I always thought that doing laundry was a big pain in the butt. Having to check the pockets, making sure stains have something sprayed on them, making sure socks are crumpled so that the dirty spots don't get washed, turning t-shirts inside out so the prints don't wear out. All the trips up and down stairs with heavy baskets. Remembering to gather the dirty clothes from the bedsides, bathrooms, front hall, etc. Just a big, pain-in-the-butt chore. And thank goodness my hubby does his own laundry!
But recently, I've actually enjoyed doing the laundry. The cute little girl clothes and underwear and the adorable little boy outfits? SO cute! I don't even mind scrubbing out stains, and I love discovering what's in the little pockets!
This week's question of the week is:
What is something that you didn't think you would like doing for the kids but you actually do like doing?
In addition to laundry, I am really enjoying packing lunches for the Pumpkin! This was something I never thought I would like to do, but I do like it! Shopping for different items to that she will like, thinking up what to put in, and even fixing sandwiches! (She loves chicken salad sandwiches! Who knew there was actually a sandwich she would like? I just need to remember to cover everything in either mayo or butter!) It adds time to my evenings/nights, but it's not bad and it feels good to have all that prep done and lunches ready to go for the morning!
I've been giving it some thought, and I don't think my enjoyment is really from doing the chores. It's that these activities bring out a very maternal feeling in me. This is what a Mom (or Dad) does for her (or his) kids. These are the things that parents do daily/weekly to care for and provide for their children. I'm a mom, and I do my kids' laundry and pack their lunches. I do many other things, but these are two things that I didn't know I would enjoy about being a mom. And I really do.
What about you? Any specific chores you thought would be a pain but turn out to be fun? Do any little chores bring out parental feelings in you? What do you things do you enjoy doing for your kids?
9 comments:
When there's no whining involved bath/bedtime is lovely. I don't mind laundry at all. Even stripping pee soaked sheets multiple times a week doesn't cause me much more than an ugh on the frustration level. I really like packing his lunch and like it even more when the teachers report back he ate his baby carrots sans any dip. (Not a bit of my doing and yet it pleases me immensely.) The thing I don't mind that surprises me the most is hauling armfulls of kid stuff to and from the car and destinations. I always dreaded that part pre-baby and it never bothered me and still doesn't. Of course I'm as likely to forget half the things I need and feel like a parenting failure but the times that I get it all together - so happy! :)
I love making breakfast for DS. I was never a morning person before he arrived, and often subsisted on coffee and muffin grabbed at Starbucks on the way to work. I dreaded thinking about how I was going to work breakfast into my routine as I try to get out the door on time, but now I love it. Sometimes its simple (toast and peanut butter), sometimes we make crepes together, or a do an all-out fry up. But getting both of our days started with a nice breakfast that we eat together at the kitchen table is one of the nicest parts of my day. And it makes me feel like a good mommy.
PS - It really helps that the nanny comes and does the kitchen clean up afterwards.
Packing her food and bottles for daycare, I love labeling everything. Folding her clothes.
Sorry, I still hate laundry!
I guess the "chore" I actually enjoy is the bedtime snuggle time with Pumpkin. Now that I know it is 4 songs, the Zebra story, and "go type in the guest room for a lot of minutes!" I find myself looking forward to the time snuggled up with her.
I love packing lunches and snacks for DS, and also just cooking for the whole family. But I have always liked cooking. Still, it feels very maternal to me, and so basic: provisioning your family with healthy home-cooked food.
But like you I have been astonished at how much the rote necessities of daily living with a child (tooth-brushing, diaper-changing or potty time, dressing, bathtime, etc.) have become a thing of beauty to me. I remember changing DS's diaper for like the 8000th time in his life and thinking "this is what life is made of." Not in a depressing way, but more like thinking about how the relationship with your kids is made out of all the routine care. That stuff isn't a sidebar or a distraction: it is the thing itself.
This is going to sound so vain and material. But the thing I like is shopping for cute clothes for them, dressing them in cute clothes, and washing/drying/folding and putting away their cute clothes. My mom says its like a fashion show every time she sees them. And she's right, it is. They are well dressed kids!
I also don't mind grocery shopping, cooking, and baking. I don't like the cleaning up that goes along with the cooking and baking though.
Not a "chore" per se, but I really enjoy reading books with my kids, feeding table foods to our 11 mos old so she can enjoy dinner with the rest of her family, and playing t-ball and singing nursery rhymes with my older child. His current fave song is "Three Blind Mice" (what a bloody tale it is, too).
@Melba - ooh, me too on the shopping for cute clothes for the kids! Luckily thrift stores make this habit very affordable!
I love laundry. I love the fresh start of it - the smells, the softness, the itty bitty tops and the big boy underwear that are still so small compared to his father's...but I hate putting it away so it ends up at the foot of my bed in baskets. I'm working on changing that.
Ironing my kids clothes. I only ever iron once a week and I think that is why I actually like it.
Oh and shopping for my kids clothes and helping them put an outfit together. I can never successfully do that for myself so I love doing it for my kids.
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