Help! I don't want to have to do a full spring clean every single day!

[Snootymum]

My house gets in such a state every day as I am the only person that does any cleaning or tidying. It seems to get not just messy by absolutely filthy, and it's getting so that every day I have to give it a spring clean, it's disgusting.

For starters DH and our 3 DCs are very, very messy. Not just a bit untidy, but things like leaving taps on, and taking shoes off in the front doorway and leaving them there so that the front door cannot be shut until someone (ie Me) moves them. They leave stuff anywhere and everywhere. The 3 year old trashes his room probably 3 times a day, and whilst I'm tidying that he goes and trashes another room. DH dumps stuff wherever he is when he's finished with it; on the stairs, bathroom floor, kitchen floor, wherever. I'd say each day before I can do any cleaning it takes me between 2 and 3 hours to clean up the mess generated the previous day. To cap it all off, DH decided a while ago to get a dog, which mainly lives in a run outside but is allowed in the house in the evenings, and it's a dog that moults a lot and there is dog hair everywhere so I have to hoover/sweep/mop through the entire house every single day.

Everything just gets so dirty, as no one seems to have any pride in living in a nice place. The sink in the bathroom is usually infested with toothpaste so I have to clean it every day. The toilets get in a filthy state. The lounge gets so dusty on a daily basis it looks every morning like it's not been dusted literally in months. The windows and walls get filthy as the kids touch them all the time and I end up cleaning all the windows, every single day. I get jealous of people that say they do housework 'twice a week', as I wish I could just do a job then know it's done and won't need doing for a few days. It is absolutely soul destroying having to clean every day like I do, and I have no life! Yesterday I cleared the kitchen table of everyone's crap, wiped it down, polished it and it looked great. This morning it is encrusted with food, with so much crap on it you can barely see the table. DH even went up the shop last night to get a few bits, got home and dumped them all on the table.

DH has made it clear to me that he will not do any housework. He'll maybe unload the dishwasher once a month, and cook a meal once a month (and then use every pan and utensil we have and leave it all for me to clear up). The DCs just make mess constantly, and won't clean up at all. It's just making me so depressed every morning coming downstairs to DH's plate from the night before left unscraped on the work top, and cups, glasses and wrappers everywhere. This morning the bin, which I disinfected and cleaned throughly on Sunday, is encrusted with food, all down the side of the bin and all up the wall behind it! Laundry piles up and no one will even put a pair of their socks in their own drawer. DH will go through the tumble drier looking for something of his, then get the whole lot of washing out and leave it all on the kitchen floor.

It is all sapping the soul out of me. I just want to go out all the time, but then of course I get home to the same mess. I have tried striking, talking to DH, reasoning with him, explaining why he needs to pitch in etc but it's no good. I don't necessarily expect everyone to do housework but I wish they'd all respect the housework that I do and play their part in keeping the house as clean and tidy as possible between cleaning sessions.

I never post on threads like this but the whole situation makes me genuinely angry on your behalf.

Your husband is being an arse. Housework is one thing, leaving your crap around for someone to pick up is selfish beyond belief, i doubt people with bloody live in housekeepers would behave that way, he should be ashamed of himself. He is also setting a terrible example for his children as well as treating you like a slave.

Your kids are growing up thinking it's ok to do what they're doing. How are they going to turn into adults who can look after themselves? So they scream/tantrum if they don't get their way, so what, tough! Doubt that will last more than a few days. They can have chores(tidy up toys, put shoes etc where they should be, laundry in basket) and if they don't do them all no tv/football/whatever it is they like.

Your husband you can't really discipline like that but you can give an ultimatum, stop doing his laundry and/or making his meals, maybe put the stuff he leaves for you to pick up in his study/wardrobe/car/other space that is his own rather than shared.

I really hope you manage to change things, you do NOT deserve to be treated like this.

Jesus he sounds an absolute delight.

He is showing you exactly what he think of you by the way: That you're worth LESS than him. He's too important to do such mundane jobs obviously.

My dh works long hours and I'm a sahm. I do everything inside the home but dh doesn't create work for me because he's not a cunt I'm not his maid to pick up and carry for him.

Repost in relationships.
And then LTB
I'm sure you'll magically feel much better.

Go on strike. That's what i would do. Don't tell them , just do it. And when they can't find their stuff or clean clothes tell them you are just doing what they do-nothing!

Wow, it's one thing to not help but quite another to actively cause more mess in the first place.

My DH works full time and I work part time but there is absolutely no way in this lifetime he would ever treat me like that. If he did, we wouldn't have lasted.

Please, please do not allow this to continue.

With the kids I look after, I've implemented the "tidy or trash" regime. So if you don't tidy away your clothes/toys/books, they get black bin bagged. School uniform too. (I should point out - everything I do is at the suggestion or approval of their parents!) When they go into school not dressed properly, I go with them (which really embarrasses them) and explain why they're not properly dressed, which they'll then be punished for - I.e lines/missing playtime. It sounds harsh but I've found it has effectively made for a cleanish and tidy house within a week Obviously I don't actually chuck anything - I wash and iron uniform while they're at school & hide it so I can use it as a 'reward'! Likewise with toys/books etc - bagged, labelled and put in loft or garage until they are behaving acceptably.

