when do you do your chores?

Question

I am a single woman, and obviously I work during the week, my job is Mon-Fri only. When I come home I am tired, and just want to relax, which is what I usually do. That leaves me the weekend to do my chores. I usually spend part of my Saturday running errands, and Sunday morning doing laundry and cleaning my apartment. I was just wondering, with summer coming up, it would be so nice to be able to relax on the weekends, take day trips, be outside, etc. and not be tied to my place, having to clean and do laundry, etc. I was thinking maybe I should change my habits to doing just one thing every night during the week instead, like laundry one day, or cleaning the bathroom one day, vaccuuming one day, etc. How can I motivate myself to do something after I am so tired from work?

Answer 1

Just do a little every day, one room at a time.

Answer 2

I hear ya sister, lol. I am not single, so I can't say I know exactly what your going through... but, I have two kids and work during their school hours. Then you throw in a demanding-old fashioned hubby and sports for the kids 3-5 nights a week, church on Sundays and sometimes more and that leaves me in about the same situation your in, lol. That cleanin' thing is interfering in my relaxation time, lol.
I can offer up what I started doing and hope it helps you. It has really been working for me so far. I did pretty much what you said... I do one load of laundry a day. I throw it in the washer in the morning before I leave for work. When I get home I toss it into the dryer. My biggest hurdle there was that I would put it into a basket and it would sit where ever until it was picked clean from everyone wanting their clothes that I only had a handful to put away, lol. Well, I don't do the baskets anymore. I open the dryer door and start folding right there, then take the stack up and put it right away. I also seriously clean while I go. If you eat in the living room, then take a load of dishes and trash (empty pop cans, empty chip bags, etc) to the kitchen. Every time you get up to use the bathroom or get a drink or a snack, grab some stuff to put away. Then on Friday night, do a quick half hour run through on your house, bathrooms, vacuuming mopping etc. Then you have the rest of Friday night and the weekend to relax. Take an hour or half an hour on Sunday night to pick up and you start back at clean on Monday.
At first it seemed like a lot of work, but it got to the point I don't even notice picking up, it became second nature. I make a point of never going to bed with the house dirty. All the dishes are in the dishwasher or put away, counters are wiped down. Litter boxes and ferret cages are scooped out. Tv and tables are dusted. If kept up on, you can spend 10 to 15 min each night really quick before bed and pick up. The laundry I do while I am cooking dinner. When I get home and throw it in, by the time it is done is about when I am cooking, so I am right there to unload and put away. That only takes a couple minutes too.
I guess, lol, what I am saying is that you have the right idea. Spread it out over the week and leave the major cleaning for Friday night. If your house is already clean when you come home Friday, all you have to do is bathrooms, mop and vacuum pretty much.
I really hope this helps get you some relaxing time! Enjoy, whatever you do.
Good Luck!!

Answer 3

I, too, am a single woman who lives alone and works during the week. To keep up on my housecleaning, I use the "five item rule". This rule is that when I walk in the door after work and hang up my coat & purse, I pick up five items that are out of place. I then repeat this procedure in every room of my apartment (it is amazing how quickly clutter builds up). Every time I cook, I wipe down the stove afterwards and wash the counters with soap and a sponge because it takes the least time to clean if the spills are fresh. I also wash all pots, pans and utinsels as I prepare foods and do the dishes immediately after eating.

This prevents things from piling up. When I had a W/D at my place, I made a point of doing a load of laundry a day; now I take it once a month to the laundromat because it takes about the same amount of time (2 hours) to do a week's worth as to do a month's worth with the high-capacity washing machines. I go early on Saturday morning because (a) there are no lines and (b) I can have my day free from 9 am onwards.

I vaccuum on Thursday evenings, as one of my "five things" routines. That way my apartment is likely to be clean for company on the weekend. On Thursday mornings I put toilet bowl cleaner in the toilet before going to work, and wash it out when I come home as one of the "five things" in the bathroom. I also wash the mirror and countertop down that day. I don't have to worry too much about other cleaning in the bathroom as I use an anti-rust/anti-fungal spray every day when I step out of the shower.

I guess the motivation for me is to break it into "five things" per room.. and make them little things. Picking up a shoe or washing the bathroom sink is a single item. I find that no matter how little energy I have, I can usually push myself to do just a few items every day this way.

Good luck!

Answer 4

yes you are right you don´t want to be stuck indoor´s , So here is the way I do my things & you can try for yourself . Set your alarm clock to go off in 15 min´s time , Pick 1 room or one thing to do . lets say your bedroom. Go , all dirty clothes in a pile next to the door you can take them and anything else you find that does´t belong when you have finished what you are doing. Jumpers, skirts, jeans, belts tops shoes all to the closet all put in their rightful places . Stop. if you think you have had enough for the day then stop and reward yourself . Read you magazine , watch TV , phone a friend. anything but you must reward yourself . If you think you would rather carry on then do the same again , set the clock and see how much more you can do 15, min´s here and there make a big difference , also put your washing machine on at night , only takes a few min´s in the morning to either hang them outside or pop them in the dryer , ready for you to fold . also the ironing , I think once a week to do just this whilst watching TV . In the morning before you leave just wash your breakfast plates , also a keep a sponge just for washing the shower in there , a quick wipe before you get out the shower is another little job done . Try the 15 min´s for yourself you will be surprised how well it works

Answer 5

I usually do my laundry, vacuum, sweep floors, that kind of stuff at night before bed. It tires me out so I sleep better & I like waking up to see it looks nice. I do dishes, pick up stuff & wipe off tables & dust whenever I see they need done. If you constantly keep this stuff done, then it never gets to be more than a few minutes work to clean up things. If I'm walking through a room & I see something out of place, it only takes a minute to put it away & after years of being the type who waited untill I had a huge mess & absolutely had to clean things up before I would do it, I finally got myself into better methods. I actually have more time now & everything is always clean & I know where everything is now. When I moved to my new home I started out this way & stuck with it, it would have been a lot harder to clean & organize my other house in order to keep it up. But I really can't believe how easy it has been to keep up with it all. I also have 2 kids & a husband that help! ( sort of!) Good Luck!!!

Answer 6

I work full time, go to school full time and have a family including a dog. This winter before I started the semester, we all pitched in and cleaned and organized. I make sure things are picked up during the week (laundry in hampers/baskets, dishes in the dishwasher or done, etc). I don't do anything major during the week - I clean and do homework on Saturday morning but the afternoons are mine-- set a time limit for yourself. Whatever you can get done in that time get done. I have said it before, and I will say it again: If I have a choice to hang out with my kids or do the dishes..the dishes can wait. Life is too short!

Answer 7

If you live alone, how dirty could your apartment be...do one chore every evening, even though you are tired, push yourself, then when the weekend rolls around you'll be free. Or hire a cleaning service to do one deep clean and then keep it that way.

Answer 8

When do you have the most energy during the day? Is it in the morning? Because that's when I have the most energy, and I try to do one hour of chores each morning...otherwise they just don't get done. Also, see if you can get others in your house to do more - or just let it go - you need to live your life too. No one goes to their deathbed saying, "Gee, I wish I had kept my house up more like Martha Stewart!"

Answer 9

You nailed it sweetie. One chore per day. Great idea, think I'll do that myself so I can relax after work when the heat and mental exhaustion of the day are done.

Answer 10

Just try skipping your chores for a few weeks and see what happens. I bet you'll find that you've just been wasting precious hours of your life, when you could've been relaxing!