I don’t know about any of you out there, but my 6 year old seems to attract mess!  There are times when I hear myself dispairing about the mess of her room and her reluctance to tidy up after herself and I catch myself and I tell myself that it is only mess, it will not kill anyone!  Let’s be clear, I’m talking about “mess” not “dirt”!

Yes, I readily admitt it!  Keeping my space tidy and organised and clutter free, is a little hang up of mine and more often than not, I spend too much time focusing on it.  But I’ve got it down to this in regard to my 6 year old.  Put the toys in the toy box when you’re finished with them and put your laundry in the laundry tub when they are dirty.

For me, the alternative of raising a child where you are constantly picking up after them just does not bear thinking about.  We all know and speak to those mothers whose children at 15, still drop their dirty underwear on their bedroom floor and then wonder, come day 6, why they have no clean underwear in their draws.  I personally refuse to be that mother who goes mining for dirty underwear in my daughter’s bedroom and so though I’ve relaxed somewhat around the whole issue, I will not stop with the two basic reminders I’ve outlined: toys in the toy box, dirty laundry in the laundry tub.

I believe having your child pick up after themselves is good, basic child rearing.  There are always boundaries, rules and responsibilities that must be adhered to and letting your child, whether 6 or 16 run riot without recognising these boundaries, rules and responsibilities is a mistake that can be very hard to rectify later in life.

So, my girl might sigh at me from time to time when I issue a gentle reminder, but to my mind the life lessons that she’s learning are well worth it!