Keeping the house tidy?

Question

Before my daughter was born our house was nice and neat. My daughter is now 11 months old and I find it so difficult to get anything done! I keep the kitchen spotless but that and a few other things like the laundry I can't seem to get to. How do other parents do it?

Answer 1

We don't. LOL

The main thing is to make sure the areas where your daughter (and the rest of the family, for that matter) spend most of their time is actually clean. Toys can be thrown around, books scattered about, puzzles tossed here and there, and it won't matter. I have a 2 1/2 year old and a 13 month old, and I've come to the conclusion that I can't keep my house neat no matter what I do. I've given up picking up toys several times a day like I used to. Now I pick them up once a night. I found that for every one toy I picked up and put on the shelf, they were taking two more OFF the shelf.

The main thing is to keep the place dusted, vacuumed, and keep the bathroom and kitchen clean. Sounds like you have the kitchen down pat, so that's good. :) Bathrooms generally only have to be cleaned once a week, so do that on a saturday or sunday when your daughter is sleeping.

As for the vacuuming and dusting...neither of them take long. I normally vacuum two to three times a week after dinner (I normally only do the dining room and living room, because that's where my boys spend the most time playing, and it really only takes 5 minutes to do it.). I've slowed down with this now to maybe once or twice a week. My younger son is finally walking, so he's not on the carpet as much.

Ask your husband to help! Even if it's small stuff like running the vacuum or emptying the waste baskets from the bedroom or bathroom, every little bit helps.

Instead of letting the laundry go all week until it's ready to climb the walls, do one load a night. Otherwise you'll spend all day Saturday washing clothes. Make your husband fold them. One load a night to fold shouldn't maim him for life. :)

I used to be the type (before kids and marriage!) who would clean every Saturday...whole house, top to bottom. After having kids, I realized that this is impossible to do, so I do a little here and a little there. It works out, and I've gotten used to it now. :)

Answer 2

It's neverending....the messes. I was (and still am) quite particular about the order in my house. I have a 15 month old, and I'm 4 1/2 months pregnant with my second. I've been hounding my husband to give me an extra hand....and my son has even started "helping" by picking up little things.....he'll come find me no matter where I'm at, just to put it in my hand. He also puts his toys in the drawers in the kitchen, now that he can reach up and open them. So, you just have to learn to let things go....as hard as it is. Yes, my laundry gets VERY backed up....and I catch up either on the weekends or I take a personal day from work. Other than that, I just do what I can (and yes, the kitchen and the bathroom are the most spotless rooms in my house because I stay on top of those rooms). Once your little one is old enough to start doing chores (I'd start around 5 or 6, although my son has to pick up his toys and put them back in the box before he goes to bed), then your house will be back in order!!

Good luck to you!

Answer 3

What I'm doing (I have a two year old and an eight month old) is getting help from family and beginning to realize that the house may not look the way it used to for a long time. You'll never get this time back with your little one but the house isn't going anywhere. Pretty soon you'll be able to do more and more as your daughter grows up and can even help you in simple ways. My two year old started 'helping' with the laundry at a year and a half. She hands me clothes for the washer and together we put the wet clothes into the dryer. Soon you can be creative and make doing 'chores' fun together. In the meantime, don't feel guilty, just do your best. (If you have a teenage friend or family member, hire them as a maid a few times a month to do simple chores. They might appreciate the opportunity to earn extra cash. That's what I did for a while).

Answer 4

I run an in-home daycare, have a 3 1/2 year old and am 38.5 weeks pregnant...I do my kitchen and dining room daily but split the rest of the house up by days so that by the end of the week it is almost a clean slate. I have 5 kids in the house that range in age from 2 to 4 1/2 years old (i will be induced or have a c-section in a couple days...so then there will be 6!!) from about 6:30am til 6pm, so needless to say I do A LOT of clean-up. However, this is greatly cut down by having the kids help clean up twice a day, before lunch and before they go home. In your case your daughter is still pretty little but old enough to help you put her toys away...encourage her by singing the clean-up song and handing her toys to put away. As for the rest of the house my husband helps me with the laundry quite a bit...he usually takes it down to the laundry room for me and brings it up when it's done...we do a lot of laundry though, almost everyday. I clean one bathroom each week...we have two. I just wipe everything down real quick and sweep/mop, it only takes about 10-15 minutes and keeps it pretty clean...even with lots of little boys peeing in there! The bedrooms we just pick up once a week also...on a different day than the other rooms. Everyone is always amazed at how I manage to keep my house clean with a daycare in it, but it is really simple if you just do a little each day in addition to the kitchen. I made a chart that is up on our fridge so we all remember which room to clean on what day and it is SO easy! Good luck to you!

Answer 5

Maybe you are trying too hard, there are just some things that you have to let go, or throw laundry in when you have a spare moment and then go back later and throw it in the dryer.
You didn't say whether you are employed outside the home, if you are there is a good site called www.flyladies.net they have a lot of good ideas.
Or you can do triage cleaning or emergency cleaning, look around and see what needs to be done and what you can leave for another day, the work will always be there.
Enjoy your daughter she is more important than the housework.

Answer 6

I have a 6 year old daughter and a 7 month old son and I dont really have any problems keeping our house clean and I have to go to my moms house to do laundry. It would be a lot easier if I had my own washer and dryer. Maybe you should try to get on a schedule. It is hard but I cant stand a dirty house.

Answer 7

Gosh................... are we a nation of slobs??

I have three kids (8,3 and 1) AND a clean/tidy house! Possibly it helps that I am a stay at home mom??

YES!!!!!!!!! we spend lots and lots of time with our kids. Personally, I am a room mom, "hockey" mom, helper in my preschooler's class and have the baby in a "mommy and me" swim class. We do lots of picnics in the park, camp with the kids, runs to the library (yes, they get read to at night)and more. We NEVER leave the kids with a sitter either. OH! I do all of the cooking too.

I think it has to do with organization. The house never gets out of hand. We have taught the kids that when they feel their play time is over, they must clean up after themselves. While the two little ones nap, I get as much done as I can. We also clean as we go along. Clutter is also a minimum. My husband is a pack-rat, I am not. We have agreed that if something isn't used within 6-12 months, we get rid of it. Our 8 y/o is also starting to help out, which is nice.

The main key I think is to be organized. You would be amazed at just how clean things can stay if you are organized.

mb

Answer 8

They either keep the baby penned up in the playpen all day or they are lieing about it.
You are okay and normal honey, just do not worry about it so much and enjoy your kiddo. they will grow up so fast you will regret it if you put too much emphasis on a clean and tidy house.'
But I do have a suggestion for you. I used to get my son to help me with the laundry. You know let him put some of the clothes into the washer and then measure out the detergent and let him put it in the washer and then take the clothes and hand them to him to put into the dryer and then when the dryer quits let him fold the wash cloths or socks. I used to put the timer buzzer on and when he heard it go off he would absolutely drag me down the hall to get them out of the dryer. It was fun.

Answer 9

We are all the same as you...our houses are lived in. When you walk in my front door there is a pack 'n play and toys on the floor. There are usually some dishes in the sink...and let's not even discuss the laundry! I try to do as much as I can while my son is napping, but I also attend college on-line...so sometimes it's impossible. Just know that we are all in the same boat!!

Answer 10

Take a deep breath and relax. I think most parents just do the shove-everything-in-the-closet cleaning when they are expecting guests. At 11 months, your daughter is probably very mobile so no one should expect you to have everything in order. When she takes a nap or goes to bed in the evening, that's the time to get things done. Just don't beat yourself up if you can't finish. You can also ask family members to help out.