Thursday, February 24, 2011

I've Created a Monster!

An anal-retentive, neurotic monster that is.

So....you guys probably know that I'm a wee bit crazy. I like things clean and neat and organized and that's just how things have to be for me. Call it OCD, call it running a nice, efficient household, whatevs. Potato, potahto... I honestly have no problem fessing up to my neuroses about things being kept in their place, and it works in our household's favor. If you ever drop by unexpectedly, rest assured my house will be in order.

Where it's becoming a problem is with Ava. She's turning into....me.

In the morning, when I strip off my pj's and put on a more socially acceptable version of pj's to wear until my shower (yoga pants and a tank top), Ava gathers up the clothes on the bathroom floor before I can even get to them. At first I thought she was just being adorable and wanting to play with mommy's stuff, but now it's starting to seem more like the fact that clothes are on the floor is causing her actual emotional discomfort.

Aw, sweetie. I can so relate.

The thing is, I don't want Ava to be all crazy neurotic like me, at least not at this age. She is supposed to be enjoying making messes. And sometimes, like when she empties the toybox in her room, she seems to be fine with it. But if I take the Mega Blox and dump them on the floor, she seems hellbent on cleaning them up quickly. Hilarious to watch? Yep - a wee bit. But I've been making a concerted effort to let the house go a bit and not be so tidy just to prevent her from turning into a child worried about messes and not able to have fun.

Don't get me wrong - she can make a mess with her food and loves to be outside getting dirty, which I love (the latter, not the former!). I just really don't want her to stress. Tips? Anyone else's child doing this sort of thing?

6 comments:

  1. LOL!! My niece is the same way. She's 2 years old and likes to have things very neat and ordered. Funny because her mom (my sister) isn't like that, but both her grandmothers are.

    No idea what to advise here. Unfortunately, my daughter both lives in a perpetually messy house and likely has no genetic tendency toward neatness.

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  2. Wow... that is so funny!!! And cute :)
    I can't give you any advice because I am not like that... and B definitely isn't either. From when he was quite little, he would crawl his way all the way across the room just to knock down one block from another. LOL
    good luck!

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  3. Haha that's funny!
    I'm quite the oppisite, but B seems to have a little of the OCD side to him. I have NO idea where he got it. He loves to put all of his books on the same shelf and all the food in the bin and such. Maybe he can teach his mommy a little something about spotlessness :)

    At least your house is always clean! that's always a plus :)

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  4. Send Ava to my house, please!!! Presley loves to make a huge mess, walk away, and make another huge mess somewhere else. I feel like my life has become cleaning up messes and making meals...

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  5. Haha! I wish I had some advice for you. Jack is in between. He will pull all of his books out, but then he'll put them away too. Sometimes I have to help him, but he's starting to learn how to "clean up". I definitely do NOT keep a very orderly house (although I've been working on it) so I don't think he's going to turn into Mr. clean freak. Oddly enough, his dad is a clean and organizational freak so it is in his genes! I think it's great you're trying to be more relaxed about it for her. You're such a good mommy!!

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  6. I can relate... I've been through the same thing but its been better since I realised my daughter can't play she is more worried about the mess. So now I tidy up after she sleeps. And its better for both of us - more time for me to play with her and she relaxes more and enjoys playing. I just grind my teeth some days and my tidy up fingers start itching!

    http://angie-isntlifegrand.blogspot.com/

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