Help me out here, housecleaning stuff

[Nakia]

We have always been a "clean what needs to be cleaned when it needs to be cleaned" family. That's not working out so well because I'm the only one who has the ability to see what needs to be cleaned (must be some kind of superpower, right?), and then I end up nagging and fussing. Add that to the fact that I am working a lot more, and you can imagine what my house looks like. :glare:

 

Patrick and I are going to sit down and make some lists of what needs to be done daily, weekly, monthly, etc. I have a rough idea, but I'd like to hear your thoughts because I can't seem to get it on paper. I'm trying to keep it simple so the kids don't feel overwhelmed. And so I don't feel overwhelmed. :tongue_smilie:

 

I can't do flylady. I just can't. And I don't really need my house to be spotless, just not embarrassing, if you know what I mean.

 

Thanks!

[Truscifi]

Daily - pick up & put away "stuff" in the main areas (we do 15 min), sweep main areas (we have tile), and clean rooms. Oh, and the kitchen, but I mostly handle that. Dh helps scrub dishes when he is home, ds helps unload dishwasher and empty the kitchen trash as needed.

 

Weekly - vacuum bedrooms, clean bathrooms top to bottom, take out all trash, dust.

 

I know there are a couple others I'm not thinking of right now, too. At least it's a start. ;)

[2squared]

If you want a simple suggestion, I would buy the Movatived Moms list and use that for assigning chores to the kids. It has daily and weekly items, and will keep your house up if it's followed.

[Ellie]

FlyLady got her start with the Sidetracked Home Executives. That's where I'd recommend that you start. :-)

 

Here is a sample job card from the S.H.E.'s second book, "Get Your Act Together":

 

Bathroom (weekly):

Clean toilet

Clean tub/shower stall

Clean mirror

Wash floor

[they include things like "polishing" counters and waxing floors. I never wax my bathroom floors, but I do *clean* the counter. Maybe that's what they meant...]

This takes less than half an hour to do.

 

In our house, children do not have free reign in the kitchen. We eat meals together, then the kitchen is cleaned, and it stays clean until the next meal. Each dc has her own cup, and that's what she uses when she wants a drink of water during the day. You might need to evaluate how things go in your kitchen.

 

Oh, and when I say that the kitchen is cleaned, I mean it: every surface wiped off, including spills and whatnot on the stove; all dishes put in the dishwasher (or washed and put in the rack to dry, and I put them away, too), cleaning supplies put under the sink (no dish soap on the sink, no scrubbies on the sink). I put out a new dishcloth and a new dishtowel each morning.

 

In a household of more than one person :D it takes constant instruction, supervision, modeling, reteaching, to keep things clean and picked up. That job will most likely fall to the mother. :) And if the constant instruction, supervision, modeling, reteaching is done in a gentle, patient voice, it won't be too painful (and remember that you are not asking the children to do their chores; it is ok to tell them to do them).

[coffeegal]

My parents (and now myself) always ran a daily tidy/clean just before dinner. The house was picked up, swept, & vacuumed if needed. The table set for dinner, and salads made. After dinner the kitchen was cleaned, and the dishwasher started before bed. If we wanted to watch TV in the afternoon, Mom had us fold while we watched. We put clothing away during commercials. On the weekends Mom would come up with a list of chores that needed to be done, and the youngest was assigned/chose first. Mom and Dad did whatever could only be done by themself or was leftover. I'm shifting over to my parent's routine after years of trying everything else under the sun. It was simple, yet effective. I have added a morning quick jaunt through the bathroom, ala flylady, and a bedroom check.

[Starr]

I found this became more difficult as my kids got older. Everyone is in and out of the kitchen, making their own food, not cleaning up very well and on to another mess making task. When they were little we were glad to have them go play so we could talk. I wish I had been more orderly about their specific tasks earlier. And when they were going to be done. If I were you I would follow someone's list and then change it if you need to for your family. Once everyone gets through the training program you won't have to be the grouch. I hate that.

[coffeegal]

Everyone is in and out of the kitchen, making their own food, not cleaning up very well and on to another mess making task.

 

:iagree: Mom had a rule that I've had to instigate in my own house. "Leave the kitchen cleaner than it was when you entered it!" Any activity can and will be interrupted for kitchen duty if the kitchen is a mess. ;)

[Mommyof4ks]

Every day the kids pick up personal belongings and put me away, and then they fill up a laundry basket with stuff and put t where it belongs. This takes maybe 15 mintues, and all surfaced are free of clutter by then. That is our clutter control method.

 

Daily:

Dishes

Wiping down surfaces (prevents gummy toothpaste during weekly cleaning)

The above pick up

take out trash

 

Weekly:

Laundry

Clean bathroom (mirros, tub, toilet, vanity, and sinks)

Mop all rooms

Vacuum if your house has carpet

Pull everything off the kitchen counters and clean them well

Dust

Clean windows

Clean out fridge before grocery shopping

 

Monthly:

Scrub floors by hand

Clean baseboards

Wipe down walls and kitchen cabinets

purge old magazines and papers

Change air filter in the a/c unit

 

Annually:

Wash outside windows

Shampoo carpets if needed

Clean out all cabinets in the house (trash, donate, reorganize)

 

That is all I can think of for now, but I am sure there is more.

[MamaT]

The kids and I all have morning chores that we spend about 30 minutes every morning completing - by doing this, the bathrooms get cleaned and the carpet vacuumed twice a week, the floors get swept every day, the dusting gets done once a week. One day a week our daily morning chore is a monthly chore, so between the five of us, all the monthly chores get done. Before we ever start on those chores, they have to straighten their room and make their beds. I do the dishes at breakfast and lunch, dh does them at night. I start the dishwasher after lunch and unload it while I'm cooking dinner. I do the laundry two days a week, except sheets - they get done on the weekend. I keep the laundry switched and going during the day and we all fold at night, usually while watching a movie. We pick up and put away things as we go during the day. This works for us. Having a scheduled time for specific things to get done is the only way it ever gets done around here!

