To ask how you keep on top of the house work?

[ThisLittleKitty]

I have 4 kids and wow I am really struggling to keep on top of it! It's not dirty just messy. There are forever clothes hanging up everywhere to dry as I have constant piles of washing. The dishes hardly ever done, don't think the sinks ever been empty since I've had the youngest. How do you manage to keep on top of the house work if you have young kids?

Good storage, a dishwasher, being completely ruthless about what you keep and a heated drier are the life savers!

I absolutely could not do without a dishwasher, I wash up twice a day with one, (pots, pans, baking trays, blenders etc) so I can’t imagine what a task it must be when you add in plates!

I put my washing machine on a timer to go on at 6am so they load is finished just before 7am, hang up while kids have breakfast then take down and fold while they are doing homework etc then put away at bedtime, EVERY SINGLE DAY!! That’s the most important part then it doesn’t build up.

I have a Lakeland drier, it’ll hold almost 3 loads of washing and have it dried in 12 hours, so I can get stuff turned round in a day.

I have a tumble drier too but I swore I hardly used it until it broke then I suddenly seemed to have a lot of socks I didn’t know what to do with

My house is very rarely really tidy. The OH is a lazy git and the kids are taking after him.

I’ve had flu all week so you should see the state of my house at the minute!!! 🙈Laundry pile is near hitting the ceiling, floors are covered in toys and spilt food bits and there’s toys and clutter lying about everywhere! Hubby has just walked through it all. I’ve only started to feel half human today again and got a close look at the place.
Those ladies who say their OH helps around the house....how do you get him to help?!😩😩

Don't know if it applies but my DH's mom still suffers from PTSD after bringing up my DH, mess wise. No DC yet, but I have sorted it out with a couple of simple rules:

1. Minimalism, if it is not in use, box it, if it hasn't left the box for a year, charity shop. Memories and important stuff are labelled and tucked away in a cupboard. 3 sets of bedding on a rotation, 3 sets of towels, for whatever clothes are buyer, the same quantity is evicted.
2. He was banned from the kitchen and is only being gradually allowed back in after proving he can clean up after himself. He passed the coffee, microwave and pancake stage, now he's being tested on beans on toast.
3. Zoflora. I gave up explaining what is used where, now it's one spray, use it.
4. Separate bathrooms. No explanation necessary here, wildfire would not get me into his.
5. Colour coded laundry baskets.
6. No food or drinks besides water allowed upstairs.
7. Designated plate/cup/mug; dishwasher after use is mandatory.
8. Recycling worthy of Sheldon.

Works like a charm.

Above post reported.

Now bugger off unless you have any tips on cleaning and organising.

Do you have an OH? Could he either clean the house for you or look after the kids while you do it - at the weekend maybe?

Once the house is properly clean just make sure you wash up and tidy the laundry as you go along so it doesn't build up. If the baby won't go in a rocker wear a sling. Presumably she sleeps sometimes? Use that time to properly clean. Tidy the toys away every night. Get the children to help and make it part of their evening routine.

Oh, and get a dryer even if it can't fit in the kitchen and has to go somewhere else in the house. It's a necessity with four small kids!

This is my house too. DD is 2 and DS is 8 months and I'm on mat leave but house is a state all the same. Laundry particularly is a struggle. Can someone please tell me how you can go out with the kids at the weekend and have a life whilst also 'processing' 6/7 loads of laundry please and other chores?? I don't understand how others manage to leave the house.

Those using tumble dryers - I find I have 2 baskets worth of laundry that isn't tumble dryer friendly and needs hanging regardless. What do you do with yours? Tumble anyway? Even on low heat stuff seems to shrink...

Agree we the waking up early bit helps - obviously you need to have had a decent nights sleep day before

A cleaner. Impossible to work and do full time housework ourselves, unlike most of our mothers.

There are 2 adults and 2 kids here, so much more manageable. But -

Load of washing every day, and we have a Lakeland heated drier. It's great. I only iron one hour a month at most so try to buy almost all non iron clothes. Try not to habitually over-waah stuff if not dirty.

Get rid of toys that are never played with. Put half of remaining toys away then periodically rotate them. Have a fun 'tidy up song' or similar. Have sticker chart for keeping toys tidy.

Baby likes to sit in bouncer and watch me hoover, fortunately. Also sits in his high chair eating toast/finger food while i cook or clean kitchen.

Clean bathroom while in shower and when kids in bath.

Lower your standards! For example, change beds fortnightly not weekly.

There are some amazing women out there who tho surrounded by dcs still maintain a tidy looking home. However, I have never discovered how the hell they do it. My dcs have grown up and it took until they left home for me to get past the shame of untidy rooms when having unexpected visitors. All I can say is concentrate on the really important things, maybe the kitchen and toilets. Years ago I asked,y mother in law about this problem. She said make sure they have decent food, clean clothes to put on and just not let the home get filthy. I always felt really comfortable at my mil’s when we used to visit with children and all that baggage. In fact really tidy places used to make me a little nervous. it was a relief to visit a bit of a muddle. Don’t worry, do your best and keep happy and your family will be the better for it.

