Thursday, April 5, 2007

Murphy's Law of Cleanup Time


I don't know why it always amazes me. It happens over and over again. When I tell my kids they need to clean up, they get the biggest creative streak. (Hmmm...where do they get that?) Today when I issued the decree, they headed straight for Bethany's room, started taking out the dressup clothes, and voila! Instant stuffed fairytale. They even started writing the story to go with it. Then we had to take a lunch break, and Ben's friend Andrew showed up at the door. I told Ben Andrew could come in, but they needed to work on his room before they started playing. Luckily Andrew likes to clean. I haven't looked under the bed yet. Well, I better go...there's some cleaning I need to do. :-) 

63 comments:

Tiffany said...

I love the dragon peeking out the top!

EmmaP said...

hahaha. love it. when i issue the decree at my house, my oldest has homework that he "just remembered", my youngest finds her creative streak and my middle mysteriously always gets a stomach ache...

trash said...

Children having to clean up? Oh no, not in my house. My children NEVER make a mess or leave things in the wrong spot or stuff freshly ironed clothes behind their bedroom doors or... or.... well, it just doesn't happen at my house. ;-)

Kimmie said...

Cleaning up? What's that? Those dolls are adorable!

Heather said...

My daughter, by the age of five, has already mastered the "if it is out of sight, it must be clean" manner of cleaning. She'll say things are clean, then I'll check and it's all been jammed under her bed and/or dresser. I've learned I have to say "You need to PUT THINGS AWAY WHERE THEY BELONG" instead of the "clean your room" line if I have half a chance of things landing back in the cubbies or on the bookshelves....

Cheers!

Anonymous said...

Cute. :)

What A Card said...

Wow, that looks like a very fun way to clean up! I think your kids are on to something!

Bramblemoon Farm said...

Yes, just like my daughter wants a tea party when we are in middle of cleaning. Kids...they love to distract!

Veronica said...

My kids are usually good about cleaning up, but then we just have really messy closets!

Creative Junkie said...

My youngest daughter's method of cleaning her room is to make little piles of "stuff" everywhere - on her dresser, on her bookcase, on her table. The stuff doesn't have a home but because it's in neat little piles, she considers her room clean. Sigh.

Shanda said...

My daughter unfortunately (fortunately...I'm not sure which) loves to organize. Organize...not clean. So when I ask her to clean her room, she ends up making a bigger mess. And she always always runs out of steam.

Cracker Scraps said...

What a wonderful gift you are giving to your children teaching them that cleaning up isn't all that bad!

Liz said...

Hmmmm, my four year old just stomps her foot and declairs that she can't do it! Maybe a distraction or a clean friend would help us out...

Lula! said...

Truly, these are some creative children. Y'all are obviously a very fun bunch!

Sunshine said...

YES! That is so true! I've notice this scenario two minutes before bedtime.

And PLEASE do not look under the beds here either...it's for your own safety.

Seriously cute pic...

Happy SITS day!

thotlady said...

The little red cross outfit is so cute.

Way to get the neighbor kids to help with the cleaning.

Michelle said...

I love it! I was going to comment on how great the bears looked before I found out they were dressed up by your kids!

We have the same problem, but I've recently instituted "toll road cleanup" which they love. They get to run back and forth or around in a circle and each lap they complete, a toy or series of toys needs to be put away. Sadly, they ask to play it now ;) There's something very wrong about my wee ones!

Kelly Deneen Raymond said...

hehe. I didn't even notice the dragon at first! Your kids are really good at avoidance. ha!

Unknown said...

I shoved all my winter clothes in under-the-bed boxes and put them under the girls' beds. HA HA - take that!!!!

EmBee said...

That's funny, I too feel more creative when I should be cleaning.

Ronnica said...

I find plenty of things to do when I need to be cleaning, too!

CanCan said...

The same thing happens to ME when I tell MYSELF to clean. :)

Upward Falling Autumn said...

Haha, that's right! My son cleaning his room always turns into the construction of some kind of fort or skateboard ramp!

Debbie Y. said...

If your kids are like mine, they got the creative cleaning gene from you. Don't look under my bed either. LOL

Happy SITS day again.

Casey's trio said...

As long as they are cleaning up along the way right?!?!?

Unknown said...

Hmm...I wish mine did that. I think I could live with that.

Melodie said...

My little one can't stand for her room to be clean. Whenever it gets cleaned, she immediately starts pulling things out of their places and onto the floor.

Jenni said...

