How do I keep my house clean?!

You might want to try flylady.net There's alot of emails, but it really help when I actually follow through with what she says.

Oh my god, you clean a lot. My apartment is usually pretty messy, but i only have time to clean on the weekend. During the week I can just "maintain' by doing dishes and laundry

Sorry but there's no reason to use a fresh towel everytime you shower and that's just ridiculous.

I use a fresh towel everytime I shower, as do my boys. There's just something about using a slighty damp towel, or one thats dried "crusty" that gets to me.

Sorry to say this, but that list is fucking ridiculous. You have a high risk pregnany right now right? Vaccuuming THREE times a day, is just plain horseshit.

Can you get anyone to help you out with your massive list? What does your husband do to help? Can your son help you with small things, like, feeding the cat? Every small thing helps. No one needs to be cleaning that much.

Ames

THANK YOU! Ugh, my MIL Is the same way. I figure, you're clean- you just showed. Let the towel dry and use it again. But then I hate having to go to the laundromat so I prevent that as much as I can.

I agree. You need a break and he needs to help. I understand that he's working out of the home (so does my husband) but he still needs to do his part, whether it be reuse a towel or whatever. I think he should clean the kitty box, it's not the safest for you to do at this point.. and what else is he doing? I'd even possibly say that if you do his laundry, put it in a basket and leave it for him to fold and put away.

Your oldest is 4 right? That's old enough to start learning how to pick up his own toys. Don't worry so much about keeping the kid's rooms clean, just make sure there's no food lying around that can attract bugs- but toys are fine. Do they have a big toybox (or even a tupperware type thing to hold toys?)? Tell the 4 year old to put his toys in it. Your almost 2 year old may "help" him too, b/c at that age it's like a game. He may even be able to feed the cat (though you'd still have to remind him and watch over the process, so it may not feel like a break).

I'd save vaccuming for an every other day task. Same with dusting.

I gotta hand it to you, I could NOT put up with that. You need to talk to your husband, how are you going to handle all of that list, when your kid is born? You are not your husbands maid or keeper.

My SO does his own laundry, helps with cleaning. If he's slacking, then I tell him. I don't give a damn if it starts an argument, its our house, we clean it.

good luck.
ames

i'm sorry mama, i can't think of any way to help you, as my house is only manageably clean and i don't do as much as you do. all my ideas are pretty dumb like "leave the kids in underwear/diapers all day!"

i had thought of starting a flylady kinda thing here at girlmom, maybe we could do that or something.

the fact that you have a high-risk pregnancy makes me really worried for you though.

maybe you could switch some of those to "every other day" tasks, like swiffering or dusting. and definitely involve the kids in cleaning up their rooms. toys laying around are okay, and don't let them eat in their rooms so you don't have to worry about that kind of mess. could you just vacuum at the end of the day?

if Dylan wants anything that isn't water, I put it in a sippie cup. I am tired of mopping up spilled juice, so i just said screw it. and there's some foods we just don't buy anymore because they make such a huge mess, like cereal, crackers, and peanuts in the shell (just added that one today, sigh).
also, sometimes we just send them outside to eat. they don't realize we do it because spilled veggie soup is annoying, or hard boiled egg yolk doesn't come out of the carpet, they just think of it as a picnic, and you get a chance to sit down.

also, reducing clutter makes a house FEEL cleaner. bagging up old toys, books, games, etc, going through any stacks of paper or "organizers" you have sitting out, all of that kind of stuff will make your house feel cleaner. even just opening the windows really wide makes my house feel cleaner.

also, i know it's bad, but i use those disposable wipes for around the house. you can wipe down the toilet, around the sink, the kitchen counter, etc. and vacuuming the kitchen floor and then sweeping up any little bits that are left feels easier for me than sweeping it all.

maybe you could trade with a friend, like you'll watch her kid if she'll do some of those tasks for you? that could be especially easy if you have a backyard, because they can just run around contained while you sit in a lawn chair and supervise.

or you could make some of them joint tasks that you and your husband do together, like rent a movie and fold laundry or something.

Well, I feel like a complete slob after reading your chore list! :oops: I dust when I see visible cobwebs, but then again, we don't suffer from allergies. It seems, though, that you should be able to get by with dusting once a week. Are your windows open every day or something that you get so dusty?

Laundry-wise, even with hubby changing clothes several times a day, it still seems excessive to be doing several loads every day. Can you do a load exclusively of his work clothes, so he has enough to last for several days? And I agree with the bath towel thing; they don't get "crusty" until after several uses. Let's face it, you're drying a clean body; the only thing that's getting on it is dry skin cells. Have him alternate between a couple of towels every shower, hanging the wet one up to dry, and he can use it the shower after the next.

With all you're doing now, I just don't know how you're going to cope when the new baby arrives. I hope you find a shortcut or two to your daily routine.

