Along with starting my 4 week menu plan (mentioned below), I am once again trying to get better organized with house cleaning. I’ve got 5 boys at home, 3 of which are very capable of doing anything I can do in the cleaning area, and 1 that is always wanting to do what his big brothers do. The youngest is still too young to be given too much to do without me being right there, so he’s my right hand man.
I typically give each boy a room to clean, but lately (for the past couple of years), they seem to have "forgotten" how and what to do. My plan is to post each of these lists in the kitchen so they will have no excuses. The lists will also alleviate any "misunderstandings" about what they are expected to do.
I plan to assign one boy to the living room, one to the kitchen and dining room (I help a lot in there), and one to the bathroom and laundry room. The bedrooms will be expected to be done by all of them. I haven’t gotten brave enough to assign each boy a day to do his laundry, so I’m still the main instigator behind getting it done, although they know they are to help when asked.
So here’s my room cleaning lists:
Living Room
Everyday
Straighten music
Straighten piano music
Straighten DVD/videos
Straighten entertainment center
Straighten both small tables
Pick up stuff from floor, couches and chairs
Straighten puzzles
Twice a week (usually Thursday and Saturday)
Dust all furniture
Dust mini-blinds
Dust window sill
Dust light fixtures
Dust pictures
Vacuum all the carpet in living room and down the hall
Clean under couch and chairs
As needed
Clean tree (take outside and clean with hose)
Clean floral arrangements (wash in bathtub)
Clean carpet
Change light bulbs
Dining Room
Everyday
Sweep
Straighten green chest
Straighten window seat
Straighten table
Clean table w/damp cloth
Twice a week (Usually Thursday and Saturday)
Dust pictures
Dust green chest
Dust window sill
Dust light fixtures
Clean chairs w/damp cloth
Swiffer
As needed
Change light bulbs
Sweep under window seat
Kitchen
Everyday
Empty/Fill dishwasher
Sweep
Empty/fill ice trays
Straighten counter tops
Twice a week (Usually Thursday and Saturday)
Wipe applicances with damp cloth
Wipe window sill with damp cloth
Swiffer
Wipe inside of fridge with damp cloth
Wipe inside of microwave with damp cloth
As needed
Clean inside of toaster
Straighten inside of cabinets
Clean cabinet doors
Clean out fridge
Laundry Room
When asked
Fold clothes
Help Jonathan put his clothes away
Put your clothes away
Straighten up
Change light bulbs
Sweep/Swiffer
Bathroom
Everyday
Wipe out sinks
Put dirty clothes/towels/cloths in hamper
Straighten counter top
Check toilet tissue
Twice a week (Usually Thursday and Saturday)
Sweep/Swiffer
Scrub counter
Clean mirror
Scrub toilet
Scrub tub
Wipe down window sill
Dust pictures
As needed
Wash shower curtain
Straighten linen closet
Bedroom
Everyday
Make bed
Pick up clothes
Straighten games and computer area
Put up books
Pick up toys
Twice a week (Usually Thursday and Saturday)
Straighten desks
Straighten chest
Clean closet
Vacuum
Dust furniture
Dust electronics
Dust light fixtures
As needed
Change light bulbs
Clean carpet
Change sheets
Straighten drawers
Hi, I'm a homeschooling mother of seven children and I have really enjoyed reading your blogs tonight. I'm so glad I happened upon them. You have inspired me in many ways. Love the scheduling ideas, the meal ideas, and the curriculum ideas. Thank you for sharing. You are a very good writer also. I wrote my first blog recently and it took so much effort that I would much rather just read yours.
When my older two, now 18 and 22, were teens, we would rotate each month our areas of cleaning. We had kitchen/dinning room, bathrooms, and livingroom/laundry. I hate doing the kitchen, this way I only had to do it once every three months. I know some do it weekly, but then I would always forget about the change or something, it just worked out better to do it monthly. Now I only have a just turned 7 around, I need to start working on something with her. I usually have her clean up the livingroom, but nothing detailed yet. Good Luck.
Donna