When do you do your housework - with a baby/toddler?

[Sterla]

I'm just curious as to when other mums with babies or toddlers manage to get their housework done?

Do you do it all when your LO is sleeping? Or just try and keep your LO amused while you get jobs done?

I can only ever seem to get the bare essentials (washing, dishes, cooking) done in a day - it's very rare I'll be able to vacuum, or dust, etc - and don't even talk to me about my filthy bathroom, lol!

How do you do it?

[AliBaby]

I normally do the dishes when DD is eating in her high chair. I actually clean the bathroom whilst DD is in the bath. I figure I am in there anyway so I may was well give it a once over LOL!

As for vacuming/sweeping/steam mopping, it has to be when DD is asleep. The vacumming during the day (but my vacum cleaner blew up today)and sweeping/ mopping at night. Mopping gets done once a week. Sweeping each day.

Washing seems to be doen at random times.

HTH. It is hard to juggle everything.

[feeb]

I can stack dishwasher and do dishes while DS1 is in highchair eating lunch or playing in lounge.

Can put on washing why he is playing as he will follow me.

Otherwise I do things when they are both asleep in day or in evening after they are in bed.

[maz]

I get them to help and we make it a game or pump the music and dance like nit wits but clean at the same time.
Tank runs around now with a cloth 'dusting' all the time lol and then he get's his little vaccy and follows me with it.

[Lolli]

NEVER!!

Nah, I do a lot of mine at night. I do what i can when ds is awake- he helps me unload the dishwasher, passes me pegs/clothes when we do the washing. I give him a wet cloth and he helps me dust He also loves to help me clean the back windows. DD is happy to hang out in her JJ/ on a blanket on the floor/ in the sling and watch what we do.

But mopping is done at night, as is washing up. I prepare what i can of dinner while he's asleep. Where possible, I get him to help (obviously, that gets easier as they get older!). it takes a bit longer and is rarely done perfectly , but he has fun and otherwise, it might not get done at all.

[YoYo]

I'll put washing on early morning and chuck it in the dryer (no washing line here)....but if I was home I'd hang it while DS would play in the garden in the mornings....

Sweep/Mop I do while he's sleeping or if DH has taken DS out on the weekend for a little while. Dishes, I do quickly in the morning, and dinner ones while he's going off to sleep. Bathrooms, I do while DS is in the bath, but I always keep on top of it, so wipe up water and dust that accumulates. I'll clean the loo while DS is sleeping coz the stuff stinks!

Dusting, I kind of do while DS is playing...sometimes I give him a cloth and he helps!

Folding washing I do as I'm bringing it in off the line....or I let the pile accumulate to massive proportions and eventually get to it when I open the door to the spare room!!!

[blackduckies]

With 4 kids and no 5 on her way...RARELY.... and I am so embrassed...good thing we go out more than we get visitors
I should be doing something now instead of on here, but what the hey!!! you have to have some ME time.

[BekZ]

With 3 little ones at home I find it hard to do much past the essentials. I put my nappies in the wash at night and hang them out, as soon as I get up I put on the 1st load of washing, then get breakfast, after breakfast the kids get dressed, I usually put on ABC TV for the kids and then I hang out washing, put on another load and clean up breakfast and make beds.

From there my day varies. I may make dinner in the morning or I do activities with the kids. Then it is lunch time and quiet time for about 2 hours (my toddler and baby will sleep hopefully in this time but not always). Usually I'll get a job like cleaning the bathroom/toilets/clean a bedroom or I make dinner.

Then it is afternoon activity time, plus I get the washing off the line. Then dinner/clean up/bath time/bed time. All this ends around 8pm to 9pm. Then I clean my floors or fold washing or clean my kitchen.

2 of my girls go to daycare once a week and I always do a bigger job like cleaning out cupboards, rooms or paper work on these days.

Tip for your bathroom: Get yourself a good microfiber cloth and give your bathroom a once over when your ds in the bath. Wipe over the benches and put stuff back in its place. Empty the bath as soon as you are finished and quickly put any bath toys away. You'll be amazed at how good your bathroom looks and you won't need to do a big clean as often.

Oh and I found having 2 kids easier than one. I never had time with one child...go figure


Sorry to write a long story. hth

BTW - If the kids are playing happily I'll get a job or two in until the wars start

[MummyNaomi]

The standard of my house cleanliness has definately dropped since becoming a Mum, but I find that it really changes, some days DS will have a nice big sleep and I get heaps done, other times I go for days with barely getting anything done.

