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from: spreadshirt.com |
I suppose I am an okay mom. You might have to ask my boys though. Last Saturday, when they didn't clean their room, I kicked them out of the house with no shoes on, told them not to leave the property, and then I bagged up their room.
The best part? I ceremoniously would unlock the back door, announce which bag I was on, and then toss the bag out into the dirt driveway.
"Bag number THREE!" And up it sailed, arcing until it landed with a "thud" making a little dust cloud from the impact.
I got to 5 bags.
Now, on the plus side, my girls saw what was going on and decided to Spring Clean their bedroom, asking if it was okay to toss some of the things they didn't use anymore.
Yes, yes it is. Thank-you very much.
I even moved furniture out of the boys' room. They had nothing.
I finished in under 30 minutes, and when I invited them back in, they cried. They cried when they saw they had nothing. No clothes, no toys, no furniture. Everything they owned was in the driveway.
I told them that later in the day, when I wasn't angry and they had a chance to sit in their empty room and contemplate their situation, they could bring in one bag at a time and put things away.
We went grocery shopping, and when we came home, they spent an hour and a half putting their stuff away.
Best thing? They filled a giant trash bag full of stuff to throw away.
I'm not sure what a great mom would have done. Maybe calmly worked side by side (AGAIN for the millionth time), helping her sons realize the value of a tidy room and the purpose of a trash can and dirty clothes hamper? (I mean seriously...they have two places to put dirty clothes and neither one is used regularly without a constant reminder.) Would she have pulled a Mary Poppins and sang happy cleaning songs with her children?
I'm not sure what a great mom would have done. I'm not sure I even care. All I know is that my boys' room has been clean this week. And, I am OKAY with that.
I wonder how long it'll last?