Tuesday, August 24, 2010

tuesday's true confession: six-year-old sheet logic

Time for Tuesday's True Confession, and I'm having trouble choosing what to confess. 

I could confess that this beautiful baby
is starting kindergarten in two days, and I am feeling a bit achy inside.

I could confess that I'm having serious hair issues that make me feel ugly.

I could confess someone - a person that I don't even know - did something that made me doubt myself today and that made me angry.

But instead of all that serious baggage, I'm going to confess this:

I don't make my bed . . . AND . . . I don't make my five year old make her bed either.  I know . . . shocking, isn't it?  I just tucked her into bed for the night.  The covers were all bunched up at the bottom of the bed, and it didn't bother me one bit! 

When I was growing up, my mom used to force me to make my bed every morning.  This chore totally confused me, and I had very logical little-kid reasons for why it was silly to make my bed:

1)  I'm just going to get back in it when it was time for bed again.
2)  Making a bed wasted valuable time I could have used for a variety of other things.
3)  . . .

Okay, I only had two reasons, but I was six so give me a break.

I also said things like, "I will never force my kids to make their beds." 

There's something you should know about me . . . when I say I am or I am not going to do something, I pretty much stick to that just to prove a point.  I'm stubborn . . . but that's for a different confession. 

I'm now thirty-three, and I feel the exact same way about making beds as I did when I was six.  I don't do it, and I don't make my kids do it.  And I probably never will.  There I said it!

What about you?  Are you a bed-maker or a bed-leaver?

Confess on!

40 comments:

Leslie said...

i am a bed maker, but up to really recently i have not bothered making my kids but they are plenty big enough so even though it is not perfect they do it and that is all i am looking for.

Ule said...

No way! I never make the bed! Unless my husband does it it doesn't get done! And I don't make my kids do it either.

chris said...

I make my bed...it may be the only thing in my home that looks tidy. I love the feeling of the sheets when the bed is made.

the thrifty ba said...

i make my bed. and now that i make my kids make their own breafast, i make theirs agan too. i cant stand mess.
but as a kid-hated it!

Rachel Sue said...

YES! I remember thinking that exact thing as a kid, and I don't make my kids make their bed either. I never did until I just recently got new bedding and it just looks so cute when it's all nice and made. We'll see how long that lasts. . .

Audrey said...

Years ago, I didn't care if the bed went unmade all day, but I would still have to pull the sheets and make it right before I got in, otherwise it didn't feel right (oh so silly of me!)... but having since been married for 7 years my husband and I are both perfectly content to leave the bed in disarray all day long and climb in perfectly happy at night. Some things are just better left undone :-)

Amanda said...

I am a bed maker....most of the time! I'm working on my pre-reqs to enter the nursing program and I love to do my homework on my bed...when I can. My husband is a Deputy and works a rotating schedule so when he is on nights, well there is always someone in the bed, therefore it never needs making! So I go through neccesary spurts :) LOVE LOVE LOVE your blog!

Beverly {Flamingo Toes} said...

I'm a wishy washy bed maker. I usually make mine, but don't often make the kids do theirs. One of those things that's kind of low on the list. haha.
Darling picture of your little one.
And oh - you just hit 600 followers!! Yeah you! :)

Quimby said...

I'm a bed leaver but not entirely by choice. Here's my confession - after 10 years of marriage DH and I cannot share the blankets. He has his and I have mine and never the twain shall meet. So while I like the look of a nicely made bed, if we make the bed, that means that at night-time we have to unmake it to divvy up the covers. Too much hassle.

Melissa said...

We don't exactly make our bed - but we pull it all smooth and straight so it doesn't look all rumpled.

Anonymous said...

We leave all of 'em rumpled and unruly - EXCEPT when my mom is coming to visit, and then I am thankful for duvets, when I just have to pull it up, fluff, and be done. And after, I realize how easy it could be, but nah, I'm still rebelling against my childhood must-make-your-bed-or-else!

Unknown said...

We only make our bed once in a blue moon. Probably only when we change sheets AND are feeling very tidy at the same time. Other than that, when the room is all clean (which happens rarely thanks to, oh, life and LAUNDRY), the bedspread gets thrown over the top and smoothed to help it look like it's naturally tidy like that. :)

I love that your six-year-old self is still alive and well in your grown-up self!

