Let's stay Motivated Moms Fall/Winter 2011/2012

[mylilmonkeys]

Since our old thread is really, really long and really, really old, let's start a new one!

New?  Here is the link to the planning system we are using: http://motivatedmoms.com/.  2011 lists are half off.  At $4 you really can't beat it.  

We'll work together to keep our homes tidier and more peaceful places to be!

[PoetryLover]

I love the thread title! Motivated Moms really helps, even followed loosely. I can't wait to see how my home improves when I follow the program better. 

I had an off day yesterday, so today I am playing catch up for both days' chores. So far I got the bathroom clean. I still need to vacuum the living room and bedroom, but I must tend to my babe first.

[mylilmonkeys]

I have been really focusing on the daily stuff on the left column.  It makes such a HUGE difference, and I feel so much better about myself when there aren't piles of things laying around accusing me of being lazy everywhere I look.  Since we don't have carpeting, I replaced the weekly vacuuming chore with mopping.  I don't think I'll actually mop every room, every week, but having it on there will definitely prod me to get it done more often.  I got about 2/3's of the first floor mopped yesterday.  I have a steam mop and went through both pads and was going to finish after I ran them through the wash but I ran out of time.  Next week, I'll be sure to get the room I missed.

Upstairs, on the other hand, is an unequivocal disaster.  We have four people in one room (my dh and I and the babes), 3 boys in a room, two girls in a room and my teenage son in a room.  Really, really difficult to keep these rooms tidy.  I just rarely have time to get laundry put away in my room, and then I grab moments of time to sew and don't really have a specific place to keep my supplies in a tidy manner.  My poor example hardly encourages the kids to keep their spaces tidy.  My oldest daughter is a messy through and through, and younger dd is only 3.  The three boys actually have the best track record of keeping their space tidy, if you can believe that!  But, I'm hoping as downstairs starts to fall into a routine of getting and staying cleaner, I can focus more of my efforts upstairs and change our situation.  (My real problem is that we have almost no closets anywhere in this house, so everything is out in the open.  Very hard to stay organized.)

[clutterwarrior]

I like the thread title too "Let's Stay Motivated" but the Fall/Winter threw me for a bit...being Spring here I was thinking why do we have to wait till next year?  Then remembered it's Autumn where most of you are.

I definitely want to get back on track with this.  I have times recently when I fall off the rails and just stop doing the daily stuff but it doesn't take long before things start to look a bit shabby so I want to keep myself in line.

[mylilmonkeys]

Originally Posted by clutterwarrior 

I like the thread title too "Let's Stay Motivated" but the Fall/Winter threw me for a bit...being Spring here I was thinking why do we have to wait till next year?  Then remembered it's Autumn where most of you are.

 I'm sorry, I didn't think of that!  Oops.  I'm a typical Amero-centric American.  

Yeah, it really doesn't take long at all here for everything to go south.  One day, tops.  It's so easy to jump in again, though!

[Comtessa]

Originally Posted by mylilmonkeys 

 I'm sorry, I didn't think of that!  Oops.  I'm a typical Amero-centric American.  

Yeah, it really doesn't take long at all here for everything to go south.  One day, tops.  It's so easy to jump in again, though!

Go south.

Ha ha ha... like Australia.  

Sorry, clutterwarrier and mylilmonkeys, I couldn't help myself.  

[mylilmonkeys]

Originally Posted by Comtessa 

Go south.

Ha ha ha... like Australia.  

Sorry, clutterwarrier and mylilmonkeys, I couldn't help myself.  

My daddy raised me to enjoy a good pun! 

.

.

.

And that was nothing like a good pun.  

[clutterwarrior]

Originally Posted by Comtessa 

Go south.

Ha ha ha... like Australia.  

Sorry, clutterwarrier and mylilmonkeys, I couldn't help myself.  

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[bignerpie]

I need help getting back on track. I've used MM for most of the year, but I just had a baby 6 weeks ago and my routine got away from me. Now I am very frazzled at the current state of my house. 

[vellamo]

I´m so glad I found this thread!

I have been failing organizing with CleanMama lately, and I do love her printables. However I seem to need something even more detailed. I think Motivated Moms would be my thing. Is there any point buying it at this time a year? Does it change significantly every year or can I use the same planner next year?

[Ragana]

Subbing! I bought MM through the $4 end-of-the-year deal a month or two ago. It's been great. The last couple of weeks I have fallen off the wagon due to work, but I need to get back on and get things back into shape. 

Currently, I have two kids in school with a shared childcare arrangement with friends after school (I take their kids a couple days; they take my kids a couple days; Fridays we take our own) plus I work (from home, maybe 30-35 hrs./wk. at this point), take one evening class and volunteer Saturday afternoons at an activity my kids do. It's all stuff I want to do, so I'm not complaining about being busy, I just don't end up with much time for housework. DH is the organized, cleaner-person around here, but he's at work from 6am to 5pm every day, so he doesn't have time for much of the housework anymore. I WAH, so it's up to me. I also do all of the grocery shopping and cooking except for his lunches, so I have been combining MM with a grocery list/meal planner sheet (have been trying different ones).

Interested to see how others tweak their lists - I never thought of customizing mine using my word processor! Good idea.

