It's 11:30 at night and I just put the seventh and final load of laundry in the dryer.
I am trying to be grateful that we have enough clothes and towels and jackets to even make seven loads of laundry.
Yessiree. Seven loads of gratitude.
Seven.
Mostly snot-covered gratitude this week, but still gratitude.
And while it's challenging to be grateful for laundry, my happiness is very, very real.
Because just for a moment, everything in this house is clean. It's not all folded and put away, but it's all clean.
That's about as close to Laundry Nirvana as I've ever come. I'll take my victories where I can find them.
Showing posts with label laundry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label laundry. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Confession: The Unmade Bed
When it comes to the task of making beds, there are two kinds of people in this world: Those who make their beds religiously, unless they are so sick they can't get out of them, and those who just can't be bothered.
I fall squarely in the latter category. (Sorry, Mom!)
Somehow I have an enormous blind spot in my OCD tendencies when it comes to making the bed.
Growing up, I was taught to make my bed every morning, but as soon as I was a teenager and got my own room in the basement, my true bed-making (or non-bed-making) nature emerged. I was always in a rush to get out of the house in the morning, and by the time I got home, what was the point? It was almost time to crawl back under the covers anyway.
Wash the sheets, sure. I wash almost every week because I love clean sheets on the bed. But pull up the sheets and smooth out the comforter every morning? That's a challenge for me.
I've reformed several times. First when I went off to college and shared a dorm room. Then, when I got married, because I was a grownup now and grownups make their beds every day, right?
Truth is, the tiny place we first lived in had a lot to do with it. As soon as we got a big enough place that I could just shut the bedroom door, I backslid again.
My next big reform came after I had my first child. I was trying to set a good example. But the sleepless nights and morning rush to daycare and work soon put an end to that effort.
Shortly after the triplets came along, we moved Amelia to a big girl bed. And then I really tried to shape up and make her bed as well as mine. After all, it was my job to set a good example.
I could not have picked a worse time for reform. My attempt clearly shows how badly clouded my thinking was. Between nursing round-the-clock and maintaining a pumping schedule that could qualify as an extreme sport, I got back under the covers every chance I could. And I certainly didn't have time to be making the bed 10 times a day.
So I closed my bedroom door and made Amelia's bed, more or less, most days, sort of. OK, so her bed mostly went unmade, too, but if it didn't need to be fed or changed it didn't get much attention around here when the boys were tiny.
Now I find myself in the mood for reform once again. But this time I might just be successful. Because this time I'm motivated by the need to regain a little control around here. So now my perfectly made bed is an island of calm is a swirling sea of chaos. It is a small victory in the larger battle to keep the house from sinking entirely into the morass.
True, it makes no sense to make the bed that no one will ever see instead of spending those 10 minutes on laundry, cooking or cleaning a part of the house we actually live in. But I have discovered something about making the bed.
It stays done longer than anything else in this house.
The laundry regenerates so quickly I sometimes wonder if it hasn't taken on a life of its own. Meals are eaten as soon as they are cooked, and sometimes even before, leaving more dishes in their wake. Diapers are the very definition of perpetual. And I think the toys are picking up some tips from the laundry.
But the bed. The bed gets made in the morning, and it doesn't have to be remade all day. It doesn't get dirty as fast as it gets clean. It doesn't have to be picked up three times a day. It doesn't need changing in triplicate.
Sometimes it stays made as long as 16 hours.
Which is 15 hours and 59 minutes longer than anything else around here.
These days, that's my definition of victory.
**********************************************************
I fall squarely in the latter category. (Sorry, Mom!)
Somehow I have an enormous blind spot in my OCD tendencies when it comes to making the bed.
Growing up, I was taught to make my bed every morning, but as soon as I was a teenager and got my own room in the basement, my true bed-making (or non-bed-making) nature emerged. I was always in a rush to get out of the house in the morning, and by the time I got home, what was the point? It was almost time to crawl back under the covers anyway.
Wash the sheets, sure. I wash almost every week because I love clean sheets on the bed. But pull up the sheets and smooth out the comforter every morning? That's a challenge for me.
I've reformed several times. First when I went off to college and shared a dorm room. Then, when I got married, because I was a grownup now and grownups make their beds every day, right?
Truth is, the tiny place we first lived in had a lot to do with it. As soon as we got a big enough place that I could just shut the bedroom door, I backslid again.
My next big reform came after I had my first child. I was trying to set a good example. But the sleepless nights and morning rush to daycare and work soon put an end to that effort.
Shortly after the triplets came along, we moved Amelia to a big girl bed. And then I really tried to shape up and make her bed as well as mine. After all, it was my job to set a good example.
I could not have picked a worse time for reform. My attempt clearly shows how badly clouded my thinking was. Between nursing round-the-clock and maintaining a pumping schedule that could qualify as an extreme sport, I got back under the covers every chance I could. And I certainly didn't have time to be making the bed 10 times a day.
So I closed my bedroom door and made Amelia's bed, more or less, most days, sort of. OK, so her bed mostly went unmade, too, but if it didn't need to be fed or changed it didn't get much attention around here when the boys were tiny.
Now I find myself in the mood for reform once again. But this time I might just be successful. Because this time I'm motivated by the need to regain a little control around here. So now my perfectly made bed is an island of calm is a swirling sea of chaos. It is a small victory in the larger battle to keep the house from sinking entirely into the morass.
