Child Labor
In our house, we believe strongly in child labor.
Specifically of the chore variety.
We hadn’t planned on starting chores in our house until Bean was older. But he has shown an early interest in household responsibilities. He’s always hanging around when we’re cleaning or taking care of something, asking us things like, “Wass ‘at?” (what’s that) or “Hep?” (Help) So, a few weeks ago, Chris started giving him things out of the dishwasher to put away and Bean loved it! Now, almost every night he’s right there beside Chris, helping him unload the dishwasher. He takes his job very seriously.
He likes taking things out of the dishwasher and then putting them away on the shelves he can reach.
For the shelves he can’t reach, he hands the stuff to Chris to put away.
He also likes helping me with the laundry.
(Please excuse my rear in these pictures. Chris, clearly, has never been a pregnant woman and does not understand why we don’t like to be photographed from behind…)
I give Bean the laundry from the washer one piece at a time and he throws it into the dryer. It takes a lot longer, but he really likes to be part of the process.
My favorite part is when he gets something that is a little heavier and he has to wind up to throw it in the dryer. You can even hear him grunt a little as he tosses it in. It’s pretty funny because he’s so serious about his tasks.
It’s actually a pretty fun way to get stuff done around the house and to include Bean in the tasks we are all doing. And when he’s done, I think he feels a sense of accomplishment. It makes him feel proud when we thank him for his help. We always make a big deal about it. Lots of high fives. Lots of hugs. Lots of thank you’s.
I just hope he doesn’t start asking for an allowance…
33 Comments
Renee
I had to laugh about winding up and gruntin when he has to throw something heavy in the dryer. I do that too, and I’m (supposed to be) an adult.
Amy V
Can you send Bean over to my house when he is done at yours? I have chores that I’d like a little helper to help out with. 🙂 (Esp. if that helper is as cute as Beanie!)
Tressa
And, he’s a cute helper to boot! I think it’s great he wants to help at such a young age. Even better you and Chris take the time to let him help. GREAT pictures!!
Deepa
We have recently started this too!
The big thing Rohan wants to help with is dinner. He is SO interested in what we are doing up there on the stive, that I have learned to cook with one hand and hold him in the other arm, bc if I don’t, he gets between my and the stove and buries his head in my upper thighs, which is ticklish and not safe for anyone. (I must look insane, since my body is twisted in a weird way to keep him away from the pots and my arm streched out as I mix). Anyway, the other night, I was making pizza and decided this was a Rohan-safe cooking adventure. I plopped him up on the counter, and showed him how to put the cheese and pepperoni on the pizza. Every time he did something, it was with squeals of delight! My only regret was that I didn’t have the camera handy. Next time. I am def going to find more helper-friendly recipes so this can become a daily thing. I love how kids want to do what we do so badly, cooking, cleaning, laundry. Here’s to hoping it lasts another 20 years or so:)
Alaina
Ha, I say get them started early! And it looks like he loves to help out, so hey…that’s a great thing!
Amy
Oh I love it! How fun 🙂
Lori @ I Can Grow People
Porter likes to help us feed the cats. Even if that means he tries to feed them whole, unopened cans of cat food.
Ashley
Haha…he is too cute! And that’s great that he wants to help. You have to take advantage of it while they still WANT to do it.
Jen @ cavedin
How cute! At least he can’t ask for an allowance until he knows what one is so I think you have a little while to use child labor 🙂
Eliz@The Sweet Life
what sweet photos! love it.
Abby @ They Lend Me Their Hearts
Wait a sec… I’m going to go get my Little Man and show him how Bean likes to help!
Actually, Little Man is a tiny bit on the ocd side when it comes to cleaning… he loves to clean the floor, wipe stuff down, and hates getting his hands dirty!
michelle (mom of Henry, 21 months!)
Oh Henry helps too with the same exact tasks! Aren’t they so precious?! I also bought a little broom recently ($2.50 at Ross and it’s pink. Please don’t tell him Pink is for girls- he doesn’t mind it yet!). He helps me sweep and put it in the dustpan. Hey just a little recommendation. So I asked one of my friends who has three what I need to do before Daisy arrives (she is due Feb. 14th). She said that with two kids you don’t have time to watch as much like you did with one- and she said to take the childproofing one step further because Henry will test more limits. So we put little locks on all the drawers. Our little explorers! 🙂 Thought you would appreciate the hand-me-down advice!
Michelle @ Mambo Gook
This post might have taught me not to read your blog while I’m sitting in class. During the part where you are explaining how Bean winds up to throw in heavier items, I laughed out loud. Luckily only the people next to me heard me. Phew! Guess I should get back to learning about persuasion. Maybe I can PERSUADE the professor to let me read your blog instead of take notes.
Lindsay (Young Married Mom)
So cute. I love seeing him do the laundry! I hope he helps this much with Gracie, too!