 

ETA: We spend one full week as soon as school is finished for the year cleaning out closets and drawers, and deep cleaning. We make it fun by eating take out at night and frozen junk they normally don't get to eat for lunch.

Edited April 1, 2012 by MamaT

[Gentlemommy]

Well, my house isn't perfect, but I've finally found somewhat of a routine...keep in mind that I have three younger kids, and the toddler is intent on destroying everything...;)

 

Daily

Beds made (everyone makes their own except for the baby)

 

One load of laundry-there are assigned days for everything, kids clothes (they do their own laundry with supervision), adult laundry, cloth diapers, sheets.

 

Bathrooms-counters wiped and toilets swished, I use the Clorox disposable click on toilet cleaners and Lysol wipes for the counters.

 

Dishes put away first thing in the am, then all dirty dishes go directly into the dishwasher throughout the day.

 

Kitchen counters and refridgerator door handles are wiped after every meal. Stovetop/convection oven/microwave is wiped if it is used. So, every time an appliance is used, it gets wiped. Table gets wiped after every meal, kids do this.

 

Kitchen floor is vacuumed and spot cleaned, if not mopped.

 

Vacuuming. I alternate, so one day I do bedrooms, one day I do common areas, one day I do bathrooms.

 

Dusting. Again, this alternates, one day I do the living room, one day the bedrooms (kids do their own rooms) and one day the school room.

 

 

Twice Weekly

Bathrooms mopped, tubs and shower sprayed and wiped down.

 

Kitchen and bathroom cabinets wiped down. Oven hood thing wiped.

 

Doggie poo picked up from yard.

 

 

It looks like a lot when I write it all out, but honestly it doesn't take long. The hardest things for me to do are empty the dishwasher and fold clothes. And that's only because my toddler undoes everything. :glare:

My older kids (4 and 7) have a list of chores to do daily, and weekly. They help me a lot and are relatively thorough in their jobs. It does take a lot of instruction from me at first, but now that we've been consistent, they are actually pretty good about getting it done.

[Mergath]

I have the Motivated Moms thing, but I've found that there's just too much listed for a lot of days, so I have reverted back to my normal routine.

 

Daily:

 

Dishes

Sweeping

Making beds

General Straightening Up

Wipe down all counters and sinks

 

Weekly:

 

Vacuuming (sometimes twice weekly, if it needs it)

Clean the bathroom

Clean bedrooms

Clean all the stuff in the kitchen that isn't a counter

Dusting

Laundry

 

Everything else gets cleaned when it's dirty. I'm sure I'm forgetting some stuff, too.

[sbgrace]

Daily here:

Kitchen--wipe counters/stove/etc. after each meal, kids clear and wipe table, kids sweep floor around table; kitchen garbage goes out with hubby in the morning; dishes (after dinner).

Living areas--two toy and clutter pick ups--one in the afternoon and one before bed

Bathrooms--swish toilet (ala Fly Lady) and wipe up boy misses

Laundry switch out and put away (we do a load a day here)

 

Weekly (for me it works best to have the weekly stuff all on one day...preferably at a time when my husband can manage the kids; I know some people like things spread out and in chunks):

Bathrooms full clean

Dust

floors cleaned (vacuum or steam mop depending on floor)

I need to work in regularly scheduled declutter of specific areas!

 

Motivated Moms is just too much specific stuff on particular days to suit me I think. I always intend to do it and then I print a week or so and never consistently plunge in.

 

I found this site that I'm thinking of using (I think maybe someone linked it here as I had bookmarked it at some point). I like that there are built in catch up days and monthly tasks with no assigned days (that rotate often enough that if you miss x or y it'll come around again):

http://www.justmommies.com/articles/home-organization-plan.php

 

What I want the schedules for is a regular routine for the less often tasks. Around here I just do stuff like cleaning out a closet when the disorganization is too much for me mentally. At that point the job is overwhelming. I hope I can discipline myself to keep up with things with the "right" schedule.

Edited April 2, 2012 by sbgrace

[2squared]

I have the Motivated Moms thing, but I've found that there's just too much listed for a lot of days, so I have reverted back to my normal routine.

 

I think there is too much for one person (me) with a house of littles. If you have helpers, though, I think it could work very well. I remember one mom who assigned one kid the daily chores and another the weekly chores. Wouldn't that be heavenly?

[kroe1]

We have a small apartment and a larger home that both need cleaning. It's really too much for one person, but I manage. The apartment gets done about once a month. It's very small and takes about 3/4 of a day to give a good scrub down. My inlaws do the daily pick ups.

 

Daily, the house gets a general pickup, one load of laundry, and a couple of dishwasher loads. Then I clean one room which would include the dusting, vacuuming, etc. for that room only. If it's a bathroom, then the bathroom gets a good scrubbing. The car and cage area are also counted as a room. That leaves every room getting attention about once a month.

 

It's all I can do. So be it.

 

:)

[5wolfcubs]

:grouphug:

I just printed out this weekly cleaning checklist, not because it's perfect (we don't have a playroom, dh pays the bills, etc) but because if I started to make my own, I'd spend my time creating instead of cleaning. :lol:

[AvasMom]

If you want a simple suggestion, I would buy the Movatived Moms list and use that for assigning chores to the kids. It has daily and weekly items, and will keep your house up if it's followed.

 

:iagree: I'm a MoMom diehard. It's just so doable! It takes a very short amount of time and it's really thorough. You get so much done without realizing it.