Yesterday, as I picked up miscellaneous things belonging to various members of the family, I decided to try something new. Rather than rant and rave at the kids to pick up their stuff, or getting irritated with my husband for leaving his breakfast dishes on the cupboard, I'm doing something pro-active. I ran across this fun idea the other day on Paula's Archives of Homeschool Advice: We started with a clean house. I created a chart with everyone's name on it and posted it on the refrigerator. Now, when anyone finds something that someone else left out, they put said item away where it belongs. Once the item is put away, they get to put a tally mark by the person's name to whom said item belongs. For example, if I leave my flip flops out (which, by the way, I am very prone to do) and dh puts them away, dh then puts a mark by my name on the chart. The person with the fewest marks for the week wins $2.00!
So far, it's working really well! My kids are putting their own things away and their sisters' things. I even overheard them telling their friends this afternoon, "Let's pick this stuff up before we get something else out."
I'm fairly competitive by nature, but I'm thinking, even if I don't win the $2.00 - I do win a Klutter Free House! Definitely a win-win situation!!!
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