Responsibility with kids.

Do you have kids? Do you have responsibilities for them to do daily, weekly, monthly? I am a mama of four kiddos ranging from 2-13. Each child has responsibilities to finish daily. It might depend on the day for what I have, but I do try to include every child on a list of things to complete for the day. For the little ones, their bed needs to be made every day…obviously I help the little one do it, but he is responsible for putting the pillows on the bed. Grahm still struggles some, so I help him a little. When toys get brought out whether it be in their room or living room they are responsible for putting things away by the end of the night. Depending on how big of a mess it is they might be instructed to clean it up before getting anything else out. On laundry days each child has a basket for their clean clothes to go into as I empty out the dryer. When I am completely finished with laundry I will have them each take their baskets into their room and put their clothes away or I will help the little ones do so. On school days homework comes right after an after school snack. Then for the older two they are responsible for their little chores, chickens, rabbits, cats, and dogs. When it comes to these little responsibilities we hold them at a high standard ESPECIALLY when it comes to the animals. It comes to the point that we go back through and check what they did because they need to be held responsible and take their animals/pets seriously. We have some issues when it comes to taking the low end of the totem pole or doing the bare minimum when it comes to responsibilities. We are sticklers when it comes to these to do lists because they are simple things for the kids to do and be responsible at accomplishing these daily, weekly, monthly. I want my kids to not be dependent on Sam or myself. I want them to be able to handle issues on their own, but still know that we are here if they do in fact need the help. I don’t want my kids to grow up and go out into the real world and get hit in the face with reality and not know what hit them. I want our kids to have high expectations for themselves so they work hard to achieve their goals/wants. Don’t get me wrong bare minimum works, but I want them to see/feel what pushing themselves can really do. With that mindset they are fit to accomplish so much. Sam and I both for whatever reason are two people that are fully capable of doing things by ourselves we are self sufficient and that’s what I want for our kids. I want them to feel rewarded when they accomplish something on their own. I know I am forever grateful for being able to depend on myself and accomplish most things, but know that if I do need help it’s okay to ask for it…even if it’s after I have failed at multiple attempts of getting it done myself before finally asking for it. With these small responsibilities I am hoping it will boost confidence and independence as they continue to accomplish and gain more responsibilities as they grow.