Getting Started with a Box of Chores

A Box of Chores is an index box that holds a complete list of chores that you do, with the frequency you want them done. They are easy to arrange to fit your day, and can be designated to others with ease.

To make a chore box, you will need:

• Colored index cards or white cards and colored pens to write with.
• Dividers, numbering 1-30 and January-December.
• A,B,C dividers may also be handy.
• A recipe/index card box.

Set up cost is less than $10.


Choose a color to represent things you do for you, and then assign a color for daily chores, 2x a week/every other day chores, weekly chores and monthly chores.

• Write one chore per card, giving as much detail as you like on how to complete the chore.
• At the top of the card, write down how often to do the chore and how long it takes to complete the chore. --Don't guess! Take the time to time yourself. You may be surprised!
• Any chore that takes less than 10 minutes, mark as a mini chore.
• Any chore that is easy enough to do while on the phone, mark with an '!'.
• Any chore that can/should be designated to someone else in the household, mark with an 'X'. This makes it super simple to had out chores to the children... but that's another topic.
• At the bottom of the card mark 'Chore Skipped'. This is so you can pencil in the date of days when you have skipped doing that chore for what ever reason. I give myself two blanks, because any more than that is a disaster.

If you are unsure of what chores to list on your cards, keep a list of all the chores you do in the following week, while you are gathering your supplies. Take note of how often you do the job, and how often you would like the job to be done. Decide which color of card it belongs on, and write it down. Remember, things can change, and when they do, simply write a new card and through the old one out!
And remember, your cards need not be boring:

• My Chore Cards -- The chores that I do.
• Scrappy Recipe Box

My Cards

Daily Tasks:

• Make bed -- change pillow cases every other day Feed and water dog
• Make Breakfast
• 1st load of laundry -- our room, clothing, bedding, towels.
• 2nd load of laundry -- kids clothing, bedding, towels.
• 3rd load of laundry -- diapers, bedding or rags Pack husband's lunch.
• Fill his water bottles. Sweep and scrub entryway
• Clean main bathroom.
• Wash dishes
• Clear Kitchen counters completely
• Sweep kitchen and dining room
• Plan supper and next day's breakfast.Knit -- 15 minutes minimum
• Make Supper
• Take all trash out -Garbage pickup is Tuesday!
• Update Blogs
• Fold and put away large basket load of laundry
• (seasonally) Shovel walks
• (seasonally) Work in garden for 20 minutes

Twice a Week Tasks:

• Scrub kitchen and dining room
• Vacuum upstairs
• Re-tuck slip cover on couch
• Clean Laundry room
• Dust up and down stairs rooms
• Water plants, as needed
• Clean master bathroom

Weekly Tasks:

• Check and recharge batteries, as needed.
• Clean all toilets, showers and sinks with cleanser.
• Wash windows and mirrors
• Balance check book
• Pay bills and update books
• Dust fans and walls
• Polish appliances with Fuller wax spray
• Clean out refrigerator
• Update grocery list

Once a Month Tasks:

• Iron clothing
• Wash walls
• Vacuum furniture
• Review sewing and writing goals. Set new ones.

For Me:

• Bathe &brush teeth
• Get dressed -- clothes, hair and makeup
• brush and floss teeth
• Write for Hubpages, 1-5 articles/ week
• Rate articles at Helium -- 30/ month

Other:

• A grocery list of the things we always buy, staples, and sale items to look for. Once a week I add in items needed to make specific meals that we want to make.
• A list of writing goals for that month.
• A list of sewing goals for that month.
• List of clothing needed for each person.
• List of gift ideas for each person.
• A 'books, movies and music' wish list -- no fail ideas when some one asks, "So what so you want for your birthday?"

Find Hope for a More Organized Home

Are you longing for a cleaner, more organized home? Do you look around for inspiration, and only find chaos? Do you have a terrible time knowing where to begin? I have hope for you!

Did you know that the solution to your problems is within your grasp? No matter where you are. No matter what condition your home is in. The solution to you housekeeping nightmare is at hand! It is inside of you.

How do I know this? I have been there too. I have looked around in complete bewilderment at all that needed to be done and go back to reading my book. I have lost my umph for the day, upon seeing a pile of laundry that I thought would never be done. Even unmade beds have made me cringe. Just the thought of how long it would take to make them was enough to make me shudder. Let alone thinking about how long it had been since they were laundered...
While struggling as to get my act together, I tried my mom’s list method. Writing and rewriting it, so that everything was prioritized and given a time limit. It never got done! Then I asked an organized friend for advice. She said that she like to completely clean one room every day, walls and all. I tried, but spent so much time cleaning one room, there was not time to cook supper. Finally, I asked my husband what he suggested. He looked at me a bit strangely, and replied, “Just do what you know.”

Panic swept over me, as I wondered, 'What do I know?' Then, 'What would he do?' That was the magic question: I suddenly knew where to start!

I washed all the dishes, and put them away. Then the counters and stove got a good cleaning. Loads of laundry were washed, dried and put away, floors were swept.

All along, the answer had been within. I did know what to do, and furthermore, so do you!

Don’t sit there and over think it. Just begin with the one chore that you most want to see done. As you are working, think about how often it needs to be done. Make a point to repeat that particular chore as often as needed. If you have trouble remembering what to do, write it on a 3x5 card, and make yourself a rotating list. Be sure to include how long it actually takes to do the chore on the card. You will find much confidence in this, as most jobs will take much less time than you suppose them to!

