Each month on the MOAT blog, we’re adding a new life skill that will aid in our family’s transformation for “enabled” to “equipped”. February started the revolution with the simple tasks of bed making and bathroom clutter control. March added kitchen duties to the docket. April threw in yard work. (April has been the hardest. I’m not sure if we’re already getting tired of our “game” or if the weather’s lack of cooperation cooled, literally, our enthusiasm and determination).

May is introducing Lysol, Tylex, Pine-Sol & Soft Scrub…plus the incredibly daunting and, for some reason, giggle-producing toilet brush. (What is up with a kid’s need to sneak a snicker or fake gag on any matter associated with a toilet?! Seriously.)

Up to this point, I have kept our cleaning products in a plastic caddy and transported them from room to room. It has seemed frugal and safe. But in the name of hard work, we’ve headed to Target and gathered supplies for each of our 3 bathrooms.


I feel like I’m living in Laura Numeroff’s world.

If you give a mom some Pine-Sol, she’ll want a new cleaning product caddy.
Then she’ll take the caddy to the bathroom and see all the junk under the sink.
When she sees the junk, she’ll want to follow through with the long procrastinated garage sale.
She’ll gather the under sink non-essentials and race for the back door.
As she runs down the stairs, she will trip on the shoe left in the middle of the floor.
This reminds her that her children should be the ones gathering garage sale stuff.
So she goes back up the stairs to “inspire” her kids to gather their sale items.
When she goes in a room, she sees a made bed … and smiles.
She drops the culprit’s shoe and picks up the forgotten pj’s on the floor…
where she sees the Pine-Sol sitting by the bathroom.
She decides she needs a break,
remembers her Kuerig Coffee Maker,
blows off the bathroom,
forgets the garage sale for one more week,
and settles in for some Coffee People French Roast (decaf) … yummmmm.

So, we’re moving into deeper cleaning territory.  I’m hitting my toughest push-back thus far.  Even as I’m writing, I’m realizing we’ve forgotten the all-important “Family Meeting”.  Maybe that will help.  I think the kids might be losing sight of the benefits and I need to be a little creative on ways to inspire them.  It’s probably a combination of the new equipping program around here plus 12 more days of school.

So … Thanks for walking the road with me.  (I think today it would be more accurate to say, “Thanks for Slow Walking the road with me.”… I can see why he likes that strategy :)
-Kay

MOAT Quotes:
…from one mom who has made it to the laundry phase of equipping and whose girls are doing everything within their power to steer clear of the washing machine, “I found my oldest going through my drawer.  You know its a sad day when you’re wearing your mother’s underwear to school because you’re too stubborn to wash your own!”

… from a mom who is easing into dinner time equipping, “I tried the dinner thing, but instead of piling the whole meal on my daughter, I had her prepare the twice baked potatoes.  It worked great … not overloading since her schedule is so packed, but gave her a very real opportunity to cook and try something she didn’t know how to do.  Great.”

Keep on keepin’ on … and share your stories.  We love to hear them :)

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