[Ragana]

PS Has anyone made reusable Swiffer cloths? I have seen knit, crocheted & sewn ones. I am thinking of sewing some. I think this would keep our wood floors cleaner & help with dust, since DD2 is allergic to dust mites & her allergies have been acting up lately.

[mylilmonkeys]

Originally Posted by bignerpie 

I need help getting back on track. I've used MM for most of the year, but I just had a baby 6 weeks ago and my routine got away from me. Now I am very frazzled at the current state of my house. 

After a new baby is so hard to get back to housework!  Even a little bit makes a difference.  Even if I only get to one thing, I feel good that I at least tried and did something!

[mylilmonkeys]

Originally Posted by vellamo 

I´m so glad I found this thread!

I have been failing organizing with CleanMama lately, and I do love her printables. However I seem to need something even more detailed. I think Motivated Moms would be my thing. Is there any point buying it at this time a year? Does it change significantly every year or can I use the same planner next year?

I only bought mine a month or so ago.  I needed to reorganize the daily column because it really wasn't working the way I wanted it to in the order it is, so I set it up for next year while I was at it.  A few things are date specific (like there are no extra chores for Thanksgiving Day, or go Vote, or file taxes) but you can manually move these things around if you copy it into a word program, or just swap which weeks you print out if you just use the format, as is.  But, you'd probably get a better answer from someone whose bought more than one year's copy and compared them.

[kklotz121]

Yes! An 18 page thread was very intimidating but after 3 days I have it all read! You ladies have inspired me to give this a shot! I am going to be placing my order today but am still trying to decide which layout to purchase..I'm thinking the one that shows a whole week at a time but not sure. Any recommendations? I'm so excited to get started with this...My house is an absolute cluttered MESS! I have little piles of laundry in every room in my house, it's disgusting!

I have two little ones. DS is almost 4 and DD is 18 months. We are also expecting baby number 3 in early January (29 weeks pregnant) and are planning a homebirth therefore, we definitely need a clean, tidy and organized house! I have virtually no energy or motivation these days but check lists really seem to help. Fingers crossed that this is my ticket to change!!!

[bignerpie]

Originally Posted by mylilmonkeys 

After a new baby is so hard to get back to housework!  Even a little bit makes a difference.  Even if I only get to one thing, I feel good that I at least tried and did something!

I try to keep my dishes done and not worry about the rest. I can't stand a dirty/cluttered kitchen. So even if we are all out of clean underwear and my living room floor is covered with crumbs, at least my kitchen is clean! 

Originally Posted by kklotz121 

Yes! An 18 page thread was very intimidating but after 3 days I have it all read! You ladies have inspired me to give this a shot! I am going to be placing my order today but am still trying to decide which layout to purchase..I'm thinking the one that shows a whole week at a time but not sure. Any recommendations? I'm so excited to get started with this...My house is an absolute cluttered MESS! I have little piles of laundry in every room in my house, it's disgusting! I have two little ones. DS is almost 4 and DD is 18 months. We are also expecting baby number 3 in early January (29 weeks pregnant) and are planning a homebirth therefore, we definitely need a clean, tidy and organized house! I have virtually no energy or motivation these days but check lists really seem to help. Fingers crossed that this is my ticket to change!!!

That's exactly why I got MM, and I also got the 1 week at a time. My second pregnancy was very difficult and with a 2 year old running around, it was almost impossible to do anything. It really helped me do a little at a time and keep things looking decent. Plus, it was nice to cross things off and feel accomplished.  I think it will help you!

[mylilmonkeys]

I also got the one week at a time.  I felt that daily would waste too much paper and the weekly works pretty well for me.  I print each week on Sunday and keep it on a clipboard with a pen.  I need to find somewhere for my clipboard to live, though, as I keep losing track of it! 

[vellamo]

I bought it yesterday and started right away. It´s great! I decided to not look back, because I tend to wear myself out too, but I also didn´t look forward. I must learn to do a little bit everyday instead of falling into a chaos. MM is nothing like Flylady, which makes you clean all the time (or else!), and it´s even better than CleanMama. I made my 7yo twins do some of the tasks and we were quite fast!

My printer doesn´t work, so I have to wait till I get to work next week. Then I´ll print my full size week all at once and put it in my beautifully organized homekeeping binder. I think I will use the same kit next year, so I don´t write anything in it now. Or maybe I should use a pen now and hope that this time next year I have learned to do these tasks automatically .

[PoetryLover]

I'm taking mylilmonkeys advice and redoing mine for next year by copying them into a Word Program. I've already started and am excited to be able to tailor it to my home and family's needs. I'm keeping the basic structure, though, and just moving some tasks around, adding or deleting where applicable.

I've said this before and I'll say it again. Even if I just get to the daily tasks, there is an improvement in my home.  The kitchen stays picked up, swept and the dishes washed. With those simple things and staying on top of the laundry, I feel at least a little in control. As far as the other tasks, I just make it a goal to mop, vacuum and clean the bathroom every week. Anything else I can get to is a bonus, but those are the big things. :-)

[mylilmonkeys]

My husband commented today how much better the house is looking. It encourages him to try a little harder to clean up after himself.  He wiped down the bathroom after trimming his beard/shaving this AM.