For the last two days, Jeff and I have been in a sort-of "funk" where we are noticing every speck of dirt, dust, and grime in our 96 year old house and feeling like it is totally disgusting and overwhelming.
We get in these funks about once every six month and promptly decide to move. Too bad the last time we just threw our house on the market without doing one thing to "ready" it wasn't so successful. Ugg.
Owning an old house is hard. Even when it is clean, it isn't. Add a baby and a long haired dog to that mix, and you've got yourself an anxiety attack waiting to happen. At least in my world.
Heck, owning a house period is hard. You know my battles with it. There is still a big part of me that just wants to donate everything and move to a sterile loft downtown and never look back. BUT, now, there is also the part of me that appreciates the space we have for our boy (and his ridiculous amout of stuff), and the importance of having a home more than ever.
So, it's a dilemma really.
Which brings me to this... How do you handle your house cleaning responsibilities?
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With my new position, we have - obviously - gotten rid of our bi-weekly cleaning lady. :( And, I'm feeling a lot of pressure (self-inflicted) to keep my house neat and spotless all the time now that I "have time." Of course, the irony of that is that I'm also in my house a lot more these days. And, Sam is just a hot mess. Anyone that spends one second in our house during his waking hours suddenly has a new appreciation for the fact that there are dishes/clothes/whatever ALL over the place.
Then there is the fact that we have a babysitter coming into our house every morning. Oh how I love her (by the way), but I can't let her think we live like pigs.
But, I really don't want to be so focused on chores and cleaning that I don't take advantage of this precious time to be with Sam and nap do things I really love. So, what's a girl to do?
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I've tried weekly cleaning schedules (like this one, currently); but, I'm not sure it is my thing either. I like the feeling of a totally clean house way too much --- Like, I'd rather just spend one whole day cleaning and be able to enjoy the totally clean house for that one night. (Am I crazy?)
I'm leaning towards adopting more of this approach:
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| Printable from my talented friend Erika here. |
But, it stresses me a little too - if I'm being honest - because I'm not cool enough to be into sticky floors.
Tips? Advice? Let'em roll... :)
I feel like i could have written this post. I teach full time and my son is 11 months and is now makes the biggest mess while eating.
ReplyDeleteThankfully I have a husband who doesn't mind cleaning bathrooms. We just take a Saturday morning every other week and clean the whole house top to bottom and then get by for the rest of the time spot cleaning.
Good luck!
I'm a recent graduate with a degree in education and I'm a little stressed just thinking about everything that has to be done outside of school. This is a great post. I guess I want answers as well! =) How do teachers juggle school and mommyhood/wifehood? It's a lot to handle. Hopefully somebody will provide a why-didn't-I-think-of-that answer to suit every working mother's needs. Best of luck!
ReplyDeleteI try to do a little each day. The big stuff - bathrooms, floors, etc. - get done on Friday or Saturday's. I try not to stress over every little thing. My hubby has a pretty good motto that I'm trying to adapt to "Our house isn't dirty, it's lived in". Trying to balance home, work, hubby & kids is so hard for us Mama's.
ReplyDeleteHaving a clean house was always something I took pride in. I still do. My husband thinks I overdue it, because everytime someone is coming over I run around like a crazy lady making sure everything is perfect. But, now with an almost 16 month old. It is impossible!
ReplyDeleteI try to use his nap time to do most things. But, really there are toys and stuff scattered all over the place all day!
So most of the time, my house is less than perfect. I think I have gotten used to it. There is always something that I could be doing, but I think exhaustion has gotten the best of me and the things that used to bug me like dust etc., I don't even notice sometimes. ha!
You are not alone with a messy house! ;)
I love a clean house too. One rule I adopted from my MIL was to never leave the house or go to bed with a mess somewhere. We have been given the money and responsibility to afford these homes, so we need to care for them. Even taking 15 minutes to walk through before you head out or go to sleep can make a huge difference the next morning or when you come back. That's helped me stay on top of things more often than not.