True, it makes no sense to make the bed that no one will ever see instead of spending those 10 minutes on laundry, cooking or cleaning a part of the house we actually live in. But I have discovered something about making the bed.
It stays done longer than anything else in this house.
The laundry regenerates so quickly I sometimes wonder if it hasn't taken on a life of its own. Meals are eaten as soon as they are cooked, and sometimes even before, leaving more dishes in their wake. Diapers are the very definition of perpetual. And I think the toys are picking up some tips from the laundry.
But the bed. The bed gets made in the morning, and it doesn't have to be remade all day. It doesn't get dirty as fast as it gets clean. It doesn't have to be picked up three times a day. It doesn't need changing in triplicate.
Sometimes it stays made as long as 16 hours.
Which is 15 hours and 59 minutes longer than anything else around here.
These days, that's my definition of victory.
**********************************************************
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Christy
Monday, February 23, 2009
Jelly Doughnuts
The last couple of days my kids have been like jelly doughnuts -- sweet, but no matter how carefully you handle them some goo is going to come out.
And remember, if it doesn't work the first time you can always reapply!
Which leads me to a couple product recommendations:
1. Woolite Oxy Deep carpet cleaner -- The best spot cleaner for carpet I've found. Not only does it take care of the spit-up like a charm, it took out some older stains of unknown origin that I had tried unsuccessfully to remove with a different brand.
1. Woolite Oxy Deep carpet cleaner -- The best spot cleaner for carpet I've found. Not only does it take care of the spit-up like a charm, it took out some older stains of unknown origin that I had tried unsuccessfully to remove with a different brand.
2. Kirkland household wipes -- This is a Costco product and comes in a three pack. Every time they are on sale I stock up. They are great for sanitizing door knobs, bathrooms and kitchens, but also for cleaning toys, the exersaucer, and the changing table following a particularly ill-timed diaper change...
3. OxiClean laundry spot remover -- The overenthusiastic Ron Popeil wanna-be who hawks this stuff on TV isn't exaggerating. It gets everything out. I keep a bottle upstairs to spray the worst stains as soon as I can. And I keep another bottle downstairs in the laundry room to catch anything I missed. It all comes out clean as a whistle.
And after a long day with triplets that requires the use of these three products, I recommend this:
And remember, if it doesn't work the first time you can always reapply!
Friday, February 20, 2009
About That Laundry
Everyone in this house has had at least two complete changes of clothes since getting out of their jammies. Some have had three.
I'll spare you the details.
Excuse me while I start another load of laundry.
I'll spare you the details.
Excuse me while I start another load of laundry.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
The Zen of Laundry
Laundry is one of those tasks that is never done. No matter how hard I try there is always something waiting to be washed, dried, folded, ironed or put away. I can wash all day long and think the job is complete, but new laundry magically appears. There's the dishrag that didn't get put in with the last load, the socks and undies we're all wearing, or the shirt that just got spit up on.
I'm sure laundry teaches us some deep lesson about permanence and eternity. It certainly feels permanent and eternal.
I recently read that, despite our modern conveniences, we spend MORE time doing laundry than our grandmothers did. This is because we have more clothes, and we wash them far more often. I don't know about you, but I rarely wear the same dress all week before I wash it.
I DO, however, have a strict one towel a week rule in my house. It's something that was drummed into me growing up as one of eight kids. (You can have two if you're working out or doing a really dirty home improvement project that involves the crawl space or attic.) If you were doing laundry for 10 people, believe me, you'd make that rule, too. Besides, these days can't I claim it's a "green" practice? Yeah, that's it. It's about the environment, not about creating less work for me.
I am doing a lot more laundry these days, though the job is definitely made easier thanks to the spiffy new high-capacity washer and dryer I bought on my infamous trip to Home Depot. (Their electric cart died and I had to roll my very pregnant self around the appliance section on an office chair).
Doing more laundry has yet to elevate me to a higher spiritual plane, but I sure am glad I don't have to run it all through the wringer and hang it on the line to dry.
One must come to accept that laundry and the state of doing laundry are continuous.
There is peace in acceptance.
Then again, maybe I just need to put the cap back on the bleach.
I'm sure laundry teaches us some deep lesson about permanence and eternity. It certainly feels permanent and eternal.
I recently read that, despite our modern conveniences, we spend MORE time doing laundry than our grandmothers did. This is because we have more clothes, and we wash them far more often. I don't know about you, but I rarely wear the same dress all week before I wash it.
I DO, however, have a strict one towel a week rule in my house. It's something that was drummed into me growing up as one of eight kids. (You can have two if you're working out or doing a really dirty home improvement project that involves the crawl space or attic.) If you were doing laundry for 10 people, believe me, you'd make that rule, too. Besides, these days can't I claim it's a "green" practice? Yeah, that's it. It's about the environment, not about creating less work for me.
I am doing a lot more laundry these days, though the job is definitely made easier thanks to the spiffy new high-capacity washer and dryer I bought on my infamous trip to Home Depot. (Their electric cart died and I had to roll my very pregnant self around the appliance section on an office chair).
Doing more laundry has yet to elevate me to a higher spiritual plane, but I sure am glad I don't have to run it all through the wringer and hang it on the line to dry.
One must come to accept that laundry and the state of doing laundry are continuous.
There is peace in acceptance.
Then again, maybe I just need to put the cap back on the bleach.
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