TammyS Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Dishwashers are designed for people who don't eat and cook 3 meals a day at home. If they were, they'd have faster cycles and far more space. Totally! We just got a dishwasher for the first time in 17 years and while I LOVE it, I am still astonished that with only 4 people in the house we have that sucker PACKED by the end of the day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beircheart Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Homeschool Mom in AZ, on 12 Jan 2015 - 11:37 AM, said: Dishwashers are designed for people who don't eat and cook 3 meals a day at home. If they were, they'd have faster cycles and far more space. Who hasn't heard this one, "If it is a dish washer, how come we have to wash the dishes before we put them in?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrappyhomeschooler Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 I've lowered my household standards quite a bit. It's just impossible to do it all. I'd rather spend time with my kids before they're grown and gone than worry about the state of my house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justified Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 I wiggle my nose of course. How else does one get it done? Seriously, this year I bought an app that came with cleaning zones that rotated every day, month or week which ever you choose. I picked everyday. I speed clean that zone just 15 minutes or so. There is even a timer if you want to use that. Then it came with a morning check list and evening checklist with a notification alarm to tell my lazy butt to get up and started. I also read the fly lady's website and she has great tips. The app is super easy to modify. Its just what I needed. I actually stay on top of the laundry everyday with my new routines. That's an accomplishment as that is one chore that I just tend to see how high the pile of clean laundry can get. I also delegate with ease. I rearranged the kitchen so my kids can put most the dishes away. They think cleaning the bathroom is fun too. We hang up most of our clothes which I find young children hang clothes easier than fold. As silly as it sounds I pay all of us in change for getting chores done and we make into a thing of working for money to help other people. We pick different charities to work for. It makes it not about me any more and so I cant give myself a "whatever I'll do it tomorrow" pass. If all else fails, just wiggle your nose. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justified Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Double post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stutterfish Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 I don't. We live in chaos. Despite my failure to be superhuman - or just plain human some days - it appears that the world keeps on turning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamamindy Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 I finally had a chance to read through this thread. What a wealth of wisdom! :hurray: I am in the midst of a huge revelation to ME - I am not super-human!! WHY oh WHY do I expect so much of myself?? No, of course you can't do it ALL. But I haven't ever stopped trying. But I want to stop trying so hard because it's just killing me and sucking all the JOY out of our lives. Thank you, thank you, so much to all who shared how you are NOT doing it all. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 I don't - cleaning is unheard of here unless someone else does it, I wouldn't want me for a wife, and I don't cook as much as I used to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maize Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 I finally had a chance to read through this thread. What a wealth of wisdom! :hurray: I am in the midst of a huge revelation to ME - I am not super-human!! WHY oh WHY do I expect so much of myself?? No, of course you can't do it ALL. But I haven't ever stopped trying. But I want to stop trying so hard because it's just killing me and sucking all the JOY out of our lives. Thank you, thank you, so much to all who shared how you are NOT doing it all. :grouphug: One of the best things I ever did was sit down and make a thorough list of everything I thought I needed to be doing on a daily/weekly basis, and how much time each of those things would realistically take. This included changing diapers, feeding babies, teaching children, supervising children, handling bills, running errands, fixing meals, cleaning up from meals, laundry, shopping, planning, etc.. I found I needed a good 36 hours in every day to actually accomplish everything and still have time to sleep. And you know what, moms need a little down time too, time to exercise, read, de-stress, talk to a friend... The realization that doing it all really was impossible was actually very freeing for me, because I finally understood that feeling overwhelmed and behind was neither useful nor helpful and that I just had to accept many things not getting done or only getting done half way. Somehow we still muddle through :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackie Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Our household contains a total of three people, which makes "all" simply less than it is for some others. But there are a few things that still help me keep up. (Not saying it is caught up, but it is very livable.) A vacuum from Neato Robotics. When we are scheduled to be out of the house, I start this and come back to cleaner floors. Meal planning. And I don't mean the once-a-week kind, which used to stress me out. I spent a night pulling put my recipe box, coming up with six