Tell your 20 yr old to clean up from his snacks and clean up the laundry room now, today, before he does anything else. If he has to tell friends he'll be late, so be it. Why are you putting up with this crap? You're the adult in charge. If your little son was rude, why did you reward him by letting him go back to the neighbor's to keep playing? He needed to be punished for his bad behavior. |
Not saying my kids are perfect. But no they don’t leave giant messes and expect there to be no consequences. |
Nobody is saying their kids would never but they are saying it doesn't go without correcting and pushback and refusal to be a servant (Aka walk dog.) |
I have 3 teens and they are not perfect, but they know very well that their phones and other devices are my property since I pay for them. Chores must get done and absolutely no rudeness! |
| I like to have the mental energy and willingness to indulge my kids a bit (like turn on the car) which means I don’t do any of the big/time-taking things (like agree to pets or cleaning up after them or pointless traditions that I don’t care for myself) |
| Does your daughter pay the purchase price and all expenses for “her car” with a job she works? |
| We made a gratitude tree and each day each person writes on an apple sticky one thing they are thankful for or a thank you to another family member. We clear it on Saturday and start anew Sunday. It has worked wonders!!! |
your partner needs to step up and help reinforce acceptable behaviors of the kids. You can’t do everything!!! The kids need accountability. Cold turkey drop all the extra things that you are doing for them. They can do it themselves. It may be painful to see for a few weeks when things don’t go perfectly but you will all be better off in the long run! |
with dishes until they can get their act together, give them one plate and one cup. They have to use and wash that one plate and cup for everything— my older DD’s idea to get her younger sibling to not leave dishes around. |
| Is there a DH? Seems like the kids have needed a lot more discipline for a long time. |
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Same OP. As they gotten older, they become less appreciative, probably from stress and lack of sleep.
About the food part, I'd just buy basics and let them eat that (fruit, beans, veggies, eggs, and meat). Any dirty dishes/garbage/dirty socks/backpacks,.... throw them on their bed. |
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You and your spouse need to have a sit down. Structure Rules and Responsibilities need to be discussed ASAP |
Actually, people aren't saying their kids would never do stuff like that, they're saying there would be consequences if they did, and as a result you wouldn't have a 20-year old who doesn't pick up their stuff. First of all, OP, do you have a spouse? If so where are they in all of this? Second of all, have you ever disciplined your kids? My 10-year olds understand that there are consequences for not cleaning up after themselves. Do they still not do it sometimes? Of course, and then the consequences are enforced and it'll be a while until they make that mistake again. Are you one of those moms who wants her kids to be her best friends? It sounds like you're being quite the martyr by doing advent calendars for kids who don't respect you and don't do their share. So put your big girl pants on and be their parent, not their friend. |
The poster said she would never let the situation play out as OP had, so if he 20-year old refused to clean, he'd have been woken up. So it's not that their kids would NEVER blah blah blah, it's that they would never let it happen without reacting to it. OP's kids aren't normal, they're brats. |
Your daughter who doesn't take care of the dog or clean up after herself has a car - does she pay for the car herself entirely? If not, then take her keys away. I mean, by age 5 my kids understood that if they didn't do X they didn't get to do Y. How on earth did your kids get to their ages without learning that?!? |