To wonder why the fuck I bother cleaning anything

[polexiaaphrodesia]

As above. DCs are 1 and 4. I cleaned the kitchen yesterday, washed the floors etc and within 2 mins it was back to the same state as before. Life feels like a never ending round of meals, clean up gigantic mess after meals while house gets trashed by the kids in a different room, cook next meal, clean up ad infinitum. And by cleaning up I mean putting stuff in the dishwasher and scraping food off the floor, highchair etc so not even making the house look presentable just trying to stop descent into squalor.

Oh yeah and don't forget actually try to work as well. DH is doing 50% of childcare so pulling his weight and is really happy and cheerful. I feel absolutely suffocated and would quite like to scream right now.

Would anyone else like to join me in a nice scream?

I feel for you, our DS is only 8 months so quite contained mess wise.

Can you put a bit more of it off until the end of the day? I think the high chair and 'maybe' the obvious food bits need picking up but other than that pretty much everything else can wait? Then you and DH blitz the house once the kids go to bed?

Also, I highly recommend a robot vacuum cleaner. I love ours.

Oh god, I would love a robot vacuum cleaner. I imagine it would become my new best friend... something along the line of Wilson in Castaway, I'd be found in a cupboard gibbering at it

Me!

Have a 13 month old and a 5 year old. Baby is also teething horrendously so he's constantly hanging off me, clawing at the boobs when he usually only ever has it morning and before bed.

House is a pig sty, just endlessly picking up after them. The older one tidies but it's to a level of a 5 year old 🤣

OH does more than his fair share of tidying and cleaning and he's doing all the home schooling.

We are both trying to work as well, he's self employed and thankfully my employer is very understanding but it's hardddd

But my god, THE MESSSSSS

@moleeye shall we have a little scream together? Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrgggggghhhhh? The mess!!!!!!

I'll join you! Sorry you are having a stressful time of it op!

I only have one teen and only wfh part-time, so have much less than you on my plate but I agree it all seems a bit relentless ATM. I quite enjoyed lockdown at the start but our house is old and unrenovated and the cleaning seems endless now. And unfortunately the pump in my washing machine stopped working today.

DD keeps her own room tidy and clean but omg I have never known anyone use so many towels! And dh is in to bread-making so flour and salt is everywhere! And I swear the dogs are deliberately moulting over the floors I have just hoovered!

It must be much harder for those of you with younger dc though That's even more "groundhog day"! So take it steady and remember to take regular "time out" for yourselves if humanly possible!

I had sort of felt at the start of March that I was just getting on top of the housework, with DD at school and DS at preschool twice a week. Then lockdown. Omfg.

I got up this morning to a clean kitchen from last night. Breakfast - total mess. Then foolishly I got the playdoh out. Carnage. Then lunch - crumbs, yoghurt spill, milk splashes. By the time I'd cleaned that up DS had taken ALL his toy cars out into the hall so it was a fast track to a broken neck. Then he abandoned them. Chucked DD's current favourite teddy in the not-completely-drained sink. She went mental obviously. Mucky sink water everywhere. Etc etc etc. Will to live - non existent.

I am literally on the brink of writing love messages to our cleaner and she's not even that good. I'm fed up of it all, children are disgusting.

The cleaning and meal cooking/meal mess has been the most stressful part of this lockdown for me. Constant mess, the bathroom being a state after a few hours of being cleaned when it used to be a few days, crumbs everywhere, kitchen turned upside down. Gaaaahhhhhh!!!

I feel you. I have two - 4 and 6, and it feels like I am constantly on the clean cycle. Single parent, working remotely too. Today, while I was on a conference call, DC decided to make an ice rink, spilling 5l of extra virgin olive oil all over the floor in three rooms. Well, at least they were quiet for 30 minutes.

