Housework while homeschooling?

[treestarfae]

How do you get it done? Seriously. What's your schedule to fit it all in?

[dangermom]

:bigear: I want to know too, because I don't. Esp. right now as we're winding down--the house gets completely wrecked and now that it's summer I'm climbing back to a liveable house.

[Dandelion]

:bigear:

[Sara in WA]

I use the FlyLady as inspiration. I can't follow it all or get all the emails because it is too much and drives me crazy. I do like many of the ideas.

 

Maybe we need to implement housecleaning AS homeschooling. I see a curriculum there I would really like :)

[elegantlion]

I don't. Dh and ds are a great help. dh does a lot of his own laundry and they cook one night a week. Before homeschooling I was a SAHM and did 95% of the housework. After six years of homeschooling I do about 50%. When school took 2 hours I had more time. Today school takes 5-6 hours out of my day.

[sheryl]

Oh, this is the 64K question. I don't have the answers....:bigear: too!

 

However, since I have thought of this quite a bit, I've tried to do a few things. Honestly my housework is NOT getting done....s.n. dd can be a challenge sometime.

 

I will teach her 1 subject at a time. That takes from 5=15 minutes or so. Then she's off to complete her "coursework". This works best with core subjects that take a while ;) like: math, english, history and science. When she's completing her work in one of the cores I'll do something. I'm STILL trying to constantly improve this method. Perhaps it can't be...this may be as good as it gets until she works much more independently (high school). She's entering 6th grade this fall.

 

I was teaching her 2 subjects at a time and expecting her to do her work, but she has add/adhd and couldn't handle that, otherwise I'd teach 2 at a time. Her core subjects take anywhere from 30-60 minutes each, but NOT 1 hour for EVERY subject. So, I take advantage of the "time segment" and use it accordingly. If there's only a 30 min spot, I'll decide what I can accomplish in that time frame. If I have an hour I'll do the same. It does take planning. And, of course this isn't new, but to capitalize even more I'll multi-task: start laundry, while clothes are washing I'll make call backs or check emails. For longer periods, I'll start dinner and for a casserole in the oven I'll exercise and maybe even talk on the phone. Honestly it's hard sometimes.

[hsmom2girls]

It's hard to get everything done that needs to be done and HS. I'm still trying to get a schedule after 3 years.

 

Thankfully hubby helps.

[Food4Thought]

:bigear:

 

I had no idea when I started K this year (which is mostly science experiments and read-alouds), that homeschooling & the necessary research/prep work would essentially take over my entire day. I'd love to know how others do it, especially with small children in the house.

[Night Elf]

before and after working with the children

sometimes while they are working on something independently

weekends

basically, a little each day, not trying to do everything in one day like I used to :)

[2cents]

We do all the big stuff on Sunday (wash sheets, vacuum house, mop floors, brush dog etc). That way the house is clean for the new week. During the week dh does the laundry (he likes to do it-go figure) and I get up about a half hour before the kids and do some tidying. During the times when the girls are doing their work alone, I do a task (like loading dishwasher, cleaning a bathroom, smaller and short jobs). The kids are a great help too. They don't have a chore list. They are expected to keep their rooms and bathroom clean and the playroom tidy and do chores as we assign. I think the key for me is to have a routine and I'm a big believer in 'clean as you go'.

[kalanamak]

I fold Mt. Laundry while we go over math drills and he asks questions to clarify word problems. I cook while he reads to me. I dash in and scrub the sink when he is working on a part of SW he is familiar with.

 

Kay (who can't wait until the old house remodel is over and hubby can take back some of these chores)

[Kim in Appalachia]

I put wash on every morning. I do 2 loads a day, except on Thursday and Sunday. Meals get cleaned up when we are done. Everyone helps. I have one of the girls swifter the kitchen/dining room floors on Wednesday. I usually mop them Sunday night. Sheets are done on Saturday. The bathroom usually gets cleaned on Saturday, but sometimes I get some of it done on Friday. I try to dust/vacuum the upstairs OR downstairs on Saturday. I have one of my girls do the other. The kids are supposed to clean and dust their rooms Saturday morning. There are Saturdays that none of that happens, and then it doesn't get done until the next free Saturday. I try not to let it get to me.

