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I love feeling organized. I love knowing what I'm supposed to do each week. So I'm really a list and chart person.

Maybe you're not. Maybe you like spontanaeity! But I find lists really helpful to make sure I don't forget anything.

And I've found the greatest place to find lists, calendars, charts, chore sheets, and more! Just go over to Donna Young and you'll find all kinds of stuff! It can be a little hard to navigate, but if you click on "Calendars" or "Household" you'll find a lot of great stuff!

Then just buy a binder and you can keep all your to do lists and grocery lists and chore lists and everything right in there!

One thing I really love that she has is the Master Chore Chart. All your chores for the year are on there, and you can edit it to reflect your house.

This is actually very similar to a chore list that I have in To Love, Honor and Vacuum (and the one that I actually use. I'll put it up online soon, don't worry!). But here's why I love it, as I explain in my book.




One of the problems with chores is that we get behind. We don't do them. And then company comes and we panic, and we run around like Mrs. Grump of the Year frantically yelling at everyone to clean and feeling very resentful of all of their presences in the first place because of all the mess they make. It's horrible for everyone.

Or this happens even in the absence of company. We let stuff slide for a week or so, and then the house becomes so unbearable that we start blaming everybody else. We're awful.

So what do we do when we start to clean? We try to clean everything all at once. And it can't be done. It really can't. But once you start you feel like you have to finish.

Here's instead what I suggest in To Love, Honor and Vacuum. First, Plan A. Do a massive clean so that your house is liveable, and not dirty. I'm not necessarily talking tidy, I just mean do a massive clean. Even ask some friends to come help you (and then you can go help clean their homes). Just get it into an even state.

If you can't do this, that's okay. You can go ahead with Plan B even if Plan A isn't finished. But it's always easier if Plan A is finished.

Now your job is just to maintain it. And the way you maintain it is to have certain tasks that you do for that day. On Monday maybe you vacuum. On Tuesday you clean the bathrooms. Whatever it is, try to do it on its day. It probably won't take very long; maybe 20 minutes. But here's the best part:

Once you're done, you're done.

If you know that all the housework is going to get done in its time, you don't have to feel like you have to clean everything all at once. You don't have to feel guilty for not working. You can do today's work and then you can relax and play with your kids, or talk to your hubby, or go with a friend for coffee.

One of the problems with housework is that we women always feel like we should be doing more. But if you adopt the system where everyday has its chore, and even the monthly and yearly ones are divided up (as Donna Young has it here, and as I have it in my book), then you do what you're supposed to do and everything is still taken care of.

So go check out her charts and calendars. They're lots of fun.

And then check out To Love, Honor, and Vacuum: When You Feel More Like a Maid Than a Wife and Mother. I really think it will help you get a handle on the housework (and get the kids involved, too!). If you're not a reading kind of person, you can also download a talk I gave on the book here.

Thanks for stopping by! Why not look around a bit? I've got posts on kids, marriage, Veterans Day, and more!

To Love, Honor and Vacuum


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3 Comments:

At 3:17 PM , Blogger Svr said…

I love Donna Young!

 

At 5:02 PM , Blogger Jane Anne said…

I ate up all of your words! Simply wonderful. I am going to check out Donna Young's site.

 

At 2:17 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said…

I love the names of the days that you have made. You seem very organized not one of those moms that seem like they are going to explode at any moment! Kudos!

 
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About Me

Name: Sheila

Home: Belleville, Ontario, Canada

About Me: I'm a Christian author of a bunch of books, and a frequent speaker to women's groups and marriage conferences. Best of all, I love homeschooling my daughters, Rebecca and Katie. And I love to knit. Preferably simultaneously.

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