Company and Cleaning Fun
Today one of our neighbors and her 1-year-old daughter came over to play. We'd been talking about getting together with this family for ages, but just hadn't done it yet.
I kept thinking I'd start inviting the neighbors over as soon as my house was clean enough not to be totally embarrassing. Last week it dawned on me that I've been waiting for my house to be "good enough" for more than 3 years. Three. Years. FlyLady calls it CHAOS--can't have anyone over syndrome.
It would be nice if someday my house is presentable enough that I can invite anyonne in without worrying and being embarrassed about it. But life is too short to wait to get started on important things like getting to know the neighbors until then.
So I stepped out of my comfort zone and invited these people over. We had a great time. The girls loved having a "baby" to play with that was actually old enough to walk around and roll a ball back and forth with them. They played and played, and all three of them had a blast. I enjoyed visiting with the mom too. And she didn't seem to mind my house. She shared with me that she's had to decide having time for other things is more important than having her house as clean as she'd like, too.
Now that the ice is broken, I'm hoping we'll get together often. As the girls get older, it will be wonderful to have another little girl close to their age two doors away. We really like this family and I hope we can be good friends rather than just friendly acquaintances as we have been until now. There are several other neighbors I'd like to invite over as well.
My sister J got home tonight, and my parents and sisters came over for a little while. It's so nice to be all together for a little while. Hopefully they'll all have time to get together several times while Sis is home.
A couple of days ago, I discovered a great activity that the girls loved--scrubbing the kitchen floor! I got out a mop bucket and rags, and all three of us got down on the floor and scrubbed while Baby E took a nap.
I was amazed at how happily and hard the girls worked. We talked and I told them stories about helping my dad on the jobsite as a kid. Washing the floor held their attention for a good hour or more, and they were quite a big help.
They got the linoleum good and wet, then I came along behind and wiped up the mop water after it had a chance to soak off the dirt. I let them dunk their rags and splash in the puddles on the floor. We all got dirty and soaked, but it was fun. The floor was really clean when we got done--for about 10 minutes anyway.
Yesterday when I asked AJ what she would like to do after her nap, she said "help you clean up!"
I'll enjoy it while it lasts. :)
I kept thinking I'd start inviting the neighbors over as soon as my house was clean enough not to be totally embarrassing. Last week it dawned on me that I've been waiting for my house to be "good enough" for more than 3 years. Three. Years. FlyLady calls it CHAOS--can't have anyone over syndrome.
It would be nice if someday my house is presentable enough that I can invite anyonne in without worrying and being embarrassed about it. But life is too short to wait to get started on important things like getting to know the neighbors until then.
So I stepped out of my comfort zone and invited these people over. We had a great time. The girls loved having a "baby" to play with that was actually old enough to walk around and roll a ball back and forth with them. They played and played, and all three of them had a blast. I enjoyed visiting with the mom too. And she didn't seem to mind my house. She shared with me that she's had to decide having time for other things is more important than having her house as clean as she'd like, too.
Now that the ice is broken, I'm hoping we'll get together often. As the girls get older, it will be wonderful to have another little girl close to their age two doors away. We really like this family and I hope we can be good friends rather than just friendly acquaintances as we have been until now. There are several other neighbors I'd like to invite over as well.
My sister J got home tonight, and my parents and sisters came over for a little while. It's so nice to be all together for a little while. Hopefully they'll all have time to get together several times while Sis is home.
A couple of days ago, I discovered a great activity that the girls loved--scrubbing the kitchen floor! I got out a mop bucket and rags, and all three of us got down on the floor and scrubbed while Baby E took a nap.
I was amazed at how happily and hard the girls worked. We talked and I told them stories about helping my dad on the jobsite as a kid. Washing the floor held their attention for a good hour or more, and they were quite a big help.
They got the linoleum good and wet, then I came along behind and wiped up the mop water after it had a chance to soak off the dirt. I let them dunk their rags and splash in the puddles on the floor. We all got dirty and soaked, but it was fun. The floor was really clean when we got done--for about 10 minutes anyway.
Yesterday when I asked AJ what she would like to do after her nap, she said "help you clean up!"
I'll enjoy it while it lasts. :)
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Posted by purple_kangaroo at 11:05 PM[Permanent link]
4 Comments:
Yes Indeed enjoy it while it lasts!! Mine like to clean, too. Hannah is learning to fold towels, Jackson is getting the hang of wiping down the bathroom sink, etc .. It reminds me of an Elizaberth Elliot article I read last week.
Hehe, sounds like mopping the floor was fun! I remember how Mom would wax the wood floor and then have me "skate" all over it in a pair of Dad's old socks to shine it...
It was good seeing you last night, too! :-)
I think that is so wonderful. It is important to not only find good friends for the kids, but to take care of yourself too. Great job!
It's the Tom Sawyer effect. My daughter loves scrubbing the kitchen floor, playing Cinderella.
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