I know this may be strange, but I have a secret confession, I am afraid of sticky, gooey, slimy, and just plain gross things. It creeps me out. You are probably laughing thinking that how is it possible to dislike all of those things and have three fairly young boys. It is true that my boys can be quite gross, to be blunt, but that is no reason for them to not value being clean. In fact, just ask my eight year old what he likes to do after getting sweaty at soccer practice. He will tell you that first he like to have his favorite flavor of Gatorade and then a shower. Yes, my eight year old sweaty gross boy likes to shower! So, it is possible to make your children value cleanliness, and like a lot of good habits, it is just something that you have to work at. My twins are still definitely a work in progress when it comes to staying clean, but here are some tricks and tips to reinforce good cleaning habits with your children.
Keep wipes on hand at all times. Sticky messes happen. There is no avoiding it. Sometimes I am not even sure how my boys, the twins especially find things to get sticky with, but they do. I always have wipes on hand. In my car, my husbands car, my pocketbook, and just about anywhere else I can think to put them. My boys are so used to me cleaning their hands and faces with wipes for the first few years of their lives, that now they do it themselves. If we are on our way somewhere in the car, and we are ready to go to the store or park, the boys all grab a wipe and clean their faces and hands. It has become such a habit that I don’t even have to say a word. Wonderful!
Come inside and wash your hands. If they play outside, they know that after the shoes come off at the door their hands must be washed. This was another thing that has really taken a lot of patience, but more and more it seems to be becoming a tried and true habit of my twins. (My eight year has already mastered this, so he is a great influence)
Take your shoes off at the door. There is nothing more gross than having to clean junk off of the floor when it can surely be avoided. Everyone in the house has their own shoe bins large enough for a couple pair of shoes. We even have a little shoe cubby shelf for our guests. Once you walk into our mud room through the garage door, the shoes come off. Not only is this helpful when it comes to being clean, but there is rarely a misplaced shoe in our home.
I would love to hear fellow mother’s comments on just how much they hate germs 
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