Making life easier...

[Tea Lady]

I just thought I'd love to hear any tips people have for making their house / home run more smoothly. I always feel like I'm a bit behind the 8 ball with housework etc (usually because I can't be bothered, much to my mum's disgust!), but there are a couple of things I do which I find helpful, and I thought I'd share my great wisdom and then other people might have things to add. Anyway, here are my ideas -

* keep a roll of cheap toilet paper in the bathroom cupboard- you can use it to quickly wipe down the sink / mirror / dry up bits of linty horrible water in the shower etc and then just throw it in the bathroom bin. You can also dampen it and wipe around the edges of the floor in the bathroom where all the dust and hair seems to collect. This is especially useful if people turn up unexpectedly and you want to look like you've cleaned your bathroom when you haven't. I did this all the time when Jo was tiny and people kept coming round (and I still do it all the time because I'm lazy!).

* use cheap chuxes (the ones that are around 10c each) and chuck them out when they get gross - you can use them to wipe the kitchen floor / bin lid on their way to the bin

* sit bub in pram to keep them happy while you get the washing in and fold before it goes into the basket - I never seem to get around to folding washing if it makes it inside unfolded and it looks soooooo attractive sitting in baskets in the lounge room

Maybe everyone already does these things, but I hope it helps someone.

Hooroo.

Lucy

[Imogensmum]

*make twice the amount of dinner you need and freeze half- presto instant dinner one night!!!

*Buy a doona one size too big for your bed then you can just pull it up of a morning- tidy bed, makes room look tidier.

*Train, bribe, conjol older ch'n to put away toys, have a big basket there it makes it easier.

*And if all else fail, draw the blinds and turn off the lights- anything you cant see doesn't exist!! :D
Shannan!

[Peaceangels]

* Keep the vacuum cleaner sitting in the hallway or loungeroom so you can tell visitors "I was just about to do the vacuuming" !!
* I "spot clean" our tiles with baby wipes when I can't be bothered vacumming and mopping or I use the broom and dustpan to do a quick clean.
* We have a wooden toybox in our loungeroom so if unexpected guests call in everything can be thrown in there (including items that are not toys).
* Wipe over the top of the toilet and toilet seat with a damp cloth when there is no time to do it properley (I've never really got that add where the lady with the newborn allows people into her bathroom knowing its clean because she has a toilet duck/flush thing - yeah right that cleans the whole bathroom too :rolleyes: )
* Hang the dry washing straight in the cupboard to avoid ironing.
Can't think of anymore at the moment, but as you can see I do the "pretend" things more that I do the real thing!

[drewid]

My favourite trick at the moment is to plop Andrew on our bed, give him the remote control to the tv and tidy the room/fold the washing/have a rest. He could play with a remote control for hours. Side effect - sometimes the volume accidently gets turned up ear-splittingly loud...

Pram is also useful for doing any work when bub doesn't want to let you out of their sight. We are packign to move at the moment and he wants to be held all the time - but if i put him in the pram where he can watch me work away, he's happy for a little while.

As for cleaning - I find that I make it a habit to put a load of washing on every time I put Andrew down to sleep during the day. I put him down, put a load on and then check on him and he's usually asleep. It takes up those few minutes where you usually tiptoe around to make sure he's asleep.

So at the very least, every day the washing is done and put away.

Darling hubby does the dishes/cleans the kitchen at night when he gets home. Thats "his" job. Everything else is my domain until the weekend, where we then both do whatever we can, whenever we can.

I have a roster - a very flexible one, for the week Mon - Fri. Every day one room gets tackled properly - kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, andrews room, living area.

I think the best thing is to try to be flexible...would rather have a happy baby than a clean house :)

[Chickadee]

* I "spot clean" our tiles with baby wipes when I can't be bothered vacumming and mopping or I use the broom and dustpan to do a quick clean.
I did this too, and then promptly slipped and fell at that spot. The lotions in some baby wipes can leave floors a bit slippery so be careful especially with little unsteady feet around.

Two big bins in the lounge room absorb all toys.

Train kids early to put their toys and things away. We play the Away game with lots of enthusiasm. DD is brilliant at putting clothes in the hampers, my shoes in the closet, etc.

If you don't have time or energy to clean the bathroom properly, just clean the mirror and the bit of area around the sink. Looks heaps better.

[drewid]

Oh, one other thing I do is keep the kitchen sink full of water during the day and wash up my/Andrews things as we go. Minimises the mess somewhat.

Am also a big fan of doing a big cookup on the weekend and freezing as many meals as I can, so we can be lazy during the week if we don't feel like cooking. Plus, the time it takes to do the cookup means bubs and daddy get some good play time together too!

[Harmony83]

What a great thread lots of hints I can use!!

I do things in stages, one day I'll do all the dusting & polishing, the next I will do sweeping and mopping, the next I do vaccuming then I can rest for the next couple days.

I put a load of washing in every morning also, then when done pop it straight into the drier - I'm so lazy, then fold without ironing... I iron when I use!

If you keep benchtops & tables clean, everything looks pretty tidey no matter how many things are on the floor... maybe just me, though!

I vaccuum if Braydens having trouble settling, the noise usually puts him to sleep. I used to have the cleanest carpet going, I'd vaccuum twice a day!!

We have a cat who sleeps on the top of the couch (which is black) and he sheds all his hair over it so if I can't be bothered vaccuuming it up I just put an old baby blanket over it to 'hide' it.

I'll let ya know if I can brainstorm any more lazy people ideas!!

[Rell]

Hi All
Thanks for the tips I think I should pay close attention to this thread as cleaning and organization is not one of my strong points.
I tend to do the same things as peaceangel "pretend" cleaning. Love the vacuum in the hall idea. I have an advantage of a toy room so when people come over I can just close the door.
My only tip is like MarthaM said to train the kids young. My 3yr old sets the table every night and tidys her room and the toy room (with a little help) For doing this she gets $3 pocket money (half she has to save)
Can't wait to read more tips

[jembelina]

[QUOTE=Peaceangels(I've never really got that add where the lady with the newborn allows people into her bathroom knowing its clean because she has a toilet duck/flush thing - yeah right that cleans the whole bathroom too :rolleyes: )
QUOTE]

And she has time to shower, dress(in her sunday best) and do her hair and make up! I'm getting me one of those when I have the next one!

I love the vac left out idea too!!

I put bubs folded washing outside his door when he sleeps so when he wakes I can take it in and put it away before i acually get him out of the cot. Otherwise it would sit on the back of the couch till I needed it again.

Somtimes I just put all the clothes from the floor into the laundry wether they are clean or dirty - the floor is clear & I don't have to deal wiht them again till they come off the line.

I often cook dinner in the morning or early afternoon - bub is in a better mood and it gives me more time to relax later.

I too chuck a load on or tidy up while bubs is falling asleep - saves me 'waiting' for him to drop off.

[rainbow]

I too use the cheap toilet paper for tidying up the bathroom - I also use it for wrapping sanitary products before chucking them in the bin so I don't waste the fancy soft paper.
The only housework I do properly is the washing (apart from letting it pile up before I wash it) - the quicker it gets folded up and put away, the more likely you will be to get out of the ironing. I also hang some things on the line on hangers instead of with pegs so I can put them straight in the cupboard. My best one is that when shopping for clothes I choose garments that aren't likley to need ironing, and I steer clear of anything that is sure to need ironing as I know it will hardly ever make it out of my ironing pile.
When I'm trying to clean up I just try to do whatever is most urgent first and go through the priority list because there is always something I thought I'd have time for and didn't. Atleast at the end of the day you can feel glad you got the most important things done.
When it comes to visitors, a bit of gentle fragrance in the house makes it seem a lot cleaner.
Junk boxes are great - when you need a space cleared but don't have time to go over everything it's really handy to just dump them in one spot and go over them later.
Making the bed is a high priority because it takes up most of the room.
Give your visitors a good experience of your house by giving them a yummy drink/snack, having good music on, greeting them with a big smile and a carefully relaxed mood. If they feel good they are less likely to notice flaws!
If possible, quickly cut some flowers from the garden as it all adds to the "I care about making my house a lovely home" effect.
Quickly bake some biscuits from a packet (it only takes like 15-20mins) because it makes you look like a great homemaker.
Prioritise the bathroom because that's the only place visitors are alone and comfortable enough to stare at your stuff.
Don't open the windows to let the fresh air in until after you've vacuumed (especially if you have a messy pet bird!!) as it blows everything all over the place.
NEVER EVER say "Sorry I didn't get to clean such-and-such, oh please don't look at that stain over there" etc etc as chnaces are they never would have noticed until you pointed it out!
Don't make conversation about the TV shows you've been watching.
Remember that at the end of the day most people don't pay that much attention to the state of other people's houses.
Play mind games with yourself eg "I will not check for new posts on bubhub until I have washed the dishes". Discover your willpower!