Thursday, March 25, 2010
system overhaul
the laundry situation at my house it getting out of control, as dear husband reminded me this morning. i have to laugh at his ultimatums, though, because what is he really going to do about it unless he does it himself? alas, i know i'm the culprit, as this is my job. what are your suggestions, cleaner-than-me friends? i need a system, a specific, feasible system. tell me what you do and i will emulate you as best i can. i adore wearing dresses, but loathe the fact that i often wear them because i have no clean pants. i'd rather wear them because i choose to, not out of necessity. my neightbor, who is dutch (around here the calvanist dutch women traditionally wear skirts or dresses) even commented on my increased use of skirts. all i could think of was "great, now i look like someone of another faith" and cringed. at least it wasn't a mennonite comparison. i do have some sense of style, even if it's only in its infant stages. in a house where someone is either spitting up, pooping, or wiping their greasy paws onto your clothing, how do i keep it together? how many loads a week do you do? do i really have to do laundry every day? and how do you do it and cook and play and still have time to eat, shower and exercise?
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My dear, this is the endless difficulty of being a mom. But I have found a solution that works well for me and now for my sister and my neighbor. Of course it depends on the size of your laundry room, but hopefully it's adaptable.I have laundry baskets for each child. In my laundry room they are sitting against the wall across from the washer and dryer. When the dryer is done, I sort it right into their individual baskets, every single time. I don't fold it even, I just throw it in. I figure either the older ones will do it the way they like it, the younger ones will just cram it in anyway, and the babies I'll end up putting it anyway. When the baskets are full, they are taken by the children (or myself) and put away. I don't keep dirty laundry in the laundry room either. It stays in the laundry baskets they have in their rooms (yes, each person in my house has two laundry baskets) and then when the washer is free, I grab a basket and do a load. That way my laundry room is never piled high with dirty clothes, so they can never get mixed in with the clean. And my laundry room stays much cleaner. My laundry room is not super big. IT's the size of a small bathroom, but we make it work. Or shelves on the wall would be effective as well to put your baskets. YOu could even have sturdy hooks on the walls to hold the laundry baskets if you are limited on space. Since doing this, I have only had 2 laundry back ups in the past year. And that was due to injury or illness. But if your husband is like mine and occasionally decides to "help" with the laundry, really explain the system to him otherwise he will mess it all up. JEff does this to me all the time and it makes me crazy. He thinks he's helping, but then he just dumps load after load of laundry into our bedroom and pretty soon my bedroom haven is the second laundry room. This really works, I promise. I hope this description made sense. Email me if you have questions. And who knows, someone may have a better solution, but this is what works for me.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I haven't actually tried the idea, I think that I could keep up with ONE load per day. The boys have enough clothes for one white load (maybe 1/2) and two dark loads, so I just wash theirs when the basket gets full (it's one of those tall ones). I don't mix kids clothes with adults. I really think that if I did ONE load per day - wash, dry, fold and put away, I could keep up and not have clothes all over the place. I should try it sometime! :)
ReplyDeleteI just do it everyday or it get's away from me...But it has taken me many years to develop this system and be consistant with it. There is no other solution...even one load a day and then fold it as soon as it gets out of the dryer, have a basket right by the dryer in the floor and fold right away into the baskets..I have a basket for the boys, the girls and mitch and I...this way if I do not feel like putting it away they can all go look in their baskets where at least the clothes are folded and I don't feel over whelmed with it all...But 1 load will keep you up with it and at least it is getting done.
ReplyDeleteI have to say....I just started Amy's method about three weeks ago and I have been telling everyone I know. It is awesome. Sounds simple but it really really works. Believe me, I am going to school full time and have been in the relief society presidency- I know what backed up laundry looks like :) try it. You'll love it!
ReplyDeletecheck out flylady.com I hear she's great!
ReplyDeleteI really like what Amy said. Especially where she doesn't fold anything, really is there any point? I think you know my system. Wyatt does it all. He also came up with this great idea. You buy one of those laundry basket systems with 3 bags. Then everyone has a basket in their room. When the basket in your room is full, you take it to the laundry room and sort it into the 3 hanging bags. (this is an actual laundry bag thingy, I just don't know what to call it. Can be found anywhere from Walmart to Costco.) One bag is for darks, lights, and colds. Then when I see the dark bag is full, I know there is enough for a load, and I (Wyatt) puts it in. I figure the kids learn the difference between light and dark, a bit of work, and problem solving skills. Hmmm, what to do when you have no clothes in your drawer? Sort your laundry!
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