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Original poster

The Organised Mum Method

999 replies

IcanDorisIwillDoris · 02/09/2018 15:35

Does anyone fancy joining me in following the organised mum method?

Back to work tomorrow after the summer off (work term time only) and need to get on top of a house work routine after struggling this last year or so to stay on top of things.

I suffer with anxiety and can easily get lost in my mood without structure and I like what I saw on the website. Will probably tweek the method as I go but it's a good structured plan to kick things off.

I work odd hours around the kids being at school but have a clear hour each day to dedicate to this. Plus I am sick of losing my weekends to playing catch up when I could be doing nicer things with the kids!!

Four of us in a 4 bed semi which is clean, just full of stuff that comes with having kids. It can get pretty messy!

Have done the odd bit of decluttering over the summer which has made a bit of a difference!

Looking forward to having a house that doesn't embarrass me on the odd occasion a guest arrives unannounced Blush

OP posts:
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BookishOwl · 25/09/2018 16:48

Yes, agree, I don't do all bathrooms every day. In fact I might come up with a little bathroom rota to help me remember what to do when (eg just now I do the downstairs loo + sink on Wednesday when I'm doing the hall so maybe Tuesday I would wipe the sink/bath in main bathroom etc)

ItWillAllBeOkayInTheEnd · 25/09/2018 20:27

Little I get what you're saying about prioritising the stuff you didn't get done next time, but honestly if I stopped after 15 or 30 minutes the house would be even messier. It takes longer than that to keep the house tidy and a basic level of cleanliness. I agree it's easier to manage when you do little and often, it's just it can't be done in that little time (not in my house with my family, anyway!).

2slicesoftoast · 25/09/2018 20:55

@ItWillAllBeOkayInTheEnd
Your issue is not cleaning. Your problem is MESS!
You need to minimise the mess so you're not spending ages tidying :-) When DD was small I had a pop up laundry hamper and when she went to bed everything that was hanging around went in it at bedtime. She's 7 and we still.do it - 10 minutes on a Saturday, job done. Instead of me spending 15 minutes every night tidying up!
Spend 5 minutes every night tidying up your stuff and putting it away. it will become a habit and one your children grow to expect! easier for every one!

Littlechocola · 25/09/2018 22:14

ItWillAllBeOkayInTheEnd I suppose it depends on how many of you there are, how old the dc are and how much they help.
As toast suggests it may be that you simply have too much stuff and so mess is easy.

I don’t know if I would have kept up when mine were tiny and had over generous grandparents (we accumulated lots of tat). It would have been like wading through mud.
Maybe you could do a declutter and boot camp?

Sparklyfee · 25/09/2018 22:43

I've bootcamped the bedrooms today and at the same time I bagged up over 5 bin bags worth of toys that don't get played with anymore. Declutter and the cleaning will be manageable in 45 mins a day I think.

I also have pop up baskets in each room and the kids are expected to put their things in at the end of the day

namastayinbed · 26/09/2018 06:55

I'm loving the method so far but am going to move bedding to the weekend or alternate beds on a 2 week cycle as I need bedroom time for decluttering the kids' rooms.

I bootcamped for a week (probably did 80% of the printable), and started the plan properly on Monday.

My tip would be not to put the shower seal in the dishwasher- ours melted!

ItWillAllBeOkayInTheEnd · 26/09/2018 08:47

Thanks Little. I think the problem is DD is only 5, so is limited as to how much she can do, ie her bookcase is a mess because she's not strong enough to put the books back neatly, and I'm not going to discourage her from looking at books! DS isn't NT so it isn't as simple as decluttering; he is firmly attached to all the tat in his room and would be traumatised if I threw it out. So I need to work round that for now.

BookishOwl · 26/09/2018 09:23

I had similar worries about fitting everything into the time and what helped me was realising that, at least initially, the timings do not include tidying time. As I've done the method, over the weeks, I find for some rooms I can now get tidying and cleaning done in the level 2 time but not for all of them. But that's ok, I do little and often tidying now as I go along and generally feel much more on top of things than I did before TOMM

MillicentCat · 26/09/2018 11:40

More decluttering for me today! Pulled everything out from under my bed (how does it get so dusty?!) and also sorted out our wardrobe, and upstairs cupboard which is used for storage. Got loads for the charity shop so I'm really pleased. Been meaning to do this for months so I'm glad TOMM has motivated me to do it.

RaspberryBlonde · 26/09/2018 12:50

Have got level 2 done today with 5 minutes to spare. Hallway is always the easiest day for me and have been trying to make sure coats and shoes go straight away when we come in so want any tidying to speak of.

Have added some additional clutter by bringing in baby toys from the garage but did send a few things back out there as well. Like a few other people it's not the cleaning but the tidying!

