We have a wipe-off board hanging in our hallway that has been blank for months (To be precise, it's been blank since we discovered Cozi, a family organizational tool.). Today I put it to good use, planning the chores I think I need to do on a regular basis in order to keep my house in working condition:
Monday
Vacuum entire house
Sweep kitchen
Tuesday
Sweep and mop kitchen and foyer
Wednesday
Clean front and master baths (including floors)
Sweep kitchen
Thursday
Dust entire house (including picture frames)
Friday
Balance checkbook
Menu plan
Sweep kitchen
Saturday
Wash clothes, sheets, and towels
Sunday
Rest...really.
Maybe if it's posted for all to see (not only me, but My Love and all house guests) I'll be more committed to the schedule I've set than I was the first time I gave this thing a whirl. Even though, when I first made my list, it seemed like I lot, I honestly believe it's only 30 minutes to an hour's worth of work every day (except for the laundry, which is pretty much never-ending, and I can't get around that with three kids). That's much better than spending my days working for two to three hours each day and feeling depressed because I simply keep turning up new areas that need work!
I've also spent some time thinking about the areas of the house that got shockingly dirty; while they don't need cleaning all the time, they need tackling periodically. I've heard it suggested that I do things like clean under the stove and clean the windows' tracks twice a year, so that's what I'll do: a winter cleaning and a spring cleaning. Maybe if I keep it up consistently, those spots won't be as bad again.
And then there are some chores that should be done "as needed", but that I'm more likely to keep up with if I write them down. Among them: clean the refrigerator and stove and wipe down baseboards; clean fans and wipe down door frames and surfaces. I'm thinking that once every 2-3 months should be sufficient.
I'm tempted to say that I'll re-visit my blog in a year and give some sort of report on how I'm doing with those goals. but I'm not sure whether it'll happen. I think a better test of my cleaning prowess is going to be my house itself rather than my report on it. But I do need to add one more area to serve as proof: the peace and joy of the people living in the house. In the end, if I miss sweeping the kitchen one day and we need to deal with some stray Rice Krispies, we'll all survive...and maybe even thrive!
