Housework, do others really get the time?

Sarah - posted on 07/14/2009

Kelly, this is what works for me... I try and do some chores while my 2 year old is awake so that I'm not completely exhausting myself during her naps. She doesn't mind the vacuum, so I do that while she's awake, and then I let her use it a little, so it's like a game and she's not being ignored. For the other tasks, I assign one thing each day and try to do a little at a time. So Monday is laundry, Tue is ironing, Wed is floors, Thurs is Bathroom, and Fri is bedroom. It helps me to have structure. Since my little girl gets the concept of "picking up", we try to do that before naps and bedtime now and that helps a lot. I certainly don't get it all done every week, but it gives me a place to start and helps keep me from getting overwhelmed. You're not a terrible person if you can't keep up with the housework all the time. Your little girl will get older and more independent and you'll be able to do more and more. Try and do it in little chunks and celebrate small accomplishments. You can do it! (Btw, I couldn't really do it well until after my daughter was a year old.)

Kim - posted on 07/13/2009

It is hard. When it was just my son I did a lot during his naptime and it only took 10 minutes to neaten the livingroom(playroom) once he went to bed. My house was never perfect but it was clean. Now that I have 3 it is so hard. The youngest only seems to nap at dinner time if at all, so cleaning during nap is out. I do Flylady.com it really has helped me organize my cleaning areas. I focus on one area a week but neaten the others so my house is clean, not necessarily neat all the time. My husband is as bad as the other kids if not worse(what do I do with all his clutter?). And usually cleaning up after bedtime isn't an option, I'm just too tired and there are so many more toys now. After making dinner, cleaning up after dinner, washing up the kids, homework, books, fighting to get them to bed(the oldest is the worst), I just want to have some quiet time to myself to relax. And your kids are only little once, enjoy them while you can. If someone doesn't like how cluttered your house is give them a basket to pick up! :D

Sarah - posted on 07/12/2009

In a word NO. :) I hired a new nanny and she is doing a lot of housework for me, which has been so helpful. But before the nanny that does housework I resigned myself to a semi-dirty house and was much happier. My thought is this--the time with this child will go by so fast...I just want to make the most of it. Hope that helps

Gemma - posted on 07/11/2009

I use her nap times and set myself realistic targets - just so long as the house is safe I think you can afford to be more lax about the house work - after all, you also need time for yourself. Work out where your tolerance levels are and just clean to those - who cares what other people think - you have to live in the house, not them! Or get the mother in law round! That works for me everytime - lol. Generally though, I do one or two tasks while babe sleeps, and then in the evening I make sure the flat is in a state that I can live with the next day and choose two rooms to give a good clean to on the weekend when I have a bit more support from my hubby and I get Lilly to help with tidying away her toys. As a mum there is enough to feel guilty about without adding housework to the mix!

Tiffany - posted on 07/10/2009

I have no idea how ppl do it!! Trust me, my sitter has 3 kids at home, then my 17month old, and her house is always SPOTLESS!! not to mention 2 dogs and a cat, but somehow she manges it all. no idea how!! I clean when my son takes a nap, or after he goes to bed. He normally is in bed by 8:30, so that si not a major problem cleaning after that, but the main problem is the washer & dryer are in the next room to his, and on the same wall as the crib, so it is loud, and wakes him up. so I cant really wash after he is in bed, so i try and do that 1st, then fold & pit away after he is in bed. hubby has to help too, or FORGET IT!! his job is the dishwasher, load/unload/load!! And my house is a disaster most of the time, but it is toys and such, not really filth. I swiffer and spary n mom EVERY NIGHT!! due to dogs, and Cole will eat anything off the floor!! We are really overcrowded too, so I am getting ready to go thru it all and have a big yard sale, to clear out some stuff. I have toys in the closets, and if hubby hangs something up, and dosent close that door, the toys mysteriously appear in the living room...

Lori - posted on 07/10/2009

Being a mother of 4, 3 at home and all 3 and under, is a challenge! I have found that there is always going to be housework to do, and I use to be a "neat freak!" Never knowing when anyone will stop by making a surprise and feeling disgusted with my house being upside down. But my husband always encourages me, "at least you know that you clean it and it is not disgusting, don't worry, it is your home!" We know what goes on in our home. As long as your children can crawl around, not choke on anything and it is important to take care of yourself although I know our children is top priority and comes first in a sec. Just learn how not too work yourself to beet tired! Your significant other can understand eventually and help out more especially when you are having that hard day of getting moving around. Just communicate and express your deepest gratitude and say you are trying your best! It all starts all over again! It never ends!

Jennifer - posted on 07/10/2009

Our house is never as clean as I would like it to be! I have often wondered this same question of other moms! There are certain things that I try to get done every day like 1 load of clothes, dishes (we don't use a dishwasher), vac our little rug, sweep kitchen and living room. We have a dog and a cat so I have to sweep or my son has fur all over his hands! We are living in Italy right now and our washers are tiny so I have to do at least one load a day to stay on top of it.
I just found this website the other day and really like it. It helps me to remember what I need to do because sometimes I just don't remember when the last time I cleaned the bathroom was!
http://www.chorebuster.net/Default.aspx

Adf0905 - posted on 07/10/2009

Our house is never perfect, but it's picked up and tidy. Some days I'll get behind on laundry and dishes, if we're out for the entire day or my daughter is sick. But my husband is gone for awhile right now, so if I don't do it, no one will. My daughter is 22 months old, and has no problem playing in her play room by herself if I'm cooking or cleaning. I do my best to incorporate her help while I'm cleaning. If I'm picking up the living room, I'll have her pick up her playroom. If I'm doing laundry, I'll hand her the clothes out of the washer and let her put them in the dryer. It slows things down a little bit, but she loves helping me!

Lynlee - posted on 07/09/2009

Our house is never as tidy as I would like it but you have to have fun and a life too and I refuse to spend all day doing housework. One thing I try and keep on top of is the washing, esp as we have cloth nappies so I always sort that out first thing. To tell you the truth our floor gets vacuumed maybe once a fortnight - I know that is crusty but it takes about 1.5 hours to do our house and I never seem to get around to it. I also like to clean up the rooms a bit so that there's not so much junk on the floor but the only time our house looks really tidy is when we have someone coming over! Toddlers are the messiest little people ever!

Colleen - posted on 07/09/2009

It is really hard. B/w my son work and school I understand. I usually get house work done after he goes to bed. It sucks because he goes to bed at 10 but at least my house doesn't look like a zoo. My Boyfriend pitches into that helps alot.