Oh and when they started making a mess with food/ not putting stuff in the dishwasher, I stopped cooking and buying food until they stopped. Funnily enough that particular lesson took only two days.

What a bunch of lazy shites people (apart from maybe the three year old). Leaving taps on, shoes in the doorway, stuff on the stair, food on the wall and clothes on the kitchen floor? Are they all morons?

Out of interest, how's your sex life OP? Cause I wouldn't go near a man that thought he was too good to pull the plug out of his bath and that I should do it for him.

I am with the lowering of standards as prescribed to me by my councellor.

Does your house need to be that clean? I just stopped, yeah the house is messy, though it is clean, iyswim, and now we don't argue about it anymore, life's too short.

Tbf your other half does sound like a bit of a cock though.

I really agree with previous messages this is a relationship problem. Don't let him treat you with such disrespect. If the children don't get message that they need to tidy up after themselves at an early age, do you really expect them to respect you when they are teenagers? Stand your ground, don't burn out cleaning, demand more!!

Try www.flylady.net/ she has some really good ideas on clearing clutter, cleaning, organising the family

I would chuck this bastard and his dog out.

And those kids would learn really fast that I'm not a skivvy.

Your OH is a selfish pig. And you are going to have 3 DCs who will become the same unless you both set them a better example.

For one I would be on the kids backs non stop teaching them that's not the way to behave, reward charts etc for them and if they won't do as you tell them eg pick the shoes up I would take there favourite things away until they realise.
As for your husband.. Surely you knew when you married him what a lazy arse he was.... Tell him straight shape up or ship out!

I'm sure you don't really need people slating your Hubby, that's your prerogative, as his wife and no-one else's, i also empathize as a wife of a man that's not over clever with the hoover (and when he does he misses goes around thing's!!) Take one step at a time, follow the children and say it you want to play you must put it away , yes at 1st it will be time consuming but they will soon get the idea, We used to have a very long haired large dog, and the mess the generate is staggering, Dirty wall, door's and hair everywhere, could you not just contain it to one room in the evenings?? (why on earth did he get the dog?? then a man's mind is a complete mystery!!) I do wish you luck, cause i have my day's of feeling the way you do, I don't over worry about the windows much, these day's they won't always be dirty, in 20 year's time you'll be able to see out of them i'm sure

'I'm sure you don't really need people slating your Hubby, that's your prerogative, as his wife and no-one else's, i also empathize as a wife of a man that's not over clever with the hoover (and when he does he misses goes around thing's!!)'

Why not? Maybe she needs to see what a lazy, disrespectful bastard he is.

I hear you - luckily dh helps a lot but we are all as messy as each other and it gets messy as soon as its tidy! Kids don't help (I have 3 kids too!) and 2 dogs which makes all VVVVVVV dusty. Maybe I'll move out to,the kitchen shed!

I agree with everyone who says the problem is the husband. He doesn't respect you, so why should the children?

If he won't do anything, he needs to pay for a cleaner. you are not a skivvy, you are his wife. You both live in the home, you both need to participate.

If my daughter leaves her shoes lying around, she picks them up or she doesn't do anything else. I have threatened to bin stuff but never had to do it as the threat is usually sufficient. But I totally would throw stuff out. I am not here to run around picking up all her mess.

Sorry, it sounds like a shit situation.

How old are your children? I'd start with them - they're going to be easier to train than your arse of a dh. Stand by the bathroom door when they're finishing their bath and insist (pleasantly) that they take out the plug, hang up their towels and put their dirty clothes in the basket. Leave a cloth by the basin and show them how to wipe it down after cleaning their teeth. You may have to start up some kind of sticker/reward chart, which personally I always found a right faff, but urgent measures are required here.
As for your dh! That's a whole different issue - mainly about respect, or lack of it, rather than housework per se. There's a big difference between who cleans the bathrooms/washes the kitchen floor and expecting another human being to be your personal valet and pick up your dirty tissues as you drop them behind you as you go.

I generally tidy our house but if dp ever complains he gets told to 'do it your fucking self then'. he very rarely does though. Im not an angry person but when we first got together he'd leave wet towels on the bed and a trail of destruction behind him. I slowly trained him with them very words.

Cherrycheesecake, you reminded me of something I used to say early on in my relationship. If DH mentioned something wasn't done i would say -'what the hell do you want me to do about it' - a bit extreme I admit, but the point I was making is that we are all members of this household therefore we all have a responsibility to it.

I do on occasion pick up after DH, but I do so safe in the knowledge that he does the same for me. We are a team, the team that runs this house. No one persons needs are above the others.

They all need to learn consequences - as long as you continue to pick up after them all, what incentive do they have to change? Leave the bath water in - next time one of them wants a bath they'll learn it's gross to empty someone elses cold, dirty water. Leave their dirty clothes on the floor, and when they ask where their clean work shirt/fave top etc are, point to the dirty piles on the floor. Leave the dishes - no clean cup for a drink? Well they should learn to wash.

