, I suppose, if I had locked all the cabinets and made the kids play somewhere other than the kitchen, but frankly, it is easier to have the little one underfoot playing than in the living room getting into more trouble.
Luke is now 1. He has outdone his sisters (although I think he had Amanda's help) in making the floor so cluttered that the only way across the kitchen is to pick your way slowly from clean spot to clean spot. Sigh. I need to remember that this stage does not last forever, and some day I will forget again what "Clean the floor" refers to. However, tonight I may only get through the first step on my list.
Comments