If there's an advantage to Mommy being sick, it's that Grandma got to supervise, i.e. watch, Noah doing his chores. His is not a difficult regimen, but still pretty impressive for a three-year old, particularly the enthusiasm with which he demonstrated his skills.
- Clear his own breakfast dishes off the table and put them in the dishwasher.
- Brush his teeth.
- Make his bed.
- Sweep under the table, which is only fitting, since most of the crumbs seem to be his.
- "Help Mommy," which on this particular day meant cleaning the tub in the bathroom.
If you were to suspect that a tub cleaned by a three-year-old does not get quite as clean as it might, you would be right, particularly since his cleaning agents are baking soda and water. But the result is good enough, and the investment in future "help Mommy" assistance priceless.
I did not watch Jonathan doing his chores, so I can't chronicle them, but he did proudly show me his sparkling clean bathroom sink.
The boys also do laundry, taking the clothes downstairs, putting them in the washer, adding the detergent, and making sure all the settings are correct. (Some strategically placed stickers help with the last.) Later, they do similar honors for the dryer stage. A rug covering the basement floor in the laundry area mitigates any problems when articles of clothing get dropped in the transfer process.
If they are not so good at remembering to subsequently retrieve the dry clothes and bring them upstairs...well, neither is Grandma.
