Anyone else feel useless at household stuff or is it just me?

[Meandmygirls2009]

I love being a sahm but I grew up never having cooked or cleaned until I moved out of home (the day I had my first child!) it was overwhelming being a mum without having to figure out how to cook and clean at the same time. I now have 2 dc and feel like I am still not getting anywhere with this. I tried making a list of meals I can cook that we all like but it was very short as most things I cook once and they do not turn out! And I have no idea what chores need doing daily/weekly etc. at the moment I wash up and clean the loos and put a wash load on, then end up having to blitz the house once a month which is not the way to go as it's hard doing that with two little ones and I so slow at cleaning. Is there anyone else out there as hopeless as me?? Or anyone who can help me?? My own mother never taught me how to look after myself let alone a family

It all sounds thoroughly exhausting. I won't have an hour to spare in the morning, unless I get up at 5am!
My tip is not to do stuff (eg ironing) and employ as many labour saving devices as you can (dishwasher, roomba). I spend hours washing up as we don't have a dishwasher and it's the bane of my life. I used to have one and I miss it so much.

Decide what level of clean/tidy you're happy with and go from there.

Wow! @ allgunsblazing that sounds like what I would like to be like. I hate mess and dirt but it takes me such a long time to do them. Sometimes I see it and I know it needs to be done but I don't know I why I don't. Like dust in a corner of the windowsill. I know it should not be there .

You know how they say kids thrive on/need routine? It's the same with adults. Take pensioners for example, you work all your life and then you don't know what to do with yourself, Friday rush hour becomes 'the day' for supermarket shopping, Saturday morning 'the day' for having your hair washed and set etc.

We're creatures of habit, we need it to function. Otherwise the mess and chaotic take aways and snaking and half rotten stuff in the fridge wouldn't bother us.

I grew up in a pig sty, could never have people around, beds never had sheets and you couldn't see the floor. I knew that wasn't normal, equally I had no idea how other people managed. I've spent a few years making a mess in the week and clearing it all up at the weekend. You can't organise clutter. I got rid.
It takes 30 days for a habit to form. So even if you think 'i got this, I'll clear the sink every night, but just this night it'll be alright', unless you've turned it into a habit, the one off dirty sink will go back to being a regular occurance. I know, I've done that!

Do you know I think that is key, having a routine and sticking to it. I'm always making myself routines but never stick to them!

I feel totally overwhelmed by the day to day running of the house most of the time, I can tidy up and within minutes it reverts to form.
Aarghhhh!!

Thank you so much to everyone who has posted some easy recipes, I'm going to compile them into a 7 day menu plan and go shopping tomorrow feeling motivated for the week

It's nice to know others feel the same, I feel happier just knowing that! I always feel like everyone else has life sorted and I just move from one takeaway to the next or one disaster recipe to the next in my messy house.