 

That's it. Everything else gets done as needed. My stove top looked terrible today, so I cleaned it. The oven gets done when the smoke gets bad; the fridge when it stinks or something leaks.:D A couple times a year the kids and I clean the windows. Deep cleaning doesn't really happen. I have 5 kids. I homeschool, I run them to swimming and music lessons. I practice violin with 2 of my kids everyday. I have no time for lots of cleaning. My mom promises me that someday I will have plenty of time to clean. Right now I should just worry about my kids. :001_smile:

[Parrothead]

I clean quarterly. Usually on the first day of a week off. Takes me the better part of a day and a half. Then I simply maintain and keep up with laundry. My goal for every evening before bed is family clean up time. Things that get done during family clean up time are dishes, floors, light dusting, things put in their place, toys and books put away. Ideally after family clean up time the house is pretty much company ready before I go to bed.

[Amber in AUS]

I have not read all of the other responses but i can tell you that we start the week with a clean house and it goes downhill over the course of the week. The only 'cleaning' task i do day to day is dishes, washing and any emergency that pops up. On Saturday mornings we (DH, kids & I) tidy everything away and clean, clean, clean. Everything looks great again and then we let it slide for another week.

 

It isn't a good option, i certainly wouldn't recommend it but i have not yet found a better way.

[Karis]

Daily -

 

- kiddos clean kitchen - dishes, countertops, floors, wipe down appliances & cabinets, trash bagged, sink totally empty. (LOVIN' THIS!!)

 

- straighten rooms

 

I'll wipe down bathrooms, nothing major. fridge cleaned & trash out Monday Recycling out Thursday

 

"Home Blessing" - Fridays before sun down

Includes bedrooms, bathrooms, Kitchen (Kid's night to cook - usually pizza & a salad) vacuuming, dusting, stairs, folding & putting away laundry, etc...

then we are free for family night.

 

Tackling the Laundry??? ... whenever - haven't mastered this one yet.

Ideally on Wednesdays (Wednesday Wash Day) thinking of it like this tends to help me stay on track.

 

My room is the messiest!

 

and the school room is messy - we'll do a little in there Friday afternoons but I usually just close the door and get in there sometime over the weekend to organize for Monday.

 

 

But we make it fun and set the timer or I'll have them do races.

When we work together to knock it all out it seems less burdensome. When my children complain I tell them be thankful you have someone to share the workload.

 

It took time to train them and the towels still aren't folded MY way consistently but ... it's better than me doing it all.

 

The main level, powder room, & family room/ basement bathroom usually stay "presentable" just in case someone drops by.

 

but it's tough - I often wish I had a clone. Managing a home is WORK!!

[Peela]

Routines. Flylady.

 

My kids are older now so they do a fair bit themselves...but they also still make mess. I have more time to myself though, so I have more time to deal with it.

 

10 minute tidies. My kids each have a worksheet in their workboxes today with a 10 minute tidy for each day, only in their bedroom. Ds14 had to do clothes today- find all his clothes from around the house, pick up clothes from his bedroom floor (and the bookshelves and wherever else he stuffs them!) and deal with them (drawers, hanger or wash basket). Then put on a load of washing. This kid needed my help though- he just couldn't see most of the clothes he had all over the place. I had to stand there and point. Tomorrow he will change the sheets on his bed and make his bed beautiful.

So...train your kids. It's time consuming and tedious but worth it. Make it a part of school, or a before or after school routine. Put a timer on for 10 minutes, or 5, and even some boppy music, and have everyone do something. Make it a bit fun. Have cocoa afterwards. Whatever it takes to create some routines and processes where everyone has some responsiblity.

 

I usually put on a load of washing in the mornings, if needed. My kids do their own washing but often need prompting. Dh does his own washing. We do loads by the person- saves one step, sorting.

 

On weekends I will often take an hour or two just to pick up and vacuum. But I will also often get the kids to help. Yesterday (Sunday) I had teh afternoon at home alone so I spent an hour making the living area neat and tidy and felt great.

 

I keep the bathrooms clean daily by wiping down the sink, swishing the toilet every few days, wiping the mirror every few days. I put toothbrushes and toothpaste away daily if necessary. Doesnt take more than a few seconds to keep it neat daily.

 

Kitchen is the one room that takes the most work and everyone contributes. It is always clean before we go to bed at night, and first thing in the morning, while I am waiting for the kettle to boil, I put away dry dishes.

 

I declutter regularly- 5 minutes here, 10 minutes there.

