How do you keep your home?

[Greenie]

Hi mamas! :

I'm trying to work out my system. Trying to get in the swing, if you know what I mean. I have a marvelously wonderful baby boy who is almost 4 months old.. I've never been great at keeping a clean place even before the baby was born. How do you do it?!

I just don't want my home to be a tornado-attacked-pigstye all my life. I want my son to grow up knowing how to keep his things neat. My mother never kept a neat house, and my SO's Mom is Wondermom. Never let her kids lift a finger, and in turn, has done my SO no favors.

Seriously. I am the one that taught him to fold laundry.

I'm just asking what motivates you? What keeps you going? How do you do it?!

Thanks mamas!!

Sincerely,
A Hopeful Neatfreak

[Amys1st]

Understand that you have less time to be tidy so that may help. I finally had to corner dh and say- pitch in. Sometimes its as little as take the laundery bag downstairs to the washer, put you clothes in the hamper, put dishes in the sink, put clothes shoes etc away, throw away old newspapers, magaizines, old mail etc.

Also declutter and that cuts your tidying time in half.

[leximom]

I just had to cut down on our stuff...if we didn't love it we got rid of it. Clothes are at a minimum, because with too many the laundry just piles up. As far as cleaning, I have a loose routine where in the morning while dd is content playing by herself I do the dishes and get a load of laundry ready and then kind of do spot jobs during the day. Every once in a while I have an all day cleaning spree while dp hangs out dd.

[philomom]

Well, I do dishes when the dishwasher is full. I do laundry just once a week now that no one wears cloth diapers. I have the kids pick up all their stuff from the main living room just before bedtime. I sweep as needed and mop once a month. Little spills I just take a sponge to.

My biggest bugaboo is the darn mail and paper-y stuff. I can't seem to get a sysytem for that.

[Babytime]

Kitchen ... We load the dishwasher as needed during the day, turn it on after dinner and unload it before bed. Just having dirty dishes out of sight makes the kitchen look neater. I frequently give a quick wipe down to countertops and cabinets as I cook meals. As I unload groceries, I will tidy any cabinets that got a bit messy.

Bathrooms ... All towels neatly hung and all laundry tucked away in a hamper. I do laundry after the kids are in bed ... usually a load per evening. When I go to get the laundry, I will give the bathrooms a quick wipe. I scrub them on the weekends when DH is home.

Bedrooms ... It takes maybe one minute in the morning to make beds but makes a room look neat and tidy. We wake, make the bed and then head downstairs for breakfast. Because I do the laundry after bedtime, I can fold it and avoid clothing piles everywhere.

Living areas ... I try to tidy as we go. Having the proper storage containers helps. It's all about being organized and it takes a bit to get there but it is possible! I have a console table in my living room that has three drawers and three bins. The bins are great for sorting newspapers, magazines, etc. and I tuck things into the drawers that I will be needing soon but don't want sitting out on a countertop ... such as bills to send, gifts to give, etc. I invested a lot of time and money into toy storage but it has made life much easier!

Does any of that help? I sweep, vacuum and dust at night. I basically run room to room and make sure everything is in order before I go to bed and then try to keep up with it during the day.

[lovebugmama]

Babytime, you sound so on top of things, but when do you have downtime? I refuse to clean and do laundry at night after the kids are in bed because that is when dh and I have time together to watch tv or a movie or other "stuff" (know what I mean?).

As you can probably guess, my house is not spotless and laundry does tend to pile up, but I need to have my time at night. It is non-negotiable around here.

I'm just wondering if you are one of those lucky people who doesn't need the down time? I'm absolutely not trying to sound sarcastic, I WISH I was one of those.

[Bartock]

I AM A CLEAN FREAK AND MY LIFE REVOLVES AROUND CLEANING HELP LOL
Many people have told me how do you keep your house so clean with a 5yo and a baby. I wear myself out!!! Im trying so hard to cut back, when i think my house is a pig pen, im told it is clean, when it is clean I think it is messy. Anyone know of a AA for clean freaks? LOL

[Babytime]

It takes less than 30 minutes a night to keep my large (just under 3,000 sq feet) home clean, so I have plenty of downtime! I agree ... that time is very, very important! Of course, I might need to run back to the laundry room to switch a load or whatever, but it takes just a few minutes of ... maintainence, I guess ... and I can keep my home neat and organized. I am also not afraid to take shortcuts. For example, my husband is a total slob and sometimes I just gather all his crap and toss it into his closet so he can deal with it at a later time.

The kids are usually in bed by 8 ... I clean while DH unloads the dishes and then we exercise and then we collapse on the couch together around 9. We have at least two hours together before we go to bed.

