Making a Good Home   by Maria

in Family / Parenting    (submitted 2011-02-08)

A large part of motherhood involves housekeeping and making a good home. It's no secret that homes don't take care of themselves - even less so, in fact, than children do. Every day brings on a new round of the same tasks. Dishes need to be washed, meals need to be prepared, laundry needs to be done, floors need to be cleaned or vacuumed, and the list goes on and on. It becomes, at some point, a perpetual juggling act.

The Kids Are All Right

There is also the matter of engaging with the children, who naturally require a lot of attention and watching over. They need help with their homework and picking out clothes and getting off to school. Children will also have their own dramatic squabbles and disagreements which will require parental monitoring. It is as equal parts emotionally and physically draining.

Everyone Pitches In

The proper raising of children, it would seem, involves teaching them to pick up after themselves at the very least. They should also be able to bathe themselves, dress themselves and brush their own teeth at a fairly early age. They should also be able to prepare simple meals like a bowl of cereal for breakfast. Not only are these vital skills which they will need to master anyhow, they can alleviate a lot of the stress from Mom's life in the process.

As for the father, his contributions traditionally come in the form of yard work, disciplining the children and more yard work. Dad gets to come home and play with the kids, having traded his share of the housework for a 40-hour-a-week job. The situation that has just been described applies to fewer and fewer households as time has gone by, but it nonetheless remains a time-honored blueprint for the majority of American families.

About the Author

Maria writes for several websites for moms. She is raising 3 children herself and works as a journalist full time.