Can you teach yourself how to be a 'neat freak'?

[Stevie]

Or is there no hope for me haha.
I m seriously so lazy, DD isnt crawling yet but i know she will be soon, we have wooden floors and a dog which = a slight snow effect on my floors haha.
i sweep/vac..not as often as i should i k now that once she is moving around im goign to have do this every single day,
with working part time, DH being away alot and trying to be a good mummy i have a feeling im going to be utterly exhausted..
i want a clean house, i dont want to be lazy lol, i guess im just gonna have to pul my finger out hehe

anyone else care to share some words of wisdom? lol

[Tinks]

I'm subscribing to this because I am a terrible housekeeper and also need neat freak tips.

[Lulu]

No good news here - all I can offer is to be living with one

I shared a house with a neat-freak and she trained me really well. It helped that her eye would twitch if I left any mess around. She was constantly moving and it's hard to sit on your bum with someone like that in the house.

Same with exH, he was amazing so lots of it rubbed off (not THAT much though). Now I'm on my own I've gone straight back to my crap ways.

HOWEVER, I will say if you can go MENTAL and do everything one day - it is so much easier to maintain it.

I also have little competitions with myself ie - if I boil the kettle I do as much in the kitchen as I can till it boils and the tea steeps.
When kids in the bath, I tidy the bathroom.

I fold the washing in front of the telly , and race to put it away in the ads.

ETA - and Angel Punks does 'the waitress' thing, which I highly advise. She doesn't walk anywhere in the house without picking something up along the way.

And if all else fails invite someone over for lunch so you a FORCED to tidy.

[Rainbow_Mumma]

i need to know too ive become so lazy latetly!

[Cupcake]

*subscribing* Lol.

My mum is a neat freak so im waiting for that gene to kick in!

[AndiE]

I reckon neat freakiness is either in your DNA or it isn't. Unfortunately my DNA contains large doses of it and so does DH's (thankfully not to the point of obsessiveness!). It may be in DS1's DNA too cos he lurves the vacuum cleaner, broom and mop - he has to have a go if they're out and throws a pink fit if you put them away without letting him have them too. One can only hope he continues this fascination into his teens!

But, even though I like to have a clean, tidy house ... I have days where I couldn't be bothered too and I find some great diversions (whaddya think I'm doing on BB). So while it's a bit anal retentive (and I promise I'm not always anal!) I will write a list of what needs to be done and cross it off as I go. Sorry, that's my only tip!

Oh, the other thing that gets me motivated is seeing an icky bathroom handbasin and/or a grotty stove ... rare that they get this way, but if I have managed to put off the housework for up to a week then these two things generally tip me over the edge!

Hmmm, guess I'd better go throw that load of washing in the machine and tackle the ironing. Sigh ....

[Stevie]

Lulu, thats some really great advice, ive never thought of doing things like that lol.

The only thing i do really is say 'whenn DD is sleeping THEN ill do the HW.." she goes to sleep and then im like "nahh.. should be RESTING while she's sleeping" lol
im shocking


wish my DH was a neat freak...well he kinda is but expects ME to do it LOL

[Tinks]

*subscribing* Lol.

My mum is a neat freak so im waiting for that gene to kick in!

That's why I think I'm not a neat freak! My mum was/is one. Housework day was Saturdays when I was growing up and it ALWAYS resulted in hours of tears for my siblings and myself. As soon as the vacuum came out she transformed into a 'cleaning monster' red eyes and all!! We all had particular jobs to do (rostered) and she'd watch over us yelling and screaming that we weren't doing it properly. She'd deliberately mess things up, tip out our toy boxes etc if we hadn't cleaned to her satisfaction and make us start again. She scarred me for life

Now her housework day is Sunday and we ALL stay away! Even my kids won't go there on Sundays. She hasn't changed

Sorry to take over your thread Stevie

[sneakysparkle]

I saw in another thread some ladies talking about Flylady - so I checked out her website and am trying her methods - sounds awesome, and I'm going ok now!
Check it out - might help you

[STARRYSKY]

Im not a neat freak, BUT, I joined up to flylady when I was pregnant hoping to be transformed into a clean, tidy loving person. didnt work the way I thought it would but it has changed me immensely, I now have a morning and night routine, my sink isnt full of dishes and I can easily do a quick clean if people rock up suddenly.
Flylady isnt for everyone, it wasnt really for me, but the routine thing really works.
theres nothing I like better then waking up to a clean kitchen (at the very least!)

