by hisbabydoll

Created on: May 08, 2008   Last Updated: November 30, 2011

Are you tired of receiving attitude from your teenager and spouse when it comes time to clean the house? Have threats and guilt-trips failed to inspire your family into a cleaning frenzy? Don't give up hope! Instead, make housework fun! I'll tell you how. Make a game of housework, and offer rewards for work well done! Yes, I realize in principle your family should pitch in to clean the house without bribery. Realistically though, would you rather stand on principle or in a sparkling clean house?

THE GAME SHOW CHALLENGE:

Declare on day of the week housekeeping day. Divide the family into teams, as well as the household chores. Whoever finishes all the chores to speck (methods of approval to be decided beforehand by both teams) first, wins a prize.

Prize Ideas:

• Set aside a chore hated by all - for instance, cleaning the kitty litter. Whoever loses the challenge is responsible for completing that chore this week.

• The victor gets to choose what TV show, movie, board game or other recreational activity the family participates in on the weekend.

• The losers make the winners bed for the next week.

• The winners get to pick what is for dinner the next day, and the losers have to make it!

PICKING FROM THE HAT!

Write all weekly chores on pieces of cardboard so they can be reused each week. Put all the chores into a bag or box. Have every member of the family take turns pulling chores from the hat one at a time. This will juggle who does what chore from week to week.

If you want, you can make it so family members can trade chores for other chores with each other.

MANAGEMENT TRAINING

Every week, assign one person to be "chore manager". Assign a different person each week so everyone has a turn. Every week the chore manager will be in charge of taking a chore list, making a chore schedule and assigning different family members to do the chores. They should also assign chores to themselves. The chore manager must make sure all the chores are completed, and that they are completed well. This exercise is fun because:

• REMOVES RESENTMENT: It sucks when mom or dad or any one person has to feel responsible for everything all the time. Whether it's doing the chores, or making sure someone else is doing the chores - it's a lot of work. On the flip side, it sucks to be the person always being told what to do, with no say in the matter!

• CHANCE TO SHINE: Once a rotation, every member of the family gets to be in charge. They can pick the best

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