Oh, the Clothes!!

The only thing that works for me is that they get to do NOTHING unless their room is picked up. If they've not done the above, and they've left the house, they will be grounded. It's the only way I've kept it under control.

Going:

I feel your pain!! Or at least felt it.

We separated our boys - that helped a lot. I only have 2 but we wanted 4!!! :)

Both my boys have a laundry basket in their room - one has a basketball hoop above it - so he can "shoot and score" his dirty clothes...

The other didn't want a hoop - fine - each of them have a colored basket - Greg for Gregory and Purple for Pickle (that's Nicky's nick name).

If the laundry is ANYWHERE but their basket - it doesn't get washed. Mine are now 9 and 11. I don't pick up after them -the "M" stands for mommy not maid...they have been doing this since they were 3....when clothes are not in the basket? I count from 5 to 0 - they know they had better move fast or else they are going to lose something....clothes, toys, shoes - I'm mean that way I guess...

Try giving them baskets colored coded to their names...try getting basket ball hoops for them to throw them into!!

It will get better!!

My suggestion would to be to give them their own hamper, in their room, and be VERY strict about putting dirty clothes in it. Then, at night after they've gone to bed, empty it and stain treat as needed. I don't do stain treatment until night, and my stains still always come out.

I've got 3 kids: 5, 3 and 2 in one room and I feel your pain! ALSO, they love to strip and play "nakee" (the naked game) and their clothes are thrown everywhere downstairs as well. The most irritating thing is folding and putting away all the clothes only to find the dressers empty after they fling everything out looking for stuff. I wish I could say I made them stop doing these things, but I haven't. My 5 year old now does help me put stuff away into the right places, but the two younger ones tend to undo it. My 3 year old is improving... I am on top of it however, here's how:

I have two designated places to collect the clothes: Upstairs, it's my bed. When I see clothes all over the floors and usual spots, and I don't have time to guide the kids through picking them up, I scoop them all up in 10 seconds flat and pile them on my bed. From that point, sometime during the day, it's easy to sort from the bed by folding the clean ones and tossing the dirty ones into hamper (also in my room). I actually like escaping to my room, standing there and doing that.

For downstairs, I put them at the base of the stairs. If clothes are strewn everywhere, I scoop them up, or tell the kids to (and they do) and put them at the base of the stairs. The next time I go up the stairs, they go on my bed. Pretty much every day I disperse the clothes from my bed to the right drawer or hamper, and a couple times a week I take the laundry to the basement.

The kids are NOT ALLOWED to pull dirty clothes out of hampers and throw them around, nor are they allowed to rip them off the bed and throw them around, or disperse the pile at base of stairs.

That's our little system. It's easier to get them to put them on the bed or at the base of stairs than to have them actually put them all "away". Even my two year old will take her clothes to the stairs (downstairs) or put them on the bed (upstairs).

We have our 4 yo trained to put dirty clothes in his hamper. Then we wash all of his clothes separately, using the Tide stain release in each load. We have not had any problems with stains.

I have 2 girls and a boy in one room and the clothes are all over the place. They each have their own dresser but clothes still end up on the floor. I end up with extra clothes to wash AFTER I have finished sorting or washing clothes. Even making them do some of it themselves does no good. And I also use shout or sometimes need to soak. My kids are 12 so you would think they would have more of a recognition of themselves and being cleaner. Having them do their own clothes is a waste of soiap and woater since the loads would be a lot smaller than when i do all together--plus I really would like them to look a little neat when they go to school. One day, the laundry wizard will visit and take care of it all. I just ahve a feeling it will be when they go to college--or get their own places. sigh

It's not just my kids then! I feel better! Add that I always have a collection of dirty socks in the living room too because someone's feet get hot so they take them off and then can't find them when it's time to go out and they get another pair, adding to what's here when they take them off again.
I turn into a drill sargent to get my kids to collect all their dirty stuff and put it in the hamper and often have to go and sweep behind them to find it all. The only one that puts dirty stuff where it belongs is the 2 1/2 year old, the almost 11 and almost 8 year old are the worst. My husband isn't the best either so it's a loosing battle.
I wish I had some advice. I want someone to come do my laundry for me. It's my least favorite job.Just wanted to let you know it's not just your kids and I think it's boys at that because my 2 1/2 year old is a girl ;)

Zout works wonders! I have been pretty proud that since I first purchased and started to use this product that there hasn't been a stain I couldn't get out. You can get it at CVS, Walgreens, Walmart etc.

Seriously, I have an 8.5 year old and I can count on O. hand the number of times I have pre-treated anything--except his baseball pants. Use Tide. Forget the other stuff!

Could you get a hoop to put over the hamper and let them "play basketball" with the clothes? Or try to make a game of it?

When I was a nanny, I helped kids with cleaning up their rooms and clothing was part of that deal. Even with kids eight and older, sometimes it helps to just plant yourself in their room for ten minutes, have them bring you *all* the clothes that are out, then you sort them and have the boys put away any cleans; if you like, keep a basket of clothespins handy and pin anything that needs stain remover. I've found that I might miss stains throwing clothes into the laundry in a hurry, but the clothespins catch my attention. (sometimes, too, I'll just pin all the dirty shirts together).

Hope that helps.

I have taught my kids... (I have 2), that WHEN they get a stain or dirt on their clothes, to tell me THEN. (If they are home, if not when they come home tell me), and then, right THEN... I have them take off their clothes and I RIGHT then, spray stain remover on it, then toss it in the laundry basket.

OR I tell them, IF there is a stain on their clothes, to put it in a pile, a SEPARATE pile, ie: the "stain pile"... so that, I can then, KNOW that whole pile has stains on it (because it is the stain pile), then I SPRAY them with stain remover and pre-treat and just wash it all, when I do laundry.

My kids, do this.
So your kids probably can, too.

By the way, I keep, stain remover spray, upstairs in the kitchen and downstairs in the laundry area. So it is very handy and accessible, whenever a stain arises and wherever I and the kids are. On my kids clothes or wherever.
And my eldest, my daughter, WILL spray stain remover on her stained clothes, herself. I taught her to do so. Then put it in the stain pile.

Oh those boys! I have three of them. They are older now. The youngest who is 13 I walk in his room daily and remind him to pick up his clothes. The 18 year old came home from school and the first thing he did was throw his clothes on the floor. I have tried getting them individual clothes baskets. That worked for a little bit. My only girl is the neater one. Maybe a fun clothes baskets would work. They have some character clothes baskets now. Maybe try one of these. Good luck with your boys.

my ds is 10, and I still read with him most nights-and that starts with me reading while he tidies his room. multitasking! the kids bring me their laundry on Fridays, sort it, and put it away. dd is 13 and she is now responsible for pretreating. GL!