I blame encouraging the kids to get involved at school.
And having five kids in school.
And needing to entertain the lonely one left at home.
And needing the whole month to get my house to approximate some level of post-summer clean.
Although, it would've been cleaned much sooner if the kids didn't come home from school everyday.
Speaking of which, does anyone else suffer from Mopped Floor Syndrome, whose primary symptom is having something red, sticky, or voluminous spill immediately after mopping?
I'm not bitter about the can of soda spilled on my just-mopped floor after dripping off my just-polished granite. Not bitter at all.
But the 20 socks I picked up off the floor this afternoon (and or threatened the kids to pick up)? Totally bitter. I swear some of the kids double up. Which is weird, as every time I check they've forgotten to wear socks at all.
I cleaned over 8 hours today. Tomorrow I will run approximately 5000 errands.
When Peter surprised me with an overnight bed and breakfast trip for my birthday last month, my brother and his family came and watched the kids. The list of what they needed to do was two pages long. After we came home, we asked them if they took advantage of our bathtub (of which, I just realized, I've never posted pictures). "No," my sister-in-law replied, "by the time I got the kids all in bed, all I could think was that I had to get up in the morning and do it again. So I crawled to bed."
I took it as a lovely compliment (or maybe just grateful acknowledgement of how exhausting my life can be sometimes).
Which reminds me, I really need to get to bed. Tomorrow will come way to early.
Love it. I too suffer from MPS, but mine is sticky pieces of food. I love that you said that the house would have been done sooner if the kids didn't come home from school. There really are never enough hours in the day.
ReplyDeleteTomorrow always comes way too early. You are amazing.
ReplyDeleteAhhh the Season of Mothering Young Children. I know it well. We've been in our new house since June. Haven't even stepped inside of my bathtub. I need to be more grateful for it and use it! I wish I could say it gets better as the kids age...and it does! But, not in the ways you think it will. I am more busy than ever, but not with diaper changes and homework. Best advice: Sleep when you can, and take lots of pictures along the way, because those baby faces will be grown up before you know it and you'll miss them!
ReplyDeleteHaha! Jessie's comment made me laugh. I hate that about mopped floors. Sometimes I use that as an excuse to not mop my floors..."they are just going to be sticky again so soon, is it even worth doing?"
ReplyDeleteI feel your pain, but I also think you are a much better cleaner than I am, so can I ask a mop-related question? I struggle with my variety-style floors (I have hardwood, tile, and marble all in reasonable proximity), and finding the right product (or not) to use on all of them. Do you use a steam mop, and if so, which floor types do you like it for? How does it work on the spilled soda?
ReplyDeleteWow...eight hours in one day is amazing. I'm jealous that you had that much energy to keep going. Oh, I'm old, that is my excuse.
ReplyDeleteIt was like reading my own journal! I haven't upgraded to blogging yet....
ReplyDeleteIf the 5 in school would just stay there, and the one at home entertain herself, my house might be semi clean.
Try to enjoy the ride, it reaches an end all too soon. Although I seem to always need to mop the floors
ReplyDeleteYou always make me laugh. Maybe I can relate a little too well! We definitely have mopped floor syndrome. My 1-year-old spills things for fun all day long. But, I got a magical floormate spin-scrub cleaner or something like that. I just leave it plugged in all day long. It mops (not perfectly), but even picks up crumbs while it mops. I have a lot of tile--I'm in love.
ReplyDeleteSo glad you got to get away from it all for a little while! And that you were totally validated upon your return!! :)
ReplyDeleteditto... except for that one left at home... I'm just impressed that you are still able to crawl into bed at the end of the day - sometimes I'm pretty sure sleeping in the car would be easier.
ReplyDeleteThe very act of them walking through the door increases the mess by 50%. I swear it's almost magical!
ReplyDeleteI still grown every time the alarm goes off. That zero hour high school class is rough!
ReplyDeleteI have been lax about taking pictures lately. I'm surprised how easily I forget if I don't try to capture the moments here and there!
ReplyDeleteOnce I went on strike and only spot cleaned my floors. I tell you, there were barely any spills the whole month. As soon as I mopped all over, an entire pitcher of red Kool Aid, I almost threw away my mop.
ReplyDeleteI'm still searching for the right thing for my floors here. In Connecticut I used the Shark Steam Mop on my tile and wood floors and LOVED it. Worked on all floor types AND soda. But in the new house it left horrible streaks on my wood floors (I guess it is a different wood finish).
ReplyDeleteRight now I am using a bucket of water and vinegar for the wood. When I get to the tile, I spray a pinesol mixture and use the same bucket/water as I did on the wood. It seems to be the best thing right now, but the footprints on the wood come back really quickly and I'd like to find something that prevents that.
Those eight hours are the only time I have to clean all week. I just do quick here and there upkeep the rest of the time. Thinking I've done my penance for the entire week helps me keep motivated.
ReplyDeleteYou should upgrade! I'd love to hear what you have to say!
ReplyDeleteEnjoying the ride why trying to stay awake for it is my struggle right now. Those pesky floors never do stop, do they?
ReplyDeleteI have that, too. Our housekeeping elves must be mischievous.
ReplyDeleteI only clean one day a week. The rest of the week sounds more like that.
ReplyDeleteThat's what I do the rest of the week.
ReplyDeleteI have tried almost everything on my floors and so far they all leave a streaky film. I will have to look for that, though. Anything to solve MFS.
ReplyDeleteIt was nice! My husband knew exactly what sort of birthday present I needed.
ReplyDeleteDoes car napping count? I do a lot of that while waiting to chauffeur kids around.
ReplyDelete