I've said here before that I have issues with being OCD about the cleanliness of my house...and I don't say that lightly. It really is a struggle for me to let go of my control when it comes to messes and tidiness.
So when I developed a cleaning schedule, it wasn't because it would never get done...it was because that was ALL that was getting done and I'd sacrifice playing with my kids for various housekeeping tasks.
I didn't used to clean every day, but I would often find myself panicking that something needed dusted, vacuumed or swept. And the NEED was really just me over-reacting about a small mess my critical eye would spot!
Then I got a breath of fresh air, when I read a series of posts my MOMYS friend, Amy (check here, here and here!). She presented the idea that she doesn't think "fly by the seat of your pants" is God's design...even when it comes to cleaning...because He is a God of timing and order... who orchestrated creation in seven specific days (along with seasons, a rising/setting sun, etc).
Before reading her post, I had some daily activities I did, but now I actually have a system! It now looks like this:
Everyday Chores
-Dinner Prep
-Weekly Cleaning Activity (see below)
-Daily Focus Area (see below)
-Laundry Maintain (daily keeping up with loading, switching and folding laundry)
Weekly Cleaning Schedule:
Monday--Laundry (since I don't do laundry on the weekends, this is my day to catch up and the rest of the week I maintain).
Tuesday--Dusting (the boys help me with sock on hands!)
Wednesday--Floors: Sweep/Mop
Thursday--Floors: Vacuum
Friday--Bathrooms
Saturday--Ironing/Organizing
Sunday--Rest!
(My husband and I's personal preference is a "clean house" on the weekends, not the beginning of the week...so this schedule helps us to feel like our house is clean come weekend!)
Daily Focus Area:
(Giving attention to each room a day at a time!)
Monday--Bedrooms (wash linens, declutter dressers, check under beds, etc)
Tuesday--Living Room (declutter bookshelves, tables, etc)
Wednesday--Kitchen (clean microwave, oven, fill containers, etc)
Thursday--Dining Room (clean off chairs, reorganize school area, etc)
Friday--Bathrooms (showers, straighten, switch towels, etc)
Saturday--Upstairs (pick up, clean, declutter, etc)
Sunday--Rest!
The way I did my cleaning schedule works SO well for me! I feel like this saved my life! I don't get stressed anymore about little "messes" I see, because I can just think to myself, "I'll get to that on...(appointed cleaning day)." Of course, big, obvious messes (like spills and such) do get cleaned up right away!
When our family was smaller, one cleaning day worked great for me, but these days that just doesn't work very well! So my house may not be totally clean at one time, but the rotation keeps my house in good, clean, working order!
And since I *LOVE* checklists, I also love when I get all four of my daily chores checked off!
This post is also linked to Real Clean Wednesday (and I'll be guest posting there next week!) and Works For Me Wednesday!
5 comments:
This plan is fantastic. I really like the one focus area per day. Makes everything seem much more manageable!
Oh, and I'm cracking up that "obsessing" is one of your tags! :-)
I need to revamp my chores schedule ... again. I always bite off more than I can chew and get serious burnout. I have a laundry schedule that works good though; laundry here comes in seriously out of control quantities for some reason so I have a laundry schedule of what color loads get done on which days. Like Mondays I do bedding and any carseat pads or other kid-related items that got spilled on, pooped on, or puked on over the weekend. Sunday night I throw a load of whites in set to soak with some Oxiclean and leave them overnight. I finish those Monday morning with my bedding. Tuesday through Saturday I do various combinations of certain colored loads (I sort by towels, very dark colors, light-medium blues, greens/yellows/khakis, Reds/Pinks/Purples/Browns, Very lights/delicates, and whites that get soaked in Oxiclean.) which I have written on a chart on the laundry room wall. When I do it according to my chart all week it works like a charm.
Thank you for posting this! It's help me to rearrange my own abandoned chore chart. I've used this and added a few tweaks for my household. I also like to add in "extras" on the first week day of each the month. For instance for Tuesday's dusting, on the first Tues, I do baseboards, ceiling fans, door frames, and window sills. On the first Wed, (mop), I will move out the stove and fridge, washer, dryer. On the first Thurday (vacuum day), I'll move out the furniture when vacuuming, and do the couch pillows. On Tuesday" weekly focus day, I'll go through the toy box, and book shelves. All of this takes little extra time, and their's no need for big "spring cleaning" days every season, (unless you do basements and attics and closets).
Thanks for the much needed boost!
I love this and it has given me a good kick in the pants to be more disciplined in this area of my life, plus I need to start meal planning again!
This is on the kids chores, do you give any type of money for their chores or just because. I am wanting to teach kyla the principle of giving, saving, spending and want her to earn it, just not sure chores is something I want her to "earn" money for. Any thoughts?
We are trying this at my house. We are a somewhat unique household where I manage my five children, my husband, and our best friend who lives in our home with her two kids. So this weekend I made a chart for the 7 kids (4 of them two different sets of 4 year old twins and then 7, 9 and 11 year old boys) We incorporated school work as part of the daily check offs for both myself and the kids. THANKS.
Desiree
raising5hearts@gmail.com
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