Why is it that when you want your kids to do chores they suddenly play together better than ever and nothing gets clean?! It's like they know you won't want to break up siblings being nice to each other. I tell you, they are more clever than they have a right to be!

Anonymous said...

It is amazing how those create juices start flowing when the pressure is on to find an alternative to cleaning. I have done a pretty creative job myself this week so the vacuuming is still waiting on me.

Anonymous said...

That looks like a very fun little scene :]

G. said...

I love it! What creative kids you have!

Laurel said...

What no Mary Poppins? Very cute and creative critters:).

Anonymous said...

Cute. My daughter does this constantly and it partly drives me nuts and is partly the cutest thing I've ever seen. :D

Jen said...

thats awesome and oh so cute.

I am glad that you are featured today. Enjoy it! It is really, really cool as I am sure you already know.

Rela Pantaleon said...

only kids can equate a decree to clean up to dress up! I love it though!

Anonymous said...

hey, a spoonful of sugar, right? ;)

if y'all have never invited the House Fairy to your home, you might be surprised at how easily she seems to inspire kids to WANT to clean up! :D

*MWAH!*
Tanya

Rhea said...

How creative! I love the dressed up stuffed animals and written stories to go along with it. Very cool!

And, if I'm ever missing stuff, I just look under beds...it's always there.

Jennifer P. said...

Well in the end, I think you'd want them to have a career that involved more creative thinking than cleaning skills, right :)?!

ENJOY your SITS day!!!

Anonymous said...

Awww...I love it. I hope my kids are that creative.

S Club Mama said...

love how they look straight out of Robin Hood, the animated movie. :)

Unknown said...

Adorable story- kids are the funniest most amazing things, aren't they.

Melissa Lester said...

I still struggle with that! I can easily abandon a stack of dirty dishes to accomplish a more urgent project, like painting something decorative on the laundry room walls. I have to use creative projects to give myself incentive to accomplish the more mundane tasks. Maybe we are all like that in one area or another.

Holly said...

So they don't have to put the costumes away if the stuffed animals are wearing them, hee hee!

katylinvw said...

this is too cute! i am constantly doing this myself, i would much rather do a fun project that was my idea than something i just know i'm "supposed" to do, lol :)

Ali said...

that is so sweet - kids are so amazing with their creativity!

Simply Stork said...

ain't it the truth...

I think every mother here would agree with you...

~simply~

Sarah said...

I was always good at procrastinating as a child and now my mine are too LOL.

Sarah

www.homeschoolblogger.com/OhioSarah

wendy said...

I'm often amazed at what happens when the "CLEAN YOUR ROOM" decree comes out! You have some creative kids!

Happy SITS day!

Mindy said...

"Your room needs to be cleaned" seems to be the best cure for boredom in our house! :)

Crazy Momma said...

I know that if I want to get rid of my 8 year old for a while all I have to say is "go clean your room" and he will find ANYTHING (besides clean) to do...

Peggy said...

Who knows where their creativity will take them??? Happy SITS day!

Nessa said...

My kids do it too. Kids do some crazy, creative things!

Ashley. Unscripted... said...

Great picture!

I find MYSELF doing this very same thing. When I have something that needs to be done, that's when I'm the most creative.

Lisa@BlessedwithGrace said...

That picture is hysterical!!!

Stephanie said...

I'm like that - I'll decide that I need to do some cleaning, then I think of anything and everything that I can possibly do to put it off!

Sisterly Love Card Co said...

That is so cute! I am very bad at putting off cleaning. It just isn't fun. My kids also start playing when I ask them to clean up.

Unknown said...

I love that the animals are dressed in a theme!
I hate cleaning up my own clutter because I end up fiddling and playing with things and then there's 3 more new projects to take care of!
Happy SITS Day!

Alexa said...

Are my kids related to your kids somehow?? LOL happy SITS day!!!

Anonymous said...

My daughter used to like to say her legs were broken, every time I'd ask her to clean.

Vicki said...

I get creative when I realize I need to clean too. There's always some craft that needs started or a really intricate recipe that needs my full attention. Then I invite my friends out for dessert and forget I ever needed to clean in the first place. Isn't everybody like that?

Feliz said...

At least they are using their imaginations. Happy SITSday!

Kelly said...

That's amazing creativity!! I'm impressed!

lynn said...

Hope you enjoyed your SITS day! Sorry I'm a bit behind. That sounds so familiar. They always find something while cleaning that they need to play with!