Here's my normal routine:

Laundry - weekend (let it pile up... it doesn't hurt)
Vacuum - once a week, unless Alexis makes a mess with crumbs, etc.
Dust - once every two weeks.
Toys - tidy them up before bed every night
Dishes - two or three times a day.
Regular tidy up - once a day... sometimes every second day.
Bathroom - every two weeks.

My house is pretty clean. I'm a neat freak. But everything doesn't have to be in order all the time. You have kids. Take a break.

you shouldnt be cleaning the litter box while you are preg. i forget what its called but its not something pregnant womenshould do, even if you husband doesnt do anything else he should be doing the catbox.

and vaccuming once a day should be enough.
you dont need to clean the kids room everyday. your pregnancy is high risk. you dont need to do 1/2 the stuff on your list everyday. why make your life harder then it hhas to be?

Heh, you'd go crazy at my house. I know that keeping your place clean is important to you, but sometimes you just gotta let things go. I hate doing it too, but it happens. Your sanity, kids, pregnancy are more important than the dishes. We're all trying to help you relax when it comes to the cleaning, but only you can do that. I hope that you find a system that works and won't stress you out so much :)

still...you can use that as a reason to make your hubby do the cat box.

good point. I know your husband works, but does he do anything to help you with the housework?

I really feel for you now, I can't imagine what is to happen once your new kiddo is here. What does your doctor say about all your cleaning with a high risk pregnancy?

I do hope you were kidding when you said you felt like a slob because you didn't run your dishwasher... I don't even have a damn dishwasher, no one should even feel guilty for that petty of things....

hang in there, get some rest, and get some help with your chores.
ames

Remember theres a difference between untidy and dirty. If your house is clean, but a little messy don't freak out. I love Fly lady too, they have great routines and reminders without knackering yourself out.

you reallllly need to cut down on ur work, for the sake of your sanity, but also your HIGH RISK PREGNANCY. Cmon now, chores will always be there no matter what, and THATS OKAY!

Julie( and the others) have wonderfully given you many hints to help, Thank you Julie and others, they were sum good tips/suggestions..Angel Wings, please use them :)

Use a sheet for when your kids watch tv and eat. Put the sheet down, put the kids on the sheet, put the plates on the sheet. When they're done, pick it up from all the corners, shake it out outside, fold it and put it away until the next feeding. Don't wash the sheet every day.

REPEAT -- DON'T WASH THE SHEET EVERY DAY!! :lol:

This will cut down on your vaccuming.

Cook larger meals -- eat left overs!!

Get a Swiffer Wet Jet. (hey, nemisister, don't gripe!! hehe **hugs**) I have one and it helps a LOT!!! it's so fast to mop with that thing. You don't have to change the pad every time you mop -- unless you're mopping an entire house, you should be able to get away with changing it every 10 mops or so. Also, keep ONE thick rag around for floor spills. Instead of mopping the entire floor if you can just dampen a cloth and wipe up the floor spill in the place that it is.

I don't know what else right now, but just stay off your feet as much as possible.

BEST OF LUCK!!!

I probably shouldn't even be giving advice, considering my house is rarely really clean!!
I just recently minimized the amount of toys we had. It was overwhelming for the girls to find what they needed to play with, and they really couldn't help pick up. So I just kept the basic staples...one large toy box filled with all dress-up clothes, a basket of dollhouse furniture and people, a basket of toy food, and one misallaneous basket for random toys. Each basket I put next to they toy (playfood next to play stove, dollhouse stuff next to dollhouse), and I just have Isabella clean up before bed (she's three). She has been playing so much more on her own now that she can find what she needs. I allow crayons, and puzzles, and a doll carriage to be in the living room. I realized that since she was three it was important that she learned everything had a place and be responsible for her own room.
Laundry...it is a HUGE problem over here too. I spent all weekend packing away and sorting clothes that were out of season or outgrown. It seemed that a lot of things were ending up dirty that just weren't. I also tried to buy each of the girls seven outfits for summer (luckily my mom sews also, so it wasn't too expensive) that way I can go for a whole week without doing their laundry.
I agree with Julie about the sippy cups. If they are large enough you can fill them up, and when the kids are done drinking you can put them back in the fridge...and they can get them out when they are thirsty again. Maybe you could use paper plates to cut down on dishes? Atleast for lunch?

BASKETS! I completely forgot. I was so tired of trying to keep Chloe's toys in her room, so I got some really cute baskets (some good sized ones) and just keep her toys in that. I have one in the living room and one in our room and it helps cut the time running from room to room putting stuff away. There can be a pile of toys in the room, or a casket of the same toys and for some reason just having the basket makes it look neat. :D

I use Rubbermaid bins and Yaffa boxes for Alexis' toys.... I tried the toybox thing..... but what the hell good is a toybox when the kid has 10 times it's capacity?? LOL.