i suck as a parent navigating motherhood one day at a time

I love a good scavenger hunt, which is why, when I was searching for a way to teach my family where we store essentials items in the house I thought about creating a treasure hunt to help them learn.

I know what you are thinking, what a fun way for young kids to get to know where things are! Yes, it would have been fun for my young kids only this treasure hunt is for my 17-year-old, my 21-year-old and my husband.

Apparently, I forgot to train them at an early age.

I think it really shouldn’t be that hard to remember where the extra jarred tomato sauce is, where we keep the extra sheets for overnight guests, or where the cupcake pan is because they have all been in the same place for the 20+ years we have lived in the this house.

And, in case you think my system of organization is at fault, I believe that I have organized our home in a way that makes sense. For instance, the dishes and glassware are in the kitchen and close to the dishwasher; extra towels, toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, etc. are in all of the bathrooms; and cooking utensils are organized by use, i.e. measuring cups and other baking needs are in one area, small appliances are grouped together and grilling accessories are in a separate area.

Sounds logical, right? (and, yes, maybe a bit uptight – I’ll own that)

And yet…

Not a day goes by without a “where is the…?” question. Does my family think that once a week I rearrange the shelves and closets just to mess with them? Although messing with them is something I might consider doing, I assure you that I have not done that (who has time for that!?).

I realize that no one in my house really needs to remember where anything is kept – why would they when I am always available to tell them. It’s like being in the passenger seat when my husband is driving. He doesn’t pay attention to where we are going because he knows I will tell him.

But, what if I’m in a coma? How will they find the toothpaste? Or the peanut butter?? I truly believe that dying is the only thing that would stop my kids from asking me where something is in the house.

Really.

Because even if I’m not home, it is apparently easier to text me and ask where something is then to look for it. And, yes, I realize I don’t have to answer them but they are very persistent and I am clearly an enabler.

Since I don’t think I’m going anywhere soon (knock on wood), I had to come up with another way to train my boys. I remembered the time when my kids were little and the only way to get them to do anything was to turn it into a game. If they needed to get dressed I would say, “Go get dressed, I’ll time you!” and they would race off to see how fast they could get dressed. If I needed them to clean the playroom it was a race, and if I needed them to go get me something it was timed. So in that vein, I’m creating The Amazing Race: Family Edition.

Except without the million-dollar prize and the weird foods.

Whatever, it will still be fun!

I started compiling a list of questions to guide my family to certain often used items.

One of my favorite questions that I’ve come up with so far is, “Where is the water?”

(I assume no one knows where the water is because they always say out loud, “The dog needs water.” But no one fills up the water bowl. It must be because they don’t know where they water is!)

I’m envisioning a sort of scavenger hunt/multiple choice game with prizes hidden in certain locations if they actually go find the needed item.

For instance, one of the multiple choice questions is:

You want to spit out your gum but the garbage can in the kitchen doesn’t have a garbage bag in it. You:

a) spit your gum in the toilet and flush;

b) wrap up your gum in a napkin and leave it on the counter or;

c) find a garbage bag. Extra points if you know where the extra bags are kept!

I can’t give away too many of the questions now because they haven’t played the game yet. I’ll let you know who wins. My boys are nothing if not competitive so this may actually work.

Stay tuned.

How about your house?

Do your kids know where the flour is? How about the extra sheets? The extra dog food?

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