Chores

I'm pleased to announce that we just might be raising a tidy son.  Maybe. Gabe surprises me every few weeks with a new cleaning/organizing skill that he just picks up on his own.  In the past this has included, pulling the kitchen towels out of the clean laundry basket and shoving them in their correct drawers, picking up my clothes left haphazardly on my bedroom floor and attempting to put them in the dresser drawers. When the drawers didn't shut nicely, he would take the clothes back out and set them on top of the desk. Recently, his chores include sweeping and unloading the dishwasher. 

Whenever I get out the broom, Gabe takes it from me and goes straight to the kitchen where he tries to sweep the floor while simultaneously shaking out the rug. Then, he gives up and grabs the dustpan which he holds, while I shovel piles onto it.  Then, very carefully, he stands up, trying not to spill any of the dirt, and dumps it in the garbage. 

As soon as Gabe hears the dishwasher open, he comes running...to help me unload the silverware. I have learned that I can't load the dishwasher while he is awake; otherwise, I get a drawer full of dirty forks and spoons. One day a few weeks ago, he just started taking the clean silverware out of the dishwasher and proceeded to put them in the drawer where they belong.  Not only did he know where the silverware went, but he sorted the measuring spoons out from the normal silverware and then put them in their respective drawer. Good boy. This is a picture of his handiwork :)

Also, I tried to get a picture of Gabe in his new handsome Sunday clothes.  This was the best I could get. And then the tantrum started. Then timeout. Then a nap. Then another tantrum. Then dinner = clothes off. Then popsicles outside stained his pants, which had already been soaked through with pee. Then bath. So, no, the Sunday clothes weren't going back on just for a photo shoot. Maybe I'll get a better shot next Sunday. Just know that he looked pretty good.