Housekeeping advice please

[bwdiaz]

I'm finding that (for various reasons) I need to do (even a little bit) better with housekeeping. We have realized we have a mouse problem and we're taking care of it with an exterminator. He found they were nesting in a heating grate that connects to a room we don't use much (guest bedroom/some storage) but were traveling from there into other rooms. As a result I've been much more fastidious than normal, but I really feel like I'm not all that efficient, especially with routine cleaning. I do it but it takes a lot of time and I'm not all that satisfied with my results. I do a lot of swiffering and 409/paper towel cleaning normally.

 

I'd really love it if you guys could share maybe one or two of the tips that have worked really well for you or given you a feeling of accomplishment or well being. I'd like to be a happier homemaker and not feel like chores are the end of the world. I'm in particular having trouble keeping on top of the laundry but frankly, I have a lot of areas that need work. The kitchen I keep in great shape but I could do with more order there and everywhere. Housekeeping has never come intuitively to me and the fact that I'm a stay at home homeschooling mom amuses everyone who knew me in my youth where I constantly had my head in a book.

 

I have two kids, ages 6 and 8, both girls. The 6 year old is naturally tidy, is in charge of the majority of her personal hygiene, and helps me a lot (I suspect she likes the time together). The 8 year old is more like me. Think "stuff is off the floor but on the shelf unfolded so it's ok". Stuff that's important to her like books or her video games she takes care of but the pile of unfolded clothes is low on the list of priorities (for us both). We don't have problems with food trash and they never have any in their rooms. Neither give me a hassle when I ask them to take out the trash or unload the dishwasher. They don't have a chore chart or anything so things happen for the 8 year old when I tell her to do them and the 6 year old just does it with me.

 

My husband and I both have s lot of clutter, sentimental, hobby related, and clothes. He's daily chore helpful, picking up after meals, doing food prep, wiping stuff down. We make the house run together. I just feel like it could be easier and maybe if I had a system it wouldn't seem overwhelming.

 

I'd welcome blogs or articles too. But advice for the journey would be most appreciated.

[OrganicJen]

You need to find where the mice are actually getting in and then stuff steel wool into those spots if you can't seal it another more permanent way. All an exterminator will do is kill the ones that are there but more will come.

[Pawz4me]

Having mice (or not) isn't necessarily related to how good a housekeeper (or not) you are. They just want to get inside. Anywhere.

 

But what's always worked for me in terms of keeping things tidy is to have certain things I do every day (like keeping the kitchen clean, running/unloading dishwasher, sweeping/vacuuming the kitchen and main traffic areas) and then certain things I do each day. For example:

 

Monday: Change beds and wash sheets

Tuesday: Clean bathrooms and wash a load of towels

Wednesday: Dust wherever needed and clean floors (vacuum/sweep/mop wherever needed)

Thursday: Pay extra attention to one room day (rotate around so you're hitting all rooms regularly). Generally includes baseboards, cleaning behind/underneath furniture, dusting blinds and ceiling fans, washing windows if needed, etc.

Friday: Another load of towels

 

I do laundry other than sheets and towels as needed throughout the week because it takes so little time (five minutes to throw in a load and five or ten more to get it out, fold and put away--easy to do between other things).

 

My goal has always been maintaining a reasonably clean, tidy house rather than getting way behind and having to do marathon deep cleaning sessions. I also have always aimed to get most work done during the week so I have the weekends free for family activities or "me" time.

[almondbutterandjelly]

Laundry is my nemesis.  Everyone in my house does their own laundry.  Your 8 year old is about the right age to start.  I believe my dd was 9.  They just wait until they have a full load, and then do it.  That way, you're not wasting water or anything.  My dh does his own laundry, too.  He used to change clothes twice a day and throw them in the laundry.  Now that he does his own laundry, he wears things for more than 4 hours before he decides they need to be laundered.

 

As for mice, get a cat.  That's all I got.  I don't know that fantastic housekeeping is the solution.

[Rachel]

I agree with PP, mice are not an indication of how well you clean. Keep food messes cleaned up and make sure you don't eat in sleeping areas.

 

Other than that, a regular routine helps me.

[desertstrawberry5]

There is a Flylady challenge going on on the board. I read Flylady many years ago, before marriage, and have used a lot of what I learned. I have generally been able to keep up with the housework over the years, and have rarely felt overwhelmed, expect during very difficult times. I recommend checking it out. 

[HeartString]

Aslobcomesclean.com is my favorite for easy, no nonsense house cleaning advice.

[MotherGoose]

Your girls are old enough to load and unload dishwasher, (even if they can't reach to put up dishes they can stack them on the counter and you can go through in a minute and put into the cabinets). They can fold some or all laundry, and put up, and clean up after themselves. What helped me was making a schedule and sticking to it on normal days. Not with times but with chores, assigning those chores that the kids could easily do to certain days and times. Regular room pick ups. Someone going through bedrooms and Baths and bringing down dishes and emptying trash. Simple things that if neglected can add up.

