13 January 2009

Weekly Housekeeping

Okay. I've been mulling over the idea of setting up a weekly housekeeping schedule for myself. I've put it off for a month or so because it feels kind of anal to come up with a huge list of tasks, assign them to a day of the week (or month) and then hold myself to this schedule. Finally I've decided I just need to do it. Then, the plan is that I will stick to it for a month and then re-evaluate. In theory, I hope that after following such a regiment for a couple of months that I'll get into a routine and will then be able to drop the actual schedule, but will feel like I'm still keeping up with everything around here.

Do any of you have a weekly housekeeping schedule? Do you do laundry on Tuesdays and vacuum on Thursdays, etc? Or, do you just do whatever needs doing from day to day and not worry about it? I'm curious because I want to know what works well for other people.

I guess this is coming up because I feel like every morning I get up and clean the same 3 rooms. I never quite get to the rest of the house. And, I tend to go for a couple of weeks before I do laundry (because I get distracted by other things), etc. Then, when I do get to it, the laundry (or whatever else) takes all day and I don't want to tackle it again for a couple of weeks!

Anyway, any suggestions or ways you have dealt with this issue would be appreciated. Meanwhile, I'll keep working on doing a little bit every day.

6 comments:

Seth said...

Babe. I'm on board. I think a lot has to do with the fact that we've never been in a house this size before, so it can be overwhelming. Also, we have to keep the rooms Ellie uses so immaculate that we have to be on top of them. That being said, I don't think we can vacuum just on Thursdays. Maybe we should do a monthly schedule with daily tasks (e.g., vacuum, sweep and mop the floors).

Natalie said...

I read your post and was like, "I'm not alone!!". I have been thinking about this same thing for a few months now and just keep putting off making a schedule because I can't decide if it's really going to work. I guess I'll never know if I don't try so I'm going to give it a go! Up to this point I've just been doing whatever needs to be done day-to-day, but also feeling like there's some things that just get neglected because they're not as important. I read Seth's comment and I agree that with a baby or toddler it's hard to only vaccuum on one day. I think vaccuuming for me will have to be a minimum of two days a week and maybe even three. Then I'll plan laundry on a certain day, bathrooms on a day, bedrooms, the office, etc... and see how it goes. Want to let each other know how we're doing in a month??? Maybe that will help keep us on track!!

Matt said...

We (Natasa mainly, I'm really bad about helping and need to improve) don't operate on a strict schedule, but constantly keep things neat. As far as vacuuming...that's at least an every-other-day chore with Charlie. Laundry is probably 1-2x/week on average. Good luck!

PS: Hi Ellie!

Unknown said...

Hey Bethany,
I have chores for each day of the week and it works so well for me. If I don't do that, I have this cloud hanging over me feeling like I need to do all this stuff... Let us know what you think of your schedule!
Melissa (Paisley from Fox) I love reading your blog - my baby girl was born 2 months after Ellie.

C. M. said...

I do it. I do vacuum every single night (with two very mobile and messy boys, there's no way I can get away with not doing it!). The bathroom is done on Wednesdays, I do laundry (clothes) on Tuesdays and Fridays, while sheets and towels are done on Thursdays. This is just very basic and I actually do need to sit down and improve on my houswork schedule to make it more detailed. But it certainly helps when you absolutely know when things are going to get done.

MacKender 4 said...

Wow... schedule. Maybe this is what I need! I just do things when they need to be done. I also avoid laundry and it seems to sneak up on me and then I have soooo much to do (and it takes what feels like FOREVER). I'll bet a schedule would work great. I just might join you in this task! Best wishes!