[skybie]

my mum never has one little thing out fo place inher house!
DF's mum vaccums her double story EVERY day!
DF and I are the laziest sods ever! pmsl, so not sure if being a neat freak is a genetic thing!
I try to do a min of 15 mins a day of solid housework(you'll be suprised how much u can get done!)somethings i do everyday that arent included in that 15mins
i make the bed every morning when i get up and pick up the clothes off the floor and in the ensuite
i aim for atleast one load of washing everyday and to pack the dishwasher everyday so theres no dishes on the bench (yes im one of those who puts literally anything that will fit into the dishwasher in!) and i have 3 rabbit hutches to tackle every 2 days

once the kids are in bed then i hit the lounge up and clean up all their toys and things.
on saturdays DF and i tackle it together and do the big things, cleaning showers,toilets, mopping ect

you;ll be suprised how good u feel even just having a tidy house as apposed to a clean one, it all depends on what ur happy to leave!

i'd much rather be playing with my kids than doing something im just going to need to do again tomorrow anyway!(plus we dont often get visitors so its not essential for me to keep a tidy house!)

[Astrid]

I agree with getting stuff done whilst in the middle of something. So if I am cooking, between stirring I will either unload or load the dishwasher, wipes down the rangehood, wipe around the taps, check the fridge for manky food etc. I like to rush around as much as possible whilst DH is dealing with getting the night time bath.

I also go by the theory, something is better than nothing. So a quick wipe over of cupboard doors, even if done half arsed, is still better than it not being done, as the next time I do it they will get a little bit cleaner again.

I do like Speedcleaning for how to clean a room from top to bottom. I don't fully follow it, but when I am in the mood at least 1 room will get a full clean.

I do really struggle though, I am a complete procrastinator and can get really down when it is all a mess 5 minutes later. Also I swear that my kids hassle me more than other kids do to their parents. There are only so many interruptions I can take before giving up.

[~Kim~]

Ummm, well I'm not sure it is DNA, so I think there's hope for you . I Grew up with a neat freak - did nothing but make me believe I never wanted to be like that lol.
I was a serious slob, but over the last couple of years I have been fine tuning, and I'm fairly certain I'd fall under the 'neat freak' category to some.

I tried Flylady many years ago, but I didn't 'get it', and SpeedCleaning by Shannon Lush, but that just didn't work for me. I use her techniques but not her principles.

Routine is the key. Once you make something a habit it becomes very easy and natural.
For example;
Every time i finish cleaning my teeth in the morning I use my face washer to wash the basin/bench and give it a dry. Then I get a clean washer for the next day.
I make my bed as soon as I'm out of it.
I make sure the sink is clean and dry before I sit down to scrapbook/watch telly/surf the net or whatever for the evening. Then I don't have to drag myself to it later and it's so nice to get up to in the morning.

I found once I started with the little things, I was more encouraged to keep going.

Takes me 15ish minutes to dust everything, 45 to vaccuum and anther 45 to mop, so I just do it in different sessions.


I'm also a fan of multi tasking. Amazing how much you can get done in 2,3,10 15 minutes.

[Roryrory]

I Grew up with a neat freak - did nothing but make me believe I never wanted to be like that lol. I was a serious slob, but over the last couple of years I have been fine tuning, and I'm fairly certain I'd fall under the 'neat freak' category to some

I am the same - my mother used to say you could tell a good housewife by whether the tops of her door-frames were dust free!

I personally think that finding your own motivator and level of satisfaction is the key.

Why do you want a clean house? Is it because you are home more and think it is what you "should" do? That a good mother must have a clean house? If you are thinking things like this then you are feeling guilty, which is NEVER a good motivator (hands up those of us who were successful in losing weight by standing in front of a mirror saying "fat and lazy" over and over??) IMO you'd also be falling trap to what Betty Friedan called (back in the 1950's) the "feminine mystique" - that somehow as a wife and mother you will be fulfilled by accepting your higher calling as domestic goddess instead of focussing on nuturing your soul. If these more "negative" things are influencing your post, then I don't think you will end up with a clean house - you'll end up with guilt and angst. While I am a big fan of Flylady and all of the cleaning/organising books around these days (I have quite a collection heh heh!) I think that the latest trend is just another way to put women back in the home (pardon the soap box).

But if you want to have a clean house for (dare I say it) "valid" reasons, such as a genuine belief that mess and disorganisation is stopping you from enjoying life or that you are worried about your daughters exposure to dustmites, or maybe even that you feel your life will feel more "organised" or calm if you banish chaos from your life - if that's the case then I completely second the other suggestions here. Routine (like Skybie and Kim have suggested), reward (as wonderfully demonstrated by Lulu) and multi tasking (as described by Astrid) tend to be common themes for successful cleaning/organising.

Personally, I threw myself into the Flylady system and had incredibly detailed cleaning lists for every room as well. I got that bad that my neat freak-mother thought I was taking it too far (she has since relaxed and no longer dusts her door frames).

So to sum up - my only advice is don't try to be a neat freak for the wrong reasons. If you are doing it for anyone but yourself you'll only end up feeling resentful.

[Astrid]

Roryrory is right. You do need to look at the reasons for wanting things to be tidier. I have only just finished some counselling and we touched on the whole expectation thing, especially in relation to me being a parent and keeping house. Basically I am to do what keeps me happy. If that means ignoring the house for a week, then doing the big clean, then that is ok. If it means cleaning a bit each day, then that is ok too. Neither is better than the other in the terms of what works for the family and myself. Sometimes we just have to accept that we are in survival mode when we have small children and that doing the bare minimum is more than enough.

[turtleschell]

omg TINKS pmsl!!!

I am not a neat freak, but I often invite people over and my house suddenly gleams before they arrive.

[Stevie]

i guess i must have exaggerated when i said i want to be a "neat freak" lol, i dont mind mess and being generally untidy sometimes, just certain things that NEED to be done i always find im too lazy to do (sweep/mop floors, clean bathroom, dusting) and its more on the hygeine side of things that i worry not so much that i want it to be clean for someone else.
I will be having a look at the flylady (?) thing that you ladies have mentioned, i will also ne taking some of all your suggestions and try to work it into my day

I dont think that im a 'housewife' and thats what i SHOULD be doing, cozx for one im not a housewife, i work too so i cant be expected to do eveything lol, but if i didnt work id be more worried about spending quality time with DD and with DH when he's home.

[Lisa]

That's why I think I'm not a neat freak! My mum was/is one. Housework day was Saturdays when I was growing up and it ALWAYS resulted in hours of tears for my siblings and myself. As soon as the vacuum came out she transformed into a 'cleaning monster' red eyes and all!! We all had particular jobs to do (rostered) and she'd watch over us yelling and screaming that we weren't doing it properly. She'd deliberately mess things up, tip out our toy boxes etc if we hadn't cleaned to her satisfaction and make us start again. She scarred me for life

Now her housework day is Sunday and we ALL stay away! Even my kids won't go there on Sundays. She hasn't changed

Sorry to take over your thread Stevie

OMG Tinks, I think we share a mother!

My mum was IDENTICAL to your's when I was growing up. My sister became a neat freak... me, not so much.

I set myself goals throughout the day. Eg - I will go to the shops after I have vaccumed the house & put on a load of washing. I also have a to do list written up over breakfast every day which I love to cross off as I do things. I find having it in writing, sitting there staring me in the face is incentive for me. I also try to do lots of small things each day and the bigger things on weekends when DH & the older kids are here to help out.