Clean House

It's so mundane that no one really talks about it (Well, except for Martha Stewart. And the Real Simple people.), but aren't you kind of curious about how other people clean their houses?

Since I'm preparing to end our family visit and return to life on our own, I've been retuning the cleaning schedule. When the babies were younger, I scrambled to get all of the housework done during their naps. Now that they're older, I no longer need to make baby food. Don't get me wrong - making baby food was easy, but it did take time, especially making it in quantity for two little tummies. But on the other hand, they're down to just one nap now, so getting it all done during nap time is out. And since I don't get any time in the evening to myself thanks to my little bit's intense separation anxiety, nap time is IT for getting my read or write on.

Before, I was cleaning according to making the most efficient use of a tool - like the vacuum on the day I cleaned all of the floors. Now I'm cleaning according to room so that I can keep the babies close by while I clean.

Here's how I've divided the cleaning/chores up over the week:
Monday - Kitchen, Diaper Laundry
Tuesday - Dining Room, Entryway, Stairs, Hallway, Load of Laundry
Wednesday - Bedrooms, Diaper Laundry
Thursday - Bathrooms, Load of Laundry
Friday - Office, Diaper Laundry
Saturday - Living Room
Sunday - Grocery Planning, Shopping

I've also made a checklist for each day that incorporates the daily stuff like making the beds. I'm going to keep the checklists in sheet protectors inside my Home Management Guide so I can check them off every day with an overhead projector marker. Maybe that amount of organization makes you want to punch me in the face, but in my defense A) I love the heady thrill of checking things off on a To Do list, and B) If you know me, you know that I'm just scatterbrained enough to forget any number of the things on the list for months at time.

In case you're interested in creating your own checklist, here's Martha's checklist to use as a starting point for making your own.

Now it's your turn to dish - How do you do it? Do you have a schedule or routine? Just go on an as-needed basis? Let it go until you can't stand it anymore? (*Confession* All of the above have applied to me at some point.)