I have implemented a new rule at our house. "No Work, No Eat". I finally had had enough of me doing all the work to get food on the table. So in order for that to happen I had to make things accessible for the little buggers in the kitchen and pantry. A friend of mine who is a single mom of now grown kids told me how she rearranged the kitchen to make it possible for her kids to be more independent. I followed her advice and I moved all the kid sized plates, cups, bowls down to a low cupboard and put my crockpot and other stuff on the cupboard above the counter. I left the regular breakable plates and glasses up high. The silverware is already in a low drawer so that wasn't a problem. In the pantry I moved the cereal, breakfast food, and snack foods down on the lowest shelves.
As a result of the above changes, my kids can now serve themselves and others drinks and food. They can get a bowl of cereal for breakfast with minimum help and they help get everything out for dinner. Doodlebug is 7 and usually pours the drinks. Ticklebug is five and usually get the napkins and silverware. Snugglebug is 2 and she gets the plates out. They can get their own snacks and help pack their own lunches.
No only can they help with meal related things, but also they can now unload the dishwasher because anything that is plastic is within their reach. No more excuses!
I don't feel like a slave anymore and they are learning how to count the correct number of items, gauge how much liquid the cup will hold, and how to work together as a team to get the job done.
I realize the above is possibly a no-brainer but you know how easy it is as a mom to miss the obvious. It's not like we don't have anything on our minds!
For other great WFMW ideas head on over to Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer.
5 comments:
Oooooh you are brave or have very well behaved children. If I would have done that when my children were little, you would have seen cereal all over the floor :)
Thanks for stopping by!
I'm not surprised that Walmart changed their return policy. It was getting out of hand how many people would "return" something they never purchased or had already used. Sounds like they still have some kinks to work out.
That is a great idea. I'm definitely going to try it.
Love the idea of moving things to child height. We did this awhile back and it works like a charm.
In reference to the Target gift sets, these were located on the end of the aisle in the health and beauty section. There were several others to choose from, as well. All for $5.99. Thanks for checking out my blog!!!
That's a great idea! My little guy is too small to help himself now, but I will file this away for future reference.
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