The amount of laundry three little people can create is unimaginable. I don't even know how it happens. Between a load of cloth diapers every other day, a load of kitchen cloth/towels/sheets every other day, and the regular laundry that accumulates, I simply cannot keep up with the laundry right now. I mean, I can get the laundry clean, but piles of clean laundry accumulate in my dining room and never actually make it the closets and drawers.
When do you guys do your laundry? How in the world do you keep up? I'm at my wit's end.
I guess I could be folding laundry right now and attempting to solve this problem, but I'm telling myself that I'm resting for the baby...
ETA: and I wouldn't worry about the clean stuff. I have a laundry couch where clean laundry lives. The only time it gets cleared off is when we're having guests over.
The oldest is probably old enough to help. Start training them to put their own stuff away. If it's not folded right...well, so be it. He'll be a little wrinkly now and then, but that's not a big deal.
I'm not sure how old your younger boy is, but he should be able to handle putting undies and shirts in drawers too.
Beyond that I've got nothing becuase I live in constant battle with the laundry monster and I don't even have kids yet. so I'll be sitting here hoping for genius tips from others.
Post by meshaliuknits on Aug 15, 2012 12:12:35 GMT -5
I do diapers Wed & Sun. I wash baby clothes and adult darks on Sunday as well. H does whites whenever he gets to it - once a month, maybe? We don't have a lot of white clothes. Usually, if someone's stuff is getting shafted, it's mine.
ETA: and I wouldn't worry about the clean stuff. I have a laundry couch where clean laundry lives. The only time it gets cleared off is when we're having guests over.
Because my oldest son still wets himself at night. I try to put a cloth diaper on him, but he gets mad and takes it off once I shut the door. I have to wash his sheets and blankets at least 2-3 times per week. It's driving me insane!!!!
I do like 5 monster loads on the weekends, besides CDs throughout the week. It isn't really time efficient though.
When I am having good weeks, I just try to do at least one load a day, however that breaks down. One load of CDs. One load of our clothes, one load of his clothes. If I can do at least one of those once a day, it keeps me on top of things, especially with our clothes. I fold when I'm watching tv and then put the clothes on our bed. That way we have to put them away before bed. And if it's only one load at a time, its not such a big deal.
But I really hate doing laundry so while I keep to that once in a while, not all the time unfortunately.
The oldest is probably old enough to help. Start training them to put their own stuff away. If it's not folded right...well, so be it. He'll be a little wrinkly now and then, but that's not a big deal.
It can't be more wrinkly than it currently gets sitting in the hamper waiting to be put away. DH doesn't even go to his drawers to look for clothes anymore. He heads straight to the dining room
Post by penguingrrl on Aug 15, 2012 12:19:42 GMT -5
I try to throw in one load every morning. One thing that has helped me do that faster is that we keep 4 laundry baskets. One for whites, one for lights, one for darks, one for linens so I don't have to deal with sorting before putting it in. As she takes clothes off my oldest knows to ask which basket they go in, I put the younger one's in for her for now but have been teaching her the system.
Then at some point during the day I throw them in the dryer and fold either during afternoon quiet time or after they're in bed (although lately 1st trimester exhaustion is killing me, so after bed doesn't happen). I'm sure once I add diapers it will be a little harder to keep up (we did not CD the older two because we had infrequent access to coin op laundry so it didn't help with cost and was too difficult to access laundry, but now we have our own washer/dryer so I can CD). Sheets don't need folding though. Nobody cares if sheets are wrinkled!
Post by barefootcontessa on Aug 15, 2012 12:21:23 GMT -5
We are a household of six, all little kids. I try to do a couple of loads every day. I load washer at night and set the timer so it washes in the morning. When I wake up, I throw it in the dryer and put in another load. I also try to keep all my laundry in the laundry in the laundry room. I fold in there and make up clothes bags for my boys and store the bags in the laundry room. I do put our stuff in drawers along with towels and such, but keeping the kids clothes container in the laundry has helped tremendously.
It can't be more wrinkly than it currently gets sitting in the hamper waiting to be put away. DH doesn't even go to his drawers to look for clothes anymore. He heads straight to the dining room
Don't feel bad, H usually pulls his out of the dryer.
I try to throw in one load every morning. One thing that has helped me do that faster is that we keep 4 laundry baskets. One for whites, one for lights, one for darks, one for linens so I don't have to deal with sorting before putting it in. As she takes clothes off my oldest knows to ask which basket they go in, I put the younger one's in for her for now but have been teaching her the system.
Where do you keep the baskets?
My laundry room sucks. It's so tiny and I have one little closet to keep my sorted laundry. So most of the dirty stuff accumulates in hampers in our bathrooms. I would love to have a huge laundry room with an area to keep sorted clothes and some counters to fold clean stuff. When we build our dream house...
The oldest is probably old enough to help. Start training them to put their own stuff away. If it's not folded right...well, so be it. He'll be a little wrinkly now and then, but that's not a big deal.
I'm not sure how old your younger boy is, but he should be able to handle putting undies and shirts in drawers too.
Beyond that I've got nothing becuase I live in constant battle with the laundry monster and I don't even have kids yet. so I'll be sitting here hoping for genius tips from others.
