One of the things I really struggled with after having a baby and especially after we had two was the housework.  Before I had kids, I had a system that really worked well for me.  I used a card file to organize all my chores and everything got done when it needed to.  But with all the chaos of having children, the card file quickly gathered dust.  I would forget to check it or would get off track because I didn’t have time to do certain things on the days they were supposed to be done on.

I tried several other systems before I hit on one that I’ve been using since Kelvin was born.  This works for me because it’s completely flexible and can change with our weeks, which are always different.

First, I made a list of all the things I want to get done every week.  Since I still have two small children, it doesn’t include detailed cleaning.  It’s just the basics that have to get done (sweeping, light dusting, cleaning bathrooms, etc.)….there will be plenty of time to dust the baseboards when the kids are older!!  Hey, maybe then they can even do it for me!!

Then every Sunday when I’m planning my week, I look at all the activities we have going on and figure out which days would be good for doing each chore.  For instance, I’m not going to try to sweep the house the day we have appointments and grocery shopping.  Then I write each chore from my list onto a day on the calendar.  Some days have three or four, some days don’t have any.  It all depends on what’s going on.

Now what about bigger jobs that don’t need to get done every week, but still need attention (like scrubbing the bedroom floors, vacuuming the stairs, purging the medicine cabinet, etc.)?  I don’t have a list of these jobs, but you could definitely make one if it would help you.  I just pick one thing that’s been bothering me to get done each week.  That way, things are getting done when they need to be done, not when they’re not even dirty yet.

I would highly recommend this system to any mom.  Let’s face it…none of our weeks are the same.  Some weeks, we have insanely busy Wednesdays, other weeks our busy day is Monday.  This system lets you schedule your housework around existing commitments, but since it is scheduled and it’s right there on your calendar, you don’t forget about it.  There’s nothing worse than realizing it’s Friday, the house is a wreck and you haven’t done any of the housework you needed to for the week yet!

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