Yes, it's the sheer relentlessness of it. Cant even have a wee in peace without them both in there and Mummy, Mummy, Mummy, MUMMY? MUMMY!!!!!!! every 5 seconds from DS. I am fantasizing about running away at the moment although not sure where I would actually go!

@firstmentat 5l of olive oil bloody hell! I think you get the this evening

@polexiaaphrodesia Arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Also the stress of having to think of meals and cook! Honestly, I'm worn out.

The 5 year old cut herself a fringe today, she was doing unsupervised arts and crafts in the kitchen 🙈 whilst I tried to calm down a screaming 1 year old and my OH was on a conference call.

They had weetabix and chopped banana for dinner. I had wine

I have 7 aged 14, 11, 7,4,3,1 and 11 months. We literally do the bare minimum to get through the day (picking up discarded food and bickies, dishes after breakfast, lunch and dinner then blitz everywhere at 7 when all the young ones have gone to bed.

My son who is 16 seems to have half the kitchen in his room. I made him bring it down. The sighing what I asked him to place it in the dishwasher was outstanding.
Him and dh seem to make so much mess. I can wait till my husband can go back to work but have to wait till September for my son to be out the house.
If u hear a loud scream that will be me

Also weirdly I find the girls to be much messier than the boys

Ooh can I join in please.
I’ve got an 8 week old cluster feeding sleep thief, a new house that was supposed to have workmen in and a DH on SPL who now thinks he’s gods gift to DIY and decorating.

It’s the washing that is getting to me, DS keep projectile pooing/vomming on himself and me. Damp sticky muslins that stink of rotten milk everywhere...it’s a shit show. I’ve stopped washing any of DH’s clothes on the basis that non of them can go through the tumble dryer and I don’t have time for that faff.

We also have a cat and dog in the house whose hair is everywhere and I can’t get a single thing done as DS wants to spend all day fighting sleep and screaming!

Maybe we should have an 8pm scream on Monday nights for the parents with obligatory wine after?!

Mine are 5, 4 and 3 months and I am drowning in mess! Every time someone head tilts and asks how I’m coping I say I miss my mum (we’re very close and she helps a lot with the kids usually) but I’m too embarrassed to add ‘and my cleaner’. I miss her so much. That one moment each week where everything was clean all at once for a couple of hours. Now we’re all here and trying to clean with a Velcro baby is basically impossible.

On the doorstep, with pots and pans and clapping and everything??? @polexiaaphrodesia

I have a 5 year old and an 18 month old, I would join you in a scream but the 18m old is going through a phase of screaming and I really can't bear to hear anymore screams!

@rabbitheadlights yes!!!

Arghhhhhhhhhhh it never bloody ends!!

I have a nearly 3 year old and I swear I clean up, turn my back then turn around again to see mess and sticky and stuff everywhere...

I was just thinking this today. Before lockdown we managed with a cleaner once every 2 weeks, with us being in work and kids at school/ nursery full time, and weekends visiting friends and parks etc I guess they don't have the chance to make much mess. But at the moment it just seems to be one long cycle of cleaning and cooking, feeling like I'm on top of it one minute and then a few hours later it's a complete fucking state, we have paint, suncream, food just smeared everywhere.

Aaaaargh from me too! Four aged between 11 and 10 months, can trash a house in the time it takes me to boil a kettle. Take comfort though, I have a clean up after meals rota for the three eldest, one sweep/hoover, one wipe table, one kitchen counters. In theory all I have to do is clean up the baby and high chair (All?!) But in reality it involves yelling repeatedly at each dc as they head for the hills instead of doing their allotted job...

I'll join in. I have three boys, 9, 7 and 4. None of them can pee straight. I spend my life mopping up piss, putting the loo seat down and turning off the fucking light. First thing after lock down I'm getting in an electrician to replace the downstairs loo light with a sensor activated one. Oh, and picking up Lego, trains, marbles etc.
I'm definitely sending them back to school at the first opportunity as I reckon they are at less risk with covid than staying at home with my building rage (not joking).