weeks worth of main meals, and listed them out. We just go through the meals in a rotation, and start back at the beginning when we get to the end. I may sub something out, but the list is the default. Breakfasts are cereal, granola and yogurt, or instant oatmeal. The other meal of the day is almost always sandwiches, crock pot soups, or leftovers, unless DH feels like cooking. Twice a day, just before lunch and dinner, I set the timer for five minutes and we work on straightening up. For about ten minutes after each meal, there is a mandatory chore time. This is enough. Regular decluttering. I did the first major decluttering when DD and DH were on a camping trip together and I had the house to myself. No one to veto what I was sending to Goodwill :) But this is a continuous process. If something new comes into the house, it needs a place to belong. If there is no place for it, then something needs permanently removed from the house to make room. If the owner of the new item can not find anything to get rid of to make room, then the new thing is obviously of so little value that it should be returned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LatteMama Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 I'm still reading the thread, but I wanted to thank everyone for their great advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brit29 Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 This is a great thread! For my family, I have high expectations in some areas and lower in others. I used to fold and sort everyone's laundry. Now the kids sort it and put what they can away (even my 2 year old), but it doesn't get folded---so what? It gets put away and that's what matters. The only thing in my life I feel is really suffering, is my meal planning. There is too much disorganization around meal times because of budget and allergies (and a little laziness on my part). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 One of the best things I ever did was sit down and make a thorough list of everything I thought I needed to be doing on a daily/weekly basis, and how much time each of those things would realistically take. This included changing diapers, feeding babies, teaching children, supervising children, handling bills, running errands, fixing meals, cleaning up from meals, laundry, shopping, planning, etc.. I found I needed a good 36 hours in every day to actually accomplish everything and still have time to sleep. And you know what, moms need a little down time too, time to exercise, read, de-stress, talk to a friend... The realization that doing it all really was impossible was actually very freeing for me, because I finally understood that feeling overwhelmed and behind was neither useful nor helpful and that I just had to accept many things not getting done or only getting done half way. Somehow we still muddle through :) I recently did a magnet board for myself with everything that needs to be done in a day and in a week on its own magnet and a spot to move the things to as they are completed each day. I also made a spot to put magnets that weren't gonna happen that day, called "nope" and it is interesting to see how much daily stuff I need to cut corners on to get the weekly and most important stuff done. It's been very illuminating for me and rather than feeling like I am not getting to everything, I feel like I am deciding what to do and not rather than getting to the end of the day with all the urgent daily stuff done but less of the important stuff done. Kind of a take on the Eisenhower Decision Matrix for homeschooling homemakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomOfABunch Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 Another vote for you can't possibly do it all. Cooking is the thing I really struggle with so I streamlined cooking/shopping and that has helped a lot. I made a weekly meal plan and when I stick to it, it's easier. There's no thinking involved. I shop once a month. For example, I know that for spaghetti nights for 4 weeks, I need 4 2 lb boxes of noodles, 8 jars of sauce and 8 lb of ground beef plus salad veggies. Same with pizza night. Every month I buy 12 frozen pizzas (3 per week). Fish night is 5 lb of fish, 2 onions, rice and 2 bags of frozen veggies x 4. The first time I did monthly shopping, I about had a heart attack at the checkout. BUT shopping for the month was done which meant I didn't have to do it again for 4 weeks which is huge. Grocery shopping was taking up a whole morning a week from our schedule. I want one of those vacuum robots Jackie was talking about! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Critterfixer Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 I like the idea of shopping once a month, but I wouldn't know how to manage the fruit and greens end of things. But it's an interesting idea. I've been looking at ways to deal with grocery day, since I have to teach the same day I am supposed to be shopping. Right now the DH and I are trialing having him make the grocery run, but if I could handle one day a month and get the major meal things out of the way it would make the weekly trip a short and simple one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomOfABunch Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 I do send DH after 2 weeks for eggs and fresh fruit and veggies. I have a freezer in the garage to help. Oh and I freeze milk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Critterfixer Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 I do send DH after 2 weeks for eggs and fresh fruit and veggies. Oh and I freeze milk. I would not have thought of freezing