I had 5dc under 12.

The baby was clingy and only took naps on me and we co-slept at night. I basically only did essential things while the baby was in a sling for the first year.

Toilet was cleaned every day first thing. 1 minute.
Kitchen sink and worktops were cleaned every day last thing. 2 minutes.
Clothes were cleaned and hung on an airer but rarely folded and put away and never ironed. All clean underwear was thrown in a bag, towels in a basket. A load a day.
Kitchen floor swept once a day. 1 minute.
Hoovered once a week. 10 minutes.
Bathroom cleaned while dc in the bath. 10 minutes.

I had piles of paperwork, toys and clothes everywhere but it was hygienic.

The youngest is now almost 5 and it is so much more manageable. They all pull their weight and do their own rooms, beds and laundry.

I think my dishwasher is my favourite appliance. We didn't have one for a few weeks and the kitchen was a never ending shit tip.

Every time you move, put something back where it belongs.

Definitely check out the Organised mum method on Facebook. It really is a game changer and the results are great, with minimal effort!

Have you tried setting yourself up a routine for the housework OP?

It works for us(so far)we have 5DC and there's myself and my DH,I know it can be harder when your own I was a single mum to 4DC.

Another one saying get a tumble dryer if you can afford it they really are a god send this time of year,like you we have a tiny kitchen so our's is upstairs in a cupboard(out of sight)it's one of those condensor one's.I do 3-4 loads of washing every day and 6 on a Friday(because that's when all of the beds are stripped)if I didn't have a tumble dryer my house would look like a laundrette.

We iron clothes as and when needed(I used to stand and iron a big pile twice a week and it would take me nearly 2 hours each time)so I'll load up the washing machine with clothes and the powder before I go to bed and then when I get up in the morning I stick it straight on,once it's done it's out of the machine and the next load goes in and the first load goes into the tumble dryer.All of the laundry is put away every day in the evening .Then once the DC are in bed the clothes for everyone for the following day are ironed and laid out with they're underwear.

I don't have young kids anymore, but I do have a full time job, a messy teen with ASN and a DH who has walking difficulties, so his help is limited.
Get a dishwasher and a tumble dryer, even a 2nd hand one if you are short of cash. Seriously, it will save your sanity. Batch cook and freeze if you can. If you are cooking one meal, save leccy and cook 3 or 4. Put in freezer. And give up ironing, and fold properly. The hours I used to spend ironing was frankly ridiculous and I had to redo it again. Oh and a steam cleaner. £40 from Aldi and the thing does ovens... Am in love. Get kids to take toys to their rooms when its bedtime, then you can have a proper adult room.
My house is far from perfect, but we are in mid declutter. I do one hour of declutter a night.

A couple of short term suggestions, staying on top of stuff is more important than anything.

1. If you cant get a tumble drier, do you have a launderette nearby? You could take your washing to use the drier there a couple of times a week (or treat yourself and have everything done). This would especially work for the stuff that is taking a long time to dry

2. Have a morning and evening routine which includes washing all dishes you’ve just used and doing at least a load of laundry per day. In the evening fold and put away everything that’s dry so far

3. Be stricter with the toys. Do you have a space which can be a dedicated play space that toys stay in? We have a playroom and toys stay in there or in bedrooms. Even if we didn’t have a playroom I would set aside part of eg a lounge. My kids know that’s their space and they love it, they also know not to spread toys round the house or they’ll be taken away. This saves me HOURS in tidying up. Another suggesting if space is limited is to limit the toys, just a few out at once and the others in a box or cupboard somewhere else in the house and rotate them

Thing is waking up early after a rough night with baby 🍼 housework is last thing you want to do even if you should or could be . Also if your going to work your focus is on getting yourself and every one up and out. Unless you wake up at 5 to get a super super head start . Only works if you had a good sleep with most people not case. Hence becomes a mess

I hear ya OP. I don’t have 4 kids, just 2. My partner is a farmer and the copious amounts of muck and shit he brings into the house makes me want to just burn the fucker down some days. Not to mention the bloody hay and straw that gets carted in too especially after he’s done the Hey Macarena to dust the bastard stuff off him.

I sympathise. Hopefully you have a large washing machine (my friend also has 4 DC’s and she has two large washing machines and two driers - she says it’s worth it for her) don’t iron anything, I don’t bother anymore, unless it’s something formal that’s managed to get really creased, then I’ll iron it.

Another suggestion is a dishwasher (I don’t have one) I’ve had so many people telling me how it’s an absolute necessity and they don’t know how they ever managed without one.

I wouldn’t worry too much about the mess, that’s kids, anyone who has had experience with them would understand! I’d like to say our house isn’t dirty but, ummmm, essshhhh, I’ve even scrubbing cow shit off our kitchen wall today and Mould from round the windows inbetween running out side to help DP. It’s hard bloody wirk but be kind to yourself, you can only do what you can do. I’m sure most Mumsnetters would be disgusted at the state of my house some days.