For the domestically challenged...

Some women take to managing a home naturally...and then there are the rest of us.  If you are a natural, please kindly go to marthastewart.com because this blog entry is going to just annoy you.

I have been living on my own since I was 20 and you would think that in that time I would have developed into quite the housekeeper...but it wasn't until I got married that my cleaning and managing skills were put to the test.  It has taken six years but I think I have finally found what works...for me.  Granted this isn't for everyone but I am currently sitting in a house that is relatively clean.  My floors have been swept, bathrooms cleaned, sheets and towels washed, laundry washed and put away.  I DO NOT post this to gloat...I was talking to my mom about this and she said that I should share my schedule.  She knows that this is quite an accomplishment for me.

So here it is...

First, I have to come to terms with the fact that managing and by managing I mean cleaning my home is my part of my job...the part I probably like the least but part of my job.  Being a stay at home mom, I also have to come to terms that this is one of the reasons that I stay at home...to help manage our house.
That being said...I have to get a clear understanding of what I want accomplished in a week.  I really like my house clean.  It makes me feel free to enjoy my family.  I am not uber organized.  You cannot open my closets and find everything in its place and please do not write your name in the dust that is building on my shelves...but I like a relatively clean house (that is also livable...you define what that is).  I make a list of all the jobs I want to accomplish in a week.  I then lay out all of my weekly activities.  I make a schedule and I do the same thing on the same day every week.  This is what my schedule looks like.

Sunday:  church and no chores (other than cooking and cleaning up after our meals)
Monday:  Bible study (morning)
                Wash sheets and towels.
                *I chose this on Monday because Bible study takes a lot of energy
                for me and so sheets and towels are an easy chore for Mondays...and I really like clean
                sheets and towels.
Tuesday:  Laundry
                Sweeping/mopping
                Grocery shopping
                *This is a big day for me but totally doable...Laundry does sometimes have to be stretched to
                Wednesday.
Wednesday:  Clean bathrooms
                *My son doesn't have school on Wednesdays and so I wanted to keep this day kind of
                open...and it is a perfect day to catch up on laundry or grocery shopping...or whatever.
Thursday:  Vacuum (morning)
                  Bible study afternoon
                *When I vacuum I automatically straighten up my house.  I pick up everything off the floor
                 so that I don't suck everything up.
Friday:  Straighten up upstairs (our bedroom).

*Another one of my things is when I pick up, I work one room at a time.  I start in a corner and work my way around.  If I have toys for the kids, I just throw them in their room until I get to that room.  That way I don't get distracted in other rooms.
*Also, I work until it is done.  Not perfect but done.  T.V. doesn't come on in the middle of cleaning.  There are no snacks.  Sometimes I give myself little rewards like checking facebook after I have one thing accomplished but then I have to get back to my job.  I remind myself that it is my job and that no one else is going to do it.
So there it is...I hope I don't sound too "together" because I'm not.  Just the other day and friend showed up and said, "your house is so clean!" about 3 or 4 times...you know enough times that I realized there have been too many times she has dropped in and it wasn't clean.  :)  I'm such a work in progress but this is what I have found that works for me.  So...what works for you?

tara