[mamabain]

the only tip i have is for whoever is having a problem with papery stuff:

my system is to open all the mail on my way from the mailbox to the trashcan. dump in junk mail and envelopes and anything else (ads, credit card ads which i rip into pieces). then bills go into a spot on the fridge (a pocket type thing that is magnetized) and i'm good to go. oh, i also have a specific spot for catalogs and magazines to be filed. never lay that paper down unless it is exactly where it needs to go, is my motto!

[Petersmamma]

I hear ya, Greenie, on the mamas that won't let the kiddos (usually male kiddos ) lift a finger, making life a big party for the women that take them in later, ykwim?

My dh is actually pretty good at keeping the house clean, so I'm lucky there. Although I wouldn't let him NOT help b/c I am that kinda person ("I ain't your mama....do your dishes!")

Anyway, I don't want MY ds growing up thinking he is entitled and I want him to be able to take care of himself. So, you know what we do every day at the end of the day (part of the bedtime routine): we say good night to all his toys and give them kisses as we put them away. Then I am spending time with ds, teaching him about keeping things neat and putting his stuff away, and that is less time that I have to spend after he goes to sleep cleaning up.

I also NEED downtime, and this week I have done NOTHING while trying to feel better after having my seriously impacted wisdom teeth removed. So, once I am feeling better, I will go on a cleaning binge and get the house looking nice (with a dog, a hairy dh, 4 cats, a messy kiddo, and me, "nice" is relative). I also really relaxed my standards after ds was born, and only now am I starting to ratchet that back up. After he goes to sleep, some nights I have my downtime, and sometimes I clean. Unfortunately, since I WOH, I go to sleep not long after he does so I can get home early and spend more time with him. So I do have to decide what's gonna happen...clean or rest. I like to think I keep it balanced, but who knows!

Anyway, Greenie, take each day as it comes and it WILL get easier as dc gets older! It has gotten easier for me! Some days it does look like Toy R Us exploded in here, but I think for the most part I strike a balance between clean and neat and a home that we live in.

[hellyaellen]

when it all goes to crap the first thing i tackle is the dishes, once they are caught up, they are not so hard to keep caught up. i just wash while dh cooks. sometimes i'll do an extra load b/c the stack is small even if he isn't cooking.

the other thing i try to stay caught up on is laundry. and i have really busted my ass with it the past two weeks.!!! i'm yerrible about washing and then not putting awaay so what i did was commit to purring away as i washed and putting up what was already clean just in little bits say 30 minutes at the time. and finaolly my clean clothes basket was empty!

right now i've got half a load in the dryer; its going to be put up bfore i g0 to bed. theres a load in the washer thats going in the dryer when its free. and i might put a load in the washer when that empties but i might niot. if i think its gonna be a while before i get around to putting up then i just wait ti wash.

i've got a dirty basket that is slap ass full right now.

the thing that i have not been caught up on in a long time is paper stuff. especially dd's artwork. my mom said she might give us her filing cabinet so maybe that would help but i am so behind it wil be a job no matter what.

[Greenie]

Thanks for all of the wonderful responses!! I'm trying this out. Tell me what you think:

Deep Cleaning:

Monday - Kitchen
Tuesday - Bathroom
Wednesday - Bedroom
Thursday - Living Room
Friday - Dining Room
Saturday - OFF!!
Sunday - Go Grocery Shopping

Daily Chores:

Dishes
One Load of Laundry
Litter Box
Trash/Clothes/Clutter Pickup

I'm trying to get us into some semblance of a routine. Even if it's just "we do these things around this time" everyday, that would be great.

I started the bath before bed routine, and DS sleeps so much better that way. I was doing an afternoon bath, but for the last 3 nights we've done the bath and then the baby massage, 20 minutes of playing, and then nursing to sleep. Now that he's going to bed early (he used to stay up until 3am some nights--tonight it was 8:20) I have a little more time. Thank goodness!

I'm just making it my motto not to go to bed until it's done. The computer is my falling point.. When DS goes down for a nap, sometimes (okay, a lot of the time) I'm checking email and lurking on Mothering instead of getting that load of laundry done...

I'm trying to ease into it. Just adding a little to the routine at a time, you know, just to get used to things. I'm considering paying someone/babysitting for someone to come get the house caught up. Also having a garage sale to declutter and get rid of all the crap that I really don't need.

Thanks again mamas. If there are any other words of wisdom, please. Bestow it upon me!

[rabbithorns]

When my kids were babies, we spent most of our days out-of-doors so there wasn't too much to clean, because we weren't there. I also didn't let the kids run around with food and drink which helped a great deal. I only remember doing what I do now: laundry, dusting, vacuuming, sweeping. I cleaned the bathroom once a week just before I took a shower. I don't do windows; my mother used to clean my oven when she thought it was gross (now I line it with foil); and my old dh dealt with the toilet and trash. I spent more time with the kids than with cleaning, but we also lived in a three room apartment (about 500 sq. feet) and didn't own much which cut the housework down to - well, when you don't have much household stuff, there simply not much to clean.

