A Neat and Clean House vs Children
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| Tue, 07-27-2010 - 8:35am |
For those of you who like a neat and clean house, how do you keep it that way with children?
I find that if I am tied to goal of having a neat and clean house, I become a raging shrew against my children as they proceed to undo all the neatness I have worked so hard to attain. If I made a "neat and clean house" my goal, my children would not have their messy projects that take days/weeks to complete. My children would not pick up a book (casually left out)as they walk through the family room and browse through- discovering once again the mother actually knows about a few good books. I would let them watch more tv/computer time, as they don't make things as messy when they do. I would squash their ideas if I thought it would make too much of a mess. I wouldn't let them cook/experiment in the kitchen- as it is usually more work for me to clean up after they have "cleaned up". So, how do you inspire creativity and imagination in a neat and clean house? Are you on top of them to put things away as soon as they are done even if it is temporary? Where do you put the legos?....... Have you ever allowed them to take over the living room with all of their toys arranged in a city complex (thomas the train things were the Metro, legos and blocks were the buildings....)? How long would it stay up? Would let it be up for the summer so they could add to and change tings around as they got new ideas? Or allowed them to take over half of the family room for a month+ while they build and live in a beaver lodge (using all the empty shoe and other boxes and some that weren't empty)? Even if you have to walk around it everyday to get to the kitchen? Or do you require that all toys be put away everyday?

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I just enjoy buying clothes for me and my family. But about anything I wear is versatile in where I can go in it.
We have a strict dress code for our schools so just opening the closet isn't an option. It has its pros and cons.
Meals are cooked yes 7 days a week and 3 meals a day are prepared (I prepare lunches and pack them as I'm preparing breakfast to be put on the table or like weekends I'm in the kitchen at breakfast, at lunch and supper.
Band has just started so this is very new. Many of the nights I go out for girls night out I don't even walk out the door until 8 or 9pm so supper isn't an issue. I cook and I eat with my family. But sometimes yes, I cook for dh and the kids or he cooks or I start and he finishes. That can vary on plans. With the summer all my girlfriends have been busy & doing travel so we have seen each other 1 time since May although we frequently facebook, text, email and chat on the phone.
When I grocery shop each week I buy food to supply 21 meals (and add in 1 or 2 extra 'just in case' one of the kids are sick and I don't feel like going to the store).
Kitty
Proud member of the Rainbow Poop Debate Squad
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Kitty
"If you can't annoy somebody with what you write, I think there's little point in writing."-- Kingsley Amis, British novelist, 1971 t .
"Our Farmer's Market is too far away from where I live or I'd utilize it."
One more reason I love San Diego county. We have 17 certified (by the County Agricultural Commissioner)farmer's markets within driving distance (about a 30 mile radius). They run year round. All of them operate farms in San Diego county. So very local; most produce picked that morning. I could go to a different farmer's market every day of the week. Most of them are certified organic and even the ones who didn't spend the money on the certificate are organic. There are also numerous farm stands around our town. I usually go to the farmer's market that runs on Tuesdays in my town. The town council closes 2 blocks of downtown for it. It's about 3 miles from our house, a 15 minute drive, 10 if the lights are with me. If I need more fresh produce, I go to the farm stand about a mile from our house in the other direction. They are also at the farmer's market on Tuesday.
Chris
The truth may be out there but lies are in your head. Terry Pratchett
My girlfriends that woh shop either in the morning before work or after they get off to savor their weekends with down time.
When I woh before kids I went to the grocery like that. No weekends.
Just works better for me.
I don't want to be in the stores or even the mall on the weekends.
Because you're supposed to be all green with envy over her grocery delivery.
Peapod is nice when I want to buy a lot of really heavy stuff--like litter, sodas, detergent if it's on sale--since they'll haul it into the kitchen for me. But I don't like not being able to pick out my own veggies and a lot of times, if they're out of something, they flat out won't bring it (as opposed to emailing and asking about substitutions), which has been a huge hassle sometimes when the evening's menu depended on the ingredient. So I only use it for stuff that I'm not going to require the day of delivery (giving me time to go out and get it elsewhere) or when I want to stock up on heavy stuff I don't feel like hauling myself.
Kitty
Proud member of the Rainbow Poop Debate Squad
************
Kitty
"If you can't annoy somebody with what you write, I think there's little point in writing."-- Kingsley Amis, British novelist, 1971 t .
That is cool. We have 2 but they are close to each other and farther than I want to drive on my day out.
Maybe someday they will put one close to me or down the road in a few years when we buy a new house maybe there will be one closer to me then.
Kitty
Proud member of the Rainbow Poop Debate Squad
************
Kitty
"If you can't annoy somebody with what you write, I think there's little point in writing."-- Kingsley Amis, British novelist, 1971 t .
I like to add shredded carrots or thinly sliced strips of red pepper, lightly saute'd to my sauce. It provides the sugar needed to cut the acidity, but in a healthier form, plus I love the way they crunch :)
And since carbs in the form of pasta are SUCH a simple carb and so highly processed, I have to really limit the quantities I eat because of my diabetes. So I usually cook a tiny portion of pasta and augment it with heaps of spaghetti squash, which is delicious with a good, veggie-filled marinara :) Very low in calories and filling :)
Kitty
Proud member of the Rainbow Poop Debate Squad
************
Kitty
"If you can't annoy somebody with what you write, I think there's little point in writing."-- Kingsley Amis, British novelist, 1971 t .
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