[Sandwalker]

Having mice (or not) isn't necessarily related to how good a housekeeper (or not) you are. They just want to get inside. Anywhere.

 

But what's always worked for me in terms of keeping things tidy is to have certain things I do every day (like keeping the kitchen clean, running/unloading dishwasher, sweeping/vacuuming the kitchen and main traffic areas) and then certain things I do each day. For example:

 

Monday: Change beds and wash sheets

Tuesday: Clean bathrooms and wash a load of towels

Wednesday: Dust wherever needed and clean floors (vacuum/sweep/mop wherever needed)

Thursday: Pay extra attention to one room day (rotate around so you're hitting all rooms regularly). Generally includes baseboards, cleaning behind/underneath furniture, dusting blinds and ceiling fans, washing windows if needed, etc.

Friday: Another load of towels

 

I do laundry other than sheets and towels as needed throughout the week because it takes so little time (five minutes to throw in a load and five or ten more to get it out, fold and put away--easy to do between other things).

 

My goal has always been maintaining a reasonably clean, tidy house rather than getting way behind and having to do marathon deep cleaning sessions. I also have always aimed to get most work done during the week so I have the weekends free for family activities or "me" time.

I want to be you now.

[Spryte]

Having mice (or not) isn't necessarily related to how good a housekeeper (or not) you are. They just want to get inside. Anywhere.

 

But what's always worked for me in terms of keeping things tidy is to have certain things I do every day (like keeping the kitchen clean, running/unloading dishwasher, sweeping/vacuuming the kitchen and main traffic areas) and then certain things I do each day. For example:

 

Monday: Change beds and wash sheets

Tuesday: Clean bathrooms and wash a load of towels

Wednesday: Dust wherever needed and clean floors (vacuum/sweep/mop wherever needed)

Thursday: Pay extra attention to one room day (rotate around so you're hitting all rooms regularly). Generally includes baseboards, cleaning behind/underneath furniture, dusting blinds and ceiling fans, washing windows if needed, etc.

Friday: Another load of towels

 

I do laundry other than sheets and towels as needed throughout the week because it takes so little time (five minutes to throw in a load and five or ten more to get it out, fold and put away--easy to do between other things).

 

My goal has always been maintaining a reasonably clean, tidy house rather than getting way behind and having to do marathon deep cleaning sessions. I also have always aimed to get most work done during the week so I have the weekends free for family activities or "me" time.

This is what I do, too. Imperfectly, of course. :)

 

I also use an app to keep me on track. I use Home Routines, because I like gold stars. I have a morning, afternoon, and evening routine. Each day I have a specific task - Mondays I do stainless and glass; Tuesdays it's toilets and sinks, and gather/put out recycling; etc. As part of my afternoon routine I spend 15 minutes in the zone of the day. I can't do flylady weeklong stints in zones, so I rotate our zones by day. I have monthly reminders, too.

 

The kids do a lot of the tasks, and it works. We've stuck with it a little over a year. I don't always use the app, but pull it out if I get off track.

[Ellie]

The Sidetracked Home Executives is my favorite for working out a routine and sticking to it. The Flylady got her start with S.H.E. :-) One of the many reasons I like S.H.E. is that there are no electronics involved in keeping up with what you want to do; you just have little 3x5 cards.

[kiwik]

Laundry is my nemesis. Everyone in my house does their own laundry. Your 8 year old is about the right age to start. I believe my dd was 9. They just wait until they have a full load, and then do it. That way, you're not wasting water or anything. My dh does his own laundry, too. He used to change clothes twice a day and throw them in the laundry. Now that he does his own laundry, he wears things for more than 4 hours before he decides they need to be laundered.

 

As for mice, get a cat. That's all I got. I don't know that fantastic housekeeping is the solution.

We would run out of clothes before we got a full load.

[Baseball mom]

I definitely shouldn't give house keeping advice. Mine isn't dirty but definitely cluttered.

 

I do at least 1 load of laundry a day, sometimes several loads. One day might be towels, next day clothes. Sheets get washed once a week. I picked our least busy/out of house day for sheet day. Once a month I do all blankets.

 

Dishes & wiping down counters get done several times a day (no dishwasher) but especially before bed. That makes my day start better.

 

The rest of it I am working on. I try to pick a spot everyday (ok every few days) and trying to declutter and deep clean. Then keep that spot clean with a quick wipe down or pick up every few days. Slow process but this not so neat person is trying.

[Soror]

I did Motivated Moms years ago and found it to be a great help. I really don't think the particular method is the most important but just sticking with something. You have some chores that need to be done daily, some weekly, monthly, quarterly etc. I have 4 kids 5-13, so I aim for good enough and mostly hit the mark. I have a chore list I wrote out for the kids, they take turns with trash, dishwasher, bathrooms, and setting the table. The older 2 can do laundry but mostly we do it together- I put on a show and we fold and watch. The girls often cook breakfast, lunch is usually cold and they take turns putting it out, for supper ds cooks a night (he's the oldest), the girls cook a night, and I do the rest.