Once they've got the hint (should happen fairly quickly from personal experience), they need to be told in no uncertain terms that there are house rules - you tidy your own mess, you put your own laundry in the laundry basket, you put your dirty dishes by the sink, if you drop food you pick it up. The kids should be bribeable (sp?) - pocket money/reward charts for doing their jobs.

Good luck

It's all about division of labour.
We both work F/T
I do cleaning hoovering and ironing
DH does shopping cooking and cleaning of bathrooms.
I hoover all bedrooms everyday and make beds.Usually in am as supervising DS showering getting ready for school etc
Empty washing basket load washer.
Wipe down kitchen surfaces before leaving for work.
Mop floor and feed cat.
DH is home before me so he cooks tea and cleans bathrooms when he gets in.
DH will clean up after tea and mop kitchen floor.
I iron whilst watching news.
Then tidy lounge ... hoover empty bins etc.
House looks ok most of the week.
I do a big clean at weekends DH looks after cars and garden.
Used to have cleaner but to be honest would rather spend the cash on other things.
Teamwork is the answer.

Out of politeness, I won't say what your DH sounds like.

But one thing I could guarantee is, that he would be shown the door.

Me and partner both work F/T and we split the housework as equal as can be, there are some jobs partner can't do all that well due to permanent bad back from car accident.

I don't get this because you work P/T you have to do ALL housework?

You all live there, so should all have a little part in keeping house. if you're having to clean windows, bathrooms etc then DH and children who are old enough could do light jobs like dishwasher, unloading washer and dryer.

Everyone is right about DH though, leaving CLEAN clothes on floor, not scraping his plate and not binning wrappers is downright childish, I take it he doesnt behave like this with his employer, around his mates or parents.

Out of interest? Was he raised this way? If possible have you had a word with his Mum/Dad what would they say about it???

I've never said this before but I can remember the utter weariness and despair of not being listened to. I would say now that he and his dog should be asked/told to leave and that would give you a chance to sort out how you want your house to run. I can't see any other way that you will not literally wear yourself out and what for?

He's not 'prepared' to even pick up a wrapper off the floor, but has the audacity to moan at you when you don't? He moans the place isn't tidy enough. He empties the dryer onto the floor and leaves it there.

If you were working for this person, as a paid employee, you'd think he was a fuckwit and leave.

He treats you as someone who should pick up his shit off the floor.

That's not even housework.

He has zero respect for you.

Show him and his hairy dog out.

I had this for a while, although not as bad as you seem to be putting up with. I stopped doing housework, and when they noticed and commented I told them, all together, that I am not willing to clean up after them and that's why no washing, tidying or cleaning had been done.

Now I only wash clothes which are in a linen basket, if they run out of clothes it's not my problem. OH sorts and puts away his own clothes and DDs either put away their clothes or dump them upstairs, if they dump clean ironed clothes they wear crumpled clothes - not my problem. If their bedroom floors are covered in toys I don't vacuum, or I pile everything on the bed to vacuum.

They earn pocket money by doing light chores and keeping their rooms tidy. Other tactics that friends use include everything not put away goes in a black sack, ( I'm willing to put in the bin) someone asks where's X?, "look in that bag". They can't find something? Not your problem. I would change to Paper plates and disposable cutlery.

We eat together so that DDs are reminded to take their plates out and scrape them into the bin (I am willing to remove the bin and allow rubbish to pile up on the floor, and they know this). DDs, aged 11 yrs, set the table and do drinks. We also have dogs, my OH has had to accept that if he wants the dogs inside he has clean up after them.

Windows get done once a month here, OH does them. If DCs put sticky fingers on the windows give them a cloth and make them wipe it.

My OH has tried to be arrogant and played the "I go out to work" card. My answer was that I facilitate him earning what he does and having the lifestyle he does by looking after the DCs, if he had to collect them from school and get their dinner ready five days a week he'd have to go part time.

My DDs help with the dogs, feed them when I'm busy, brush them - outside.

So, if you can't get your H to change then kick him to the curb, if you don't want to keep the dog send it with him.

With DCs, the youngest one needs to be with you when you do his room. He passes you that toy and you show him where he should put it. As much as it's hard make it fun for him to stop him baling on you. Funny faces/voices etc. Same with his clothes. Older ones need to put their plates in the dishwasher if you have one, or clear them off and rinse them before putting in the sink/bowl. Stand over them to make sure bits of food go into the bin, if they miss they pick it up and then wipe bin-floor wether they want to or not. Ignore the lip they'll give you and stick to your guns. They need to put their clothes away, or wear screwed up clothes. If they leave the bathroom dirty they clean it. It really shouldn't need deep cleaning on a daily basis. It's going to take time to get the DCs on track, but you need to persevere unless you want to be their skivvy and their future wives to be skivvies too.

You really need to stand up for yourself and give yourself the respect you deserve. DCs will respond to that once they see you mean it, and if H can't show you the same level of respect then he doesn't deserve to share your life.

When the DCs do what you tell them to give them lots of praise - hugs and well done, good work, thank you etc.