[berkeleyp]

Greenie: i just want you to know that i can totally empathize with you. I try to keep a clean house but it just never is. Its no pig stye but definetely so much messier than SIL or MIL (Both clean freaks). For me, I think my main problem is simply not caring that much about small messes which build up into big messes which I then procrastinate. I know that constant maintenance is the easiest way to keep a house clean but I just don't do it naturally like some people. Oh well.

I think your system looks great. I have been trying to stay on top of my laundry too. I'm also terrible about not folding/putting things away. We always have clean cloths but they are often stored in hampers. I have way too many hampers in my bedroom all the time, dirty and clean.

Good luck to you on sticking with your system - it looks great. Maybe one of these days, i'll have a system too. Right now i'm just gonna try doing 1 load of laundry wash, dry , fold & put away every day. I also want to get in the habit of cleaning the kitchen thoroughly every day: dishes in dishwasher or handwashed, put away, counters and stove wiped down, and clutter/garbage removed.

[peverroad]

i am the worst housekeeper ever!! I just don't have the motivation. I do try to do at least 2 10 min pick ups a day (which is usually just the toys DS drags out) and 1 load of laundry washed usually doesn't get put up intill i have 2 or more baskets full done sitting in the kitchen just staring at me.LOL
I wish i had a better system

[Greenie]

Originally Posted by berkeleyp

Greenie: i just want you to know that i can totally empathize with you. I try to keep a clean house but it just never is. Its no pig stye but definetely so much messier than SIL or MIL (Both clean freaks). For me, I think my main problem is simply not caring that much about small messes which build up into big messes which I then procrastinate. I know that constant maintenance is the easiest way to keep a house clean but I just don't do it naturally like some people. Oh well.

I think your system looks great. I have been trying to stay on top of my laundry too. I'm also terrible about not folding/putting things away. We always have clean cloths but they are often stored in hampers. I have way too many hampers in my bedroom all the time, dirty and clean.

Good luck to you on sticking with your system - it looks great. Maybe one of these days, i'll have a system too. Right now i'm just gonna try doing 1 load of laundry wash, dry , fold & put away every day. I also want to get in the habit of cleaning the kitchen thoroughly every day: dishes in dishwasher or handwashed, put away, counters and stove wiped down, and clutter/garbage removed.

Do you live in my house? Seriously. That's exactly me right there. The clothes might be clean, but they're still in the dryer.. OR in the basket. I'm trying hard to stick to my system. It's just overwhelming. I need to get into a schedule with it, as in, at a certain time every day I get up and do these things. I think that would be easier.. But as it is riht now, it just doesn't get done. I do the same thing with the small, isolated messes. I'm trying to start with my living room and kitchen, keeping them clean all the time, then letting it spill over into the rest of the apartment.

I just try to do a little every day. I read something about the Mindful Moms System, and I'm thinking about trying it. I mean, it can't hurt, right?

[earthie_mama]

Originally Posted by Greenie

Thanks for all of the wonderful responses!! I'm trying this out. Tell me what you think:

Deep Cleaning:

Monday - Kitchen
Tuesday - Bathroom
Wednesday - Bedroom
Thursday - Living Room
Friday - Dining Room
Saturday - OFF!!
Sunday - Go Grocery Shopping

Daily Chores:

Dishes
One Load of Laundry
Litter Box
Trash/Clothes/Clutter Pickup

I'm trying to get us into some semblance of a routine. Even if it's just "we do these things around this time" everyday, that would be great.

I tried a similar system for awhile, but I'm not a very structured person, and I thought instead of changing myself I'd change my system. What I do now is make a 10-15 minute playlist of some of my favorite "cleaning" songs and hit play, when the music stops so do I. I go through each room, and in between I spend leisure time. Also one thing I really enjoy is doing a laundry/movie day. I just sit and watch movies while Sabien plays, and do all of my laundry. Those are the days when I've let it get behind, but I like folding it all and putting it all away only once a week. If I am feeling really depressed, which is usually when my house falls into shambles, I just put on one song, and I don one songs worth of work. It always amazes me how much you can get done during one song! The I feel like I've accomplished something, and I usually have no problem doing most of my work for the day.

