Welcome to boot camp children!

Yep, I wanted to actually be here a month ago right as school let out but decided to give the kids a week break and then I got sick and then got sick again and then we got inundated with playdates and sleepovers. But play time ended today when I realized I just could not freaking take the mess of the house any more. Their slipshod attitude to their chores drives me batty and I'm seriously thinking that the crappy job they do on certain things is really contributing to my health problems. I tried talking to them over a week ago about things. I talked to them again over the weekend. (and none of these are new talks either, I've been saying the same things for YEARS with no more than extremely short term success). Today, I lost it. Not one of my prouder parenting moments to be sure but you know, sometimes mommy needs to have a temper tantrum. I gave them a dose of how they've been treating me for years and showed them exactly how it felt.

Apparently they didn't like it. Big news, I don't like it either guys.

So now the result is that they have no monitor time for the week and we'll see where it goes from there. Rewards have had little effect on them but usually hitting them in the video game department at least gets them to stop drooling on themselves and maybe do something so we'll see. When (if) they get it back, they'll find severe restrictions on its use. But first, they are going to have to earn it back. Today was a good start. My dining room no longer makes me cringe thanks to Jonathan with a little help from Nicholas. Chris did some nice work in the kitchen including getting the counters all wiped down and cleaning out the microwave. Matt got to rearrange the tupperware and other baking things since apparently my way of organizing is not to his liking (at least that's what I'm assuming since every time I go in there and do it, he doesn't follow my thinking and just throws stuff wherever so I can't find anything and if I do, a billion things fall out on me when I try to get the one thing I need out). Then he went and did some more work on his legos since that seems to be a major obstacle in their getting their room cleaned up. Not sure I'm buying that one (it's not legos on the floor but the boxes of them that are their current excuse).

Lest anyone think I'm working my kids to death over here let me assure you that is hardly the case. These are all chores I've risen from my sickbed to do in the last 6mos only to have my darling children come right behind me and throw their crap all over so now they were getting to clean up the messes that they have made. And I was still behind them helping and guiding them. I just refuse to be their maid any longer. I wouldn't mind if there were some appreciation and consideration for all the hours I put in cleaning up after them but when I can't clean up a second mess before they've already made a new one in the area I just cleaned up? Sorry, I'm done playing that game.

While they were cleaning for their lives, I managed to get tons of laundry done and started getting some of their messes cleaned up in my bedroom (see, I'm still cleaning up their messes *sigh*). Found some more floor area and the top of the foot locker which was a good start. Still tons to do in all areas of the house but hopefully we'll have a good dent in it by the end of the week. Then we'll see how we are going to proceed but I think we'll be in boot camp for a while to come. Hope they enjoy the stay of Drill Sergeant Mom.