maintenance – Down Under Dad

Whose turn is it to do the dishes? Why are there still wet clothes in the machine? When is the bathroom going to be cleaned? Isn’t it your turn? I did it last time?

Any of these sound familiar? I would say most of us have Thought, Heard, Argued, over these all something similar.

This post was inspired by a segment on a local radio station where they were discussing the breakup of household chores between couples (slow news day obviously). It got me thinking about different families and households and wondering if the way we currently share them is the most effective.

Current Agreement

As it currently stands our ‘chores are split 2 ways. Firstly the jobs we either enjoy doing (rephrase that to “don’t mind doing”), along with the ones we can’t stand. Then the rest generally goes with who has the most time to actually get them done. Time meaning either child free or child distracted.

How does this work for our household? Well two things come out of it. One is the daily crucial tasks generally done (dishes, cooking, etc). Two is that we end up with 1 day a week where we just get in and get the entire house cleaned while balancing the child between us. It might not be efficient gets the job done.

Whatever works for you

However you choose to split up the work. Its important both sides are in agreement, and more importantly both sides understand that as a parent not everything goes to plan. So don’t get stressed out (see my post insert link). I will add that given having children drastically reduces free time and increases the workload. I am looking forward to the day I can get our child involved in doing the chores. Don’t get me wrong he loves helping with the vacuuming, but he can’t exactly do it himself yet.

How do you split up your chores? 50/50? 70/30? I bet sometimes it feels like 100/0. Is there a better way to sort it out? Is it frowned upon using your kids to do the dirty work?

Sometimes it’s easier to do them yourself

Home Handyman, Jack of all Trades, Handyman from Hell? What role as a dad do you play in maintaining your home? I’m not talking about mowing the lawn or cleaning, tasks like patching the wall, tightening the door, painting a room, landscaping outside, changing the oil in your car. These are all tasks which many of us take upon ourselves to do ourself. That we could also hire someone else to do.

Ill start with what I have done:

Patch holes in the wall, sand back, and paint good as new
change oil, filters, and brake pads on the car
removing old concrete from the yard and laying down turf
change a shower head and faucet taps.
Built a large veranda for entertaining.

just to name a few. We are also in the process of renovating our entire house, the bulk of which we are doing ourselves. Skilled family members and online instructional videos are extremely handy.

I have always gotten a sense of accomplishment after completing one of these tasks, a solid pat on the back, and a warm fuzzy feeling like I can conquer any task that might come next. Of course there is always the other side when things don’t go according to plan and you need to call in outside help, but i prefer to focus on the wins.

As a Dad I look forward to showing my kids what the Average Joe can accomplish when they put their mind to it, and hopefully passing on some of the skills and knowledge I have gained to them. What have you done? What are you most proud of?