 

What I've found with multiple kids and hs'ing is that I don't have a ton of free time during the weeks we're schooling as that generally takes all day long. So, I focus on the basics during school weeks and do deep cleaning on the weeks we take off for break. 

 

No earth-shattering advice but my big tips would be:

(1) take care of the clutter - I can deep clean quickly b/c we don't have a ton of stuff- all your cleaning will take more time if you have a ton of stuff- I'd focus on little areas at a time- maybe even just a drawer- only start a project you can finish in the time you have- until you have more time to devote

 

(2) Make the basics routine-that to me is dishes and the kitchen and the table where you eat- those things have to be done every day, pick a time that works for you. I like to do some in the am while I'm working on breakfast- I find it easiest to start the dishwasher before we go to bed so it is ready to unload in the am- so you can load it throughout the day. 

 

(2a) It is much easier to keep up with cleaning then to do it all at once. We generally do a pick-up around lunch time and again when school is done, little bits at a time helps to keep it manageable. 

 

 

(3) Your kids are the perfect age to be training- they won't do it just "right" and it will take a bit, it requires patience but it is worth it in the end. Chores are tied to electronic time here. It is not a bunch of nagging and yelling, that is just the expectation, there is no arguing because they know they are going to have to do it anyway. In addition to the dishwasher, trash, bathrooms, cooking, and setting the table the kids also keep their rooms clean- I still help the 5yo and the 7yo from time to time, my 7yo is naturally messy for both of the younger ones we've decluttered their rooms like crazy so it is easier to keep clean.

 

(4) Life with kids is just messy sometimes- when you work hard trying to keep it clean and you look up and it looks like a tornado went through it is natural to be aggravated- deep breath- everyone pitches in and takes care of it

 

(5)Big jobs require teamwork- you are not the maid or slave. One of my fondest memories growing up was us working together doing projects, it was hard work but also family time. I give my kids the same gift. They usually mop(my whole house is hardwood or tile). We move the furniture to the side, they put on their bathing suits and slide around the floor- my floor gets clean, and they have fun. When they are done they dry it up :) When we do gardening or yard work it is a team job, there is usually something everyone can do, and the littles feel like big stuff when they help.

 

(6) My kids have more responsiblities than many but they also have more independence. I trust them b/c I have seen them rise to the challenge and meeting expectations.

Edited October 20, 2017 by soror

[Alice]

I’ve recently discovered a habit-tracking app called Momentum. There is a paid version but you can also track 5 habits free. It’s easy to use. You set the habits you want to track and then just check them off daily. You can also set them to be a different schedule than every day. I’ve come to believe that it’s more useful to change small habits and then build them into routines rather than start with big goals. Because it’s easier to break down the bigger goal into smaller tasks. So rather than “clean my house better" maybe come up with 1-3 areas that you want to work on. It might be “Do a five minute clean three times a day.†or “Spend 30 minutes on cleaning the area of the day†(and then ala FlyLady or some other system assign a room of the day)  or “Put away laundryâ€. 

 

 

[duckabell]

I'm far from perfect as far as housecleaning goes, and some weeks are much better than others. Here are a few things though that help me feel like I'm staying on top of things:

 

• Unload the dishwasher first thing in the morning. Right now, that's actually my son's job and it's great to have it unloade early so that the breakfast dishes can be put inside it.
• Do a five-minute pickup with the kids at the end of the day to clean our family and living room. Often I'll put on music or make it a game. This keeps our main living areas clean and prevents clutter from building up. 
• Wipe off kitchen counters and run the dishwasher every night.
• Only have two laundry baskets. This makes it so that if they're both full, and I want to use it to take another load to the washing machine, I have to fold (or have my kids fold) some of the clothes. I don't do piles of clean clothes because then they get mixed in with piles of dirty clothes and that's more laundry for me.
• Let clothes sit in the dryer overnight if needed. I'm not particular about wrinkles, and it means I can throw in a load of laundry whenever I have time, whether that's in the morning, afternoon, or evening.
• Try to do one type of cleaning each day, whether it's cleaning the bathrooms, vacuuming, or cleaning the kitchen.

 

Those are my main tips. I have a hard time saying every Monday is this, every Tuesday is that, etc. But maybe I should try it? Usually I just try and make sure the vacuuming is done at some point, and same with the bathrooms. The one housecleaning thing that is hard right now is the kids bathroom. It needs to be cleaned every day since we have a  young son with poor aim. 

[regentrude]

My best advice is to use the "time confetti" in the day - the 5-10 minute snippets that aren't enough for a large project, but add up to enough time to stay on top of the housework. 

Laundry requires two minutes to throw it in the washer, ten minutes to hang it on the clothesline, ten minutes to take down and put away the dry clothes. (If you use a dryer, the middle step only takes a minute). Emptying the dishwasher, running the swiffer through the living room, cleaning one toilet, washing the chef knives and wooden cutting boards that don't go in the dishwasher, wiping down the fridge outside, etc all only take a few minutes and can easily fit in the nooks and crannies of the day that aren't really usable for anything else. It also makes housework seem less overwhelming because you never spend hours at one time, just minutes here and there.