Now that I’m implementing my cleaning schedule to keep a clean house, I’m regularly decluttering as well. If I were really ambitious, I might consider trying 40 Bags in 40 Days like my mother-in-law.
When I declutter or go through my closet, I usually pile up the clothes and other things to donate and give them to my local Goodwill.
Instead of heading off to Goodwill this time around, I decided to call around and see if there were any Catholic organizations in need of my donations–gently used furniture, lamps, clothes, etc. Sure enough, I learned about several local groups in need of all different kinds of donations.
One such organization is the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul has thrift stores and food pantries nationwide. You can find your local Society of St. Vincent de Paul thrift store or food pantry here.
My local Society of St. Vincent de Paul even offers residential pick-up of your donations. If you call your local chapter, you can set up a time for the Society’s truck to pick up your items and haul them away. This is a great option for those who have little ones or who don’t have a large car to haul items like furniture down to the warehouse.
Your material and monetary donations help the Vincentians (members of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul) serve the poor. Specifically, here’s how the Society of St. Vincent de Paul helps the poor in your community:
Donations help provide direct assistance to the poor in local communities throughout the United States. Vincentians meet face to face with the poor to assess their needs. Some of the needs addressed by Vincentians include: housing and utiltiy assistance; job training and placement; and access to food, clothing, transportation and medical care. The National Council also makes grants to the local Conferences/Councils through its Domestic Disaster Relief Grants and the Friends of the Poor Grant Programs. There are many ways in which you can donate. Please click on the DONATE ONLINE button to make your selection. Your donation is also tax deductible.
If you’ve already gotten rid of your spring cleaning donations, think about your pantry. Start cleaning out your pantry the day before you go to the grocery store. Identify extras or items you will not be able to consume before they expire, and bag them up for your local Society of St. Vincent de Paul food pantry. My parish distributes paper bags for parishoners to take and return full of non-perishable food items that church volunteers take to the pantry the first Sunday of each month. Consider bringing this practice to your parish if it isn’t there already.
This is just one example of ways that you can easily help the poor in your local community through a Catholic organization. What are some other Catholic groups you help with your time, treasure, or talent? Please share your ideas and experiences!
Be forewarned that this post is going to reveal a lot about my OCD-ness and other neuroses. Hopefully this will be of some help to the other OCD-ers or even wannabe OCD-ers.
In creating our Boucher Family Binder, I dedicated a section to “Household Management.” In a previous blog post, I mentioned that this is the place where I keep anything and everything related to the running of our home. I can’t even begin to tell you what a difference these checklists are making in reducing my stress level. I’ve always been a list maker. Seeing what I have to do and when I need to do it forces me to be more productive.
When I was still teaching full-time, I was always running around like a chicken with my head cut off. I’d go from school to home, eat dinner amid my schoolwork, convince myself that I was at a stopping point, maybe watch a show, and get to bed around midnight or later. Housework was always relegated to the weekends, but it seemed to get postponed as we found more exciting things to do than dust or deep-clean the kitchen.
When I transitioned to staying at home, I was overwhelmed with the time freed up for the housework (or at least the outside perception that I had all of this “free time” to create domestic perfection). I had no idea where to begin. Finally, two years into this stay-at-home gig, I’m figuring out that I need “do it” lists–very specific “do it” lists: daily, weekly, monthly, and seasonal “do it” lists. I know this is silly, but I call them “do it” lists rather than “to do” lists so that it sounds like I have more of a commitment to actually do the things I write down.
First, I have my Daily Do It List for keeping straight the logistics of my day.
This is where I relegate my daily mind clutter. Before I go to bed each night, I write down any appointments or places I need to go (“go”), important or out of the ordinary tasks I need to accomplish (“do”), items I need to purchase (“buy”), people I need to call or somehow contact (“call”), and what we’re having for dinner that night so that I keep the prep time in mind when I create that day’s schedule (“cook”). Putting it all on paper before the day begins helps me to go to bed without obsessing over all that I need to accomplish the following day. I used to go to bed with all kinds of mind clutter and keep myself up at night, thinking about all of the things I needed to do, go to, buy, cook, or people I needed to call/e-mail. Now, I figure all of that out before bed, put it on my Daily Do It List, and go to bed without the mind clutter.
WARNING: Before you read on, please keep in mind that everyone’s definition of clean is different. You must decide what is a healthy balance of safe (especially in the kitchen and bathroom) and manageable for your schedule and priorities. You might look at my lists and think, “Is she crazy?! Why does she vacuum that much?!” On the other hand, you might look at my lists and think, “Gross! She only vacuums under furniture once a month!” The following lists are what works for me (as of now!), and they might be too lax or strict for your style. Pick and choose what’ll work for you!
Now, enter the Daily Cleaning Schedule. This is the list of the bare bones things I do everyday to keep the house functioning.
I committed myself to doing these things each day to make them habit if they weren’t already. Wiping down the kitchen sink and bathroom sinks, tubs, and shower walls after each use is taking a huge chunk of time out of my deep cleaning routine. Some call it crazy, I call it working smart, not hard.
Then, I have my Weekly Cleaning Schedule.
The goal of my weekly cleaning schedule is two-fold:
No more playing “catch up” or panic with unexpected visitors
Having specific days for household tasks holds me more accountable to actually doing them. This ultimately means I get to spend more time doing what matters.
Keep Sunday a day of REST and WORSHIP.
I have a new rule that it all will and must wait on Sundays. Can I tell you how much more our family loves Sundays now?
To create my weekly cleaning schedule, I listed all of the things that I think need to get done in our house on a weekly basis. I consulted a few other websites for guidance on this. No wonder I was getting stressed out! I was keeping all of these things in my head and expecting to remember to do them all and try to conquer as many as possible each day. That system wasn’t working. I ended up overwhelmed, and the perfectionist in me delayed housework because my mentality was that if it wasn’t going to be perfect, it wasn’t worth doing. I’d wait for the right amount of time to come along to do a chore rather than doing what I could when I could. Mothers of young children know that my system of waiting for the “perfect time” to come along to do a chore was bound to fail.
After listing all of the things I want to accomplish each week, I considered what our family’s schedule looks like each day. I considered what my motivation level looks like on various days of the week, what items require more time or attention, and in what order I will be most likely to accomplish these items. I tried creating a weekly schedule before, but it wasn’t nearly this detailed or accurate in terms of what I’d actually do. If something unexpected comes up like a last-minute playdate or a sick kiddo, I let myself off the hook when I need to and reassign items that don’t get accomplished to other days. I tell myself that the goal is to teach my children by example that it is important to care for home and family thro
ugh cleaning and cooking and everything else, but that it’s equally important to spend time with one another and having fun. True to how I’ve always been, I’m much busier these days trying to keep up with my cleaning schedule, but I end up having much more quality time with my children and Philip because everything that needs to get done is actually getting done.
Next, I have my Monthly Cleaning Schedule.
As you might have guessed, these are the things that only need to be done once a month. Quick tip: Work with your microwave to clean it. Put half of a lemon in a microwave safe bowl full of water, and let it run for five minutes. When done, wipe down the inside of the microwave walls with the steam. ¡Voila!
Finally, I made a Seasonal Checklist of the chores that need to be done each of the four seasons.
That’s it! These lists are keeping my home clean. I hope they help you and your home. Work smart, not hard, and spend more time doing the things you love with the people you love!
If you’re interested in a copy of these lists as Microsoft Word docs that you can edit for your own use, e-mail me at cboucher08@gmail.com.
Here are some of our latest pictures and the funny things that’ve happened lately.
The largest strawberry I’ve ever seen
Family trip to the neighborhood park a few weeks ago
They’re starting to play together more and more. Jane is surprisingly good at sharing her toys. “Here ya go, Walt.”
First bath together
Splash, splash, splash!
Cheeeeeeeeese!
Walt in my favorite footie monster jammies
Army crawling with Monty
Celebrating Philip and Jane’s birthdays with Philip’s family. Jane looks like she’s making a wish.
Oatmeal and nanas. Yum, yum, yum!
When I was pregnant with Walt and had a really sensitive nose, I started covering my nose with my shirt as I changed Janie’s diapers. I still cover my nose from time to time if the kiddos have stinky diapers. I caught Jane changing her Baby Stella’s diaper and covering her nose with her shirt. Monkey see, monkey do!
We g
ot some ice cream after dinner tonight. Jane had two memorable quotes.
“Oooooooo, yummy! So cold!”
“Janie, slow down!”
Jane: “Mommy, watch show?”
Me: “No, no shows.”
Jane: “News?”