Now, how many of you lovely ladies have a husband like mine: he grew up in an immaculate house, and expects me to be able to do the same. I do my best, I really do. And on the days that I get depressed and can't get out of the funk, he is really unable to understand, and he doesn't mean to be rude, but he says it just really stagnates the energy of the house and he can't realx after his 12 hour day of physical labor- what do I do?!?!? I admit I sometimes sit on the computer too long, or whatever the case may be, but I think since I get up at night with our son, and since I still work after my husband gets home, by cooking and cleaning up after dinner, and that I am on call 24/7 and he is not, he has scheduled rests, and while he does help with our son, if there's a poop diaper, guess who needs help, or if he starts fussing, for the most part, he must want mama, and when my DH cleans, which is wonderful, he grumbles, if this was done already we could be blabla.....OR he'll clean out the car lets say and I am working on the kitchen, totally stressed out by that mess, he'll come in and say, "Well, I did the first half, why don't you go out and finish up the car!!!~ I know he's probably just sensitivity challenged due to all the testosterone and what not, but my goodness does he get on my nerves. Alright, well I feel better, thanx for hearing me rant for a while!!

Another thing I wanted to add, it's fun to do "drills" with your friends, I know it sou8nds cheesy, but it can be motivationg, you both go do your song/playlist then come back and tell the other one what you did.....shessh, I sound really lame, but I need lots of social support, it ge3ts me through my days, so if I have to play cheesey cleaning games to keep my sanity SO BE IT......I've really lost it....

[Greenie]

My DP is like that too. Seriously. "Well, you don't work....You don't bring in any income....I do manual labor." Also had a mother that kept a perfect house. She told me, though, that her house was a mess when her kids were little, and nothing ever got done. By the time Carlo came along, her two oldest were 10 and 8. He doesn't seem to get that, though.

Today I got to the *real* root of it all. He thinks that what I do isn't as hard because I get joy out of it. I get to see DS smile at me when I'm changing a diaper.. And I get to snuggle with him until he falls asleep. I didn't even know that this was his thought behind everything. I feel a little better, but then again... Wow. He's just so mushy sometimes.

I'm going to give the Motivated Moms a shot. I'm going to do the sample page and see how it works out, and then order it in a few days. So excited!

[celestialdreamer]

Originally Posted by Greenie

I'm going to give the Motivated Moms a shot. I'm going to do the sample page and see how it works out, and then order it in a few days. So excited!

I can't say enough about how much I like Motivated Moms! I used to be constantly battling with my house, now it is always clean enough to have people over and usually VERY clean. I started at the beginning of the year as a New Years resolution by doing a deep clean & declutter, then committing to following MM for 1 month. After the month was over my house was so clean that I actually enjoyed being there and felt like inviting people over on spur of the moment. Now I don't really follow the list (I do look at it each week though) because its evolved into my own system. It definitely got me into the routine of doing the basics each day, then breaking up what used to take me one whole day into little chunks throughout the week.

My basic daily stuff is:

*make the bed after breakfast
*run a load or two of laundry, then put away (was always my downfall-never could keep up because I'd let it pile up),
*keep the dishwasher empty so dirty dishes can go right in
*clean up as I'm cooking meals
*daily wipe down of the kitchen & bathrooms (takes less than 10 min but makes such a HUGE difference- I do this after I do the dinner dishes)
*emptying the trashes if needed
*going from room to room putting anything away that needs to be like toys, etc (dd helps me with this)
*running the vacuum if neccessary (we have wood floors so everything shows)

Then it makes it seem like the house is always clean. I do the actual scrubbing/deep cleaning when I see something needs it. When I see something needs to be cleaned, I try to do it then if I can or at least write it down on the chalkboard in our kitchen to do later that day. My daily 'routine' probably takes me less than an hour total a day (broken up into little chunks) so it doesn't feel like that much work. I feel like I hardly clean at all actually, and I have my evening free to spend with my family.

[Marylizah]

Ahhh, the eternal struggle to keep things clean!

Living in a tiny space with no dryer, I've learned the following: everything must have a PLACE. Almost every piece of furniture we own does double-duty-- storage + regular function (ie coffee table with a lid, little futon-type seat that has storage space underneath, there is no room for our cat under our bed because the space is filled with storage containers, etc).

Then it just becomes a question of putting things back in their place on a regular basis, and it makes our apartment so much easier to keep tidy.

My daily chores are: dishes, laundry, tidying up the bathtub area, keeping kitchen clean (not hard, as kitchen is tinier than most people's closets!).

Once a week, usually right before the weekend, I do the dusting, vacuming, cleaning of toilet / sink and scrub-down of stove-top and kitchen sink. Our space is tiny so all this takes maybe 2 hours, and during the weekend we can relax and do other things and not feel like the house is a wreck.

That said, I'm not working for the moment, and DC 1 is expected any day now. So we'll see how things change when our lives are turned upside down!

Good luck with your system, I tried something similar (1 chore per day) and found that it didn't mesh with my life / needs. But it did help me find a rhythm that worked for ME.