To Empty or Not Empty…That is the Question

It’s 6:45 PM. The kids are yammering at you⎯each needing your attention. You’re supposed to call someone back, & bills need to be paid.  You wish the messy dinner dishes would miraculously clean themselves up because laundry waits to be folded & put away. . . . The list goes on.

But you’re so tired, you just need to sit down for 10 minutes! You can get all that done later.  You remember the words of Scarlett O’Hara, “….tomorrow is another day!” (Didn’t she say, “I’ll worry about that tomorrow”?)

With that logic, the chores will be waiting for you as you try to start your day tomorrow. What to do?

Option #1

Stack the dishes in the sink or on the countertop since you haven’t had time since coming home from work to empty the dishwasher.  For tomorrow morning’s breakfast, use clean dishes, then stack them next to last night’s dirty ones because you still need to empty that dishwasher. Come home after a long day at work to the pile of dishes in the sink and on the countertop.  Supper can be order-in pizza so you don’t have to deal with the mounting dish crisis.

When you find no clean dishes for breakfast the second morning, take kids to McDonald’s; pick up Starbucks for yourself. Bring home dinner that doesn’t require dishes. Oh, and you are out of  glasses, so serve cokes out of cans for everyone.

Option #2

Empty the dishwasher the first time you circle through the kitchen after the wash finishes. Maybe have the kids help while you make them a mid-evening snack and discuss their homework.  Wake to a clean, mess-free kitchen where you can have breakfast, enjoy your coffee, & have time to listen to your kids.

That evening, cook a nutritious dinner for your family. The dishwasher space beside the breakfast bowls makes cleaning up the dirty dinnerware a breeze.  Start the cycle so that before going to bed you can put those clean dishes away.

You’ll start another day with a ready kitchen.  You may actually hear birds chirping as the sun rises while you are enjoying your breakfast with your family.  Sense the calm state of your family, and pledge to stay on top of the dirty dish situation.

It’s up to you; 15 minutes of putting away the dishes or countless time spent trying to avoid the mounting mess in the sink.  Which do you prefer?