milk. Interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomOfABunch Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 Freezing milk solved the problem of "hmmm, we're out of milk so I have to go to the store." We also go through a tremendous amount of milk each month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Critterfixer Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 Freezing milk solved the problem of "hmmm, we're out of milk so I have to go to the store." We also go through a tremendous amount of milk each month. I may just have to give this a try. I've got the room in the freezer. Things to think about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea_lpz Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I am a huge fan of moms of littles getting help from a cleaning lady. This helps with the sanity part. Everyone spends a bit of time tidying up and then someone else comes and cleans. that way school and laundry and cooking can get done. This is how I did it when mine were smaller, and recently I called them in for a one-time cleaning because I was completely overwhelmed. It helped to tip the scales in my favor, and I was able to get ahead of the stuff that was stressing me out. That's my solution... How much does that cost say weekly? Curious... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treasuremapper Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Many of the long term, successful homeschoolers I know have spouses with very flexible schedules or work from home. I guess it would depend on the marriage whether this is helpful or not. Some people are very organized and have a lot of stamina. That doesn't mean they are morally superior, it just means they have great executive functioning skills and lots of energy. The only way for someone like me to do this happily is to let go of some of my perfectionism and focus on my priorities. Fortunately, working full time for two years gave me a lot of practice with letting go of perfectionism. It does help to buy as much in advance as I can afford. I do one huge "monthly shop" of non-perishables and then go once or twice a week for a few perishables. That way, if the kids are with me, they are not in for an ordeal. We do lot of hands on activities, so I buy those far in advance. If I have to run to the store for one item, that's much less stressful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmseB Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I was thinking about this thread today as I was cooking pancakes, managing someone doing a math facts sheet, and had two others running around the house. I burnt a couple pancakes, the math sheet took 30 minutes (it would have been 5 if I had been devoting my full attention to the child in question), and the toddler was poopy. So. On the upside, syrup hides a multitude of sins, the math sheet was at least correct, and the other two were off having fun together without a care about how stinky the little one was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I like the idea of shopping once a month, but I wouldn't know how to manage the fruit and greens end of things. But it's an interesting idea. I've been looking at ways to deal with grocery day, since I have to teach the same day I am supposed to be shopping. Right now the DH and I are trialing having him make the grocery run, but if I could handle one day a month and get the major meal things out of the way it would make the weekly trip a short and simple one. I stopped trying to shop on School days. Just too stressful when my kids were small. So, I would go in the WAY early morning while dad was sleeping or in the evening when he was home or mostly, on Saturdays. Alternately, you can have a "light" school day on grocery shopping day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Critterfixer Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I stopped trying to shop on School days. Just too stressful when my kids were small. So, I would go in the WAY early morning while dad was sleeping or in the evening when he was home or mostly, on Saturdays. I'd love to. But the schedule doesn't work out for me to do that. Sounds nice, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stm4him Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 My husband grocery shops online and either he or my daughter cook dinner. The kids make their own lunch and my ten year old cooks eggs every morning. We clean on Saturday unless I have a bad day physically during the week. Then we do school on Saturday instead. I do two or three loads of laundry daily and I do all of the teaching. My children straighten their bedroom and bathroom most days. The thirteen year old cleans the kitchen, the ten year old cleans the dining room and the little ones clean up the family room and the porches. We don't go anywhere in the mornings except Sunday unless I have a lab test that requires fasting. All of our activities are in the evening during the week. And I am becoming more and more minimalist over time so there is less to pick up! So I don't do it all partly because I just physically can't, but I also lowered my cleaning standards when my kids were younger. Now that I have older kids I can raise the standards. Another thing that helps is I sweep the living areas most nights before bed and we mop the whole house on cleaning day most weeks. My husband runs all other errands and takes the boys to choir on Tuesday nights. I usually take the oldest to choir on Thursday night unless I am not feeling well. While she is in choir I eat dinner with one other child and go shopping as needed for clothes or school things. It works well enough for us... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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