Help me learn to housekeep?

[Leiiki]

I know, I'm horrible, but I really have never had to keep a whole house by myself - especially with a toddler around. My parents got us a year of cleaning as a baby gift, but the year is almost up and DH is asking my plans. I'm terrified!

I do all the laundry, keep DDs room and the changing room neat, and pick up toys around the house, DH does dishes, but everything else will be new for me. Please don't judge - I'm looking for help to get this under control.

What's your daily/weekly/monthly schedule? What do you do to make it less overwhelming? Ideas for making cleaning more fun and enjoyable? Are there some things I can work up to over time?

[Cristina]

http://www.flylady.net/

Maybe try this?

[dancermommy1]

Daily: Make bed, dishes, laundry, sweep kitchen, wipe down stove & counters & table, pick up toys and whatnot
Weekly: change bed linens, scrub toilets, wipe down bathroom counters and faucets and showers and light switch plates, dust, vacuum
Monthly: ideally I would wash windows but that rarely happens, wash dog beds, not sure what else
Yearly: clean out closets & take unused items to goodwill, clean doorframe outside house, wash baseboards, ??

[MommaTooters]

I am HORRIBLE when it comes to housekeeping. I KNOW what needs to be done but I think my problem is the fact that I'm just, um, lazy.

[KristieW]

I made myself a list of simple but specific chores that would get done on specific days and taped it to my fridge. Once I felt like I had a handle on those, I'd add something else. I think my beginner list looked something like:
Monday: Clean out old food from fridge, wash sheets
Tuesday: Vacuum stairs, sweep hardwoods
Wednesday: Water plants, clean catbox (we have an auto one, so we only have to empty it 1x a week)
Thursday: Vacuum stairs, sweep hardwoods
Friday: Clean downstairs bathrooms, wipe fronts of kitchen cabinets
Saturday (when DH is home to help): Clean upstairs bathrooms, vacuum upstairs, muck out car, vacuum stairs, sweep hardwoods, straighten laundry room
Sunday: rest

Stuff that gets done every day includes cleaning the kitchen and laundry.

[ashley84]

Originally Posted by MommaTooters I am HORRIBLE when it comes to housekeeping. I KNOW what needs to be done but I think my problem is the fact that I'm just, um, lazy.

Haha, I LOLed! This is me, exactly!

[pcjs]

Your plan is for him to help more - either do something with the toddler to give you a break so you can clean or clean!

[thaisa47]

Originally Posted by Cristina http://www.flylady.net/ Maybe try this?

Some people find FlyLady to be a little over the top - she has a HUGE line of cleaning and organizing 'stuff' - but her routines and ideas are a great place to start.

The first thing she has you do is to shine your sink each and every night, which was an awesome habit for me. I was terrible about getting the dishes done every night. We eat late (7-7:30pm) so that we can all eat as a family, and we go straight to bed from the table. After getting everyone brushed, dressed, read to, and in bed, doing dishes was the furthest thing from my mind. But just a couple of simple changes made it possible, and I love starting my morning with a clean sink and kitchen. I have lagged on this recently (and I don't actually SHINE my sink every night with glass cleaner and scouring powder, but I do wipe it down), and need to get back into it.

She also puts focus on one room/area of the house each week. I don't always follow her schedule, but I do follow her suggested area cleanup schedule. If she works in the master bedroom that week, then I do too.

If you like the idea of FlyLady, I would jump in with both feet and give it a whirl, and then edit down what you do/don't like. Keeping house is a personal thing, and what works for one doesn't work for another.

[Leiiki]

Originally Posted by pcjs Your plan is for him to help more - either do something with the toddler to give you a break so you can clean or clean!

LOL, he is much more of a neat freak than I am, but we agreed that we wanted to have a more 50's family dynamic - I want to be the wife in a pinafore with a vacuum in one hand and the pot roast on the table

[sstarfish]

Originally Posted by Leiiki LOL, he is much more of a neat freak than I am, but we agreed that we wanted to have a more 50's family dynamic - I want to be the wife in a pinafore with a vacuum in one hand and the pot roast on the table

Haha, my DH always jokes, "So why don't you wear your pearls (that I don't own ) and heels when you clean the house, like on Leave it to Beaver?" I think that he secretly wants me to actually do that. Or at least, not still be in my pajamas when he comes home from work. And maybe try brushing my teeth by then, too.