When you have finished the first task, move on to the next. Then grab a load of laundry, as it always needs to be done, and throw it in the machine. In about an hour it will be ready to go into the dryer, and you will be able to start another load. Even if your time is limited, or your stamina is shot, it is worth getting started. You may not be able to get everything done, your house may not be immaculate, but you will have solved the problem of how to clean and organize. Plus, a glance at your cards will show you all that you do know.

Making Changes

Over the past few weeks, we (the kids and I) have been decluttering and rearranging rooms.  The big boys cleaned their room really well and rearranged as my friend had suggested.  They choose to get rid of the old computer they had in the room and the pet snake died the same week, so that made finding a place for everything easier.

The little boys room also got a bit of a makeover.  We moved the bed and dressers around, then took the doors off of the closet, so there would be room for the crib in their room.  While I was taking the doors down, Kaycee took a nose dive off of the bunk bed and cut his forehead open.  It really scared me, and I almost rushed him to the clinic, but he was bleeding everywhere!  So, I got the bleeding stopped, cut a butterfly band aid out of a regular band aid, and put his head back together.  By this time, he was calm, so I hesitated to take him anywhere.  I had just rationalized that it would be better to be safe than sorry, and was looking up the clinic's phone number, when a friend called.  He asked what was up, and I told him, hoping he would get off the phone right away, without making me ask.  Instead, he interrogated me as to how I had handled the situation, then pronounced everything to be fine.  I was getting pretty upset with him, until I realized that he was an Army Sargent with first aid training -- in the extreme!  If he said my little boy would be okay, then he would be fine.  Last week the band aid came off, and Kaycee will only have a little line of a scare, if any marks at all. 

That same day, our new dog, Sage, decided to rip his toenail off, and bled all over the carpet.  So, the carpet got a thorough cleaning, again!

Within two days of moving the crib into the little boys room, Kaycee began using the toilet, of his own accord.  He has only had a few accidents in the past two weeks, and most of those happened when he was being chased by his brothers or tickled.  *snickers softly, with fond memories*  It is all part of learning. 

I followed my friend's feng shui suggestions concerning my living room, and rearranged the furniture there.  It feels much better and has stayed much cleaner than it use to.  In fact, most of the messes to be found in it are mine.  *hmmm*  Yep.  The creative bug hit, and I have some stuff out that could be returned to it's appropriate spot. 

With all of these changes in the home, I have been considering other areas of my life and what needs to change there.  I have so many ideas, things I want to do, and not enough time in ten years to accomplish them all.  I am sure you struggle with this too, so don't think that I am complaining.  I am simply trying to prioritise.  Every day, I remind myself that  God, Family, Home, and Writing are the big rocks.  Get them in first, then find time for the rest -- like trips to the post office, to mail out books people have requested!

Getting Advice

During the past few weeks it seemed like I was doing the same thing day after day, and not getting ahead.  Sure, more stuff was being thrown out.  Things were being put away on a regular basis, but to me the house did not feel any better.  So, I did the only thing I knew to do:  call for help!

I called a friend of mine who is good at organization and tends to see things very differently than I do, for some advice.  She came over, and brought a lot of stuff with her!  She came to look at the house with feng shui eyes, take readings of the chi and made some drawings.  Pointed out the same problem areas that I have been attempting to deal with and went home.  I figured it was time to keep cleaning, and went back to doing the same old things.

A few days later my friend called with some more advice:  "You've got to re-paint your hallway.  It is the wrong color, and the boys bedrooms need some rearranging.  I've got more information for you, but we will have to look it over later, and I am still waiting for some more answers."

What was she up to?

It took until today, for me to get the full story.  She had taken home the drawings and looked at them more careful, but couldn't make sense of everything.  So, she contacted a friend or two for further advice.  One of them put her in contact with a feng shui master in China.  He was able to give some advice that actually makes sense.  I feel very at peace with the ideas presented, and have begun to make some changes.

The first change was to hang up a curtain by the kitchen counter, where it connects to the dining room.  They all said that it was a problem because the chi from my sink was washing out through the corner in the dining room, and that is why everyone is so prone to cluttering the counter.  I like the affect of the curtain, because it makes my kitchen feel like a room, not just an open space in the center of my house; but then, I like rooms with door -- not open floor plans.

The next change was to move the piano over a bit, so that I do not have a 'stale corner' in the living room.  By moving the piano about 8", I was able to put my Norfolk Pine in that corner of the living room, and now it is safer from all the little people.

To be continued...

Cha-Ching!

I am in the middle of cleaning the tops of the cupboards and my oldest son, James, just came in, looked at what I was doing, and said, "Mom, I am so glad that you have the time today to clean the kitchen like you really want to. It makes it so much nicer. Thank you, and I will try to keep my stuff picked up, so I don't make extra work for you."

He is ten, and this attitude is such a blessing to me.

I would have never thought to say such a thing to my mom, and she was always cleaning something! As a child, I figured cleaning was her hobby.

A Clear Dinning Table

Several weeks ago I took the boys out for a drive in the forest. We stopped near the river to gather some of the first leaves to turn red. When we got home I arranged them on a small silver platter with a candle in the center and have been using it as a center piece ever since.

Today, I realized with astonishment, that after every meal and any other time possible, I have the table clear, enjoying the center piece! Another habit has been formed, and this one based on the whim of Autumn's beauty.