I was just curious and wanted to take a quick poll on who you think is messier~ girls or boys?
My daughter’s closet is a total nightmare. She changes her wardrobe at least 2-3 times a day (even when we are just lounging around home being lazy). Then she just chunks it on the floor of her closet. KILLS ME!
So, I’ve been dreading it (b/c I knew it would take 5 hours), but today- I finally made her CLEAN IT UP! This is only about 1/3 of the clothes that was covering her closet floor. Good grief!
Yep, I sure did make her get a step stool and hang every single piece of clothing back up!
I think that was part of the problem…she would yank clothes down and not be able to hang them back up~ so we are keeping the step stool in there…for now.
My boys are SOOOOOO much cleaner and tidier (is that a word?) than Sav. I mean seriously, 3 four year old boys?!!
Unreal.
So, what do you guys think? What have YOU found to be true? And do you have any advice on how to make my daughter keep her room clean?
41 comments:
My daughter is around the same age as Sav and I've often thought a lot of times that s reminds me of my daughter. Well, this just solidifies it! Jenna is so messy and throws her clothes on the floor too! Drives me bonkers!
Tell her that if she leaves her clothes on the floor, bugs will start to crawl on/in her clothes.
My 15 month old is a lot tidier than my 3 1/2 year old! She refuses to help tidy up toys unless I threaten to throw them out whereas he will tidy everything up without being asked. When we go to gymtots he is the child tidying up all of the toys after circle time.
I have a little girl a few months older than Sav and she is exactly the same way.
She changes clothes every hour or so, yanks them down and then can't hang them back up and when she runs out of clothes she starts in on the dress ups. She has several ballet and princess dress ups so you can imagine the state of her cupboard. To make matters worse she shares with her two brothers (7 and 1) so they get stuck with the mess as well.
Hopefully the step stool will help, other than that you could try lowering the rod to a more manageable height for her, which is what I plan to do.
I just saw this cool idea on pinterest, where everyone has a mason jar, decorated, with a set amount of quarters per week. They have certain things they are supposed to do, and if they are not done they get a quarter taken(a no nag type thing!) if they do all they are supposed to do(as little as brush teeth and put clothes in hamper for younger ones) they get the quarters that are in their jar at the end of the week. Everest is 3 and it's working for him to help pick up his toys and blankets(the kid has like 25 in his bed). He loves quarters :)
Both my girls are disasters. I think it has to do with picking an outfit (or three) each day.
Suz, I would have to say that yes my daughter is like this as well, she is six years old and used to be SOOO clean! Well she grew out of that and now crams everything into every little nook and cranny she can find! Wouldn't it just be easier to actually put it where it goes instead of trying to find a spot to shove it?! lol! So lately when it comes to the toys I will give her a trash bag and make her put her toys that are on the floor in the trash bag, and it goes into the garage until she has proven to me that she can keep her room cleaned up! :)
-Kristal
I think girls are defentily messier! I think it has something to do with the amount of "stuff" girls have over boys. Our daughter just turned 5. We spent around 6 months directing the clean up every night before bedtime. She now is in the routine of cleaning up everything before bed.
I have 3 boys: 13,8,3 and they are total dirtbags.. not only are they messy as in throw their dirty socks every which way.. but they are dirty in the hey-smell-my-bad-breath way too!! or tooting and laughing.. I can't deal.. I think I'm being punished for my husband's past sins.. ;) Love em to pieces (of course!) but my oh my I am like a drill sgt around here trying to keep this place in order.. but making THEM do it is KEY!!! If they don't.. no playtime.. or food.. kidding.. maybe.. LOL
Pushed the wrong button and lost my comment. Mama's ransome box. Anything left out goes in the box and the child has to pay a fee or do an extra chore to get the item back. When they move out you give them all the money collected if you charge a fee.
Not a clue. My girls were messy as little ones and now that they're 17 and 15 - it's worse. The only good point now is that they're smart enough hide it in their closet and close the door. If I don't see it I don't freak AS much... (But I still freak out on them about 2 times a month. Pulling everything out of their closet and forcing them to wash, dry, and hang-up/fold each and every item.)
I only have one dd, so I can't comment on who's less messy. I am a lot neater than my dh though!! Since your dd loves clothes, you could tell her whenever you find a piece of clothing on the floor you are taking it away.
Lisa
Girls are messier (clutter), but they are also cleaner. Boys hate to clean - themselves, their rooms. the bathroom (especially when using the toilet).