 

I have a huge house and it really doesn't take a lot of time to keep it in reasonable condition. Daily maintence, some weekly jobs, and I wait till holidays usually to do deep cleaning and massive decluttering. I am not a perfectionist.

 

Certain things make a house look clean- one thing is clear surfaces. If teh dining room and other tables and surfaces in the house are kept clear, it makes a big difference.

 

I really recommend Flylady though. It was years of doing her program that helped me learn how to form routines and prioritise so that eventualyly everything gets covered. I still use ZOnes- this week I focus on the living area. It just means that if there is a job I have been avoiding in that zone, I get to do it. Thats why I spent an hour in here yesterday.

[Desert Rat]

Laundry and dishes get done during school. Everything else gets done after we've wrapped up for the day. We straighten once in the morning before school starts (beds made, laundry picked up, etc.). After dinner we have a general straightening for about 15 minutes.

I clean the house thoroughly on a weekly basis in the afternoon, after school. I don't know how that's going to work now that I'm cleaning other people's houses in the afternoons. That may have to move to a weekend day. :(

[ThatCyndiGirl]

Okay, so what I am hearing you say, if I understand this correctly, is that I am supposed to teach the kids AND clean the house?!?!?

 

I sure wish somone woulda' clued me in here! :glare:

 

DH does the dishes and helps with laundry. For everything else: I clean it when I notice that it is dirty. How's THAT for a schedule?!

[PentecostalMom]

I will just admit it, I hired a housekeeper! My ds just moved out a couple of weeks ago to go to college and he did quite a bit of daily mundane things such as empty the dishwasher, take out the trash, walk the dog, sweep the kitchen/dining room, foyer. He also mowed/weedeated/edged the lawn and swept the front porch/walkway and back patio. Before he left I talked with a few different cleaning services, but ended up hiring a lady that had moved here in December that could not find suitable employment. She comes every other week, and this is what she does. Downstairs: wipes/cleans all kitchen counters, cleans inside of microwave & toaster oven, wipes down sinks/faucets. She dusts everything vacuums/sweeps/mops all floors and cleans the downstairs 1/2 bath. She then vacuums my stairs, cleans the banister/railing and moves upstairs. Up there, she dusts everything again, vacuums all the bedrooms, the playroom/schoolroom, and cleans both full baths. She also takes out all the trash and cleans out the trash cans. For all of that, I pay her $60. My home is a little over 3000 square feet so I think I am getting a fabulous deal!

 

In between, I have a canister of clorox wipes and another of windex wipes that I keep upstairs. All of my other cleaning supplies stay downstairs. I also have a swiffer that takes both wet and dry cloths. I constantly load the dishwasher after each meal so that there is not a pile of dishes. These things I did before ds moved to college. At the end of the evening, we have a 10-minute clean-up session for everyone to pick up a room that needs it. I have done this since my ds was about three. I would just set a timer, and get everything done that we could in 10 or 15 minutes. It made it more bearable. Laundry gets down whenever, but I try to do the bulk on Monday. I put a load in, do a subject or two, switch it over and load it again, do the same....repeat. Till all is done.

 

Since our housekeeper has begin helping, I am much less stressed, have a lot more time to spend with the kids and I do not freak out if someone stops by. I wasn't certain if it would fit in our budget or not, but I wiggled and cut and made it work. It is well worth it! My babies will only be babies once. :)

[Mynyel]

What clean?

 

I live on a dirt road and have deep red clay soil. Nothing stays clean. Ever. I have dust covering the dust. I have cobwebs in the corners (not kidding...dunno where the darn things come from..besides spiders:glare:) My kids rooms? I don't go on them. I think there is a path to the beds but can't be sure.

Right now I see toys in corners and blocks at the edges of the hallway. There are two glasses sitting on top of the entertainment center along with my purse, a small white plastic basket, 2 empty shipping envelopes, a book that need to be returned, a movie case and 2 jars of applesauce we made last fall.

There is no room on the mantle to put anything. The shelves to the left and right of the fireplace have so much clutter that I don't know what to do with it besides throw it away. I don't have anywhere t put it.

The entertainment center is a shambles. Movies, video games and books haphazardly shoved in the cubbies. We won't talk about whats in the cupboards and drawer under the TV.

There is clean folded laundry piled up on my dresser, the crib my son doesn't sleep in because we co-sleep has become a storage facility. Course I am glad for that anyway...the crib we have is a recalled crip we found out today so we have to take that back. We have an old entertainment center that we use for shelves in the bedroom...again lots of clutter stored.

