A House of Order - Establishing a Cleaning Routine

I have been working on organizing my cleaning schedule and coming up with a chore system for the kids this week. 

I am not a big chore chart fan. They just seem to be A LOT more work for mommy than the actual work that they help accomplish.  I have tried cute little chore charts. I once tried a chore chart that had a bunch of cute little cutout things for the kids with small pictures of chores that they moved from "do it" to "done." Sounds simple enough, but all the pieces were a big pain and it had to be setup every day so we could start over again. There were too many chores on there to do and it was just too complicated. I have tried the simple check the box or simple charts, but they always disappear from the fridge and end up in some random part of the house. Don't work. I have tried no chore chart and just trying to let the kids know what is expected of them, and I have tried the "just ask mommy" approach which gets old really fast. So, what is my genius idea this time?

I have a very simplified chore process. First off we call the morning routine the "Big Five." I got this from somewhere, don't know where, but just so you know it is not an original idea. The "Big Five" consists of: Make Bed, Get Dressed, Take care of PJs, Brush Teeth, Comb Hair. One item for each finger on one hand. These are chores that are just automatic. No chore chart. I am,  however, going to make a little poster with visuals to tape to the back of their door or something because that's just what I do. 

Next we are going to have a meal time chore that will stay the same all week. There are only three chores because we only have three children that can do chores right now. Mom or dad will help with these chores and adapt to age/skill level as needed. They are: Set Table, Unload Dishwasher & Sweep, and Load Dishwasher. These chores will be done for each meal except unloading dishwasher is a once-a-day chore at our house (at least for now!) I made little cards that have these duties on them and wrote what is required for the job on the back.

The second chore is a daily chore, and again I picked three: Take Out Garbage, Straighten Living Room, and Help with Laundry. 

The Last chore is one they only have to help with once a week (for now): Clean Bathroom, Wash Walls, and Vacuum. 

I made little pockets with their names on them that stick to the fridge to keep their three chores in so they can pull them out and read the back so they know what they need to do. Mostly, because I have kept it simple I can just remember who is in charge of what for the week. Simplify, simplify, simplify. The kids were so excited when I finished the chore cards yesterday that we had to start last night so they will get a couple extra days of practice before we officially start chores on Monday. My 7-year-old daughter who has laundry help actually was so excited that she put in a load of towels on her own while I was getting my glasses fixed last night (the side effect of a 3-year-old deciding he needed to "see" something yesterday). The only problem was it was a HUGE load of towels and has taken forever to dry! We'll be working on that one! By the way, daddy was home but did not notice this little helper being so "helpful." 

I'm also working on a chore system for myself that is a card system that is similar to what is found in a book called "Side-tracked Home Executives" by Pamela Young. When I read this book a long time ago I didn't get around to setting up the system because it was a lot of work (and it still is) and it was too overwhelming for me at the time. I have kept a running list of chores that I think need to be done around my house and how often I think they need to be done and now I am putting them on cards according to chore frequency. I am hoping this will help put my mind to rest because I am very detail oriented and I always think about all the detailed cleaning stuff like baseboards, windows, vacuuming the ceiling fan, etc., when I sometimes can't even find the basic parts of my house. This is a problem because what happens is I get one room really clean (every corner dusted, windows and blinds cleaned, no extra junk, etc.), but then rest of the house is a disaster. I am trying to figure out a household maintenance system that works where I can then add in these "extra" deep cleaning chores and feel like my house is all-around clean. I think this card system will work because I am a checklist type of person. Sometimes I make a list and put things on it that I have already done just so I can cross it off and feel like I am accomplishing something. I also am notorious for thinking I can accomplish way more than is humanly possible for a mom of four kids who homeschools.

I think these baby steps in the cleaning routine will help immensely. I have a few other things I would like to eventually do, but for now I think this is a great start!