blind_otter Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 I had to do my own laundry as soon as I could see over the washing machine. Do you think 12 is too young to do your own laundry? Link to post Share on other sites
Trialbyfire Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Nope. I started doing my own laundry at 10. Hell, my mother made me pick my own china pattern at 11! Link to post Share on other sites
jerbear Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 I never had to do laundry till high school. It also happened to be the time we got a washing machine and I was allowed to use it. I think 12 maybe young but it really comes to maturity levels and ability. Just because they are 12 does not mean they can not learn and figure it out. Link to post Share on other sites
westernxer Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 It builds character. LOL Link to post Share on other sites
parrotlover Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Nope, my 12 year old does all her own laundry. Including her bedding and towels. She washes, dries, folds and hangs up all her own stuff. She takes WAY better care of her stuff than most kids her age, since she has to do the work (not throwing clothes on the floor for example). Link to post Share on other sites
jerbear Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 It builds character. LOL -OR- If a 12 year old can get an sexual experience around 12, maybe (s)he'll want to do laundry to hide the evidence. Link to post Share on other sites
Citizen Erased Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 While we did help on occasion, my mother always did the laundry, cooking, cleaning etc. She's still doing my brother's laundry and he's almost 18. I know she resented it and I don't blame her. My children will be certainly helping out more than I was expected to as a kid. Not raising lazy, ungrateful brats. Link to post Share on other sites
alphamale Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 some 12 year olds could handle it, some couldn't Link to post Share on other sites
Touche Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 It doesn't matter if you think he's old enough because as long as his dad thinks he's not, you're screwed...to put it bluntly. And you know I've been in your shoes. That said, our son is 13 and sometimes does his own laundry and sometimes I do it. It just depends. If he has his own full load, he does it. If he just has a few things, I do it with the rest of our things to make a full load. But he always gets his laundry out of the basket and folds/hangs his own stuff up either way. Link to post Share on other sites
Touche Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 some 12 year olds could handle it, some couldn't Translation: Spoiled rotten children of divorce, can't. Other kids can. Link to post Share on other sites
alphamale Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 That said, our son is 13 and sometimes does his own laundry and sometimes I do it. It just depends. If he has his own full load, he does it. If he just has a few things, I do it with the rest of our things to make a full load. But he always gets his laundry out of the basket and folds/hangs his own stuff up either way. does he do it proper? like seperating the whites and colours and all that? adding fabric softener? choosing the right temp & cycle? doing all the socks and underwear in one load? personally i just throw everything together in one load Link to post Share on other sites
jerbear Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Translation: Spoiled rotten children of divorce, can't. Other kids can. "Senora Manuela! lavadore umm... come se dice laundry?" Link to post Share on other sites
Citizen Erased Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Translation: Spoiled rotten children of divorce, can't. Other kids can. Not exactly. When my parent's divorced and we lived with my dad, my sister and I did everything. He certainly never learned to try and buy our love by you know, cooking his own fricking dinner once in awhile. When I moved back in with my mother, my responsibilities lessened. She didn't have children in order to have personal slaves is how she put it. Link to post Share on other sites
alphamale Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 When I moved back in with my mother, my responsibilities lessened. She didn't have children in order to have personal slaves is how she put it. must have been nice to move back with your mam Link to post Share on other sites
Citizen Erased Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 must have been nice to move back with your mam Oh yes, at the time for various reasons. It was even nicer to leave and do my own laundry. Link to post Share on other sites
jerbear Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Oh yes, at the time for various reasons. It was even nicer to leave and do my own laundry. Did the sock monster show up less often? Link to post Share on other sites
Touche Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 does he do it proper? like seperating the whites and colours and all that? adding fabric softener? choosing the right temp & cycle? doing all the socks and underwear in one load? personally i just throw everything together in one load Yep, that's what he does pretty much! As for temp and cycle, he knows to only use cold and short cycle. It does the trick. So far his colors haven't run or anything. "Senora Manuela! lavadore umm... come se dice laundry?" Not exactly. When my parent's divorced and we lived with my dad, my sister and I did everything. He certainly never learned to try and buy our love by you know, cooking his own fricking dinner once in awhile. When I moved back in with my mother, my responsibilities lessened. She didn't have children in order to have personal slaves is how she put it. Well, you were in the minority then...trust me. I have experience with more than one child of divorce and that was not the norm. Most are spoiled. I remember thinking "learned helplessness" a lot - a term I learned about in one of my child psychology classes. I don't think my son is my personal slave, just because we're teaching him to do his own laundry here and there. He also cleans his own room and I'm just now adding his own bathroom to his duties. Link to post Share on other sites
