Evil?

My little one has started doing chores at our house. It's a great big help to me. Humongous! And she's doing them with cheer instead of gripes. It's been lovely:) And at the end of each week she gets 5 bucks allowance for all the work she's done.

Although this is new for her with us, she's had chores for some time now at her dad & step mom's. So the other night as she was comparing chores w/us vs. chores w/them she started going down the list of things she has to take care of over there. They are the following:

• make her bed
• set the table
• take out the trash
• change her sheets
• fold and put away the laundry
• clear the table
• scrub the toilet!
• I said! scrub the toilet!

I had chores growing up but never did I have to scrub the toilet! I even had to pick up the dog poop, which my little one also helps us with in the yard once a month, but never did I have to scrub the toilet. It's not that I don't think she needs to learn how, some day, but I think 9 is a little young to be forced to scrub the icky commode that three people use (one being a very large man who likes to eat chilly and things like hotdogburgers and giant 2 lb. burritos - you get the idea...) I don't think I liked scrubbing the pot after him when we were married and I was a grown-up/wife/mother who felt it was part of my role/responsibilities. But as the step mom who doles out the chores over there, you'd think she'd have a little voice that'd pipe up saying, "now go easy on scrubbing of the floors or scrubbing of the toilets because you don't want to come off as the evil stepmother who makes her new stepdaughter do ALL the dirty work. Give her chores to teach her responsibility and respect for her home, but take it easy on the little thing. It'll help you seem nice & not evil." Nope. Not the case apparently. The little voice did not speak up.

One reason why this worries me is because they are expecting. This will be my daughter's first sibling. They just found out that it's a girl. So when this new little adorable bundle shows up at the house (which my little one is absolutely thrilled about!) will she feel like she's being treated differently? Would Ms. Step Mom make her own little pipsqueak scrub the nasty ole' potty? I'm not so sure. She may have to make her bed or help set the table, but clean the commode? I don't know, I just don't know.

How many other kids have to do this? Is it just another chore or is it beyond chores? Did someone make you scrub the toilets growing up and if so did you get the feeling you were the house servant or did you feel it was just part of your duties?

I'm curious, and I hope I'll be proven wrong on this.