Kate
SO cute! It must be an age thing because Bridget has been helping us with the same things. Oh, and feeding the dog. You would think it’s the most amazing activity in the world with how excited she gets.
Mindee@ourfrontdoor
I love it. In no time at all you’ll be sitting back, eating bon bons and watching him vacuum!
Pingback:
tan@tan/green
I love that Pumpkin wants to help us with everything…from feeding the dogs (@ Lori – I feel your pain) to loading the dryer…to handing me my vitamins in the AM. I figure this won’t last too long so I enjoy it – and hope that some of that sense of responsibility for sharing the house remains over the years!
Carrie T
Can you send Bean this way. I could use him and then spoil him when I’m done. lol Fun post.
laurenbtrain
this is really cute!
Kat @ Living Like the Kings
Aw I love it! I can’t wait to dump my chores on my kid… I mean teach my kid about chores. 🙂 Also, the rear end comment made me laugh out loud. Literally. Then I read it out loud for my husband to hear. He laughed too…but looked confused. I don’t think he gets it.
MaryGene @ Invictus Maneo
Ha!! He is just too precious!! I was just thinking…hmm that probably takes a long time, but I just know that he loves it! What a cutie!
Mom of 3
If only that enthusiasm lasted beyond the preschool years…..
erin
Hah! I put my kid to work doing laundry too, only she helps me with the folding at the end. She picks each piece of clothing out of the basket and brings it to me, and as I fold it she runs to get another one. The only problem is, she gets REALLY annoyed if I don’t deal with it right away, like if she brings me a sock that still needs its buddy or a shirt that goes in the hang-up stack. 🙂
Cindy In Owensboro, KY
I have done the same thing with my little girl who is 27 months and she loves it!! It does take a lot longer sometimes but it’s very important to teach them early!!
Hilary
My daughter is almost three and she also loves to help with the chores. Specifically, she likes to help with the dishes (like Bean) and make dinner. Any time I cook or bake anything, she’s right there asking, “I help?” I LOVE that she’s so into it. And really, what’s wrong with teaching kids responsibility? There will be plenty of time in her teen years to fight over chores, but for now, I’m grateful that she enjoys being a big girl helper!
Heather Ben
We do the laundry thing too. Not the dishwasher though bc I just have visions of broken dishes that I just got for Christmas.
Linda Y
Nick has been loving to help with chores since Bean’s age too. He’ll sweep with his own little broom, vacuum with a push toy, help put laundry in the dryer, and help feed the cat. I hope this continues.
DeAnna
Yay for little helpers! Now you just have to keep it fun so he likes doing it when he is older. My son is 5 1/2 years old and he absolutely loves vacuuming. He even asks to do it after our church activities when they bring the vacuum out.
We recently implemented a rewards system of pennies in a jar for doing their chores, since well both of my kids are learning that chores aren’t always fun. I am most definately an advocate for “child labor”. Teaches them responsibility and important life skills that so many kids/teens today are lacking.
Sara @ embrylovescookies
This is fantastic! So many parents wait until kids are 7 or 8 to start assigning chores, but by then they hate it. Starting when they are 18-24 months is perfect because they think it’s fun! I started letting my oldest help out as soon as she was interested (about Bean’s age) and she loved it. She’s 6 now and has more responsibility, but rarely complains about making her bed or folding towels. Why? Because as long as she can remember she’s had some kind of chore to do. She helps cook and clean too. Hopefully, by the time our kids are teenagers, they’ll be very self-sufficient.
Sarah
this is so cute and such good “chore” ideas for little little ones. I hope i can be this kind of parent one day, taking time to include the kid even when trying to clean up. 🙂
Nicole
Wait…Chris unloads the dishwasher? You lucky girl! My 5yr old and 2 yr old love to help out! Hopefully it lasts! We won’t do allowance for household chores, heck I don’t get paid for doing them! To us, keeping the house and personal bedrooms clean is something that everyone helps out doing and you don’t get paid for it. Now, going above and beyond, then we’ll talk. 😉
Megan @ Red Dirt and Crazy
First of all…I have to say that I feel like I’ve been gone forever and I’ve missed out on so much. I swear Bean has grown a foot and looks like such a big boy!!
Secondly, I’m catching up on everything tonight thank heavens but sadly don’t have time to comment on everything. I’m such a commenter…it’s sort of hard for me to not. I just have so much to say. 🙂
Third, I am so excited about this post. I feel like I haven’t given Q-Tip the chance to help out much simply because I haven’t thought much about it. I’m usually doing my duties and asking her daddy to keep her out from under my feet. Which now of course is causing the mom guilt to flare a little. But no more! If she’s under my feet I’m going to give her a job to do!!
Thanks Katie for sharing you life in such a positive…even through the negative…way!!
I’ve missed ya and I hope things continue to stay settled at my house so I can keep up!
🙂
Megan