I would say I hope you never meet my husband because he would wonder what the heck it was I did all day... :)

My hat is off to you, and I say you do plenty....

Give me some of that energy juice you must have!  Hun, I think you are overdoing things, especially when I see further down that you look after kids after school and during the holidays for free!

Personally, my children would be having to help out around the house.  The refuse to help, I refuse to give pocket money or to pay for things like them going to the movies (wouldn't include school excursions, but maybe camps).

Teach your older kids how to use a washing machine and make them do their own washing, including hanging it out, bringing it in, folding and putting away.  Changing the beds is another one they could help with.  Even helping out with meal preparations.  Vacuuming the floors or sweeping isn't hard either.

Even your 2 year old could have special jobs like taking nappies to the bin/laundry.

Basically, you need to teach your children to be responsible for their stuff and to help out as a family.  I'm not saying that you aren't trying, but taking away privileges might give them some more incentive.

Your oldest 3 (oops, nearly put oddest 3! lol) should be preparing for 'leaving home' in the next few years.  That is, they need to know how to take care of a household before they fend for themselves.  Cooking, cleaning and financial matters are things that every parent should be helping their children to learn.  I was taught these things when I was living at home, but it was still a big shock when I moved out of home.

You say you look after these kids for free on occasion, why not ask the parents to help you out by giving a gold coin per family per day so that maybe, even if just once a week, you could get someone in to help out with some housework.

Take a load off and find some you time.  You need it, and your kids need you to have it too.

Hi, I think you are a brilliant, super mum! I don't know how you do it!!! I only have 2 children at the moment, but I still get my boys to help out with house chores... It helps them for when they move out of home too... my nearly 12 year old complains that he does "everything", so I did up a chore chart for him, and a chore chart for me, and he can see that I have a lot more work to do than he does (he washes up 3 times a week and sweeps the floor once a week and takes the rubbish out daily)... I think it has helped get him to be more co-operative with the chores now that he sees what I actually do everyday! My 5 year old thinks its fun to help at the moment, but I still have a rewards chart for him and when he helps he gets a sticker on there, and a small (under $4.00) toy at the end of the fortnight... If my elder boy mows the lawn he gets $10.00... just a little incentive for him to do it without complaining!!!! When I was a kid my younger siblings and I had to do a heck of a lot more chores than that, and didn't get pocket money! and we grew up ok, I think it's just part of being in a family, we all help out.... I think your elder 5 kids are way old enough to help you, remind them that you are their mother, not their slave, and even if they only do one chore each, each week they could swap chores.... do up charts maybe and what if you just "go on strike" for a couple of days? don't clean up their mess, tell them it goes in the bin if they don't look after it... I knew a woman who did that, and I tell ya, her kids learnt pretty quick not to leave their stuff laying around!!! I personally feel that it's a bit dis-respectful to treat your mum like that, our dad would have clipped us around the ears if we didn't help our mum! It sounds like you are on your own (sorry I haven't looked at your profile, so don't know if that's true or not), so if you are on your own, you are doing a bloody brilliant job on your own, but I do think your kids need to help you more... Sorry if I have upset you at all........ Hope some of this helps..... xxx Louisa...

Wow do you wear a cape? you need some time to your self plus the kids are old enough to help. Im tired just looking at what you have to do.  As for the kids saying hosework is boring for them tell them its not exciting for you too. Be careful you dont burn out. 

Hi, You are doing a mighty job,  parents need to be like superheroes! you sound like you already do far more than enough,

Yes some of us know how you feel, there are still eight of our children at home (IE under 14 years old) and we both seem to go from before the sun rises until well into the night, we usually get to bed around one o'clock in the morning and then need to be back on board by six am,  the older kids do not do much house work and do create a huge amount of work, it seems the smaller ones are keen to help and although that is sweet they tend to make more work by "helping" we have resigned ourselves to the fact that its quicker and much more convenient to do all the work ourselves rather than hound the older kids and then have to go and check that they have done said chores, and usually have to redo it as they do a half arsed job coz they don't want to do it in the first place, we are happy in the knowledge that they will have their own children one day and they will soon know what work is!  we are exhausted every day and there are two of us doing it so i imagine that you are absoloutly whacked by the time you finally get your well deserved rest!!

well done you are a champion! Ian and Cherine

Wow, I should call you super mom!!!

I think you need to come up with a plan to get more organized, have a blog of choresd posted on your fridge or wall with something for everyone, even little ones can help with picking up items, to make it easy for them have some pics or drawing on it and ask them to help you come up with helping plan, this way they will feel responsible. one more advise, you need some "me time" where you lock everything out and just sit by yourself. I used to be like you on the run all the time but felt I was gradually crashing down, so after the kids went to sleep, I used to have a minmum of 15 min "me time" just to help me have energy for the next day!!!

Good Luck

I think you need to get the older ones to help a bit. I have 6 kids. 3 of them teenagers and I often get them to cook, hang washing etc.. Can't say I'm perfectly organised and they do it willingly but I just expect them to help and when I put my foot down they do it. Also I offer them incentives. When they have been particularly helpful, I sometimes reward them with a new game for the xbox, When my son was doing up his bike, he cleaned the kitchen for me every night for a week as he needed some parts. And he was rewarded. I guess it doesnt have to be huge but there needs to be some incentive involved. Even if it's you being able to give them a bit more time to do something they want to do.

It's a bit unfair for them to trash the place when they get home. That is a problem I also have.

I think you are amazing and a great mum to be breastfeeding, but I think you deserve to eat your meal without having a kid clinging.

May I suggest sitting and enjoying a meal without breastfeeding, Try it just once, Get one of the older kids to help with the baby.  I always used my older kids as helpers when I was breastfeeding.

I just really think that for the amount you do you deserve that small luxury.

Yep I'm a busy mum too!! and I love it! I have also wondered this myself in the past, wether I was doing enough, but I think it was just cause i was enjoying myself so much i felt guilty, and thought that perhaps I shouldn't be having so much fun and be so happy and that perhaps i needed to get a job so i could be as miserable as everyone else lol. But there is no chance of me feeling guilty anymore lol!, as I am now a licensed family daycarer, and run a family daycare from home ( have done so for just over a year now). So I not only look after my 6 children, do all the cooking and cleaning ect ect (kids do help with the cleaning) and hold up the fort while my husband works way (9 days on 5 days of) but I also look after a whole lot of other kids aswell ( my daycare kiddies) and I get  paid for it!! WOOHOO! so I just love it!

Anyway you shouldn't feel as a full time mother of 8 that you should get a job other than the one you already have You are doing plenty

My goodness how do you find the energy???

I am considered extremely organised by my friends because the house isn't a disaster , I breastfeed, and there is a meal that I cooked from scratch on the table every night...and I only hae one child. I will return to work in January but only part-time and again, I stress, this is only coz I only have 1 kid. Frankly you are amazing to do what you do!

OMG you need to get the children to help you around the house, how the hell do you do it? do you put your superwoman outfit on when you get up? I am one of 6 children and there is no way we would have got away with not helping out around the house, mum would have gone crazy!!

put you feet up and get them to help you. you have so earned it.

Take care of you AnitaXXX