At lunch, Jane kept saying, “Mama, tray, tray, tray!” I thought something was wrong with the tray on her seat. Eventually I figured out that she wasn’t saying “tray,” but “pray.” She was upset that I offered her food without praying first. I said, “Oh, Janie, thank you for reminding Mama to pray first.” She said, “You’re welcome, Mama.”
Philip came home from work. As he reached the gate at the top of the stairs, Jane said to him from the other side, “Dada, come over here!”
Now that Janie’s 2, we decided it’s time to say goodbye to the binkie. I was dreading the whole ordeal, and I was so nervous for her reaction. One night we decided to go cold turkey. As we got Janie ready for bed, we told her, “Janie, binkies are all gone. Binkies went bye bye.” She looked at us, and I held my breath, waiting for screaming and tears. She looked in the box on her changing table where we had kept the binkies and discovered that they were, in fact, gone. She said, “Mama, Dada, binkies all gone.” Then, to our surprise, she climbed into bed with her stuffed animals without a fuss, and went to bed as usual! She’s never asked for a binkie since that night, and she’s never tried to steal Walt’s. Who is this kid?!
With allergy season in full force, there has been a lot of tissue use around here. I ask Janie several times a day to come over so that “Mama can wipe the boogies from your nose.” The other day I was changing Janie’s diaper. She looked up at me and pointed to my nose. “Mama, you got boogies in your nose!” Thanks, sweetie.
Here are some of our latest pictures and the funny things that’ve happened lately.
The largest strawberry I’ve ever seen
Family trip to the neighborhood park a few weeks ago
They’re starting to play together more and more. Jane is surprisingly good at sharing her toys. “Here ya go, Walt.”
First bath together
Splash, splash, splash!
Cheeeeeeeeese!
Walt in my favorite footie monster jammies
Army crawling with Monty
Celebrating Philip and Jane’s birthdays with Philip’s family. Jane looks like she’s making a wish.
Oatmeal and nanas. Yum, yum, yum!
When I was pregnant with Walt and had a really sensitive nose, I started covering my nose with my shirt as I changed Janie’s diapers. I still cover my nose from time to time if the kiddos have stinky diapers. I caught Jane changing her Baby Stella’s diaper and covering her nose with her shirt. Monkey see, monkey do!
We got some ice cream after dinner tonight. Jane had two memorable quotes.
“Oooooooo, yummy! So cold!”
“Janie, slow down!”
Jane: “Mommy, watch show?”
Me: “No, no shows.”
Jane: “News?”
At lunch, Jane kept saying, “Mama, tray, tray, tray!” I thought something was wrong with the tray on her seat. Eventually I figured out that she wasn’t saying “tray,” but “pray.” She was upset that I offered her food without praying first. I said, “Oh, Janie, thank you for reminding Mama to pray first.” She said, “You’re welcome, Mama.”
Philip came home from work. As he reached the gate at the top of the stairs, Jane said to him from the other side, “Dada, come over here!”
Now that Janie’s 2, we decided it’s time to say goodbye to the binkie. I was dreading the whole ordeal, and I was so nervous for her reaction. One night we decided to go cold turkey. As we got Janie ready for bed, we told her, “Janie, binkies are all gone. Binkies went bye bye.” She looked at us, and I held my breath, waiting for screaming and tears. She looked in the box on her changing table where we had kept the binkies and discovered that they were, in fact, gone. She said, “Mama, Dada, binkies all gone.” Then, to our surprise, she climbed into bed with her stuffed animals without a fuss, and went to bed as usual! She’s never asked for a binkie since that night, and she’s never tried to steal Walt’s. Who is this kid?!
With allergy season in full force, there has been a lot of tissue use around here. I ask Janie several times a day to come over so that “Mama can wipe the boogies from your nose.” The other day I was changing Janie’s diaper. She looked up at me and pointed to my nose. “Mama, you got boogies in your nose!” Thanks, sweetie.
It took me awhile, but I finally posted videos to a private YouTube channel so that I can upload them quickly to my blog.
Jane has always loved music and television. Therefore, the Super Bowl Halftime Show is a pretty big deal to her. It has it all–lights, music, cool outfits, dancing, and television wrapped into one!
We recorded Jane’s “freestyle interpretation” of the 2011 and 2012 Superbowl Halftime Shows. Seeing them back to back is a quick reminder of how much things can change in a year.
Here’s 11-month-old Jane dancing to the Black Eyed Peas in 2011:
Here’s 23-month-old Jane dancing to Madonna in 2012:
