I make no bones about it. I expect a lot from my boys. They bathe themselves and wash their own hair. They pick out their clothes each morning and dress themselves down to their shoes. They (mostly) make their own snacks and clean the table when they’re done eating. Honestly, they do a great job…most of the time.
So when their grandma offered to let them spend a night or two — something we hope to repeat a few times over the summer — I decided it was time they learn to pack their own bag. I went over the required items: 1 t-shirt, 1 pair of shorts, two pairs of socks, two pairs of underwear, swim trunks, pajamas, toothbrush and a stuffed animal friend. I reiterated it individually to each boy, talking about when they’d need each item, and why two of some things might be good to have. They scurried to comply, excited about their new responsibility and in a hurry to get to grandma’s. A big hurry.
At our kid-free dinner later that night, I related to their dad how they were all standing by the door with bags in hand when I finished drying my hair. “All I had to do was load them in the car, and we were on our way!” I bragged.
The next morning, his mother called with a question. “Did Jodi actually check their bags before they left?
“Umm…maybe not. Why?
“Well, nobody packed any pajamas. Sam doesn’t have any underwear. And I guess Jack planned on going to the park without pants.”
Perhaps my expectations were a bit on the high side. Oh, well…they first time’s always a trial run at our house anyway. How about you? Am I nuts to expect so much?
I think it’s a great expectation! H does most of that himself- I do pick out his clothes bc he gets “distracted” and really doesn’t care what he wears 🙂