Self Sufficiency
 

I've been teaching my two oldest children how to be more self sufficient. They both do their own laundry, they take turns with washing the dishes and cleaning the bathroom, and they have other responsibilities here at home. Lately, I have been teaching them how to cook a few things on their own. I've taught my son how to make scrambled eggs, Ramen soup, tuna salad, pancakes, etc. We still haven't graduated to actual dinners yet. I've also taught my oldest daughter how to make some of these things as well.

Today I decided to teach my daughter how to make some hot dogs and my son how to make some oatmeal. They both did a good job, but the onion in the hot dogs isn't agreeing too well with the oatmeal my son and I have the worst aftertaste in my mouth!!! YUK! Nothin like a hot dog/onion/oatmeal/cinammon/butter/sugar combination to make a fella not want eat again for a good long while. Blech!

How much stuff do you teach your kids? Along with how to keep a house clean and how to cook, I am planning on teaching mine how to balance a checkbook and juggle bills. My parents didn't teach me anything relating to finances, and I had some really bad years of being broke for no good reason, bounced checks, utilities being shut off, etc. I don't want my babies to have to go through those sorts of problems. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Re: Self Sufficiency
 

How to work!!! So many lazy kids. I am so glad my Dad taught us how to work. My son hates the stuff I make him do but it will pay off. I make him help me with everything I do around the house and the cars and he is able he does some of it on his own. He changed the oil in my pickup the last time it was changed...come to think of it its due again...COOOODDDDYYY.

Re: Self Sufficiency
 

Obviously not enough. Ashley just got married and she can't cook anything. LOL! Of course I couldn't either when I married Eddie. You just make yourself learn. Ashley is good at cleaning though.

Re: Self Sufficiency
 

True that! I made a point of teaching my son things like how to do an oil change, change a tire, replace a battery, etc. My oldest daughter is ready to learn some of these things now, so she's next. In fact, one of our cars needs some brake work, so I have been thinking about using that as a time to teach her how to change a tire on a car.

Re: Self Sufficiency
 

She'll learn. The first loaf of corn bread my wife made me was so hard I banged it on the kitchen table and proceeded to tell her to bake a few thousand more so we'd have something to build a house out of. :D We laugh and laugh over that one! Sista made me a corn bread brick that day!

Re: Self Sufficiency
 

Just make sure you are watching closely, when my daughter was about 10 or 11, I bought some Easy-Mac, the kind you can make in the microwave by just adding water. Nasty stuff, but it was for her to use in a pinch.

One night she decided she wanted to make a snack and went down to the kitchen to make some. She came back upstairs while she was waiting. I smelled something funny and started to go downstairs.

When I got to the staircase, there was smoke drifting up. I ran down and went to the microwave; the macaroni was black in the bowl. I was trying to figure out what in the world had happened, and I was asking my daughter what she did.

She said "I followed the directions".

I said "obviously not".

She said "I did, I promise".

I am looking at the bowl and there is not one hint of moisture.

I said "did you add the water?"

Blank look.... she said "Oooohhh". :doh

:groan

Re: Self Sufficiency
 

I'm so glad to hear this, I feel like this is one area where I have let my daughter down, but you know, I didn't know how to do anything either!!

Re: Self Sufficiency
 

:toofunny :toofunny :toofunny

This sounds like my girls!!!

Re: Self Sufficiency
 

Oh, so you feel my pain?!!

Re: Self Sufficiency
 

Well, the apple never falls very far from the tree, and your name is DizzyDe...........................I'm just sayin! :D