ReplyDeleteWe just moved from a really old house (around 90 years old, like yours) to another old house though for some reason the one we're in now feels cleaner than the last. Either way, I can totally relate to that feeling of "even when it's clean, it's not". Dust seemed to collect in my house like crazy and no matter what I did, it wouldn't get better. It did cause me to clean more often, but I tried to see it as a way to take care of what's been given to me and it was easier to not get annoyed by it.
Good luck!
No real suggestions, though ironically, I sat down to read this after scrubbing on hands and knees the floors on the entire main level of the house. Before anyone thinks that's amazing, I only did it because we don't have a mop. Don't have a mop!! We've owned this house almost a year, and the entire house is hardwood/laminate.. you do the math on how often the floors get cleaned. :/ The main motivation these days to keep it clean is how filthy my 9 mo old gets while she's crawling around, or watching her pick up wads of dog hair to put in her mouth. Cool. We also have a Golden Retriever. Oh the hair. There is absolutely no comparison (except maybe TWO goldens..). Best dogs in the world, worst for a clean house. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI do at least one load of laundry a day (usually a few times on vacation too!). I think that doing it little by little really helps.
ReplyDeleteI also pick a day once a week to do the bathrooms, vacuum & mop the downstairs, ect.
Jen
I can't do the cleaning charts either. What I've found that works best for us is the "clean as you go" mantra. Aka: do the dishes right after you use them, make the bed when you get up, wipe the sink/counter after putting on makeup. We also do a ten-minute tidy before going to bed. It's so nice to get up and not immediately have to look at a mess. Then any heavy cleaning we do on Saturday mornings (early) which I dubbed Saturday Morning Cleaning Party. Whew, that turned into an epic comment! :)
ReplyDeleteI tried to spread the cleaning out over a whole week but I like the feeling of a house, cleaned top to bottom, too much. So I made myself a chore calendar that works around our schedule. Mondays, are house cleaning day (top-to-bottom)- I do everything time allows for. Tuesdays, I just straighten, neaten, dishes, and vacuum downstairs (living areas), same on Wednesdays and Fridays. Then Thursdays I spot clean, vacuum the whole house and grocery shop. The weekends are for relaxing with Daddy (the full-time employee) and outside work (yards, cars, etc). I only work out of the house part-time so this is what works for me, my schedule and my "needs" (a totally clean house at least once a week)! Good luck figuring out what works for you with your new job.
ReplyDeletewell I must say that the followed approach in the above blog regarding house cleaning is purely a pessimist one...wherever cleaning is concerned we can not class it to absurdity of time...cleanness do sooth our eyes..
ReplyDeletereflective essay
Elizabeth! You should try the Home Routines App! I started using it last week and it is great - as far as cleaning apps go...hahaha...It splits your home into zones and each day of the week you focus on one zone only. By Friday, you have cleaned your whole house! Plus, you get to check off tasks as you finish them. This is great for me because I am a list nerd. Check it out - you will love it and it makes keeping your house clean seem attainable!
ReplyDeleteAs much as I didn't want to, I had to adopt the "moms with sticky floors have happy kids" mantra. I tried the cleaning schedules too, but I am JUST like you. I like to have it clean all at once and enjoy it for maybe an hour! I live in an older home too (1967) and I feel like no matter how much I clean, it isn't ever *really* clean either. I look around me and see all of these major things that would make it feel cleaner, like replacing all of the old and cracked windows, but oy. The price. I'm getting off on another subject here. Just know you aren't alone! Embrace it, because one day the kiddos will be away in college and you'll probably miss the mess :)
ReplyDeleteYou're right, cleaning charts are just a hassle.
ReplyDeleteI’m going to watch out for brussels. I’ll be grateful if you continue this in futureLots of people will be benefited from your writing Cheers!
ReplyDeleteClean house for healthier living! One thing that's hard is keeping maintenance of the furniture, so make sure you buy those that won't waste your money by buying another one over and over again because they easily break.
ReplyDeleteThat's a rather maverick way of looking at handling house interiors (from a mother, no less). Still, sometimes it just might be a good thing to let it all slide; after all, going overboard with house-cleaning and maintenance may just cause more problems in the end.
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