What has to be done on a regular basis to keep the home neat and tidy?
How to get organised with the housework for me means schedules, lists and plans.
It also means making it easier, throughout the year with less time & effort where possible.
I'm talking here of just being neat and tidy for us not particularly for guests arriving, but hey if some did we would want it to be good enough.
Well there is always the general tidy up of the kitchen
which (for us) as well as being an eat-in kitchen also functions as
1. A charging station for all things electronic
This area is always getting messed up.
Then my husband Fred had added his new shaver here to charge after Christmas but had just left it there, so it had to go.
He also liked to use the tissue box and the decorative boxes to rest phones, kindles, ipods on while charging so to stop him doing that I placed his bits and pieces organiser (which he never used in the bedroom anyway) behind the ipad charger and there are sections in it which will hold the kindle and phones etc. nicely.
There was also a pile of CDs in the back right corner but our CD player is not here so they were taken away as well.
I have to add that the decorative boxes do serve another purpose - one holds coins that would otherwise be found lying around in another corner and the other two hold all the little bits and pieces that appear out of no-where (well at least they are supposed to).
2. A sitting area
The Christmas Decorations had been taken down and packed into their boxes but then had been left here so now they have been placed back in the garage.
Some things we had bought a few days before had been put down and not lifted away again so they have now been put away and Fred's belongings which had accumulated on the chair to the right have now gone to the bedroom.
I know other people relate to this setting down of items when we come home and not getting round to putting them in their correct places until a few days later.
3. A "this is where we throw all our receipts, business cards, post and whatever is in our hands when we come in from the car" area
After I had done the clearing up and sorting out of this part of the kitchen I realized that I had forgotten to take the before picture so just image it all covered in supermarket receipts, petrol receipts, more pens, business cards, envelopes from opening post, etc.
A determined effort must now be made so that all things similar to those which were taken away do not mess it up again.
I revived my old Tickler File system in my Roll top Desk filing drawer and the post to be dealt with, bank statements to be checked off and other things for filing have gone in there to be dealt with on specific days of the week - to yet be determined.
I took all the extra pens, pencils and odds and end that had just accumulated to my study as that is a more suitable place for them.
So with the kitchen back in order & the dishwasher on, it was
That wasn't toooooo much to have to do and
I was happy with the result.
Now back to thinking some more about fitting in all the regular housework jobs with the overhauls and inventories etc. So time really to think on a monthly basis and prepare a spreadsheet because I know I want to overhaul (spring clean - but not necessarily in the spring time) and have a good home inventory for each room once a year.
What jobs do we need to do at other times that may also be part of the overhauls?
The inventories can just be checked through each year but things like windows will need to be cleaned more than once a year.
So along came another time to sit down and think this out resulting in:
1. Changing the Bed.
I do not change our bed every month, every other month is fine.
So I put changing our bed down for every other month starting with the assumption that it would also be on the overhaul list for Jan and then the next time would be March and so on.
The only other beds that are not sofa beds etc. are in the Guest room but they will be taken care of when guests are coming and after they leave.
2. Cleaning Windows.
The cleaning of the bathroom and Master Bedroom Ensuite windows will be included in the cleaning of these rooms every other month.
The Hall windows means the front door and adjacent window & I will clean these every 3 months.
The kitchen windows will also be cleaned every 3 months.
I chose to clean the windows of the remaining rooms just twice a year.
This meant that I chose to put cleaning windows of each room in 6 months after that room had its overhaul. Then I can review this if there are ones which seem to need done more often.
3. Cleaning Bathrooms.
In this house I have a bathroom, 2 ensuites & a toilet which means I could be kept very busy so I had to think about this carefully.
I decided that our ensuite and the main bathroom were the ones most used so should be done every other month.
The Guest room ensuite would be okay twice a year and then also any time we know someone is coming to stay.
Lastly the toilet is rarely used so twice a year would look after that and any time we know we are going to have a full house I can clean in preparation for that.
(You need to remember that there is normally only the two of us and I have never believed in cleaning for the sake of cleaning, only cleaning because there is a need for it.)
4. Washing Floors.
Downstairs the rooms all have either hard wood flooring or tiles.
Upstairs the rooms all have carpet except for the Master Bedroom Ensuite.
The washing of the Bathroom and Ensuite floors will be included in the cleaning of these two rooms every other month.
The Kitchen Floor & Utility Room Floor will need to be washed at least once a month so I can start with that and review later.
The Hall floor will be washed every 3 months
The other rooms with floors to be washed will be washed twice a year so that ties in with the windows of those rooms.
5. Storage Room Tidy Up.
This is the walk-in cupboard off our Dressing Room which has bedclothes, shoes, handbags, scarves, tablecloths, towels, travel needs etc.
Obviously the storage room will not remain completely sorted for a whole year, unless I am a perfect person and so is my husband, so half way through it will need a serious tidy up.
No washing involved as there are no windows.
6. Dusting & Hoovering.
Upstairs every 2 months starting with January.
Downstairs every 2 months starting with February.
Dividing this nicely between the two levels of the house will hopefully ensure that I do not get fed-up with it.
Of course this will also be supplemented with the times we know people will be coming to our home but then only a quick run round with duster and hoover should be needed.
7. Wardrobes clothes & Cloakroom Coats Seasonal Changeover
This will be done twice a year and the obvious times would be March and September I think.
So this is what I came up with next.
NOTES:
I chose March for the Sun Room because we usually move into it from the lounge around Easter Time so getting it ready in March would be perfect timing.
I chose December for the Dining Room because this would mean it was ready for the more frequent use around Christmas.
I chose April for the Guest Room because that would leave it ready for the more predictable summer time visits.
I chose September for the Study because the new curriculum year of Kids' Work starts then.
Next I slotted in the other main rooms and then picked the ensuites to naturally go along with the Master Bedroom and the Guest bedroom and the storage room to go along with the Dressing Room.
Finally I was left with Fred's Office, the Hall & Stairs and the Shed so I chose the other monthas that had already not got what I considered to be a very heavy load.
So with the kitchen back in order, the dishwasher on & all this planning completed, it was now time for another COFFEE.
And the consideration - Have I made it more Funwork than Housework?
My answer was - It's getting there because I had a satisfied look on my face and I was happy with what I had achieved so far. But! Boy did this take a lot of time!
And the other questions floating through my mind:
I wonder what I have not thought about yet?
Is this only almost fun for me because I love lists and spreadsheets and planning?
Is this too serious a schedule?
