Need parenting advice- laundry mess

[tzolkin]

the boys were picky about wanting to use clean towels every time because it could be someone else's.. it's a crazy life for sure.

I have two places in my bathroom to hang towels so I always know which one is mine and which one is my husband’s

We put three hooks in the kids bathroom, but also have different colored towels so it is very easy for them to distinguish whose towel is whose even if they don’t hang them up in the correct spot.

Everybody needs their own hamper.

Why?
I don’t think the OP has determined that doing separate laundry is the answer to the problem.

And even if she did, she emphasized that no one was going to walk upstairs to put the laundry in their own rooms. I doubt they have room for four separate hampers in the bathroom. So everyone having their own hamper that they are not going to use is not a solution to them leaving clothes all over the bathroom.

 

[tvguy]

Everybody needs their own hamper.

Each of our kids had their own hamper in their bedroom, and my wife and I shared one in our bedroom. If the hamper wasn't put outside their door when laundry was being done, it didn't get done. But again, like I said, my wife preferred that she be the only one touching the washer and dryer. Kids and I did do laundry once in a while, but only with strict supervision.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I doubt they have room for four separate hampers in the bathroom.

Hampers *could* go in their rooms, it doesn't have to be the bathroom.

she emphasized that no one was going to walk upstairs to put the laundry in their own rooms.

Sometimes I wonder if I grew up in an alternate universe.

The laundry was downstairs in my dad's house and my mom's house. Dad's house basement was a walkout mostly finished, slugs were common to see there, somehow they made their way partially through though mostly to the tile by the sliding glass door, spiders were also common but well that's where the laundry was (in the utility room with the furnace and everything) so yeah gotta deal with it. My mom's house crickets omg the crickets. Her family room was considered a finished basement (windows at ground level) but go down 3 steps from that is completely unfinished concrete with just 2 window wells on opposite sides for light (other than lightbulbs) where the laundry was (also where the utility stuff like furnace was). That was also my playroom growing up. A large piece of leftover carpet was placed on half the ground. Spent countless hours there and crickets did I mention crickets?? Spiders too.

No one likes insects like this but you gotta do what you gotta do. Not every place where someone does household chores is going to be an amazing space.

As far as walking since the homes I grew up in the laundry room was down in the basement that's what you had to do, a basket was used.

 

[tzolkin]

Hampers *could* go in their rooms, it doesn't have to be the bathroom.
…
As far as walking since the homes I grew up in the laundry room was down in the basement that's what you had to do, a basket was used.

I agree with you.

However, just because something is logical or works for others does not mean it will work for everyone in practice. That’s why there are lots of different methods of home organization. You can hire a professional to perfectly organize your home, but if it won’t stay that way because it doesn’t work with your habits then it’s not the best method for your home.

I think that’s the point in this particular scenario. The OP is acknowledging the habits her family has and trying to find a solution that they will actually follow through with.

For example, my sister’s kitchen was always a mess with papers/mail etc. She tried to institute a rule of no paper in the kitchen but it was not practical because that’s where everyone entered the house and dumped all their school papers, mail, medical info, etc. Instead of constantly trying to battle everyone’s habits because paper “should” be in the office not the kitchen, she set up a little area for organizing different types of paper right at the kitchen entrance.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

However, just because something is logical or works for others does not mean it will work for everyone in practice.

Of course just responding to your comment towards the other person about the hamper. At some point the OP's children are going to encounter something unpleasant about chores and "eww spiders" isn't going to be the best excuse for why they are unable to complete laundry (though I suppose there are people out there that just send their laundry out to be done their entire lives). The OP has a rationale for just about everything people have posted about (and I don't mean that harshly towards the OP just an observation) so at some point in this thread it stops being about "well just because it works for your household" and starts being something else.