Toddlers - the perfect cleaning solution

I was recently at a local shop that sells bedding, kitchen supplies, dishes, and more. It’s one of those stores that you can find anything or nothing…plus lots of fun stuff you really don’t need. I came across something that actually made me look twice – and then ponder the ultimate possibilities.
It was a kids “toy” snow shovel. Looked just like mom and dad’s, but in a smaller size. The tag said “for playtime only” or something like that. It looked like a perfectly good shovel…truly. So why for “play” only? Why not put that kid outside and let him or her “play” at shoveling the sidewalk. That got me to thinking about all the possibilities.
My almost 4-year-old granddaughter told me that she wanted pretend food, fruit and a shopping cart for her upcoming birthday. Why stop there? Why not give her $125 bucks and let her do some shopping for me? Same with the pretend vacuum cleaner and mop. Seriously? Why waste a perfectly good opportunity for clean floors? Let’s just make smaller sized vacuums and let her go to town. And for my granddaughter that isn’t yet walking, but is a crawling maniac, how about taping two Swiffer’s on the bottom of her knees so she can help me clean my hardwood floors.
Remember Easy Bake Ovens? How about making them a little larger so they can make things besides tasteless brownies? And the pretend sinks are great –but they’d be even better if we could actually add water and let them go to town on the real dirty dishes. (The plastic ones, of course – I’m not THAT crazy…).
They now have stuffed dogs that bark and move and kids can take them for pretend walks. I say put a leash on my two furry friends and let the toddlers have at it. See if they can wear each other down.
Now, there are certain things that should remain just for “play” – like the new iPhone look alikes – and the little computers. I am fine with them pretending to call and email. But unfortunately even the one- year-old knows the difference between the “real” cell phone and the “toy” cell phone. So I still get sticky fingerprints on my keypad no matter what.
I will draw the line at certain items that would be a safety issue. I mean pretend ironing boards should be left as just a toy…after all, what toddler knows how to do a perfect crease anyway? And I don’t think a toddler blender and/or food processor would fly either. (Unless they are planning on making their own baby food –but that’s another story). I think a small leaf blower may fly though – and of course a push broom and dust pan would fit right in as well.
Think of the possibilities! We have Merry Maids and Clean Sweep, why not “Babies and Brooms” or “Tots and Vacs”? Maybe “Dirt-Free Dependents” or “Rugrats Rug Cleaners”. How about “Diaper-wearing Dustbusters”. The possibilities are limitless.
Having kids clean is a great idea except for one thing: it only works if they are having fun and it appears to be a game. They are sneaky and intelligent beings. The minute they realize that they are actually helping clean for real, they’d rather go back to watching Dora. Go figure. I guess my next goal is to learn how to “out sneak” them. Wonder how they’d feel about using a pretend hose to clean my pretend car?

Public Swim

They were all lined up. There must have been five, maybe even six of them. Normally that’s way too many for my taste. Their brown bodies arched and splashed as they jumped into the pool at the same time, arms touching close enough to hold hands. Of course they wouldn’t consider holding hands, because unlike 4th grade girls, 4th grade boys wouldn’t be caught dead touching each other – unless of course it was to punch someone in the arm. They gleefully splashed into the pool, shaking their heads like dogs as they broke the surface. They’d jump up on the side, and do it again and again.

“No diving,” the lifeguard would yell, as one of the jumpers changed directions at the last minute and went in head-first. They would do it, over and over again – and each time the life guard would deepen his voice, puff out his tanned chest, glance at the 14 year old girls in their little bikinis giggling at him, and yell once again at the fourth grade boys.

Thankfully there was a “time-out” every hour and everyone under the age of 18 had to clear the pool for us old people to swim. Grandmas were there, doing their water walking, young moms had their babies in waterproof (I hoped) diapers, laughing and cheering them on as they felt the cold water creep up their young bodies. Moms and dads cooled off as they kept a close eye on their kids sitting on the edge, waiting for the time out to be over. I was grateful to be in the pool and not be splashed during adult swim…although the longer I hung out, the more I realized it didn’t matter.

At the pool, defenses seem to lower. Kids are just plain kids and I love that. They didn’t know they were splashing me as they dove down to fetch their treasure – a penny they’d thrown in just minutes before. They didn’t care if my hair got wet – so eventually, neither did I.

There is a definite culture at the pool – and I spent my entire time people watching. It also brought back so many memories – of every stage of my life. I distinctly remember diving off the high dive, begging my mom to “watch me” each time. I then remember my first two-piece, and around that time came recognizing boys, too. I remember having a crush on the life guard. I also remember being the life guard, hoping I looked cool to the younger kids. I then remember my teens, and glanced around the pool once again. High School girls met in the corner, trying to appear nonchalant as they posed their tanned bodies and snuck looks at the senior boys playing volleyball. The boys would glance back from time to time; glad their sunglasses didn’t show exactly which girl they were checking out.


Snow cones and potato chips, suntan lotion and tan lines. Starving for peanut butter sandwiches, fighting off a nap and losing track of all time. The feeling of a public pool is the same – no matter what town you are in, or what age you are. Even better, the memories are sweeter than ever. Cannonball contest anyone?