When my DS has his morning nap I go into overdrive - chuck on a load of washing, make bed, tidy house, unload dishwasher, get something out for dinner, and have a shower!! But often house cleaning eg bathrooms etc get done with DH is home and he spends time with DS (and although it sounds crazy, nicking of to the bathroom to scrub away for 20 mins with my own thoughts is kinda relaxing sometimes - who woulda thought? LOL)

[Lolli]

Just wanted to add, I have a 'minimum code of household conduct' which includes- washing done, kitchen tidy, beds made, toilets wiped over with toilet paper and givena quick scrub with a brush, vanity wiped down, general tidy and toy pick up. If that's done, I'm happy. Anything else can bite me

[Megan]

I struggle most days. Dishes/kitchen are done while DS is eating in his high chair. I put a load of washing on at the same time.
Washing is folded while we are playing on the floor - it takes forever as he likes to "help" but we get there! As for floors/dusting/bathroom/toilet it all gets done on the weekend when DH is around to help out. DS is a light sleeper so I try not to make too much noise at night. I seem to lack motivation at the moment which doesn't help either. All the stopping and starting of little jobs sends me bonkers so I prefer to do it all in a big block of time while DH looks after DS.

[~Kim~]

I make my bed and tidy my room as soon as I get up, then wipe over the ensuite and clean the toilet as soon as I'm done with it in the morning so at least that is done.

Unstack the dishwasher in the morning while make the brekkies so i can just stack it in the day time.
Hang out the washing in the mornings with the kids outside for a game.
Umm
I take 10minutes every morning for a quick tidy
we have 'pick up time' at 5pm where everybody who is present has to help to pick up all the foreign objects that have migrated to the wrong spots.
Clean the main bathroom while the kids are in the bath.
Clean the showers while I'm in them (I shower in the main shower once a week to do so lol).
Clean the kitchen while DH pays with the kids after dinner.
Dust one room per day (only take 5ish minutes) - Nate is the best duster of skirting boards lol - Darcy usually just follows chatting.
Vaccuum when DH is around (both my kids don't do noise well at all).
Mop when they're all asleep.

[Sequoia]

In the morning, I make our bed while attending to DS when DH is in the shower before he goes to work. DH helps me by looking after DS while I shower and he also unpacks the dishwasher before he heads out the door at 8.00am.

I wash clothes on Monday, Thursday and Saturday, we go away quite a bit at weekends so it does take me a couple of days to get the house in order when that happens. DS loves to push the buttons on the washing machine and mucks about in the laundry while I am in there.

I vacuum when DS is awake in the morning, he loves to push it around so I let him go for his life. I mop the same day when he is asleep which is once a week. I nearly always clean up after every meal (clear table, shake tablecloth, vacuum under table) otherwise it really does build up by the end of the day. I have a cordless upright Electrolux which is the best money I have ever spent. No more sweeping, it gets all the crumbs so easily.

I clean up after dinner and DH gives DS his bath then, I am usually finished by the time DS is ready for bed.

Toilets are done once a week, a quick wipeover with a Flushable cleaning wipe.

Bathrooms more so on weekends so I can clean the shower while I am having a shower and DH can look after DS.

[CrazyLady]

HAHA! When I can.

Getting easier now Charlie will actually detach a little and play by herself.

I clean the shower/bath while i'm in it (shower over the bath so 2 birds one stone)
Charlie watches the chooks while I hang the clothes on the line but that's soon to stop because she's just realised she can crawl (eeeek)
Unpack dishwasher while Charlie is eating dinner for repacking after dinner
Fold clothes as I get them off the line if it's not too hot and stack in some logical order
Vacuum while Charlie playing or if she's feeling clingy and grizzly I stick her in my ring sling and she falls asleep (vacuum cleaner and sling EVERY TIME)
Mop the floors on the way to bed
put a load of nappies on straight after Charlie's brekky and they're done after Charlie's morning nap (IF SHE NAPS)
Rest I try to do as I go and I make sure I keep a few microfibre dusters around (in sidetable draw, phone table, lounge draw) so as I go put something away and such I whip the duster around and it's maintained

Blackduckies, I agree we do need some ME time.

[Sterla]

Thanks ladies! You all sound so busy! Some handy tips there. Hopefully it will get easier as DS gets older as well.

[bubbles81]

i have an 11month old crawler and trying to walker and i have 2 dogs that sheds hair like crazy so i vacuum when dd is having her morning nap but when its closer to waking time and mop during her afternoon nap and mop again before i go to sleep. i find i have to do much more cleaning with 2 dogs around because im paranoid of all the dog hairs etc