Managing Housework

Face it, housework is one of those things that is never done. Once you complete one task it is on to another while all of the work you just completed is being undone by someone else in the house. There are methods of doing housework which make it so you aren't cleaning every second of everyday. Here is one such method.

Begin by listing all of the tasks that need to be done on a daily basis. This list should include but is not limited to: Wash dishes, sweep kitchen floor, make bed, tidy bedrooms, and tidy family/living rooms.

Now list things that need to be done on a regular basis (every couple of days or once a week) like vacuum floors, mop floors, dust, laundry, clean bathrooms, deep clean kitchen, etc.

Once you have your housework listed in those two groups it is time to divide the housework up among the days of the week. You have your daily chores and those never change but now you need to assign the "regular" jobs a day of the week. For example:

Monday: Deep clean kitchen, mop kitchen floor, washes kitchen rags.
Tuesday: Wash kids laundry, vacuum
Wednesday: Wash adult’s laundry, mop
Thursday: Dust, go grocery shopping and run errands, vacuum floors
Friday: Clean bathrooms, wash bath towels and sort through papers.
Saturday: Clean bedrooms, wash bed linens
Sunday: Enjoy the day off.

You may have more or less tasks to assign depending on your household. Now, the key to having time for you is only doing the assigned task on the assigned day. You must complete the everyday jobs before you move onto the assigned day jobs. Some days you might not be able to complete all of the assigned day jobs due to illness or other unexpected events. If this is the case, don't play catch up on another day; wait until the day rolls around again or until you have extra time you don't mind using. When you feel comfortable, start adding in the monthly tasks (tasks done once a month), quarterly tasks (things done every 3 months), bi-annually tasks, and tasks done once a year. Once you get into a rhythm you will find it easier to maintain your home.

If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask.