Does anyone have an actual routine?

[OliviaDunham]

I have got lazy and need to get myself into a new routine, does anyone have a set routine of what they do each day? Do you stick to it and does it work?

Following! I went through a phase of making a list of daily tasks for each day, crossing them off as I go. It worked well until I fell out of the habit of doing it. My house is by no means a dump but I could do better.

Mine isn't either, I've just got into the habit of putting things off. I'm a sahm so really no excuses!

Should probably add that I have 3 DC, all school age, DH works away a lot and 2 large, hairy dogs!

First thing after the school run, I take a tray upstairs and collect and glasses/cups/rubbish and leave it on the landing. I make all the beds, chuck and dirty washing down the stairs and have a quick tidy if it needs it. Takes about 30 mins, then that's upstairs done for the day.

Sort the washing, stick a load on, Empty dishwasher that was on overnight, then chuck breakfast dishes in. Wipe kitchen benches. Tidy the front room if needed, and that's about it.

I have a cleaner so don't do any do hoovering/dusting/bathrooms.

I do all my chores on Sunday's. Only do the dishwasher during the week.

It takes me/dh/assorted teenagers 2 hours.

Download the motivated mom app, and tick things off as you go. You can edit it to add your own stuff and delete anything you don't do (daily prayer for example )

I'm the dishwasher! When we bought the house we fully intended to get one, but then realised we would need a new kitchen to fit one in!

Will look at the app, thanks

Subday is change the beds day, tue is ironing day. Every day hoovering Dishes and squaring up and beds made but Sunday is gut the house day. I get stressed when the house is a mess tbh. My DP and DS would prefer it was a bit more laid back but it's by no means show home material. It's definitely lived in!

I do beds every Sunday, couldn't do a major clean on a Sunday with everyone home, they would drive me nuts. Definitely not looking for show home standards, would be impossible with the dogs.

I liked the routines in the Flylady book -- search MN for Flylady, there are threads galore. :)

There's also an App called HomeRoutines you can get, that is v similar to the Flylady routines.

I need to start doing this again -- little and often is SO MUCH NICER, easier, and generally more calming than doing nothing, living in gradually escalating chaos and dirt, then exploding and doing a huge overhaul.

... She says, from the sofa.

Also in sofa, awaiting motivation!

I'm a sahm too! I have younger children though, 3yo who has just started pre-school 5mornings a week and a baby. I do have some time to do stuff though as the baby usually naps after pre-school drop off but I tend to do one thing (tidy kitchen usually) and then sit on my bum enjoying the peace until baby wakes. I feel like I could get a lot done during this time but the quiet time is a novelty for me. Some great tips here, I'm going to check out fly lady.

In the week, I sort a wash load the night before, so it's ready to go on after I've had my shower in the morning. Get dcs up and dressed, then breakfast, empty dishwasher and pack lunch bags for older two.

Try and have 30 min walk once dropped ds1 and dd at school, with ds2 in pram, then get back, hang out wash (some days another load to go on), tidy up if anything left from brek, take out all recycling, rubbish and food recycling from previous day (I would do it after tea, but the bins are all roundi side of house in pitch black at the moment!) then I try do one job before ds2 has his nap, so say clean bathroom / change beds / Hoover throughout.

Whilst ds2 naps I do stuff I can't do with him around, such as ironing (he loves wires...) and am in the middle of a major declutter, so I get on with that.

Don't achieve a lot more then once he's awake, with lunch, playing, school run, homework, tea, but I try to make sandwiches and get everything together in the fridge for packed lunches so I just have to grab lunchbags from freezer and pack in the morning. I leave ds2 in his booster chair after tea and mop floors through kitchen and dining room. He thinks it's a game at the moment.

I meal plan and do an online shop once a week, and at the beginning of the month try to run machine on boil wash empty and clean dishwasher. Oven pride every 3 months or so. Same with inside windows and windowsills.

Ps I use Eco cleaning products, so I do clean when ds2 is around, he's usually pottering on the landing of I do the bathroom. I always clean the toilet and sink every night whilst it's bathtime.

Daisy- I'm exhausted reading that!

Do you ever go out for the day, or to baby groups etc?

Maki I do the carryingbthing too. Although atm its often 5mo DS...

My 'routine' is to haul us both out of bed, wash/bath/dress. If its a stay at home day we go downstairs and wash up last nights dishes, wipe kitchen over, sweep kitchen and dining room. Deal with any washing.

Once a week i dust/Hoover downstairs (dust dining + living, Hoover all through) and on a different day i clean and Hoover upstairs. (bathroom, our bedroom, landing. Don't bother with spare room as currently unused) change the bed every other weekend.

I feel like i don't do a lot but that reads quite well!!

Posting yesterday managed to motivate me a bit - now have loads of clean washing to put away, one job I just hate.

Haven't done anything yet today, having coffee. I think I will aim to put said clothes away, make beds and do hoovering.

I can't really not Hoover everyday die to the dogs, but everything still feels a mess

I've two dogs too, I am tempted to buy this

robot hoover

I guess i would Hoover downstairs daily if my Hoover lived downstairs. I sweep instead.

I'm still in bed. DS has gone back to sleep.

What works really well for me is putting stuff away as i go. When the baby finishes playing in the evening, i put the toys back where they live. The carrying something everywhere you go helps with this.

Not so easy with 3dc i imagine!

I agree with notalotta , what really works for me is every time I go upstairs take something that needs to go up (e.g. clean washing) and bring something back down with me (e.g. rubbish from the bathroom bin, mugs, dirty laundry).

Er, I wipe down the bathroom when I'm standing in my towel after a shower. That's mostly it. Check laundry bins to see if we have enough darks/lights/hot wash stuff to put a load in in theory once a day but more often just when they get full. DH fills the dishwasher every night and normally wipes down the kitchen then, too.

We have a robot hoover actually, we don't have pets but they make some which are designed for pet hair now. Drastically reduces the time we need to spend hoovering! We've been in our new flat 3 weeks, run the robot around 2-3 times a day and I think we've actually got the proper hoover out ONCE. And that's with all of the crap from building several thousands' worth of ikea furniture, and the debris from having a 7 year old at home all day eating biscuits. We just have a cheap one, but since it's doing so well we're looking to upgrade it to one you can program and will charge itself.