“Did you brush your teeth?”
They hear me ask,
Knowing full well,
They’ve avoided this task.
“You need to take a shower,”
They hear me say,
The grunting gets louder,
Which always leads to delay.
“Are you hoping to catch a rodent,
With those unkept claws?”
As I question if their fingernails,
Are too long for their paws.
They whine and complain.
How dare we want them kept clean?
Enforcing good habits,
And normal hygiene?
Do they want to be dirty?
Does water repulse them?
Avoiding the faucet as if
Cleanliness creates mayhem.
Is it too much to ask,
That they are not the smelly kid?
To appreciate soap
And not become livid,
When asked to keep clean,
And manage one’s own sanitation,
A fair request indeed,
To ensure their own liberation.
Oh little dirty ones,
We will not go away,
The reminders will be ongoing,
And our insistence here to stay.
{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
it can be a battle, especially when they move into the tween/early teen years. I long for the days when I could just throw them in the bath. Now it’s a different skill set, and I often feel like a drill sergeant but I’m okay with not being the good guy or the friend! I signed up for the tough job and that’s cool with me. I will say that sometimes I do sing it just to entertain myself!! Lol!!
My 5 year old is working on the nail cutting right now. A little uneven, but he’s getting there!
A propos of parenting here’s an article from the WSJ that discusses the essential differences between parenting in the US and France. Discipline vs Education http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204740904577196931457473816.html
John, this is a GREAT article!! Thanks for sharing!
I love this!! And I’m lucky my kiddo doesn’t put up much of a fight when it comes to hygiene.
I love this! My ex Step Daughter was always giving me issues with hygiene. I wish I would have had this to read to her. This is just wonderful
This is soooo well-written and witty.
I can totally relate.
It only gets worst as they grow older. Luckily my kids are not so resistant in this area.
yay! i love this! i’m so glad bath time is still fun time for my kids. i dread this day when i have to beg them to stay clean. Not Your Ordinary Agent
Not Your Ordinary Recipes
Let me guess, you have a 7 (or have had in the past) year old boy! OMG, we go through this daily! He actually cried LOUDLY during his shower last night because he was so against taking it. And I found out that he had been not brushing his teeth b/c he thought he could just “rinse” them. Man, I can relate to the poem!
I love that poem!
It’s always a struggle to get my daughter to do those things. I wonder when things will start to ease up…
Such a cute poem with so much truth to it!
I always tell my daughters they could climb trees with their toenails and fingernails so long. And whenever they brush their teeth in two seconds flat I always make them go back and do it again. They are always in a hurry to move on and play, but I’m insistent that they won’t be without good hygiene.
Very creative! I just shared this with my daughter and husband. So true! (as I remind both my kids, “Shower day!”
Awesome! My daughter is only 15 months so I haven’t reached this stage yet… but when I do, I’ll try to keep this in mind
Absolutely enjoyed reading through this
Excellent poem and so true!