The bar for the kitchen is about half covered with I don't know what. The cupboards in the kitchen are horrendous. If you put something in, something else falls out or you have to shove something into the back to fit it. The bin that holds the foil, plastic wrap, sandwich bags and such is over flowing because no one puts them back where they belong.

 

That is just the tip. We "cleaned" the bathrooms today. We straightened them, that was it. Mirrors didn't get done.

 

Oh I didn't mention the computer in the corner that has wires sticking everywhere and is very unsightly but we need it for work.

 

And guess who will have to do it all unless there are four letter words spewed and tempers lost? Which is why it stays this way. I refuse to do everything myself so it just doesn't get done.

 

Can you tell this is a touchy subject? :001_smile:

 

Needless to say we don't have a schedule and probably never will. :glare:

[Ellie]

The thing is that you have to be purposeful about housework. You don't let it happen, because then it will smack you down.

 

I have to do things like make my bed the instant my feet touch the floor in the morning, clean the kitchen immediately following a meal (or any time I cook), fold the laundry as soon as it comes out of the dryer, clean out the car when I get home. Phrases like "Do it now," "Don't put it down--put it away," and "Touch it once" take on new importance.

 

I think it's possible to have a clean house; it just takes more work.

[DarlaS]

I use the FlyLady as inspiration. I can't follow it all or get all the emails because it is too much and drives me crazy. I do like many of the ideas.

 

Maybe we need to implement housecleaning AS homeschooling. I see a curriculum there I would really like :)

 

You could always sign your kids up for this summer camp! :D

 

Too bad it's just a fantasy...

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I haven't even started full time homeschooling, yet, and I already know the cleaning is going to go by the wayside.

 

By the way, I overheard a playdate friend ask my son, "Do you guys keep the house clean?" (Why, I don't know) Ds2 says, "Well, mom tries, but it's no use. We just mess it up again." :tongue_smilie:

[1bassoon]

Heh. You don't want to hear my answer.

 

Once, I told dh, "There are four responsibilities in my life. Teaching the kids, keeping laundry done, planning & cooking meals, and housework. On any given week, I can do three. Just know - SOMETHING will be missing."

 

Lately, it's been housework. Oh, well.

 

I figure I'll have plenty of time to clean after they're educated :)

[elegantlion]

Heh. You don't want to hear my answer.

 

Once, I told dh, "There are four responsibilities in my life. Teaching the kids, keeping laundry done, planning & cooking meals, and housework. On any given week, I can do three. Just know - SOMETHING will be missing."

 

Lately, it's been housework. Oh, well.

 

I figure I'll have plenty of time to clean after they're educated :)

 

:iagree:I told dh I could educate his child well, his most precious child that he would pull down the moon for, or I could keep a clean house. My mind does not shift gears quickly and when I'm in school mode the last thing on my mind is laundry.That is one of the reasons it is important to me that we (my family) view homeschooling as a job. It requires full-time focus. I worked before ds was born and I never took my laundry to the office, kwim. We do keep things picked up throughout the day so it's not out of hand at the end of the day.

 

Part of my issue is that I LOVE homeschooling, but I despise most domestic chores. If I don't keep them separate in my mind and in my actions I would feel trapped at home, like I was an unpaid maid.

[m0mmaBuck]

In addition to homeschooling, we run a business out of the house and we also have scouting people stopping by constantly so we try to keep the house tidy albeit lived-in. We tend to tidy up as we go (i.e. fold clothes and put away immediately, put away toys when you are done playing with them, clean up immediately after meals, wipe down kitchen counters after meals). We tend to take about 1 hour in the afternoon to do the "deeper" cleaning and when you divide it 5 ways many hands make for light work. On a larger scale, certain areas/items are priorities and others can slide for a few days without my head exploding.

 

For instance, I insist that the kitchen and bathrooms be cleaned daily. It's a health/hygeine thing as far as I'm concerned. DH is responsible for the master bathroom, DSS is responsible for the shared bathroom, and I clean the kitchen.

 

Another priority for me is daily vacuuming because I am allergic to the dog and if this doesn't happen I feel terrible. DSS vaccums the shared areas and his room, DS vacuums his room, and I do our bedroom as well as DD's.

