What does tidy mean? First time cleaner coming tomorrow. I'm nervous!

[BitsinTatters]

We have a new cleaner starting tomorrow. Today I have spent the day sorting and putting away all the crap left around the house.

She will be doing 3 hours every week - we have a 3 bed semi old house with beams over 3 floors, one bathroom. Vinyl (kitchen & bathroom) and either floor boards or carpet every where else. What can I reasonable expect her to do? I'm nervous!!

I know it has so be tidy for her to clean but we have 3 small children & I work from home (I am going out while she is here at her request)

How tidy is tidy?

In my ideal world the house would be a minimalist white empty space. Except its more cluttered country cottage!!

In this case, tidy just means clear surfaces and floors IME. Nowt revolting lurking in corners, that's all. Toys on the floor that can be tidied away in a couple of minutes is fine too, of course.

Relax. Have wine. You'll love it once you get used to her coming!

Surfaces clear, as in only stuff that should be there present. FGS don;t start boxing up ornaments and books

We've lived here a year and it was immaculate but we are clearly a lot yuckier than the retired couple that owned it before us!!

I stopped having my cleaner as I found it was taking just as long to tidy as would have done to clean myself.
If you have to be out when she comes will that impact on your work? Seems a bit inconvenient?

Won't impact - will be taking baby dd3 to a baby group. We organised it to coincide

Yep surfaces and floors cleared of junk- that's what I'm doing later before ours comes tomorrow. We just have 2 hours and she gets kitchen and bathroom cleaned, bickering and mopping and some Dustin. Be great to go to playgroup and come back to a clean house!

Seems a bit odd that she requested you were out. Although saying that I prefer to be out!

Just tidy enough so the cleaner can clean floors and surfaces without having to move everything out of the way first and then move it back again afterwards. She will get a lot more cleaning done in the 3hrs if there are no toys/clothes/shoes/paper to be shifting around every time she cleans something. I make an effort to tidy a bit before the cleaners come round but I don't get worked up about it. I just recognise that the more they have to move, the less time they have to clean.

She didn't actually ask me to be out - she cleans for a close friend and I've been told she "prefers" it if no one is there and she's left to get on with it. Tomorrow I will let her in and show her round - then I have to go out to a meeting any way