House Keeping Schedule

My husband was driving back to North Dakota today listening to the radio like most people do on a 12 hour drive when he heard an old radio comedy. The topic of the comedy was about striving to be a better housewife, based on my recent efforts he couldn't wait to call and tell me about it. When he came into the story the husband was laying on the floor in the garage because he was afraid to mess up the couch. In the end the wife tells him that she still wants a perfect house, but that he can make messes because she likes to clean up after him (yeah, right). When the husband asks her why she responds by telling him that she went to the neighbors house and the husband was sitting on the couch with his feet up on the table smoking a cigar (I imagine every man dreams about this). Long story short when she asked where the wife was, the husband replied, she is tied up on the porch so he could live in the home she made for him. This got me thinking, It shouldn't be that hard. 

Over the last month I have become pretty good at keeping my house. I confess, I am not perfect when it comes to keeping up with everything every day especially when my husband is on days off, but my overall schedule has turned out to be quite effective. For the first week this took me a couple of hours every day, now I can breeze through most of it and most days only take me between an hour or two. The one exception is Wednesday or as I have come to call it Kitchen Day. Thoughtlessness, when cleaning the kitchen takes time, even if you do it every week. I almost find it comical that my favorite room in the house is my least favorite chore. 

This is my cleaning schedule and if you are having a little trouble finding motivation with an area of your house, or just want a new routine give this one a try, all the check off marks are super nice to see. This is the list that works for me, I dust, sweep, and vacuum more than might be necessary for others because I have two dogs. You should modify this list to fit your needs.

Monday
Make Bed
Wash Darks
Walk Dogs (or exercise if you don't have the dogs)
Quick Clean Kitchen
Quick Clean Living Room
Quick Clean Bedrooms
Deep Clean Bathrooms including
     Tub/shower
     Toilets, including sides and tank
     Rugs
     Mirrors
     Check light bulbs
     Sweep/mop floors including edges
     Empty trashes
Dust Living Room
Sweep and Mop Kitchen, Dining Room, and Entryway
Vacuum Living Areas
Wipe Down Washer and Dryer
Pick up Back Yard

Tuesday
Strip bed
Wash bedding
Walk Dogs
Quick Clean Kitchen
Quick Clean Living Room
Deep Clean Bedroom including
     Dust all furniture including the bed
     Windowsills
     Dust picture frames
     Dust ceiling fan
Dust Living Room
Sweep Kitchen
Vacuum Living Areas
Make Bed
Wipe Down Washer and Dryer

Wednesday
Make Bed
Start Darks Washing
Walk Dogs
Start Oven Cleaning
Quick Clean Kitchen
Quick Clean Living Room
Quick Clean Bedrooms
Quick Clean Bathrooms
Dust Living Room
Sweep/Mop Kitchen and Entryway
Vacuum Living Areas
Keep Clean Kitchen including
     Pantry
     Fridge
     Wipe down oven
     Shine stove top
     Microwave
     Organize any cupboards
     Wipe down cupboard faces
     Dust china hutch
     Windowsills
     Mop edges
     Plan meals
     Take trash to the curb
     Freshen garbage disposal
   
Thursday
Make Bed
Wash Towels
Walk Dogs
Quick Clean Kitchen
Deep Clean Living Room including
     Ceiling fan
     Entertainment center
     Dust picture frames
     Vacuum couch
     Vacuum edges for all carpet
Quick Clean Bedrooms
Quick Clean Bathrooms
Sweep Kitchen
Vacuum Living Areas
Run Errands, Grocery Shop


Friday
Make Bed
Wash Whites
Walk Dogs
Quick Clean Kitchen
Quick Clean Living Room
Quick Clean Bedrooms
Quick Clean Bathrooms
Dust Living Room
Sweep and Mop Kitchen and Entryway
Vacuum Living Areas
Wipe Down Washer and Dryer
Deep Clean Office Including
     Clean desk
     Dust guest bed
     Dust book shelves
     Window panes
     Windowsills
     Dust blinds

Saturday
Make Bed
Wash Dedicates
Walk Dog
Quick Clean Kitchen
Quick Clean Living Room
Quick Clean Bedrooms
Quick Clean Bathrooms
Dust Living Room
Sweep Kitchen
Vacuum Living Areas
Wipe Down Washer and Dryer
Basement, Garage, Car

Sunday
Make Bed
Walk Dogs
Quick Clean Kitchen
Quick Clean Living Room
Quick Clean Bedrooms
Quick Clean Bathrooms
Dust Living Room
Sweep Kitchen
Vacuum Living Areas
Water Plants
One Time a month Chore (Rotate)
     Windows
     Baseboards
     Outside of house
     Closets