What can your child do today?

Recently I've been thinking about more things that Jesse could do around the house and for himself. Because we are very tight on money (we live off one income that is below the average wage) we can't buy Jesse toys unless it's for his birthday or Christmas. Unfortunately when Jesse goes to his Dad's house he often gets spoilt by toys and given everything he wants by his father and his paternal grandparents. This makes parenting a little more difficult for me and Dave because Jesse expects that when he wants something he will get it. We've had to talk to him about not having as much money as Daddy or his Nan & Grandad and that if he wants a toy he will have to do jobs around the house for money and that way he can save up for the toy himself. Jesse really liked the idea and I'm hoping to make a chart soon with simple chores on it so he knows what is expected of him. So far we pay him 20c per job. Do your children have a chore chart? Do they get paid for helping around the house?

Jesse also learnt how to wash his own hair for the first time last night. Jesse hates getting water in his eyes and putting his head under water so shampooing his hair is usually a nightmare but I thought it was about time he learnt to do it for himself. I squeezed the shampoo onto his head and placed his hand where the shampoo was. I then showed him how to scrub his head to make lots of bubbles and I did all this while holding up a mirror in front of him. He thoroughly enjoyed doing it for himself and he got a kick out of seeing all the bubbles he could make in his hair. Despite still needing a little bit of help I think by age 6 he'll be easily doing it on his own. This simple act had a flow on effect and once he got out of the shower he wanted to do everything for himself, including drying himself, brushing and styling his hair and putting on a long pair of socks (he can usually only manage ankle socks).

I think as parents we sometimes don't expect enough of our kids and we still do a lot for them that they are probably capable of doing for themselves. In my case this occurs for two reasons: 1. He's my only child and so he's still my baby to me and 2. Sometimes I am just not aware of what Jesse can do for himself because I'm so used to doing it for him automatically. From now on I am going to pay a lot more attention to Jesse's broadening skills and independence. This is something I can nurture in him so that hopefully by adulthood he will be more than capable of caring for himself and running a household. What do your children do for themselves and how do they help around the house?