Extra Steps

Lucy, like most kids, is into everything. She loves to help with laundry, making coffee, shoveling, cutting up veggies, and many other common tasks around the house. I am often impressed with her ability to focus once she starts a task. For example, she usually won't stopping until the entire Tupperware cabinet is cleaned out or every last book is off the shelf. Our approach, which isn’t different from many parents, is to having her participate in hopes that it helps her learn how things work.

My concern is that she is going to think that a broom is needed to make a pot of coffee or that when you shovel the driveway if you pick up snow and put it where dad just shoveled that is cool or the latest extra step in an otherwise normal process…that you can’t wear any clothing when you start folding a load of laundry!

Of course I know that all of these extra steps will go away as she gets older, but I have to document some of our current processes. We will certainly not be winning any operational excellence awards or qualifying for Six Sigma stuff. Productivity often isn’t nearly as fun!?!?!
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Making coffee starts with Lucy spreading coffee grounds throughout the kitchen(grounds on the counter and floor are pictured). Usually some coffee even gets into the filter.

While the coffee is brewing we take care of the additional step in our coffee making process...sweeping.

Folding clothes has taken on a couple of extra steps. Pictures below show Lucy trying on each piece of clothing including dad's shirt and shorts, mom's tie-dye socks (made by Lucy with love), and dad's socks on her arms. Not pictured is the refolding process, which often is a re-refolding process depending on what she wants to wear and when.