Polly @ Pieces by Polly said...

I don't make my bed either. Hubby does once in a while. None of my kids sleep in "made" beds yet. They just sleep with a jumble of their favorite 3 or 4 blankies all piled on top of them.

Lynn said...

I discovered (and promptly subscribed) to your blog recently and have been really enjoying it. No bed-making here either! I admit, I do LIKE how it looks when it is made, and the feeling of climbing into a freshly made bed. But apparently not enough to actually make it on a regular basis. :)

Emily said...

I probably make my bed ("our" bed, even though my husband travels every week and only sleeps in it on the weekends) about 75% of the time. For some odd reason it give me a feeling of accomplishment. One item in my house that's actually clean. :) My youngest girl is still in a crib so no bed making there. My eldest likes to sleep on her bed with her sleeping bag and an array of blankets, so we don't even bother. Good luck with Kindergarten!! To remedy said situation you could aways a) homeschool or b) have more children :) *insert evil laugh*

Tammy@T's Daily Treasures said...

I do make my bed just because I like the sheets to feel nice and smooth and comfy when I get into bed at nite. I don't remember my mom ever making me or my brother make beds. She was a sahm so likely she did it for us. As for my boys, I don't make their's and don't make them -- and since they don't seem to care, it's okay with me. My 11 year old will start to complain if things get a bit too crumply and then I know it is time to change the sheets on their bed. :) have a wonderful Wednesday. Tammy

Papgena Made It said...

oh she is so cute in that photo...
Oh my! Never ceased to amaze me how fast they grow up, sometimes I look to my daughter in wonder 'where is my baby???' :)
And school...well she is there since 6 months, I should be use too but I'm not, you know, and she loves it and it's amazing but...still...
As for your question:well I was a bed maker until 5 years ago when I married... ;)

Unknown said...

I was never a bed maker until about a year ago, when we finally bought bedroom furniture (for the first time in my adult life) It was too nice not to make the bed, plus we bought an expensive comforter and I hated to see it folded up on the floor or crumpled on the bed. Now it seems part of the daily routine and I don't think about it at all, once you get use to it, it takes no time at all.

Amanda said...

Occasionally.

As a kid I HATED making my bed. Now... eh. I could go either way. After I shower and get dressed it isn't often I make it back into my bedroom until bedtime so if I didn't make it super early in the morning it isn't getting made.

Hubby could care less. Sometimes he makes it though.

And if I do make it I am NOT a crazy Martha Stewart bed maker. I just pull up the quilt and call it a day!

Jolene said...

I used to never make my bed. NEVER! But I was also a lousy housekeeper. I am in a new house and therefore trying my darndest to keep it clean - which means I now make my bed. The weekends are usually not made, and I am ok with that. But I do love the feel of a freshly made bed...

Sonia said...

omg, I thought I was the only one who didn't make her bed! My kids don't either, and I"m totally fine with that. The only time we make our beds is if someone is coming over, and might look into the bedrooms. LOL! Oh, and the kindergarten thing? Get the tissues, I bawled like a baby when each of my 3 started school. My "baby" (ie that 16 yr old) is starting college next year. Seems like she started pre k just a couple of years ago.

Craftcherry said...

I love the way my bed looks when it's made...but that only ever happens if I change the sheets in the morning...and for some reason that happens pretty much never....so in the end...we don't generally have a made bed.

Bree said...

The only time I make my bed is when we having company coming over, and even then only if I think there's a reason they'll actually see the bedroom. My husband was a strict bed-maker when I first met him, so I would usually make it to keep him happy, but my philosophy has always been the same as yours - why bother when we're getting right back in it at the end of the day? Over the past couple years, he started making it less & less, and now it's a very rare day that he does make it, although he still does occasionally, "just because."

valentinegirl said...

Hey, I read your blog and enjoy it a lot....I just wanted to say "cheer up" about the bad thing that happened to you. You were too polite to say specifically what it was, but I'm guessing it was something blog related? Try to let it roll over you and know that there are lots of strangers out there (like me!) who don't know you, probably won't ever meet you....but like and respect what you do!! Hang in there!!

