I have 2 grown up daughters and a 6 year old son. When we knew the baby I was carrying was going to be a boy, my daughters made me pledge to put my money where my mouth was and make him change his bed and do his own washing etc etc by the time he's 13 - just as they did! So far, he's happy to collect the post, feed the cats, fold his PJ's in the morning and make his bed - all in his litle boy way, of course, but I don't see it lasting. The call of his peer group is far too strong I fear! Now my eldest daughter has a 2 year old son of her own so it will be interesting to see how things transpire!?..............

My son is five and already anything remotely like housework is 'your job'. 'Oh why do I have to do your job?' he cringes when I ask him to tidy away all his superheros into the carefully marked box, well placed specifically for ease of tidying away! My not quite two-year-old, however, loves nothing more than packing away her brother's toy cars in his also marked draw, or help me load/unload the washing machine...it's in the genes. Simples!

dreadful as it is my husband still says 'Its your job' when it comes to household chores.

I blame his mother - dont let our son's wives do the same - teach them now ---please !

Eek. As a mummy of a 4 month old baby boy, this scares me a bit! Note to self: encourage helping with housework from an early age - and tell daddy he has to help too to set a good example :D

Can totally relate to this with my boy & girl. Just gotta keep working on making your boy a 'good' man!!

My nearly two year old loves nothing more than to "help mama yeah?". However, I think this maybe somewhat of a misnomer. His "helping to sort the washing" consists of taking the clean clothes from the basket and storing them in various locations around the house for me to find in need of washing again at a later date . . . either that or it is strewn across the garden to cries of "Ha ha". The joys of living with the other sex!

I have three boys and a male partner.
See if you can guess who does 99% of the housework despite doing my best to teach them before resorting to bribes/blackmail!!

Andrea @TheAccidentalBusinessMum

Same old! Same old! My daughter will happily do things around the house whilst my son would love to treat me like his servant - a typical scenario goes:

"Mum, mum I'm thirsty - can you get me a drink?"

" Son - you know where the cups are and your legs aren't broken"

" but mum I'm tired"

"and.."

And then he eventually stomps in and gets his own drink - tidying his room normally calls for "if you don't do this room now you can't go to xxx". hence with him it is an uphill battle to ensure that I am not his slave..but fight on I will and now my daughter has joined in that fight and is far more fierce with him than me. I do wonder though, whether in the end this will make him do more around the house when he is grown up, married etc - we can but try!!