What is your cleaning schedule around the house?

[Beeblebrox]

I was just curious what everyone does to keep the house clean. Do you have an actual schedule such as: Monday is the bathroom, Tuesday vacuum, etc. Or do you just wing it? I'm having a hard time keeping up with my cleaning and I think it's because I 1. procrastinate and 2. Can't find a good time to do it. I do straighten as I go along and DH does most of the kitchen and dishes stuff, but things like the bathroom, doing and putting away laundry, dusting, vacuuming generally fall waaaay behind...yuck!

Just to give a bit more insight on my "reasons"(: ):
-My 10 month old DD is afraid of the vacuum. So doing that while it's only me here is impossible. I have to wait until DH gets home. Then I get lazy because he's home and I just want to decompress for a bit and it gets put off.
-DD is a light sleeper, so when she's asleep (after taking about 30-hour to fall asleep even when she's showing me she's exhausted!) I don't like to make too much noise. I usually use that time to fiddle around online. But, when she's awake I don't want to be scrubbing the bathroom, toilet, tub, etc. I don't use harsh chemicals. Just vinegar and baking soda. But after I'm "elbow deep" in the toilet I don't want to touch her until I can thoroughly wash up. So, if something happens while she's sitting in the hallway watching (bonking her head after tipping back, or just plain ol' starts crying) I feel like I wouldn't be able to grab her.
-I live in an apartment building and our laundry is in the basement. I know I can strap her into a sling and lug laundry up and down, but I'm lazy. So, it usually waits for DH to get home and he throws it in and I put it away...when I have the time.

So, a lot of this is laziness, but other times I just don't know how to get it done with the time and circumstances. Can someone smack me around a bit and tell me to just get over it and figure out how to get it done. Thanks .

[4evermom]

I didn't clean when ds was that young for similar reasons. I did try to keep the floor reasonable because he was crawling on it. A lot of floor cleaning resulted from wiping up spills (no carpets). Whenever, I had to clean up something from the floor, I'd just wipe up a large area quickly while I was at it (just with water usually).

Now that ds is older, I can clean the bathroom, except the tub, while he takes a bath.

My problem with laundry is getting it put away. I fold it as I take it out of the dryer and it ends up living in the basket until we wear it. Washing dh's clothes separately is a bit helpful to me, because there is less sorting to do when putting away laundry. Eventually, I'm thinking of having a basket for each person and sorting clothes as I take them out of the dryer. Right now, ds and I get dressed at the same time so it isn't a problem to have our clothes a little mixed up.

I shouldn't really be giving advice since I tend to only clean when company is coming (which can work well as long as you invite people weekly!).

[Queen Gwen]

Yes, I follow a schedule. My mom followed a schedule, too -- when I was little she washed the sheets on Thursdays, and to this day years and years later I still think of Thursday as the day that the universe has designated for washing sheets (although I don't think Mom does it on Thursdays anymore, but anyway, it shows you what having a rhythm in your home means to little kids).

I clean the bathrooms on Monday. When the kids were tiny I sometimes didn't get it done on Monday, but I gave myself the rest of the week off from bathroom-guilt and just tried to do it the next Monday. Maybe you'll only get part of it done -- that's okay! Try to get more done next Monday, or at least different parts. Also, consider those reusable vinyl gloves while you're cleaning the toilet -- you can peel them off quickly and maybe do a quicky wash up to feel fresh enough to pick up dd.

I got my schedule ideas from Motivated Moms. You used to be able to get a lot of the schedule and reminders free on their yahoo group, but I don't know if that's still the case.

Also, before you know it your dd will be ready to start helping you do this stuff. Really, you can put a sock on a toddler's hand and they're ready to dust. Which brings up another point about coming up with a schedule and swanky ideas about how to deal with a 10month old while you clean -- by the time you figure it out she's going to be older and life will be different. That's life with a babe.

[craftymom]

Honestly, the only thing I can stay on top of is the laundry. I do laundry (inclduing sheets/towels) on Sunday, and usually another dark load during thr week. In the winter I do more midweek loads, and I can tell as they boys get bigger there will be more!

I also do pretty well staying on top of vacuuming the main family areas and mopping the kitchen. My 6yo likes swiffering (though I have a machine washable shmop thing, not a swiffer). He doesn't do a fabulous job, but otherwise it woulsn't get done at all. I never redo it when he's here.

Before my 3yo gave up his morning naps, I DID have a schedule (mostly involving bathrooms/kitchen/yard. He is starting preschool 2x week this fall, then K the year after, so I plan on doing a schedule again.

It is very hard when the kids are little. They undo it right away, too

[Beeblebrox]

Thanks for letting me know I'm not some dirty freak of a mama. Sometimes it seems like so many women have it together and I'm falling behind. Not that I'm trying to keep up with EVERYONE, but when it looks like things are growing in your toilet, it's time to figure something out .

[boongirl]

Schedules are the bain of my existence. Even as a teacher, I rarely followed the schedule. My teaching partner in the next room was just as bad, so this worked fine for us. We got done what needed to get done. This is my attitude about cleaning. When it is dirty, I make time to clean. When the laundry piles, I make time to wash/dry/fold. Every couple of weeks, I make time a few days in a row for deep cleaning things. A schedule would drive me nuts. I respect those who follow them, don't get me wrong, but it just does not work for me.