 

The kids are responsible for keeping their rooms clean/tidy (obviously I help, especially the 4 yo) and they cannot have friends over or go play with friends unless their rooms (and toys from the shared areas) are clean. That is an effective motivator, even for the 18yo.

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

I do housework with the girls before school (clean up breakfast mess, and any left over mess that the trolls made while we were sleeping:D) Then I do some work with the girls, bible, teach their math lessons then get them going on independant work. Then I start on the laundry, or cleaning up the bathroom after the morning rush. Then my 6th grader starts on some independant work, and my 2nd grader goes to handwriting (independant). I just keep cleaning up until they need me. Usually my second grader requires the rest of my time til its time to make lunch. Then I send them out for a break when I am cooking, we eat, they help clean up and we finish. If the boys are in the house, there is more to clean up, if they are outside playing- its easier! I do laundry all day, everyday, and still its never all the way done:glare:-- but I get close to all the way done, then its time to wash bedding, and it piles up again *sigh* never ending!

[Peri]

Well I can see where it might be a problem when they are younger because you would need to help them through a lot of the work they do. On the same hand though, their HS day isn't as long as an older child. I like to get as much done in the morning before we start and I absolutely have everyone pitch in. I will start the day with making the bed. Then i have DD put all the dishes away while I make breakfast. On the weekdays I keep breakfast short and simple so that I don't get overwhelmed with housework. It is at that time that I pull out the slow cooker and I throw part of our dinner in there and that way I don't have that much more to do after we're done with school. When breakfast is done we put the dishes in the dishwasher and clean up and then we start school. Now being that I have an older child that I homeschool, I will simply give her her instruction and then I tackle whatever task I have to do, or give the younger ones their lessons. It's really about doning it little by little and doing it whenever you can fit it in. Save the major cleaning for the weekend and just tidy up during the week. But I do notice that when I start early I can relax a little at the end of the day.

[Joker]

I cannot get it all done. The dds know that before they can do anything "fun" (tv/games/computer) they must finish all schoolwork and have bedrooms and bathroom tidy. It helps a lot to know that at least those look clean. I keep the kitchen and living room clean and our room gets done as I have time / as needed. Most of the actual cleaning gets done on the weekend when we are all at home and there is little school to be done.

[KC in KS]

I use the FlyLady as inspiration. I can't follow it all or get all the emails because it is too much and drives me crazy. I do like many of the ideas.

 

Have you seen FlyLady's on Facebook? I can read her testimonials & the daily Flight Plan without getting swamped in emails (and I'm much more likely to READ what goes by on FB instead of filing it under "To Get To Eventually")

 

Maybe we need to implement housecleaning AS homeschooling. I see a curriculum there I would really like :)

 

We have a course called Practical Life. I (in theory) alternate between home-ec skills and homeowner-type skills -- which of course require much practice! :D

[JudoMom]

The thing is that you have to be purposeful about housework. You don't let it happen, because then it will smack you down.

 

I have to do things like make my bed the instant my feet touch the floor in the morning, clean the kitchen immediately following a meal (or any time I cook), fold the laundry as soon as it comes out of the dryer, clean out the car when I get home. Phrases like "Do it now," "Don't put it down--put it away," and "Touch it once" take on new importance.

 

I think it's possible to have a clean house; it just takes more work.

 

:iagree:

 

I try to clean (not pick up or straighten) once a week. I can clean everything in 3 hours, so I aim to do this on Friday afternoons.

 

The rest of the time we keep things picked up, vacuumed, and swept. I empty the dishwasher first thing in the morning and reload it throughout the day. I throw a load of laundry in the washer in the morning, and aim to switch it to the dryer at lunchtime. If possible, I fold it in the afternoon/evening, but if not I fluff it and fold it the next morning when I put a new load in the washer. Sort mail as it comes in. Have a place for everything, and put it back when you're done.

 

It is completely possible to have a clean house while homeschooling, but you do have to be purposeful, create routines and habits, and make your systems work for you. I'm on a teaching break until July 1, and in addition to planning next year I'm going to use this time to clean out closets and declutter, and update any systems that aren't working anymore.

Edited May 24, 2010 by JudoMom

[bookfiend]

:iagree:

 

I'm on a teaching break until July 1, and in addition to planning next year I'm going to use this time to clean out closets and declutter, and update any systems that aren't working anymore.

 

This is me. I will be in major organization mode all summer, but you won't see the results because it's all about the closets, storage space and systems.

