HOW TO GET YOUR KIDS TO KEEP THEIR ROOMS CLEAN!

I am not one of those moms who say "just shut the door, I don't want to see it, you have to live in it." Nope, I'm the Mom that does daily checks of the kids bedrooms to make sure they are in order. I have always believed that the kids learn good habits early on.  So from a very early age they were taught to pick up their toys, put their clothes in the hamper and make their beds. Was it a struggle? Yes. Was it worth it? Yes Yes Yes.  Today as teenagers, I know when I walk into their bedrooms everything will be in order. How did I do it? Simple threats and motivation!  Seriously, it was easy with one of my boys, he is naturally a neat and orderly child. My oldest however was pigpen.  He would never clean his room or put clothes in the hamper and finally I had enough. Why was I yelling at him day after day just to keep getting the same results?  Finally one day, I went into his room and took everything out in garbage bags. EVERYTHING!  I had him help me clean every inch of the bedroom.  I then wrote a list of things I expected from him. On the list was things like, Make Bed, Put Clothes In Hamper, Keep Dresser Clean, etc. At the bottom of the note was a clear and precise message..If These Things Are Not Done Every Day, You Will Hand Over Your Cell Phone For Two Days. If  You Argue With Me About This You Will Lose Your Cell Phone For One Week.  If You Continue To Argue With Me, You Will Lose Your Cell Phone For One Month.  I had him read it, he agreed to it, and we taped it to his mirror.  It's been well over 4 months, and I have never had to take his cell phone away. Why didn't I do this years ago? I would have saved myself a lot of frustration, headaches and grey hair!! I check his room daily, and it's immaculate. He must really love his phone!  This works with xbox, going to friends houses, taking  favorite toys away, etc.  We of course have to be consistent and follow through on our threats!  When my boys were younger they were much cleaner!! As teenage boys they can be lazy slobs at times! I'm not a drill sgt.  I don't expect them to do the dusting and vacuuming of their rooms, but I do expect them to keep their rooms cleaned and picked up. I went through the trouble of doing the heavy cleaning, so respect me and my time for that. It's like that in the rest of the house also. Leave it the way you find it!! Clean!!  Have respect and pride in yourself and your space! What works for you? How do you motivate your kids to keep their rooms clean?