Peanut changes clothes at least 4 times a day now. FOUR! It’s driving me batty. I’ve asked him why he’s changing clothes so much and he doesn’t have a clue other than “Well, Mom, I needed a new outfit.”
I’ve tried other options to so I don’t have to wash as much. The sniff test doesn’t work, but the only thing I’m going to get is a whiff of Axe deodorant strong enough to singe my nostrils and watery eyes. Checking for stains is out as well, because he’s going to get something on his clothes, it doesn’t matter how long he wears them.
What is a mother to do?
I’ve considered cleaning out his closet and putting everything in my room, giving him one outfit per day. After considering long a hard, I decided to watch a movie.
I also though about NOT washing his clothes and making him go through the sniff test to figure out what is and what isn’t clean. Yeah, that’s not going to cut it either. He’d find the set of clothes that were truly dirty and strut around the school like it haute couture.
So, I’m going to play hardball and he’s going to start doing his laundry.
EUREKA!
This isn’t a big deal. He’s watched me do laundry for years, however hasn’t wanted to do his own as it’s too much work. Well, tough. It’s too much work for Mom when you’re creating that much in dirty clothes. He’s going to learn really quickly how much effort it takes to run a household by only tackling one little portion. HIS portion.
I’m taking the fact he’s 12 and somewhat absent-minded into consideration, so there will be ground rules and I’ll help him in the beginning so he doesn’t put every piece of clothing he owns in one load.
I’ve also pulled this great Laundry 101 from Cozi to help get him started and am going to give him one day a week to get his laundry done. This way, he has to focus and get it taken care of.
Do your kids do their laundry yet? If so, what’s worked for you? If not, tell me what your thoughts are.
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