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Hey Ranj: My wife and I both have full time jobs and share housework. She does all the cooking, I do all the laundry, and we both do the cleaning. We have a good system worked out so everything gets done and neither of us get more of a burden then the other. So, the household chores are not the problem. The problem is our 8-year-old daughter, Sylvia, has a habit of changing clothes repeatedly throughout the day whenever she feels the urge.

The way I see it, by the end of the week, Sylvia should have 5-8 dirty outfits per week -- one or two outfits a day is acceptable to me because my little girl can be messy at times. However, every week, it seems like I wash Sylvia's entire wardrobe! My wife says, "That's what little girls do."

Ranj, I was raised with three brothers and my wife was raised with two sisters, so she has more experience than I do when it comes to how little girls behave. A boy will wear the same outfit over and over again if he could.I have no experience of how often young girls change. Experience aside, I think Sylvia needs to be talked to about not changing so often -- or at least putting an outfit back in the drawer if it hasn't gotten dirty or if it has only been worn an hour or two. Help! -- Larry the Laundry Guy, Hauppauge, N.Y.

Hey Larry, I think I can help you. At 8 years old, your little girl is old enough to have some responsibilities of her own in your house. I think that it's time she started helping out at home with chores, she should be helping your wife cook and she should help you with the laundry. I'm not saying she should take over the chore entirely, but she should be helping out. If Sylvia realizes the work that it takes to clean an entire wardrobe of clothes, I think common sense will show her that wearing less outfits equals less laundry to be washed. She has to understand the work that goes into cleaning the clothes and the cost of the detergent. She has to realize that the clean clothes do not magically appear in her dresser. I bet if you teach her how to wash and fold her own clothes, she will be more understanding and cooperative.