5 valuable lessons I learnt from my parents

This is a sponsored post for Music Magpie.

Growing up with parents who were extremely neat and tidy {read: obsessive-compulsive!}, made for an interesting and often frustrating childhood. However, there was a lot of learning completed in the process. Not just how to clean the house and organise stuff. But more so, what NOT to do. I thought I might share some of those valuable gems with you.

Never ever attempt to dust and clean your kids’ room on a Sunday before 9 a.m.

Quite unlike my current 4 a.m. starts {6-7 on weekends}, I used to love my sleep-ins as a teenager. However, not my parents. No sirree. Sunday for them was thorough-cleaning-day. Sure they would sleep in till probably 6 or 7. And then come around to dust the furniture. Dad would come into our room to dust the computer, the desk, the wardrobe, the window sills and goodness knows what else. Needless to say, my sister and I would inevitably wake up during those cleaning spells. Which on some occasions involved dropping things and breaking stuff. Not a great way to start a Sunday!

Don’t move your kids’ items without their permission. Period.

I think the problem with super-clean, super-organised parents is that everything has a specific spot. Unfortunately, what they don’t realise is that sometimes things are not in their ‘proper’ place for a reason. Like using it pretty much straight away  Or to remind you of something. But no. They still think that the pile of papers stacked up in different sections on the dining table must be bunched together and put back on the study table. After all, the purpose of the dining table is to dine. True, your neurotic teenager will have an anxiety attack at her own organisation being disrupted but that’s a whole separate issue.

Being super-organised can sometimes be detrimental to your life

While my parents hoarded a lot of stuff {and I mean a lot!}, they turned out to be wonderfully organised in getting rid of stuff too. Unfortunately for them, some of it happened to be important documents. Like dad’s expired passport. Not realising they would need it later. So I learnt that sometimes it actually helps to hoard. And hoard. And hoard. To the point where I only shredded my payslips from my first job three years after quitting it. Pretty sure I don’t need it now. Or do I?

Dusting the furniture twice a day makes no sense whatsoever

My dad was an early riser {yes, I realise I take after him!}. And one of the things he would do after waking up at 5 in the morning was dust the furniture. Only for it to have dust settle back later in the morning following the house being swept. And then mum {or during school holidays, my sister or I} would have to dust it all over again. The joys. I never understood the point of the 5 a.m. dusting. I still don’t. And till today, it’s a chore I loathe. Sadly, with all the cat hair around, it’s not something I can avoid completely. No matter how hard I try. But I still don’t do it twice a day. Hell, twice a week would be a miracle!

And finally, the most valuable lesson:

If your kids help with the cleaning, do not criticise. Or you can kiss their help good-bye

My dad would complain that I never made the bed or ironed my clothes. So one day after waking up, I made the bed and folded the rug I’d used and was quite proud of myself. Only to get out of the bathroom 5 minutes later to see him re-folding the rug. Upon being questioned, he said that the tag at the corner of the rug should have been on the left side after folded and not the right {or the other way round…I honestly don’t care enough to remember!}. in other words, I had folded the rug ‘incorrectly’. {Who knew that was even possible!!!?}. Needless to say, stubborn me didn’t bother with that again and left him to make the bed his way. I only started making my bed after I left home. Where no one would tell me which end the bloody tag should face!

I love my parents. I really do. But stuff like this used to frustrate me no end. Especially on my dad’s part. The scary thing though is that I’m so much like him in many ways. Not as nutty perhaps but definitely heading there. Fortunately, I’m not too concerned about which end the tag of my doona faces!

So tell me, what things have you learnt NOT to do from your parents?

Do share!

***This is a sponsored post for Music Magpie. I you are looking at organising and cleaning your space, do check out their website to see how you can get cash for all your old stuff. It’s probably different from what your parents did! Because it’s a Tuesday, I’m also linking up with Jess and the others for IBOT***

Until next time,

Cheers!!!