What do you tell yourself day-to-day to keep on top of the drudge work?

[Schoolpickup]

Just that really. Finding the day to day deluge of housework, dishes and bedtime a sludge. There's no avoiding it. It has to be done. There isn't anything that can be stripped back. We're not perfectionists with housework, and Dh and I split the work. This is just the stuff that has to be done.

When it feels like a sludge, do you give yourself a talking to? What do you do?

I tell myself housework is a workout, pretend whatever I'm scrubbing is the face of whoever has pxxxxed me off most, or sing like Disney's snow white - depending on the mood I'm in.

@SandysMam I love that idea! I am trying that!! And yes to the sentiment. It's got to be done, just want to have a healthier frame of mind doing that's not dreading the deluge of sludge coming in the evening while I'm at work!

One thing I do is pretend I’m some kind of Instagrammer, filming for my followers as I go about my fascinating life.

The other thing is I carve out a bit of time for myself. I was off work today, got loads done and my reward was an hour on the sofa. The thought of that kept me going.

@thedarkling project away, please ❤️🍷

@3dreamymckip everyone knows what mood your in based on whether you're singing Disney or not 😁

@CurlsandCurves this is brilliant.

I'm the same. Trying to keep the house looking nice, I have a two year old and a five month old and a DH who does a lot but works a lot. We do a big clean twice a week but the daily stuff gets me down

Have a cleaner would much rather cut back on most other areas than that helps massively so I don't do much cleaning. Hate the cooking and will outsource that too soon if I had the money 😂

@merrygoround23 it's relentless isn't it. I think this issue started for me because I'm usually so optimistic and I always think there's a way to push past and feel positive about things. But with lockdown and WFH it's like my tank of optimism has just drained away. Some really helpful posts on this thread I'm going to try.

Feel exactly the same op. For me, it’s learning to not let it drag you down until the balance of motherhood changes and we will get some time back. I try to tell myself that if the dishes are being done and the washing machine is on, we are not going backwards even maintaining is enough. At times of high stress (work too) I write 3 things on a list that need immediate attention and do those, back to list cross off and write another 3. Good luck x

You have to transport yourself into another world, that's the only time I have to listen to some great podcasts

@shade78 that's true, we do dishes, kitchen etc every day and the amount of dishes gets me down but if we left it, it would be much worse.

I'm also considering Wednesday nights as chippy nights.

I try not to hate it because we're told we should hate it, and instead focus on how much I enjoy having a clean (ish) and (semi) organised home for my family.
Sometimes it can become almost zen like.
Or maybe that's just the prozac.

When things are really bad, I remember the poem about gratitude.

It goes something like
Dirty dishes = food to eat
House to clean = Safe place to live
Laundry = clothes to wear
Crumbs under table = family meals
Etc

Sounds naff but helps me look at things more positively.

Sounds shit but honestly I don't think about it I've had pretty much the same routine for the last 15 years! Worked full time even when the kids where babies so I nailed it then and just power through each day.
I like a clean house (can't ever achieve spotless....kids and dogs put a stop to that!)
If I ever feel like giving up I remember that I promised myself my children would grow up in a clean home with clean clothes to wear everyday and a lovely clean bed to sleep in at night, so far it's working!

@4FindingMeno 😂😂

@oishutup love this ❤️

@GlamorousHeifer you're a hero 💪

This thread has helped me no end ladies, thank you so much. The humour, the good advice and the perspective. Thank you xx

I've got it down so housework, including laundry can be done in about 2 hours per week, provided I keep on top of it. As soon as I let it slip, it becomes a much bigger task, so I don't let it slip!

A robot vacuum cleaner is life changing. Life changing I tell you.

I just don’t do it until it’s urgent.

Or I spend hours doing everything madly.

I have ADHD though so my brain works in a very interesting way

I do the fly lady cleaning method! I used to hate everything and it wound me up, I'd put things off until they became huge tasks. Her method (small increments, adding to the routine as you go etc) really really helped.

I also stuck in Sunday evenings as my no stress relax time, to achieve this I know I need to stick to about 30 minutes a day then by Sunday lunch everything is done, dusted for the week and I can light a candle and relax knowing that it's all absolutely fine and dandy! It's genuinely my main motivator, just thinking of sitting down with sweet fa to do.

Very loud, preferably upbeat, dancing type music seems to help me!

NEVER iron
2 robot vacuums (1 up, 1 down)
Change kids beds about once a month
Dishwasher

I work full time with 3 kids and have pretty high cleanliness standards. Really doesn’t take much effort with the timesavers listed above.

I don't have excessively high standards about it.