blessed beyond a doubt affiliate disclosure2

This is a sponsored post written on behalf of Swiffer. All opinions are 100% my own.

 

I admit that I can not be a fun mommy at times. 

Messes make me crazy!

I like order and cleanliness. 

Check out how I get my kids to clean their own messes. Yours will too! #yestothemess #ad

It’s not that I don’t want to be a cool and hip mom because I really want to be the coolest mom on the block. I want to be the house that all the neighborhood kids come to because our house is so darn fun.

But in the past, I’ve dreaded and have declined my kids having friends over at times due to the dread of them making a huge mess.

In all honesty, it’s not fair to my children that their mom is a neat fanatic. Honestly I have come a long way over the years, but I still have a few issues that I’m working on.

I’ve been pondering  my selfish secret over the years and decided that some changes need to take place besides just in my own heart. 

Michele

I had the most wonderful opportunity to visit with Sarah Michele Gellar at a Swiffer campaign last month in New York City. She’s a busy of mom of 3 children and she was stressing, “Say YES to the Mess!” Sarah Michele believes that cleaning up is a huge part of making-the-mess process when it comes to our children. However, we must provide the tools and train our children to clean up their messes properly.

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Whether the mess is accidental or created from an engaging messy project, all children should be required to clean up their own messes, even as young as their toddler years.

This is real life.

I believe that if we don’t teach our children how to clean up their own messes, we are doing them a disservice for their future.

And I have been guilty of this over the years.

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Swiffer products make it so easy for even the young child to adequately clean. My children are required to dust their own room weekly with the Swiffer duster. I have trained my children how to use this simple tool and they think it’s actually fun. You can even train your hubbie, and he will think he’s the bomb, too. I have my husband loving dusting the ceiling fans now. 

My daughter and son literally fight over the Swiffer WetJet mop each time they make a mess together. They actually get to see for themselves how necessary it is to clean up with the dirty proof of the pad.

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Hey, no judging now! 

I just let my kids make cupcakes because I’m so cool. They know that I will say no the next time to any requested projects or activities if they don’t clean up their own mess after they are finished with their project. 

Yes, I’m mean like that! 

So the secret to getting my kids to clean up their own messes are the following:

  • Provide your children with easy, but effective tools that are FUN to clean with as needed
  • Teach your children how to use the cleaning tools
  • Be diligent about saying yes to the mess as long as they have cleaned up their last mess adequately to your standards. 

These 3 secrets have made a huge difference in my outlook on saying yes to the mess with messy projects. Thank you Swiffer for making effective, but totally cool cleaning tools that all kids love. 

I’m in love with you, too, Swiffer!

How do you get your kids to clean up their own messes, or is it still an issue at your house?