alphamale Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Yep, that's what he does pretty much! As for temp and cycle, he knows to only use cold and short cycle. It does the trick. So far his colors haven't run or anything. once i washed a brand new red shirt in hot water by accident and it ran so much that i found in 4 blocks away... Link to post Share on other sites
Trialbyfire Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Off-topic Touche, I just read about your kidney stone. Hope things get better for you. As for children being spoiled by divorce, it's reliant on the parents involved. In BO's scenario, this little guy needs some boundaries. Link to post Share on other sites
Touche Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 once i washed a brand new red shirt in hot water by accident and it ran so much that i found in 4 blocks away... That was bad...even for you. Off-topic Touche, I just read about your kidney stone. Hope things get better for you. As for children being spoiled by divorce, it's reliant on the parents involved. In BO's scenario, this little guy needs some boundaries. Thanks, TBF. It was hell, let me tell you. I seem to be ok now. Mr. T has been making me fresh homemade lemonade all day. That's what the doctor recommended and lots of it. I think it might have done the trick. I haven't taken a painkiller since this morning. Yesterday I was like a zombie. Anyway, now I have a bunch of Percocets leftover. Wonder what the street value is? As for being on topic, yep. Totally agree with you there. Unfortunately, many, many parents, even the most well-intentioned (like Mr. T) are guilty of over-compensating and spoiling their kids after divorce. Link to post Share on other sites
Citizen Erased Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Did the sock monster show up less often? I at least know where all my fricking socks are. It's much easier to keep track of them when you're doing it yourself. Well, you were in the minority then...trust me. I have experience with more than one child of divorce and that was not the norm. Most are spoiled. I remember thinking "learned helplessness" a lot - a term I learned about in one of my child psychology classes. I don't think my son is my personal slave, just because we're teaching him to do his own laundry here and there. He also cleans his own room and I'm just now adding his own bathroom to his duties. Oh, I know. Some people my age don't even know how to turn the washing machine on. It's a good thing my parents divorce didn't turn me into one of those, learned helplessness I like it. Sorry, I didn't mean for it to sound like I meant you. I was more thinking of my former best friend, her mother was hitting the bottle (and I suspect bong ) after their divorce and my friend was pretty much raising her younger siblings, keeping the household together for 5 people etc. Expecting your kids to do a little washing or something is not at all on the same level! Link to post Share on other sites
Lizzie60 Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 No.. I don't think it's too young.. It's never too young to show them stuff like that.. (as long as they don't have to climb to reach the buttons.. ). It shows them responsibities.. I was babysitting a baby and a young girl (5) when I was 9... and I mean from 7:00 pm till the early hours in the morning.. Link to post Share on other sites
Touche Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 I at least know where all my fricking socks are. It's much easier to keep track of them when you're doing it yourself. Oh, I know. Some people my age don't even know how to turn the washing machine on. It's a good thing my parents divorce didn't turn me into one of those, learned helplessness I like it. Sorry, I didn't mean for it to sound like I meant you. I was more thinking of my former best friend, her mother was hitting the bottle (and I suspect bong ) after their divorce and my friend was pretty much raising her younger siblings, keeping the household together for 5 people etc. Expecting your kids to do a little washing or something is not at all on the same level! Awww, now see that's just sad. That's the other extreme. As in many things in life, we have to find a balance. Parenting is no exception. Link to post Share on other sites
sally4sara Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 It depends on the kid in question usually. My son knows how to do laundry without help, but it is mostly because he had watched me and my SO do it for years. It was taught in steps. First with asking him to help bin it up, then sorting, then what settings for what kind. Fold the towels and match the socks.... If a kid can't be counted on to do smaller tasks tho, asking him to do laundry could be a costly lesson! My son is about to turn 12 now and if he wants to earn money for something extra he has his eye on, he will offer to do laundry for me beyond what he does to earn his weekly allowance (dishes and take out trash). Most of the time, however, it is a group effort all around. Link to post Share on other sites
IfWishesWereHorses Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 My 12 year old son, could, but he doesn't fold well, he kind of wraps instead! So rather than do his own laundry he has other chores. He takes out the trash, empties waste paper baskets, unloads the dishwasher and loads it if there are any dishes, he can cook simple meals, and he cleans all of the windows on the doors each week. He also dusts once a week but I pollish. My daughter started doing her own laundry when she graduated from high school. My daughter vacuums the house once a week. I really wish that I had given my oldest more chores to do when she was younger. I'm picky about the laundry though, so that's my job! Link to post Share on other sites
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