Tohru Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 A friend of mine has a super clean house, no matter what time of day I drop in. One day I commented that her house was always so clean and she looked at me confused with a raised eyebrow and stated, "It's because I clean it." Now anytime I notice my house is a mess, I hear her in my head and it actually motivates me to go pick up stuff. My house has been clean(er) for weeks. I know it's silly, but hearing the reason her house is always clean makes it easier for me to clean mine. Just thought I'd share such a blunt little piece of wisdom. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whereneverever Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 It's blunt, but good. I've given similar advice in the past. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specialmama Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Yes. My mom used to say "nobody else is going to clean it, might as well just dig in." Sometimes it made me depressed. It burst that dream of a fairy magically appearing and poofing it all away. Usually it was a good kick in my pants to get up and DO something about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I like it! The phrase that gets me motivated to clean my house is "Your mom's coming over!" (She's coming over tomorrow. My house is clean. :D) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I like it! The phrase that gets me motivated to clean my house is "Your mom's coming over!" (She's coming over tomorrow. My house is clean. :D) Have you checked the fridge and taken out all glass shelving and used a toothpick for the crud that gets stuck on the edges? :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meggie Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 As a recovering slob who fell off the wagon for a few days, but got back on it today: phew! It"s good to know the magic cleaning fairy doesn't go visit others but forgets about me. Seriously though, I don't know why it's taken me 27 years to figure out "it will have to be cleaned at some point, best to do a little at a time to keep it from getting out of control." Self-help books and Hoarders keep me motivated. I will never let my house be so messy as to allow CPS to come take my kids away. I used to whine and cry about how much build up there was and I didn't know where to start. Now I know: dishes, trash, laundry and then move on from there. I'm actually learning to enjoy cleaning now. Well, at least the end results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peela Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I like it. A rental house inspection was my motivation this week. We remembered the night before. I was up cleaning the oven, because they said they would check- last time it was dirty. So I cleaned the oven for the first time in the 5 or 6 years we have lived here. It took a whole 3 minutes to spray, half an hour to leave, and maybe 10 minutes to wipe out. It is sparkling! I forgot to clean the microwave though, which is filthy from some very messy younger people who live here and make themselves nachos. I don't think the inspector looked at that though- or she politely didn't say anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvasMom Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I, on the other hand, DO want my kids to remember cleaning that we do. I want them to see cleaning as part of life and I want them to look back and remember coming home to a clean, organized home. To me, that's comforting but I grew up with a Martha Stewart mom so I'm biased like that. lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snickelfritz Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 (edited) Moderation is the key both ways, but I agree with the OP. You have to pay the piper, one way or the other. I have neighbors/friends who are embarrassed to let someone come in. And it's not because of dust. It would be the floors and counters covered with......stuff. Not even hoarder level. But, not having a place to sit down is a guest deterrent. I take a few days, every few months, and declutter. The pantry (huge and stores a lot of miscellaneous), bathrooms, my closet etc... The dd's rooms get it about once a year. During that time, the girls watch tv just about all day long for 2-3 days. BUT..... That means I spend MUCH less time cleaning the rest of the year, because there is a place for everything and extra stuff is gone. In the last 3 weeks, we've been on vacation, been to a wedding, spent time with out-of-state family, completed 2 church camps, and had a birthday party. My house was wrecked. We spent hours, off-and-on, yesterday cleaning. We have about 30 minutes and a closet-full of clean laundry to fold. Once we do it, we have a free weekend and next week will be back to normal and I've got swimming, field trips, and just routine cleaning on the schedule. ETA: I tried Flylady and de-cluttering constantly. It doesn't work for ME. I do better to get in a zone. I get ruthless. The rest of the time, I do little more than keep things picked up and wiped down. Edited June 10, 2011 by snickelfritz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I, on the other hand, DO want my kids to remember cleaning that we do. I want them to see cleaning as part of life and I want them to look back and remember coming home to a clean, organized home. To me, that's comforting but I grew up with a Martha Stewart mom so I'm biased like that. lol! :iagree: I'm the same way. I also want to teach dd that it isn't all the mom's/wife's responsibility to clean the house. We (the three of us) cleaned house yesterday for the first time in a week. It took an hour of our time to clean and tidy the house. Much better than mom/wife slaving away hour after hour cleaning the house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Rat Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I agree that moderation is the key. I clean the house once a week. We live in a smallish house so it only takes me 2.5 hours. We pick up toys, etc. once a day before dinner. Dishes and laundry are kept on top of. So really I think I spend less than 4 hours a week cleaning. I can't tolerate a messy/dirty house. I can't concentrate on having fun with my kiddos or relax and sit down with a book when I see dust swirling on the hardwood floors or see a pile of dishes in the sink. Seriously. So, for me, it's not a choice of letting the housekeeping slide to play with my kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I, on the other hand, DO want my kids to remember cleaning that we do. I want them to see cleaning as part of life and I want them to look back and remember coming home to a clean, organized home. To me, that's comforting but I grew up with a Martha Stewart mom so I'm biased like that. lol! I also didn't want my dc to think that the only time we cleaned the house was when someone was coming over.:tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BridgeTea Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 My Aunt Kip's words always motivate me to keep shoveling out...er, I mean picking up...when I don't want to: "I HATE to clean! But I LOVE a clean house!" (her version of "Just do it!") Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Have you checked the fridge and taken out all glass shelving and used a toothpick for the crud that gets stuck on the edges? :lol: Toothpick? Don't be silly. That's what the toothbrush in the kitchen drawer is for. Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvasMom Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I agree that moderation is the key. I clean the house once a week. We live in a smallish house so it only takes me 2.5 hours. We pick up toys, etc. once a day before dinner. Dishes and laundry are kept on top of. So really I think I spend less than 4 hours a week cleaning.I can't tolerate a messy/dirty house. I can't concentrate on having fun with my kiddos or relax and sit down with a book when I see dust swirling on the hardwood floors or see a pile of dishes in the sink. Seriously. So, for me, it's not a choice of letting the housekeeping slide to play with my kids. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoforjoy Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 How old are her kids? I just ask because I know that my house was A LOT cleaner when I just had one five-year-old than it was once DD came along, and it's been much cleaner the last few months, when she's needed less constant attention, than it was when she was younger. I'm assuming that once this new baby comes, and I've got two under two, it's going to be a while before my home is kept up exactly the way I'd like. I can manage to keep up with basic upkeep most days--doing laundry, making beds, doing dishes, wiping stuff down, sweeping up under tables. But, it's difficult to get the bigger, more time-consuming tasks done when you've got babies or toddlers around. I cleaned out my entire fridge the other day--emptied it out, scrubbed down the inside (including getting the corners all clean), cleaned the outside--and it was a huge pain, because DD woke up from her nap halfway through, I had a bunch of food still out and a half-clean fridge, and had to divide my attention between finishing up the job and taking care of her. I think I spend about an hour and a half total just working on the fridge. That's the kind of thing that often falls to the side for me when the kids are smaller. And, I'm okay with that. My house, right now, is going to have dust under the beds and some dirt in the corners and a tub that doesn't get scrubbed down as often as I might like. But, as long as the daily maintenance stuff is kept up, I just accept that other stuff will be in less-than-ideal condition and once the kids are all a bit older and more independent it will be easier to get things done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HistoryMom Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I fall in the camp of: 1. Wanting the kids to see (non-obsessive) cleaning happen. I don't ever remember seeing my parents clean (with the exception of mom doing dishes every morning), but somehow it got done. I think part of my problem getting into a rhythm with cleaning is that I don't have a memory of how it should be done. 2. Being happy as long as it's fairly tidy. I can go for a while without dusting, vacuuming, mopping, etc., as long as the tables and floors are clear, and the dishes and laundry are washed and put away. 3. Using some parts of the Flylady system. I have morning and evening routines that keep the place just as tidy as I want it to be. If I'm feeling ambitious, I'll also do the daily zone, but that's usually just when overnight company is coming. School ended for us yesterday, so I took advantage of the free time this morning to get the public areas in order. Now I'm doing some planning for next year and then will reorganize the school bookshelves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tohru Posted June 10, 2011 Author Share Posted June 10, 2011 Her children are 3yo and 12yo. She also doesn't have a lot of clutter either, which probably helps her keep it so clean. And of course her house rules are to put toys away right after playing with them, books only go back on bookshelves (not stacked on floor/couch/coffee table), and only eating outside or at the kitchen table. Our house isn't horrendous, but it seemed to be always be a lot less tidy and organized than I prefer. We used to only clean when some one was coming over, but after stopping by at a moments notice a few times and seeing that her home was always cleaned, made me wonder what her trick was. lol! Since the comment, our house has been consistently tidier and it's been lovely living here. We're even getting yard work and landscaping done. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 (edited) Have you checked the fridge and taken out all glass shelving and used a toothpick for the crud that gets stuck on the edges? :lol: No, because I just got a brand-spanking new fridge two weeks ago and it's still looking new/clean! :D But my son is out getting all the cobwebs down from around the eaves of the house, and I just finished cleaning the toothbrush holders with soap and a q-tip. Edited June 10, 2011 by milovaný Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I like it! The phrase that gets me motivated to clean my house is "Your mom's coming over!" (She's coming over tomorrow. My house is clean. :D) I tend to respond well to "What stinks in here?" :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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