How to REALLY Get your Kids to Brush Their Teeth
This is our kitchen sink (for real). Yours is probably far cleaner, but the general setup is likely the same: faucet, dish soap, sponge, coffee mug, paper towels, pokemon cards, toothpaste, toothbrushes, etc.
Wait. Toothpaste & toothbrushes?! Yup. Right there in plain sight.
The simple truth is this: we brush our teeth at the kitchen sink!
For some reason, this freaks some people out. Not sure why – it’s not like we are using baking soda toothpaste for muffins or sparkling mint paste for cookies. And it’s obvious that I’m not using those toothbrushes to scrub the counters.
As an ADHD Mom with 5 kids (2 of whom also have ADHD), I struggle with getting everyone (including myself!) out the door on time. On mornings when my two brilliant guys with attention challenges successfully make it to the kitchen (wearing or carrying their clothes…we’re flexible), the last thing I want to do is send them back upstairs to deal with dental hygiene. An infinite number of distractions are already waiting to derail our morning, so why go farther than the kitchen sink?!
Take the path of least resistance. Breakfast at (or walking around) the kitchen table, dishes in the left side of the sink, tooth brushing on the right. Grab the backpacks (and shoes!) and head out the garage door to the car! School Morning Success!!
P.S. You might want to keep a backup deodorant in the spice cabinet, too! Just in case! 😉