My daughter is 6 and is MESSY! We decided to put a lock on her closet door because she would go in there and pull it all out and then everything would end up in the wash again. I don't like doing that, but it has helped. We also don't keep a lot in her room. She has her Tag books and map, her doll clothes and three dolls, her stuffed animal bin, a doll bed and a few books and a small basket of jewelry. And her CD player. That's all. And her bed of course. :) Limiting whats in her room has helped a lot, too. And having a bin or basket for everything. My son, who is 2 in July is neat as a pin. He likes things to be in order already!
I have 2 boys and a girl. Girl is 7 and likes clothes. She has to be pushed because she would rather just through her clothes on the floor than pick them up, but does take pride in her clean room when we get on her to clean up.
The secret is to limit her wardrobe.
With the boys, the mess is lego and army men. It KILLS me! Stepping on those damn sharp things. The boys don't give a crap about the mess. One thing: they are much more willing to play with their toys over watching TV when their toys are laying all over the floor. The mess beckons them.
My daughter is 4..5 in October so I KNOW exactly what ya mean! She changes clothes allllll the time, mostly into her princess dresses that take up one half of the closet. Where do they go- on the floor! And she can reach! We make her clean it up as well- we are not those parents who do everything for our kids. They make a mess, they will clean it up. In fact just the other night Kinley said "ugh, why do I have to do everything around here!?" Good grief child, JUST WAIT!!!
I think girls are messier but boys are dirtier...if that makes sense.
Just start taking away the clothes that she leaves on the floor.
Lauren will take off her dirty clothes and leave them in a pile on her floor EVERY night, no matter that I tell her as she's getting undressed to put them in the clothes hamper. Owen get undressed in front of the clothes hamper, putting the dirty clothes straight in it. And her room is a disaster!!
FIRST OF ALL: H.U.G.E. kudos to you for making HER pick it all up and hang it up, too! Honestly! So many moms feel it's THEIR job, not their kids!
I love the quarters in the jar comment. That is exactly what worked for our daughter!
Don't despair...they eventually return to neat freak mode...when it's their house, their apt, their property...like when they're about 25 years old! lol
Also, I finally decided for my own sanity that we would come to the understanding that when we were having people over, her room had to be spotless and otherwise she could just live in that heap. Worked!! (for a while) Then we implemented the quarters in th jar and m.a.g.i.c.o.!!
My Daughter is 5 and does the same thing! Drives me nuts. I have the bottom of her closet organized and I hate when I find clothes that fit now mixed in with clothes for next year. She uses plastic container full of clothes to stand on and pick clothes for the day. I have her work with me each night to make sure her closet is okay. Now I wish I could have someone help me clean up the rest of the house each night.
Courtney
My friend had a cardboard box. She put everything she found on the floor at bedtime in that box. Her children had to earn it back. It worked.
The best way to get a kid to keep their room clean is the "two-week bag". But you have to stay strong mamma. You give her a deadline to have her room clean- say Friday. On Friday you go in her room with a big garbage bag and whatever is not put away or on the floor goes in the two week bag and she can't have anything in that bag for two weeks (even if it makes your life easier). You will have to put the bag in the attic or at a friends house so you aren't as tempted to get things out of it. After a few times of her favorite things being taken away for two weeks hopefully she will improve. My parents use to do this for me and one time I had one of each my 2 pairs of tennis shoes in the bag so I had to wear mismatching shoes for 2 weeks-- but I never again left my shoes out :) Hope this helps.
I have two girls and two boys ages 24,21,18 and 16. Boys are much cleaner......hands down.
My girl is not really good at keeping things clean, but my son is. I have found that when I give them a chart list (with stickers when accomplished) things around the house stay a lot cleaner. Kids love tasks and it helps them see that when they do their part everyone is more appreciative and calmer =] Good luck !
I have 6 year old boy-girl twins.
LEGOS. LEGOS. LEGOS.
Matchbox cars. Matchbox cars. Matchbox cars.
I disagree with everyone who says girls are messier! :-)
I think it depends not on gender but on the child's personality.
My suggestons - hang a second clothes bar lower in the closet, to make it easier for her to reach without a stepstool.
My second thought is that I think it is difficult for little kids to neatly hang clothes on hangers or fold them in drawers. What can she realistically do to put her clothes away neatly? Put them in bins? Hang them on hooks? What are your expectations? I'm curious b/c my own twin almost 7yo boys do not do a great job with clothes.