TwittleBee · 26/09/2018 12:57

I'm so behind. Didn't get a chance to do anything Monday or Tuesday as DS ended up in hospital (all good now and back home) and doubt I'll be able to catch up today as he is still ill and needing monitoring! Gonna have to boot camp whole house at weekend this rate

Littlechocola · 26/09/2018 13:19

TwittleBee poor chap, hope he’s well soon.

Drum roll please..... My washing basket is empty! I’m going to have a glass of wine tonight to celebrate I think.

I’m dreading going back to work as I think it would be easy for it all to fall apart.

hodgeheg92 · 26/09/2018 17:24

Haven't been great at following the method so far this week, the little one is going through one hell of a sleep regression and if she's napping I just want to sit down/inhale coffee! Did manage to change the bedding yesterday and DH did the washing today so it's not all bad.

Congrats on your empty washing basket littlechocola! Wine

Hope your DD is okay soon twittlebee

OhFlipMama · 26/09/2018 18:01

I'm not following it well but seeing the posts on my timeline has really prompted me to do more. I've been cleaning and sorting a lot this week. I'm pregnant but it can't be down to nesting that's too early!

OhFlipMama · 26/09/2018 18:02

I've got two bin bags full of things from under my sink - mostly old bottles of cleaners, washing liquids etc. Two FULL bin bags. How do I dispose of it all properly? I feel awful.

welshmist · 26/09/2018 20:27

OH very helpfully did a load of washing. We keep dirty washing basket in spare room. so he scooped up a pile washed, dried, folded and put it on the bed for me to hang up.

Now I had decluttered my wardrobe a few days before and put all the clothes for tip in the spare room. Yep he washed them. I daren`t tell him, have put them all in a black bag now Blush

Littlechocola · 26/09/2018 21:30

welshmist oh no! Grin he’s trying !

ItWillAllBeOkayInTheEnd · 27/09/2018 09:23

So, it's kitchen week this Friday (I think, can't find it on the website now). I think the time has come.... to tackle the oven.... Sad Summers, what did you use to clean your oven? Anyone else got any recommendations? The oven in my last house was self-cleaning and I've been in denial since I moved in 15 months ago. Blush

Littlechocola · 27/09/2018 10:06

I’m pretending that we don’t have an oven.

TwittleBee · 27/09/2018 10:57

ItWillAllBeOkayInTheEnd I swear by Oven Pride to tackle an oven that really needs a proper good clean. Once you've done that, its easy to keep on top it just by using a good washing up liquid and water or "cuts through grease" spray. I usually take the racks out and clean them in the sink (or dishwasher!) and then give the sides a good scrub. I've also got an oven mat at the bottom so I can just pull that out and give it an easy wipe!

Littlechocola hahah! Honestly get yourself some oven pride, no scrubbing required!

hodgeheg92 · 27/09/2018 11:16

Oh dear welshmist Grin and littlechocola I used that method for a while too! But ovenpride and some astonish paste on the glass has made me a proud oven owner!

So DH did the washing load yesterday, but as he so often does, didn't complete the job and put the clean clothes away! So that's task one for me today Hmm

I'm trying more with the bathroom and have managed to clean one thing in there on 3 mornings this week, I have reorganised the cupboard so I can get to the cleaning stuff more easily in there and I think that is helping.

Fingers crossed for a good nap from the baby because I bloody love kitchen day! Smile

Littlechocola · 27/09/2018 14:08

TwittleBee meh, if I don’t look at it it doesn’t exist Wink I’ll try oven pride (maybe tomorrow).

Cherrypi · 27/09/2018 14:10

Another half an hour on the kitchen. It’s gradual getting better but still not great. The downside of this cleaning is realising how much redecorating we need to do. Can I over vacuum a carpet? Will it damage it?

Littlechocola · 27/09/2018 14:16

Cherrypi I’ve noticed that most of our house needs redecorating too. Especially the bathroom and bedroom.

doleritedinosaur · 27/09/2018 17:25

Aw @welshmist he tried.

@Littlechocla I’m doing that with the stubborn bit at the bottom of the oven that was like it when we moved in.
& definitely the same with the redecorating which I’m actually also doing before baby pops out in January.
Really struggling the past 2 days to get even level 1 done but I forced myself to stay on top of laundry & washing up.
Reading this thread pushed me to clean & organise half a kitchen cupboard. Need to be stricter with how many tins I’ve got.
Also made a start on cleaning the plastic bricks of duplo & clearing the pile of things behind the kitchen door. So everywhere has a home.

I just need to clean the kitchen floor
& done tonight really.
Going to try & sort out rest of cupboards & paint the kitchen tomorrow as part of the focus.

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