One thing that I absolutely love about being home more is that I can finally keep my house at an acceptable level of cleanliness. It's not perfectly clean all the time, which is fine, but it's much better than it was in the days when Josh and I both worked full-time jobs.
Even with being home more often, I've found that I still have obstacles in the way of keeping the house clean. Namely, time management. I still have a lot of things to get done any given week, and I've been finding that it's difficult to clean the house efficiently. It gets done, but not without a whole lot of "Did I clean the bathroom yesterday, or was that the day before? Should I do laundry now or go grocery shopping? Should I plan lessons or vacuum the living room?"
So finally, in a moment of exasperation, I decided there was only one thing to do. I needed to make a list. Hello, my name is Mikalah, and I'm addicted to making lists. There, I said it.
I drew up a list of the chores that need to get done around the house on a weekly basis. Then, I decided which ones needed to be done on a daily basis, and which ones could be done every other day or so. Once I was happy with the rough-draft, I made a nice, clean copy of it in Excel. Here's a visual aid so you can see exactly what I mean:
Of course, I had to use a cute font and some little vacuum/broom icons.
I made it small enough that I can fit 2 on a sheet of paper, and then I printed them off and cut them in half so I have enough for a few weeks. Now, whenever I do a "chore" I just check it off on my handy-dandy Grownup Chore Chart. I've been using this for a week now and I absolutely love it. It's just so nice to know that I'm "done" with things for the day, and I don't have to stand and worry about whether or not I cleaned the kitchen sink (I have a bad memory, what can I say). I also left a lot of blank spaces so I can adjust as needed.
Has anyone else had issues with getting housework done? Do you have any tips you'd like to share? I'd love to hear them!
I seriously need one.
ReplyDeleteActually, I made one. I put it on the fridge.
Ryan added the line "tolerate jane" to the daily chores section.
...
THEN...I threw that vacuum filter under the car, and so he wrote in "OBE" under everything. (Overcome By Events.)
I threw out the chart.
I need to re-print it. Our house is a disaster right now. I have no tips for you :(
Oh my gosh, Jane, you make me laugh so hard! I love your comments! =) That vacuum cleaner filter thing was so weird, I can't believe you haven't found it yet! I hope your chore-chart goes better next time. =)
ReplyDeleteYeah, so. I've started making chore charts a couple times, but there's too much to do and not enough time so I get overwhelmed just making the chart so I never use it. And our house continues to wallow in a state of unclean-ness. Whop whop. Maybe I should try again but with more realistic expectations.
ReplyDeleteIts so nice to meet another list addict. :) I just started making an adult chore chart myself. It isn't as cute as yours though. Love the broom and vacuum icons!
ReplyDeleteI love lists and it really helps keep your mind straight with what to focus on each day! nice work!!!
ReplyDeletehaha- part of my job is to make organizers and task lists for kids to use at home, so I made one for my boyfriend and I too- although I'm really the only one who needs the reminders...
ReplyDeleteCindy- Oh, I totally get that! Definitely start with realistic expectations. I was tempted to put a ton of stuff on here, but decided to really limit it to only the chores that really need to be done weekly.
ReplyDeleteMegan- Yay! Glad there are more crazies out there like me. =)
Kristi- Yes, exactly! I feel much more settled now that I know what I have done/need to do, rather than feeling overwhelmed by a ton of chores.
Meri- That's so awesome. Sounds like a fun job! Yeah, I don't dare make a list for the hubs. He would be sweet enough about it, but really, I need it more than he does too!
I'm still fighting that battle with myself and P too. we're clutter monsters and leave things all over the house without putting it away! working on it though! looove your little chart and the fun graphics you added =)
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Jenn @ Peas & Crayons
love the list!! the problem for me is, when i make lists of not so fun things to do, they tend to not get checked off. props to you for being so organized!! <3 EverRubyGirl.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteJenn- Yes, it is a battle. It's been helpful for me to just break it down into bite-sized chunks! However, things tend to get out of hand very easily, especially when we have company over or soemthing!
ReplyDeleteRuby- Haha, totally understand that too! I didn't even finish out my Friday chores because I got distracted. Ah well, next week maybe!
I probably should have a list, so that i can hold myself accountable...but so far so good around here...I just basically try to pick up as I go and then do more in depth chores a cpl times a week, so that everything stays pretty maintained...
ReplyDeletejanna- Yeah, that's how I functioned for a while too! I just have since realized that for myself, I need more structure. Although, I haven't followed it to a "T," so I guess it's more of a guideline than a hard-and-fast rule for me. =)
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