Pink Grout

Today I told Marcus that I was going to go clean the master bathroom.

(Which trust me- it needed it. Nathan had dropped my blush a long time ago by the toilet and I feared the grout was going to be forever stained pink. It was one of those things I looked at on a daily basis but never got around to cleaning. Which pretty much means I spent way more time thinking about cleaning it than it would have taken to actually clean it.)

Nathan turned to me and said "Ooo- I want to help you clean the bathroom! Can I help? Please?!"

I internally debated because I usually say "not this time" when he asks because 1) Most likely he'll lose interest quickly 2) It would take me longer 3) He might make a bigger mess trying to clean 4) I usually have odds and ends things to put away that I don't want him handling (like my new unbroken-for-now blush) and did I mention it might take me longer? Oh and it would probably take longer.

But psssh!

What's wrong with me?! My 5 year old is wanting to HELP ME CLEAN.

So today I pushed my petty reasons to the side and said "yes." (Plus with 3 little boys growing up in this house there will be lots of bathroom cleaning. Might as well teach him early.)

To the sound of Christian Contemporary music thanks to Pandora we sprayed, we wiped, we cleaned and cleaned. We wiped down the baseboards and cleaned the pink grout. And we may have done a little boogy dance when we realized we finally got the floor of the shower clean thanks to my friend Dana suggesting the Magic Eraser (I'm a believer now)

Was it perfect? No.

Did I have to help him and show him and calm him down when he got frustrated when he couldn't get a certain spot clean? Yes.

Was it fun? You-betcha!

And best of all I think it actually went quicker (more quickly?)! Because once I showed him how to do something I would move on to the next thing. He worked the entire time without losing interest.

Afterwards, while we left the mopped floors to dry, I said "Thank you so much for all of your help Nathan. I really appreciate it."

Anticipating turning this into a this-is-why-it's-important-to-try-to-keep-things-picked-up-and-clean lesson, I said "Cleaning is hard work, huh?"

While he casually walked away he said "I know, Mommy, that's why I wanted to help you. Because it's hard and you have a baby in your belly."

Melt.

My heart grew 3 sizes.

Moments like this make you realize that although there are times you feel like you mess up as a parent you must be doing something right. Especially when your child shows a glimpse of a servant's heart.

Now hopefully I can keep the bathroom remotely clean while I dye my hair tonight.

Here's my little man hard at work and pics of our finished product (with no pink grout thank you very much!)