Kenzie said...

I never make the bed either! I think it is pointless most of the time, but I will say that it is nice to walk into my bedroom after getting off of work and seeing the bed made! I am too lazy to make it very often!

Cassie said...

My baby started kindergarten last week.
Now I am home.alone.
I am a bed maker though.
I can't stand to see it unmade...drives me insane. I would sleep on top of the comforter if I could.
=)

Sarah@sweetpeaandjojo.blogspot.com said...

bed maker here. didn't used to be for some of the same reasons as you. i started doing it when my husband started traveling out of town for work. something about getting into an unmade bed alone made me lonely. As for my kids, I'm a "pull up the covers" sort of mom. And I'm the one that usually does it.

Monica said...

I am only a bed maker when company is coming over or after I was the bedding. Even made beds in our house aren't like the made beds on tv. I don't tuck everything in and have squared off sheets. Its just comfortable looking.

My oldest starts kindergarten next year. I have the ache already!

Fawnda@Fireflies and Jellybeans said...

I do not make my bed either! Why... when I am just going to mess it up agian?!? I am with ya... although I will probably make my kid(s) do it... I am a bit of a do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do kind a person some times... : )

Hugs to you about your little baby becoming a big kindergartener!

And extra Hug to help you get over what ever that meanie did to you! I've got my glue heated up, if you need me to get your back!

Kate Hall said...

me TOO! all of it, right down to the kindergartner. although the picture of the baby was not mine. and its not two days, but a week of days. achey.
no bed making. i'm working on absolving myself of my mother's guilt... ho hum.

Debra Hawkins said...

I sometimes only make my bed so it looks like I did something while my husband was at work all day. :)
I am sorry that somebody made you doubt yourself. I know how that feels and I hope you are able to let it go!

Julianna said...

I'm with you! I never ever make my bed. And I agree with the six year old you...I'm getting right back in it and I have better things to do!

KimMalk said...

I clicked over here from someone else's blog. Ha ha! I don't make my kids make their beds either. Mine is made about 1/2 the time :P.

Jules said...

I only ever make my bed if company is coming over. And family doesn't count as company, it has to be someone who doesn't come over regularly.

Anne said...

Oh, we NEVER make our beds!!! Seems like a thorough waste of time. That and, sad to say, I honestly don't know how. I mean, I know how to pull the sheets up and such, but I can't ever get them all tucked nice around the edges.

On the other hand, there's nothing more luxurious after a long day than peeling back the layers of a perfectly made bed. Hmm... now I'm wondering if mabye I should finally learn how to make my bed.

--Anne

Anonymous said...

I confess I do not make my bed. I was forced to make my bed when I was younger and one day in the 7th grade after rebelling on not making my bed for a few days there was a note on the board at school that I did not make my bed that morning! Seriously do you think my mom could have scared me any worse? To this day I do not make my bed just because I know it most likely bugs my mom. LOL
Jenn Probst

veggiemom said...

Definitely not bedmakers in our house...me or the kids.

Heather said...

I'm a bed-maker (but only since we got a fancy new bedroom set with a pretty comforter and throw pillows), and I love the feeling of climbing into a bed that was made all day. I'm weird. My toddler has started to organize her stuffed animals and blankets in her crib now, after watching me make our bed all the time. :)

Kat said...

My mom and dad would make us have spotless rooms and made bed...ALWAYS! Now my daughters room looks like a toy bomb went off and her bed is never made. Yes, it does drive me crazy about the toys, and we do pick them up, but I never have her make her bed (and I dont make mine either)

Elizabeth said...

My daughter starts kindergarten on the 9th of September (don't even get me started on the graduated start thing and the fact that she is full days every other day ...). I feel your angst.

I admit, I am a bed maker. I crave order and making my bed, getting dressed and putting a dab of makeup makes me feel I'm ready for the day. I do make my kids beds as they are 2 and 4 but I get them to help with it where I can. I have a home daycare so it's important for me to keep the kids rooms tidy as during nap time there may be another little one borrowing a corner of their room. Likely after school gets started and the routine is in place I will have Ava straighten her bed. And it will take everything in me not to go over it and fix it for the rest of the day.

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