Outdoorsy people - what's a typical weekend like?

[Draconis]

I struggle to balance keeping my house clean and tidy and getting all the chores done with being outside and escaping for a day or fitting in a bike ride.
How do you get stuff done as well as getting a good outdoors fix?

House is cleaner if you aren’t in it for the day…
the summer you can split the day in three, go out first thing and then do jobs in afternoon and relax in the evening. You don’t have to go for long to get a fix.

I don’t care that much about the house. It’s clean enough, but not perfect and often messy.
I have cleaners.
Being outside and doing what I enjoy comes first. Bits and bobs can be done in the evening maybe…..
Robot hoover is a must.

Always go out first. Cleaning and chores can always wait.

Last weekend I got up early on the Saturday and went sea-swimming with a friend, followed by helping out with a beach litterpick, then a farmers’ market for vegetables and lunch, and then cycled out to some woods where another friend is starting a new Parkrun. Got home, dropped DS (who’d been at football training in the am with DH) to a friend, did a couple of hours work and some gardening. We all had dinner together. On Sunday a different friend and I took our collective children up a mountain. Not very big, but it’s a fair trek to the base before you start climbing. DH did his own thing and a bit of household clearing (were still unpacking after a move) and made dinner.

Agree with PP, I tend to go out first thing unless it's a whole day activity

I also wake up at the weekend around the same time I wake up during the week. Some days it's more of a struggle than others but I usually find that being up early on the weekend is so worth it because I've got time to get outdoors early, have my 'me time' and still have time to keep on top of housework and errands.

That being said, sometimes a lie in is absolutely needed and that's totally fine too!

If you prioritise going out you may find many chores vanish or take far less time

You can do the basics in a whole house in an hour - quick tidy dust and vaccum , wiz's round the loo and bath, and clean and tidy the kitchen whilst the dinners cooking

We don’t. Housework takes very much a backseat. Especially in winter the house (or at least downstairs) is basically caked in mud and dirt from kit and bikes. Floors get swept and mopped as and when someone has literally nothing better to do. Dusting has never happened AFAIK. Bathrooms cleaned sporadically. We are particularly grim about changing sheets/duvet covers. The only thing we are fastidious about is kitchen and food prep areas so no dirty dishes left lying around and counters cleaned daily.

One thing that helps is having a utility room/laundry area and huge washing machine (I think ours is 9kg) and everyone has at least two weeks worth of clothes, including all the sports/outdoors kit. It means that we don’t actually have to do that many washes, and when we do the washing machine is always full. We don’t iron obviously.

I have a cleaner! And never catch up.

If you are all out of the house it doesn’t matter if chores aren’t done in a timely way.

I don't.
I clean the bathroom whilst child is in the bath.
We have a dishwasher for the dishes which as I cook its DH responsibility to load and unload.

Clothes get washed overnight then either pegged out or dumped in dryer when I get up at 5.30am.
And that is it.
We have no pets though which I think helps, plus toys have to stay in bedrooms.

@LaeralSilverhand I love your attitude. Enjoy life.

This I tend to get up @ 5:30 during the week 6:30 at the weekend, will go for a run before 9.

I often went for a run while they were at their activites eg: football match. Sometimes we went to the beach as a family.

As my DM used to say in the winter there are plenty of hours of darkness.

I'm retired, so I clean during the week. When I was working I had a cleaner. And to be honest...well, let's just say we are not house proud...
Weekends are precious and weekends with good weather even more so, so we have always prioritised getting outdoors when we can. If it means the floor doesn't get mopped or the ironing isn't done I'm not that bothered frankly. There's plenty of dark nights and rainy days to catch up on housework and maintenance.

I spend huge amounts of time out with the horse. Manage by click and collect shop weekly (dh collects) , cleaner and routine for laundry. I do like the point of pp who says less do do if you are out more

If we're at home. Saturday 8.30 - head off to Park run. Back by 10 and take ds swimming.

Various chores, lunch then out for a bike ride round the lanes or common with ds. Maybe cycle to see some friends.

Sunday morning, hoover & put another wash on early, then mow the lawn or other gardening stuff.

Maybe bumble around the woods for a walk when it gets cool in the evening.

I keep on top of the house throughout the week so I rarely ever use the weekend for doing lots of loads of washing or a big deep clean as everything would’ve been sorted little by little through the week.

We also spend most of our day out of the house on the weekend, usually we get back for tea and then bedtime so we don’t have anything other than washing up to do on the evenings.

Get up early, best part of the day. I usually wake up and get out by 6 ish, long walk along the sea. Come home and do a load of housework, I treat it as a workout. then a yoga flow and in the evening I can relax in a tidy house. Suits me 😊

Housework during the week after work.

Weekend is free for me to do my things. Sunday is generally my Out For The Day day.

Summer's better as I can get out after work as well. Winter's frustrating with the dark morning, dark evenings and guaranteed crap weather on a weekend.

For some reason, I hate being out of my house is too messy. It sounds weird but I love coming back to a clean home.
I seem to spend a lot of time around food too. Do you all cook quick meals?

Ah go out have fun and channel the wise words of Rose Milligan :

Dust if you must, but wouldn't it be better To paint a picture, or write a letter, Bake a cake, or plant a seed; Ponder the difference between want and need? Dust if you must, but there's not much time, With rivers to swim, and mountains to climb; Music to hear, and books to read; Friends to cherish, and life to lead.

Totally this. Do the minimum and live life.

Mostly, I meal plan for the week and batch cook and freeze.

I did spend one week's annual leave absolutely bottoming my house and vowed never to let it get that way again. So, little and often now. Even when I really can't be arsed. It really does free up the weekend.

@RaininSummer I like that poem.

Might turn it into an embroidery project for winter.

i was part time so I could clean more and get on top of daily life with my spare hours. This year is my first full time year since children (both primary) and it’s been hard but the weekends are a priority for me. We go away for weekends leaving Friday, returning Sunday afternoon, go for full days out on one day then a walk and park the next.

I wash every weekday, try and clean during the week and a bit at weekends but my standards have gone down. The best thing I do is on a quieter weekend to really sort out one room so it’s easier to keep on top of.

A cleaner, robot vacuum, and realistic house standards. Batch cook as much as possible.

That would be great and be very cheering every time you dont want to do housework.