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No Motivation
I am a 22 year old stay at home mom to 2 little girls. Ages 3 and 18 months. My house always lookslike a cyclone has just passed through no matter how much I go behind everyone a clean. Lately, I have felt so unappreciated and just don't have the urge or the energy to keep the house clean like I want to. Sometimes I make myself get up and start cleaning, but within a few minutes I'm back on the couch or in front of the computer avoiding the work that needs done. Anyone have any advice on something I can do to motivate myself to get this place spic and span like I want it and keep it that way???
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Want to answer more questions in the Domesticity category?
Maybe give some free advice about: Cleaning?
Procrastinator....yup that's you putting off something until later. Its ok everyone does it. 2 kids wow that a handful already. ok i have afew advises. 1> Diet- Look at what you eat and if it contains too much junk change it cause they give you no energy. Try fresh fruits and veggies and low carb. 2> Goal setting Make a list say for each day... my goal is to do laundry today. 3> Treat yourself even a mom needs her time alone. Find a babysitter atleast once a month weather its family a relative neighbor friend whomever you trust. Take the day off and go to a beauty parlor get a manicure and pedicrue, massages,go shoppping, see a movie. Go alone or with your Friends. Set a side a day for that's just for you. Good Luck!
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I understand how you feel... The more things that pile up and need to be done, the less you want to do them. It's horrible!
What I did was to start scheduling things with a reminder program, and spread the work out. This is the program I use:
[Link](Mouse over link to see full location)
You can set it up however you like... If you want to mop the floors every Monday and Friday, you can have it pop up a reminder on those days. If you want it to remind you to water the plants on the 1st, 8th, 15th, & 22nd of every month, you can do that. Nearly anything and everything you want, you can set it up.
What I do is set all the reminders for very early in the morning before I wake up. Then when I sit down at the computer, the first reminder is popped up on the screen. I copy the text (like: Water the plants today), and then paste it into a desktop text file of some sort. Then I hit the OK button and the next one pops up, which I copy and paste, etc... I do this until I have them all copied to my text file.
Then as I do the things throughout the day, I delete them from my text file. It gives me a feeling of accomplishment, plus I don't feel as overwhelmed because I only have to do what's on the list for that day. (besides the normal everyday stuff).
This works very well for me, and I HATE housework. Make sure to spread things out as much as possible, don't try to do too many big things in one day. Your day is busy enough with two little ones!
And I agree that your 3 year old is probably old enough to help out a little, with picking things up, etc. Just having things picked up off the floor makes a big difference. ;-)
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I would say use the children as motivation. You never know when a mess you didnt want to clean and didnt could be the last thing they see. Its easy for children to get hurt. Messes around the house could be very dangerous. This is simply what I would do however. ANother thing, I guess is for presentation for when you have company over. Also. Do not feel unappreciated. The kids will appreciate it, when they are not hurt in a mess. Theyll aprrectiate it without knowing they do... ;-)
Hope I helped!
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Hmm... Well I don't like to clean, but when I do, I just listen to music while I clean... Also, you can get your 3 year old daughter to help you. (She's not too young. My mom owns a daycare so I know)To do that, you must ask your daughter politly to help you (even if its just a little) and reenforce it by praising her when she does help you. That will get her to help you clean up more. Dang... you are really making me appreciate my mother right now.
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Ok first of all with two small kids, you're going to drive yourself nuts if you expect your house to be spotless. If anyone says anything about your house, leave the kids with them for a couple hours and dare them to keep a house spotless.
With that said, try breaking up the cleaning into parts. You don't have to pick up every little toy as soon as it gets put down. Start with the kitchen or wherever you want and work on getting that area clean. Then take a short break before moving onto the next room. By breaking it into smaller parts and giving yourself breaks, the job won't seem so overwhelming.
Try restricting the area the kids can get into. That will help keep the mess concentrated to one area while still leaving other areas clean.
If you have an significant other, get them to help. Something as simple as playing with the kids or giving them a bath so you can be able to clean without worrying about what the kids are into will help.
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Anything you pick up and use throw it away or put it up duh? don't just let it sit while you leave it don't be lazy duh just pick it up duh.
Please Rate it ain't like your babies causing the mess it's you they can't pick nothin up or mess with nothin they in cribs and strollers for christ sakes.
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im just like ypou and what i do is un plug everything adn speed clean like go really fast get everything and liek reward ytour slef after your done!
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I can sympathize - I have a 3-year-old myself, and sometimes our house looks like a disaster zone. And that's hard to live with, after a while; when you're surrounded by a mess, it's hard to feel positive.
Obviously I don't have a perfect solution, but here are a few suggestions:
1. Your 3-year-old might be old enough to help a little bit. Not that she can really do much, but if you can make a game out of cleaning, you and she can "work" together. Pick smaller tasks, so she doesn't get bored.
2. Pay yourself! Put out a jar, and every time you finish a particular task, put a dollar (or a quarter or $5, whatever works for you) in the jar. Then once a week, spend that money on yourself - some sort of treat.
3. Use some of that time on the computer to make a chart of things that need to be done. Then cross off the tasks as you finish them.
4. This might be a little crazy, but if you have any friends in the same situation, maybe you could work out a deal: one day you go to her house with your daughter and help her clean, and the next day she comes to your place to return the favor. If you're doing it with someone else, you're more likely to get it done.
5. It sounds as if your daughters are making a mess (and maybe your spouse is, too, assuming you have one). There probably isn't anything you can do about the 18-month-old, but your 3-year-old and your spouse should be able to make less of a mess. If they don't make the mess in the first place, you won't have to clean it up. And it's a good idea to train your daughter to be neat now, while she'll listen to you (at least some of the time :D ).
6. Perhaps your spouse could help a bit? If he (or she, but I'll just write "he" and "him" from now on) is tired from working all day, he still might be able to help a little. And even a little is better than nothing.
The best thing to do might be to set up a schedule. If the same time every day is always set aside for cleaning, you'll soon get into the habit and it will become a lot easier. That works for almost anything, by the way; going to the gym, for example. And a regular schedule is really good for your daughters, too. I've read that keeping a very regular schedule for meals and bedtimes is very reassuring to kids, and helps them to sleep better.
It would probably be a good idea to do some talking about this with your family. Start out with your spouse, when the kids aren't around; tell him how swamped and depressed you feel from the mess. Try your best not to make him feel guilty or unappreciated. If he feels that you're asking for his *help*, rather than nagging him to do things for you, he's more likely to go into it with the right attitude.
Good luck with everything!
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You could maybe have a reward for yourself at the end. Like buy your favorite candy but have it where you can't eat it till you clean the house. Also if you live with a boyfriend/husband or something, tell him that you feel unappreciated, and that it would be nice that he could help out a little or take you to dinner or out to see a movie.
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