This past year I have relied a lot on my husband to do housework. He did what he could, but basically a lot of stuff just didn't get done regularly. He had his hands full looking for work and taking care of our wild child Bekah. I was working so many hours that I was exhausted when I was home and really just wanted to spend time relaxing and cuddling my kids.
Now that Hubby is back at work, we both have to share the responsibilities of keeping the house clean and chores done. It has been difficult finding that rhythm. We have been passing around the same cold and plagued by allergies. So things just haven't been getting done. But I just cannot take it anymore. I grew up in a very clean and organized house. I should say both houses as my parents are divorced. I am not used to living in chaos and in fact it adds to my panic disorder.
To get back on track, my goal was to get one big chore done a week. Organize the kitchen, the linen closet, etc. I have gotten a few things done, but the weekly cleaning is where we have a problem. I came up with a plan and emailed it to hubby so he had a copy of the list. He loves lists. However, there was a misunderstanding in who was to do what. I took for granted that he read the email. I thought that when I told him I emailed him the list that it was going to get done. But, with all that has been going on it just didn't get done.
Today (my 39th birthday) I decided that I needed to start off on the right foot and get the house cleaned. Hubby watched and I gave him the evil eye, wishing he would get off his butt and do his part. Granted he has been suffering from allergies, so he really wasn't feeling well. He took the cue that I was upset and got up and tried a few things. He was acting like each step he took was like he was pulling a pyramid behind him. So I told him to just sit down.
I went ahead and did my chores. He would get up occasionally and try to help me. Finally I asked him why he was trying to help me when he had his own stuff to do. This is where I found out that he had no idea that I split up the chores so things were as even as possible. Once I explained to him the plan, he started doing stuff and rocked out his part of the chore list.
One reason why I split up the chore list is because we both get so overwhelmed by knowing the whole house needs to be cleaned. We end up not doing it. If you know you only have to do half, you aren't so weighed down. We don't have to do it all in one day, just throughout the week when we have time we can tackle a chore. I wanted to get it done today though, as it was bothering me really bad. We have all been sick and I just wanted to get things clean so we would stop passing things around.
Here is how I spit up the chores.
Nolen:
Clean up, dust and vacuum dining room, living room, girls rooms.
Change sheets in girls bedrooms
Scoop the litter box every day and take out the garbage.
Help with cooking when needed
Unload dishwasher
He is mostly the one to pick up the girls and drop them off at school.
Me:
Clean both bathrooms and kitchen.
Mop floors in both bathrooms and kitchen
Change sheets and pick up master bedroom.
Clean up and dust/vacuum master bedroom
Menu plan, grocery shop, do most of cooking.
I hope that we can keep up with this plan. I called a family meeting at lunch today to make sure we were all on the same page. We are all part of this family and we all need to do what needs to get done. Just like we are all members of society and we all have our parts in it.
Wish us luck that we can stay on track.
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