PROMISE you both these things just happened:

1. I woke up to see the 4 year old mopping the hallway and the 5.5 year old sweeping under his bed and dresser—which he’d pushed away from the wall. They started Pesach cleaning!
2. I came out of the bathroom and found a cleared kitchen table, with dishes in the sink, thanks to the 8 year old.

(I think the moral of the story here is that I should disappear more often??)

Psst… they’re all boys!! So it’s not a “girl thing”.

Also, to be fair, it doesn’t happen every day. BUT I have taught them how to be pretty helpful little gentlemen… or at least I don’t get in their way when they try to be helpful.

That’s pro tip #1: don’t interrupt a kid who’s trying to help. Even when it’s not actually helpful at the moment!

For real. If they’re initiating, step back and let it happen. The 18 month old who drags his step stool to the kitchen counter… the 2.5 year old who wants to open the delivery box… the 4 year old who insists on putting away the groceries…

Sure, it’s quicker and easier to do it yourself. But that’s because you already know how to do it!

Little kids love getting involved in practical life. Older ones (or teens)... not so much! But the secret to gaining cooperation is the same: allowing autonomy.

Want to know even more secrets to kids who actually want to help around the house?

And it’s not just about doing chores. How can we make our kids LOVE preparing for Pesach—even when they’re no longer little? Is it possible to turn potato peeling into a chinuch opportunity?

I’ll be talking about this—and sharing all my best practical tips, from toddler to teen—at the Power Up for Pesach Summit.

Feeling overwhelmed? Not sure how you’ll pull through this Pesach? (Not ready to even hear the P word yet??)

Over the next few weeks, join a series of FREE workshops to gain tools, strategies and inspiration so you can enter the Pesach season feeling blessed, not stressed! The first one starts today!

ps - my FREE workshop, “How to Use Cleaning, Cooking, and Seder Prep as Hands-On Chinuch Opportunities... Instead of Just Chores” will be on Tuesday, April 1 at 2pm EST. Make sure you’re signed up before then so you don’t miss it!

pps - yes, those kids are using a paper as a dustpan... and the kitchen towels and bathroom mat to dry the floor. Let them!