Chores Galore!

My two year old daughter begs to have the broom whenever I bring it out. It’s a funny sight when I do give in to her request. She can hardly keep the broom upright and I have to keep her brother safe from the long broom handle that swoops down on all of us. It really is a lot of fun to do chores with the kids. Well, let me rephrase that. It’s fun when you are not at the end of your wits trying to find time to finish everything. I remember my husband telling me that he did the majority of the clean up one night when I was away because the kids would just not budge and help. Another time, he made cleaning up the toys a fun race for the kids. That worked wonders! Young as they are they already show some preference for which chores they like to do (sorting laundry is definitely one of those) and which ones they seem to dislike a lot (cleaning up especially when they still want to play). As they get older, I’ve heard many a mom say that they just seem to develop a dislike to any kind of chore. Hmmm, it’s funny how I don’t remember disliking chores when I was growing up. Ha! Got you!

Family life would not be complete without chores. Chores are a natural consequence of wanting a home that is clean and orderly. It usually falls on us, mothers, to make sure the chores are done. If we are efficient moms then we have a knack for scheduling and delegating chores. If we are creative moms then we can make the chores fun for all the family. If we are Christian moms then we know how to make our children understand the importance of chores. We help them realize that they are improving their character when they do their chores. They also help others, in this case the family. To add an even deeper dimension, we teach them to do their chores as well as they can so that they can offer it up as a little sacrifice to God. We can teach them to offer up their chore for Dad’s work or for their brother or sister to get well or for them to pass an upcoming exam. I know it can be difficult for us to ask them to pick up their toys for the Nth time and to explain to them that mom and dad are not picking on them. Later on, they will understand. When they have families of their own and the responsibility of chores now fall on their shoulders, they will try to look back and remember how mom and dad managed things. They will remember how to make their homes like Mary's home in Nazareth, bright and cheerful with chores and all.

Do your children have specific chores that they know they are responsible for and are appropriate to their age?

Do they see you doing chores with a smile (or at least with minimal complaints)?

The Art of Prayer

A few years back, I was a volunteer helping out with a group of children. I remember... he was kneeling down on one of the church pews. His hands were together in prayer. His eyes were closed. His head slightly bent forward. Around him, children his age about 6 or 7 years old were already restless. A few of the boys beside him were calling his name. They wanted him to play with them. He looked straight at me with tears in his eyes. He implored, “Please… they are disturbing me.”

My husband was tired. I was exasperated. The two little ones still had so much energy. Every night, it seems like their energy level increases while ours decreases. It was time for our family prayer and the kids would just not keep still, let alone pray. I tried to keep my cool as I have tried to do so many times before. Night time prayer! What a struggle!

In his heavy Spanish accent, Father Ed chuckled as he related to us his experience of preparing children for confession. He would ask each one, “Do you pray?” He was pleasantly surprised that each child said yes. He would follow up with the question, “When do you pray?” Each would reply, “All the time, Father.” Wonderful, he thought to himself. Then, for one of the children, he varied his question. “So, what do you pray?” The child replied innocently, “I play soccer, basketball…” 

That day my children wanted to fly their toy kite. Unfortunately, there was no wind that day. I suggested that they pray for wind. My three year old started to recite the prayer for meals, “Bless us Oh Lord…” Oh, bless his little heart!

My friend, a mother of five, brings her children including the little ones to daily Mass. One day after Mass, another mother struggling to make her own two kids behave approached her and asked, “How do you do it?”

Prayer can sometimes be a struggle for our children. And, even more of a struggle for us parents. But, all our little stories of trying, comic or otherwise help our children value prayer. Our goal is for praying to become as natural to them as playing.

Do your children have some time devoted to prayer everyday?

Do your children see you pray, too?