I want to be a bigamist. I want to have three husbands. Mr. E can handle the kids, husband #2 can earn (or have) oodles of money, and husband #3 has to bring useful skills into the marriage like a) massaging skills (I'm sure the other two husbands will agree that a masseur is a great asset), and b) the ability to hypnotize me and ask me where I left things.
I just spent half an hour looking for something. A few months ago I tilted the contents of one of our boardgames into a box or carrier, I don't remember which, and either threw them away, or hid them somewhere. The kids had, as usual, neglected to properly return the parts to the box and I decided to teach them a lesson. The idea was that the next time they decided to play the game they'd discover that the pieces to be gone. They'd be suffieciently shocked and resolve to be more tidy in the future. Yeah, not one of my brightest moments. Now the box is empty except for the rule book and the board itself. Hmmm. I'm pretty sure I didn't throw the pieces and cards away, but sometimes, when my temper is particularly filthy, I get a little *cough* irrational.
When my mother got into one of her moods she used to open all my cupboards and sweep the entire contents on the floor, not caring whether my doll china broke etc. - can't say the method was very effective. I still have to force myself to tidy up properly. (Which is one of the reasons why I really don't want to tidy up my kids' crap as well)
I've never done anything as drastic as that, but I do get stern when my kids don't tidy their room. After all, how am I supposed to put the clean laundry into their wardrobes when I can't even navigate through their room?
*sigh* and the oscar for the most dull domestic LJ post goes to...
ETA: Found the contents. Phew. And daughter #2 just meticulously sorted the cards and pieces back into the Candamir-Box. :-)