My boys are definitely cleaner than my girl. Our rule is clean up when asked before bed and you get 2 books instead of 1 at bedtime. Last night Aubrey came in the kitchen and sat down as I was doing dishes and I asked her if she was done cleaning? Her response..."No the boys can do it, I only want one book!"
So I agree girls are messier...and SASSIER!
Good luck with that one! Sadly I have boys so will never be able to comment fully, although I have heard girls are messier. You may be fighting this battle for quite a few years to come yet, prepare yourself now!
I have the same closet problem with my four year old girl. My husband installed a second clothes rod lower for her to hang up her clothes. I also have the rule that either she can clean it up or I can clean it up. If I have to clean up the clothes then they go in the hand-me-down box for her little sister and she doesn't get those clothes anymore. She is terrified that she will have no pajamas left and if the house catches on fire, she will have to run out in only underwear. Needless to say, she cleans up her clothes every time I say "You choose--you can clean this up or I can clean this up." (Idea from "Parenting with Love and Logic") Good luck!
I'm torn. I have 2 girls & 3 boys (no twins. girls are oldest & youngest) - girls share a room, boys share a room. I do agree with Jill - LEGOS, EVERYWHERE, in the boys room. However, that is the extent of their mess.
The girls, on the other hand, have clothes everywhere, like Sav, along with purses, dolls, shoes, etc. Takes about 5 hrs to really clean their room too. The one thing that has really helped with the clothes issue is that I started making my oldest do her own laundry when she was about 6 or 7. That cut WAY down on the number of outfits she'd just throw on the floor instead of putting back up :)
Heather
My 1 boy is wayyyyyyyyyyyy messier than my 2 girls!
I have 2 extremes in my house...a very messy 17 year old and a 3 year old who loves to clean up, both girls I should add!
My 17 year old has always been messy. I've tried for years to get her to hang things back in her closet. So now that she's older when I go into her room I only wash what she's put in the hamper. I refuse to pick up clothes and guess if they are dirty or clean (9 out of 10 times they are clean) I know you can't do this with little ones but for future reference ;)
My 3 year old LOVES to clean. My older daughter says she's my mini-me and I'm "training" her. I honestly believe it's just part of a person's personality if they are a neat vs. messy person.
Good Luck with Sav...she's so stinkin cute I'm sure you can't stay annoyed with her for very long!
:)Deb
you could always hang another bar in the closet that is lower, so she could reach it without a stool. at least while her clothes are still littler.
and our daughter is WAY messier than our son.
WEll I don't have multiples, but I have a four year old girl and a five almost six year old boy....clothing my daughter is definitley sloppier, toys my son is sloppier. What we do is have a fifteen minute clean spree before bed every night. And I typically what needs the most attention prior to that time. And then I say OK Sam go clean up the matchbox cars, Soph go clean up the dress up...." and then set the timer
My daughter is messsssssy too! My son is messy, but it's laziness. I've seen totally messy boys and girls, and totally organized boys and girls. I can't believe I'm saying this... I think it has more to do with us as parents. YIKES, I said it. ((((hiding now)))) HA!
I agree girls are waaay messier!! I have 3 girls and 2 boys. And I say the girls beat the boys everytime!
Motherof5
I agree with you Suz, I think it might have to do with the fact that once she decides not to wear something it just stays on the floor. One suggestion - is the shelf (empty in your picture) permanent in the closet? If not, remove the closet and go to Home Depot and buy an adjustable closet rod and put one where it is easier for her to reach and hang up her clothes - and even if the shelf has to remain there is still would be a small amount of closet real estate she could use to hang up the clothes -
Then desingate a place or guidelines as what designates dirty or clean clothes and have a place for those.
As far as who is messier - boys or girls I agree it has a lot to do with personalities - and what is important to them - my daughter is 14 and her room is neat but when she gets up from somewhere she leaves her plates and candy wrappers (not important). My son's room and closet is equally as messy -
I also agree with the Mom sometimes what you can't see is fine - they have to live in there we don't - and another thing - pick your battles
Good LUCK!
Girls, definitely! I can't say it gets any better, either! Mine is 13 and some days I'm scared to open her closet! It doesn't help that she's a pack rat, either! But when she is made to clean it up, she does a really good job!
I love the idea of taking away the clothes that are left on the floor...I do the same thing with toys left on the floor. I would like to share that the idea about earning quarters is a great idea; however, as a teacher I do not support the idea of taking the quarters away. It can be counter-productive and cause them to not want to work hard toward something because it will just be taken away when they mess up. Focus on the good and reward the good behavior and you will find better success.
Nothing of amusement or game if she doesn't orders her room. for example =)
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