Doing Dishes??

Question

Ok I know this is a extremely weird question, but how can I make doing the dishes more fun (if there is even a way).

See my Bro and I are the only ones in a house of six who do them, us being both teens. The younger siblings and parents do none. My Mom thinks because of all the years she's done them she doesn't have to anymore (Ok I can understand that a bit...) but my Dad has never helped out. He'll wash his own dishes for maybe a few days, but after that.. nothing.
Then the dishes pile up and it's my Bro and I who have to do them ALL. And with 4 people who don't wash their dishes it can be quite a bit.

So I want to know if there's a more enjoyable way to motivate me to wash them all, even though I really don't want to.

Thanks!!

All great ideas!!!


Our dishwasher is broken too, it's been like that for a while now. So that's another reason why the dishes pile up quicker than before.

(Right now my lil Sis is doing some dishes, your ideas worked!)

Keep some more great ideas coming!!!! =D

I would like to tell him to fix it or replace it, but #1 He's tried to fix it himself and it worked for about 2 washings worth and #2 it would cost extra money to fix or replace, which we don't have..... so I guess we stick to hand washing for a while.
It's really not that bad anymore.
Like everyone else says, as long as you keep on top of it every day it's not all that bad.

Answer 1

Oh my gosh, do we have the same parents? I guess not, because I'm 37, but my folks must be related to yours somehow. I remember the days my brother and I were stuck with all that. My mom was not a clean cook, either. We had a broken dishwasher, but Dad never fixed it until my brother and I moved out of the house and HE had to do dishes! Nice!

We thought squirting each other with the sink hose was fun and made time really fly, but Mom was not amused.

Split the chores up in the kitchen, grab a timer, and whoever gets done first has to make the bed of the other. Or try to get done before a certain number of songs on the CD player is done. Or, put on some ridiculous music and act out the part.

To make the job go quicker, soak the nasty dishes and they'll wash up easily. Just don't do what I did-- soak Mom's cast iron pan!!

Answer 2

I hand wash the dishes everyday about the same time, keep it routine. I'm lucky enough to be able to watch the TV in the family room from where I'm standing so it passes the time as I catch up on everything that's happened that day. By the time everything is cleaned up, the evening news is over and I keep from becomeing a couch potato too early.

Answer 3

I had to do the same thing. Turn the music on. Music makes boring jobs go faster. You might try singing too. It will get the little kids in the kitchen too. They want to be part of the fun.
Also, do the dishes every day. A couple of days worth is a pile.

Answer 4

Plug in your MP3 Player or iPod, put hot soapy water in the sink with a good dish detergent, like Dawn, and don't let them pile up. I keep a sink of hot soapy water ready and as the dishes get dirty after a meal, pop them into the water. As I am cooking, as soon as the dish is done, I put it into the hot soapy water. The trick is not to let them pile up, then you are more willing to tackle them. If they are put into water right away you won't have a lot of scrubbing at dried on, hard food.

Answer 5

To be honest with you, I do them every day, I hand wash them. It has gotten to the point I do them so much, that I don't even think about it anymore. It just something I do, I know I have to do them. So I do it to get it over with. For me it was just changing the way I think about it.

Answer 6

Tell your lazy @ss father to get that dishwasher either fixed or replaced. Cheap *******.