Monday, May 21, 2012

Mess

We've been watching a lot of the tv show Hoarders lately. I am (perhaps overly) minimalist and organized. My wife is all about clean but has a much higher threshold for clutter than I do. Call me paranoid but I've already started worrying about how our habits will effect the kids. At the end of the day we make Ruby help clean up. At first she fought kicking and screaming and would only move one or two things. As time has gone on she has more and more of an interest and does more and more.
My niece is really into cleaning. Apparently you can give her a rag and she'll dust the entire house. I remember when I was young I earned part of my allowance by doing chores. I think this is a smart system that we'll use when they get older.
I had lofty goals and aspirations when we first talked about kids. My thoughts were to get them started as soon as possible, totally old school. Maybe pick them up a shady factory gig when they are still in single digits. When they are big enough to push a mower we could get them doing some mowing and landscaping around the neighborhood. By the time they are driving age they can buy their own car. After that no more toting them to the factory, they can drive to their office job. Once they learn to live off of the meager funds they will have left after they have to start supporting us they can start their own college fund and 401k. I know it sounds a little harsh but if they invest wisely, they can retire early. 
Like so many other areas with the girls, I want them to get the best parts of my wife and I and none of the bad. Realistically, I will be happy if they are clean and neat but not white glove obsessed or germaphobes.

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