KonMari 2017 - The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up

PollyWollyDoodle

Today the plumber was due to call at 9. He's looking at the central heating, so he'll need to go into every room. Was I up till midnight, clearing a path to the radiators and then up again at 6.00 am so I could clean before he came? Nope.

There's a CS bag in the spare room, and a bookcase that I need to put on Freegle. Bit of filing in my 'office', not much, and a current craft project on the kitchen table. That's it. Every radiator is easily accessible, and because the floors are clear, when I clean I've been able to get right up to the skirting, so no evil dust bunnies or cobwebs under them. (Well, maybe one or two!)

I think this is probably the first time in my life that I've been able to have someone come in to the house without first spending ages tidying and then wringing my hands and apologising for the state of the place while they were here. This really IS life changing.

The plumber didn't turn up, but that's another story! :rotfl:

minnie2

So taking a quick break.i was very slow at getting started today.so i set my alarm at 11.30 for half hour to sort my bedroom however ive been snoozing it ever since!!! But have now finished the bedroom except the bed thats striped but hasnt been washed as yet.i am now regretting not putting a wash on yet.wasting time!! Nevermind.ive found a mouldy patch on underneath of our mattress we have a very damp outside wall that our bed is against.so not sure how to tackle the mattress!! I am allergic to products . mould is also bad as im severely asthmatic.but i have finally managed to turn the mattress!! Yay!!

So i have moved everything that shouldnt be in my bedroom into what was my very clear living room :-( but now going to tackle that next.the bathroom i done most of it lastnight finished it of this morning.only other stuff to sort is washing than need soaking....whih again wish i had put to soak while i sorted bedroom nevermind it could have been drying by now!! Our bathroom doesnt have much storage and it need knocking down and starting again. I keep moving stuff from basket in my bedroom back to bathroom havent decided in a final place yet.the problem we have is my sister lives with us and her stuff is everywhere .she went bath after i cleaned last night and then this morning her stuff is.everywhere again which doesn't help.neither does my hubby his stuff is everyhwere i file it away and he dumps it back ontop of the cupboard so when i open it they always fall on me!! & he leaves empty containers everywhere! ! Toys are kept in abag under the bath as we dont have a bath panel.

So onto the next room but i will put a wash on first and soak some linen though!! If i lived on my own my house would be lovely!!

minnie2

And i have recently bought them.but after moaning about never being able to fine baby wipes in the house when i need them and buying two packs yesterday while out and not on a great deal ive realised ive got 20packs sitting in my bedroom! !! But i put them out of the way where i never put anything and totally forgot as there are packets of pull up sitting ontop of them!! Arghhhh!!

Siebrie

Minnie2, I think it's time to train your housemates. Dump everything in their bed (wet or not), throw it in the bin, use your sister's fancy bathsmells (if she keeps them in the general area it's for general use ), etc. They are using you as their housekeeper! You are not their maid; they are old enough to help clean the house, and at least keep their own stuff in the designated places.

firebubble

Minnie, MK doesn't mention it, but Flylady (who is mainly about cleaning and how you organise that, but also talks about decluttering) always says declutter first, then clean, because you can't clean and declutter without pulling out more than you can cope with in the time available, and then end up half finished with a bigger mess than you started with. So forget the cleaning until you've decluttered an area. As GQ sagely points out, cleaning is easy peasy when you've got a clear space.

Agree with Siebrie that you can't be their housekeeper - but what about getting a local cleaner in to do the basics (kitchen, bathroom, vacuum floors) every week or to so the place stays sanitary? A cleaner is £10-15 an hour, so split between a household, a few pounds each a week. Anyone who wants ironing or their bedding changed can pay the cleaner directly for extra time. From past experience, this is the best way for a shared household to stay civil to each other, hygienic and presentable, rather than messing about with cleaning rotas, passive aggressive notes and the like or moaning at each other.

Once the house is presentable, people will naturally start to get tidier. Might not be much, but it will be something. It's also easier then to limit complaints to people keeping their stuff in their rooms. Plus you won't find it so annoying when your cheeky sister jumps into the bath you have beautifully cleaned - that would drive me mad!

Floss

Minnie I understand that your sister lives eith you, and the reasons why aren't important right now ...what IS important is the way she behaves and treats your home. Could you have a conversation with her that would result in her containing her possessions to her own room, ensuring the bathroom & kitchen were as-found when she leaves them and keeping that room tidy-ish? Then you only have to manage the family areas.

I know it is challenging with a family of smalls plus partner AND lodger/sister, but it might be time to put your big girl knickers on and pull everyone into line

minnie2

Its me hubby kids and sister.i always get the house presentable and they never keep it so i get so cross and frustrated by it because nobody seems to know the effort it takes to keep it like that.it takes me a whole day to do it a day i could have been doing other stuff or having some times to myself which never happens!!

I kondoed and cleaned at the same time today.there are a couple of shelves in bedroom that are not kondoed but they are in a closed wardrobe and i can just dip into that now even when the kids are here.my prob is i never get time to finish doing one area and no one keeps up my good work.i have on many occasions nearly binned all the c**p that isnt in it rightful place.hubby even puts empty packets back in the fridge!!!!! So when i say to kids do you want some chicken they say yes and i pull the packet out and there isnt any in there it drives me mad.i am hoping to bin everything that people can leaving laying around.

My sister leave stuff all over the place never in her bedroom.i kondoed the kitchen and she moved more of her c**p in there and didnt take out all her tupperware that she leaves taking up precious space out.our kitchen is a single skinned outbuilding thats 6foot by 9foot when i was pregnant i couldnt even fit in there!! So its not great.its the worst area but as it needs knocking down its not worth spending the money on until we have enough for the extension. She is currently now trying to buy a house with her fianc! who stays at the weekends too.they both moan about our house it needs work etc and the mess but they just add to it :-(

greent

If your sister and fiance don't like it then they can go elsewhere - how rude of them to insult your home - and therefore your hospitality x

minnie2

I have seriously tried!! My friends even joke that i need to send hubby away somewhere to be trained.he is dreadful.i am pulling my hair out with him. Hopefully sister will be out soon! ! Fingers crossed!! Shes been with us for too long 5/6yrs something like that.

minnie2

I do tell them but they dont listen until ill have been cleaning all day they wreck it and i get tourettes for 5mins then they make an effort for a few days hen it goes back again.i work longwr than full time as i have two jobs teacher and my care job the people stay at our house so i work a lot have two 3 and under and the hubby os as my friends say my third and worse child