 

We can ususally keep either the downstairs or upstairs presentable, but typically not both at the same time!

 

I can't stand visual clutter and have been known to gather up anything that is out of place into a laundry basket and toss it in the guest room. Unfortunately, there it stays until the boys ask, "where are all the laundry baskets?" The poor guest room stays in disarray until guests are expected; then I'm forced to find a place for the chaos. Hence, my goal for the summer - declutter!

[TammyinTN]

We cleanup everything as we go..at night before going to bed everything is put away and left clean for the new day. Laundry is done every other day.

I run the vacuum each day in the evening to get up the dog hair, clean bathrooms on Wednesday and Saturdays.

[DarlaS]

We have a course called Practical Life. I (in theory) alternate between home-ec skills and homeowner-type skills -- which of course require much practice! :D

 

Sounds just like the "summer camp" link ( 8 Weeks to the Perfect Home Scholar) I posted. It's here in case anyone missed it--or thought it was in reference to an actual camp:

 

http://www.hsclassroom.net/2010/05/8-weeks-to-the-perfect-home-scholar/

 

I'm thinking of trying it. I'm going to tweak it though, and have them start by finishing the chicken run and then learning to wash the car. :D

 

I also think we'll skip ahead to Week 4 Weekend Warriors. There's a lot of home improvement projects that can be done around here!

[Ester Maria]

Our maid does most of the things - we have her over 2-3 times a week, and she leaves the house spotless, so basically our main duty until her next visit is more of a loose "maintenance" than of any extra cleaning.

She takes care of almost the entire cleaning, she has her own schedule of when she does what, she also does some of the laundry and ironing (not all, though), and from time to time some of the cooking and shopping as well.

We're seriously considering having her work for us full time starting when the baby is born. DH is often away due to the nature of his job, when I'm not with the girls I'm busy with my own academic work and translations (and the baby will take over most of my time when she comes), the girls are busy with their own work and even when they're not, I don't think it's fair to impose a lot of chores onto them if I myself am not doing much around the house. Certainly, we all do something, but those are rather symbolic and sporadic contributions.

 

I have NO IDEA how I would manage to educate my children, continue with my own academic work AND do the housework, since each of the three is basically a full time job. I admire you who manage it. :)

[Ellie]

Something else that really helps: staying home. Cut down on the outside stuff like co-ops and homeschool sports and everything else that occurs during the day. It's amazing how much it is possible to do when you're, you know, actually home.

[DarlaS]

Something else that really helps: staying home. Cut down on the outside stuff like co-ops and homeschool sports and everything else that occurs during the day. It's amazing how much it is possible to do when you're, you know, actually home.

 

 

:iagree:

 

I love staying home.

 

I have told dh (who largely agrees, but gets antsy when it seems we have NO outside activities) that for my sanity, I need three full days a week with no outside commitments whatsoever. I don't even want to go to the post office on those days.

 

This will be tricky with my not-yet-driving dual-enrolled student this fall...

 

(Yes, I like hyphens and parentheses too much...)

[ubermomto5]

i love to be home too. it's funny, the more we are NOT home, the messier the house is. everyone throws down their stuff in a mad dash to leave again.

i have relaxed standards. everything has to be neat, and has to really be cleaned once a week, but in between, clean is relative. my family of 7 almost 8 lives in a 1500 sq ft home so there's not a lot of territory to keep clean in the first place. it's just full.

each week, all my kids over 4 are given a room of the house to be responsible for. i have printed out a laminated list that's somewhere in the room of what i expect - good clean days and 'quick clean' days. i got that idea from my mom who raised 7 kids herself. the kids have to have the majority of this done by breakfast, or they don't get to eat. things like sweeping the kitchen are for after we eat. one of the jobs is laundry/dog so someone else is in charge of that and i no longer spend so much time there. we also do a 'family clean' on saturday mornings and dad works with them too. i think we spend 20-30 minutes in the am getting things clean, and 10 or so in the pm doing '20 pick up' all over. the main rule is, you put away what you got out before you move on to the next thing. of course, they are kids, so that is flexible (there are always lego bits somewhere) but in general it works very well for us.

[teragram]

About 6 months ago, I decided to hire a weekly maid service and it has been a God-sent blessing. I was just going to try it out during the busy holiday season but now I just love having my entire house clean every Friday afternoon. Originally, she estimated it would take about 6 hours/week to do "everything." I couldn't afford to pay her for that much time and I really didn't need her to do it all for us. I just wanted consistant help that I could rely on. So she comes for 3 hours every Friday and runs circles around my cleaning attempts. Of course, I stay busy on Fridays to declutter the house and clean up all the hot spots, under beds and couches, etc. And keep the kids out of her way so she can be as efficient as possible while she's here. She sweeps, vacuums, mops all the floor surfaces (all marble floors with random area rugs), cleans all three bathrooms, wipes down all the kitchen areas and appliances, sweeps and hoses down the back patio area and randomly dusts furniature and cleans windows as time allows each week. I spend all day doing all of our laundry and it spills into Saturday before I finish it up. I also try to get out to clean and vacuum my car each Friday but don't always get to that extra perk. This works so good for us because my husband doesn't complain about the daily clutter and messes that build up all week but he really appreciates having the house cleaned up by Friday night so we can all enjoy our weekend as a family and not as a cleaning crew.

[Dawn in OH]

I usually throw in a load of laundry between subjects. We generally take a 10 minute water and potty break between subjects, so while the kids are doing that, I throw my laundry in.

 

I usually clean the bathroom during school work that can be done independently. This is usually while the children are doing their reading or a math worksheet that does not require a lesson.

 

The kitchen cleaning and vacuuming get done after dinner.

 

The kids are usually responsible for the dusting, so that happens after school.

 

Dishes are done throughout the day. The new rule on dishes is that whenever the older kids eat/drink they are responsible for washing whatever they used, with the exception of dinner.

 

Major cleaning projects take place on the weekend or a day off.

[mcconnellboys]

I don't! But it does get easier as children get older and can pitch in to help. I finally was able to make myself give up on my rigid ways of believing I had to start and clean the entire house every time. I now just do little jobs that I can get done, covering the most important things (to us) first and letting other things go until there's time to get them done. Keeping the clutter at bay, tidying up on a daily basis, goes a long way for me even if the house IS dusty, LOL.....

[KidsHappen]

I am slowly but surely being buried in an avalanche of clutter. :glare:

 

I have three moving out of here soon and they will be taking about half the contents of the house with them so I am hoping to get it under control then. :001_smile:

[Guest Dulcimeramy]

:iagree:I told dh I could educate his child well, his most precious child that he would pull down the moon for, or I could keep a clean house. My mind does not shift gears quickly and when I'm in school mode the last thing on my mind is laundry.That is one of the reasons it is important to me that we (my family) view homeschooling as a job. It requires full-time focus. I worked before ds was born and I never took my laundry to the office, kwim. We do keep things picked up throughout the day so it's not out of hand at the end of the day.

 

Part of my issue is that I LOVE homeschooling, but I despise most domestic chores. If I don't keep them separate in my mind and in my actions I would feel trapped at home, like I was an unpaid maid.

 

This is exactly how I see it, too. I added up the time it actually takes me to classically home educate four sons. Answer? 10 to 12 hours per day. At the end of my day, I want to pay attention to my husband, read a bedtime story to my little one, take a walk, take a shower, etc. Housework doesn't even occur to me, ever. Other than the bare minimum that I do schedule, I just don't even see the work.

 

My mother tried to raise me to be Susie Homemaker as she was, but even she believes that a proper homeschooling job is more important than a perfect-perfect house.

 

Our maid does most of the things - we have her over 2-3 times a week, and she leaves the house spotless, so basically our main duty until her next visit is more of a loose "maintenance" than of any extra cleaning.

She takes care of almost the entire cleaning, she has her own schedule of when she does what, she also does some of the laundry and ironing (not all, though), and from time to time some of the cooking and shopping as well.

We're seriously considering having her work for us full time starting when the baby is born. DH is often away due to the nature of his job, when I'm not with the girls I'm busy with my own academic work and translations (and the baby will take over most of my time when she comes), the girls are busy with their own work and even when they're not, I don't think it's fair to impose a lot of chores onto them if I myself am not doing much around the house. Certainly, we all do something, but those are rather symbolic and sporadic contributions.

 

I have NO IDEA how I would manage to educate my children, continue with my own academic work AND do the housework, since each of the three is basically a full time job. I admire you who manage it. :)

 

Ester Maria, if I could even remotely afford it I would hire someone full time and not feel one little twinge of guilt. Providing employment is a good thing. Working several full time jobs is usually not a good thing.