My 6 year old is learning to do laundry right now. Just having her move it from the washer to dryer helps. :0)
Post by penguingrrl on Aug 15, 2012 12:23:59 GMT -5
Our baskets take up most of the floor space in my bedroom closet. Not the best option, but the only place we have space. Our "laundry room" is a tiny utility room that also has the furnace, hot water heater, and internal stuff for the a/c unit, so no room for laundry baskets there.
The oldest is probably old enough to help. Start training them to put their own stuff away. If it's not folded right...well, so be it. He'll be a little wrinkly now and then, but that's not a big deal.
It can't be more wrinkly than it currently gets sitting in the hamper waiting to be put away. DH doesn't even go to his drawers to look for clothes anymore. He heads straight to the dining room
Oh, and add DH to the list of people who put their own clothes away.
If the problem is really the folding and storing stage, maybe what you need is some sort of sorting system. So as you pull things out of the dryer/off the line they go straight into designated baskets (one for each person, plus one for household stuff). The boys baskets go in their rooms (including YH) and they have to deal with it from there. That way you're just folding and putting away your stuff, the soon-to-be baby stuff, the current baby's stuff and the household stuff.
And you can kinda tackle it in smaller bites that way. When you have 6 minutes you snag your little girl's basket and quickly fold and put her stuff away without having to wade through the piles of boy laundry and household laundry.
Do you think that would work for you?
ETA: I see that you've got limited space here. So maybe not. Hmmm...you could do sacks that hang on the wall maybe? Or just smaller bins that might fit on a shelf somewhere? Think the size of those expidit cube?
I have 4 children and I have to wash at least 2 times a day and actually put it away to be caught up everyday. I have to do towel's every other day and sheet's every weekend. Otherwise I am screwed. I have not completed a load since Monday so I am trying to do it right now but as you can see I am on here.
Post by One Girl In All The World on Aug 15, 2012 12:26:35 GMT -5
We don't CD, but I don't keep up. Not for lack of trying, but I just have trouble prioritizing it when I'm actually home and awake and not trying to feed/diaper/potty train a LO. I have a load of DD's laundry on top of the dryer (clean, not folded) and a load of mine IN the dryer. God only knows when I/DH will actually get those folded. Whenever they get folded, they will sit on the stairs or in the owners' room(s) for a while more than likely. By the time it all gets put away it will be time to start it all over again. Ugh.
I do a load every other day. I got the shits of doing like 5 monster loads on the weekends, so I just do one medium load every day or every other day.
Laundry goes in the washer as soon as we get home, transfer to the dryer before dinner, bring upstairs to sort/fold after dinner, put DS' laundry away, sit our stuff on the bed so it has to be put away before we go to sleep.
There's only three of us and we use disposable diapers, but the hampers never have more than a day or two worth of clothes in them.
It can't be more wrinkly than it currently gets sitting in the hamper waiting to be put away. DH doesn't even go to his drawers to look for clothes anymore. He heads straight to the dining room
Oh, and add DH to the list of people who put their own clothes away.
If the problem is really the folding and storing stage, maybe what you need is some sort of sorting system. So as you pull things out of the dryer/off the line they go straight into designated baskets (one for each person, plus one for household stuff). The boys baskets go in their rooms (including YH) and they have to deal with it from there. That way you're just folding and putting away your stuff, the soon-to-be baby stuff, the current baby's stuff and the household stuff.
And you can kinda tackle it in smaller bites that way. When you have 6 minutes you snag your little girl's basket and quickly fold and put her stuff away without having to wade through the piles of boy laundry and household laundry.
Do you think that would work for you?
This sounds like a good idea. I just need to figure out a place to put the baskets. My mother did something like this with us when we were little. We had little milk crates with our names on it and she kept them on a shelf in the laundry room. Whenever we walked by we were supposed to grab the crate and put our stuff away.
And I agree with everyone that it is time to make the boys in the house (including the biggest one) pitch in. This place is just becoming too crazy and it's all I can do to make sure clothes and dishes are clean each day and that the floors aren't covered in toys so I can sweep.
I think I'd also consider what can be folded less or at least not as much. Like the few AIOs I had for DD never were folded - just throw back in their bin. DH never folded his boxers.
And ditto making the oldest and DH fold and put away at the least.
One of the reasons I haven't transitioned away from disposable paper products 100% is exactly this issue with the laundry. It's just way to much to process and store for 2 working parents.
I think I'd also consider what can be folded less or at least not as much. Like the few AIOs I had for DD never were folded - just throw back in their bin. DH never folded his boxers.
DH will only do laundry if I specifically ask him to. I don't think it would ever occur to him to throw something into the washer as he steps over the mound in the bathroom. And he doesn't really care about wrinkles, so I think he's content so long as the clothes are clean, even if they are living in the dining room.
But it drives me crazy. I want my nice dining room back and I want to feel organized.
As far as diapers - mine live in a basket by the changing table. I don't think I've folded a diaper since my oldest was a baby. And I finally bought some AIOs with #3. Stuffing pockets even became too much work.
Post by DarcyLongfellow on Aug 15, 2012 13:03:36 GMT -5
You definitely need a sorting system like pixy posted. We just bought a new house, and pretty mcg my first priority was getting DH to install a closet system in our laundry room. I now have four big baskets in there (with hanging rods above) so the whole family's laundry will be sorted in one place. My plan is to have a small hamper in each bedroom just to collect items before they are transported to the laundry room to get sorted. Then all I have to do is choose whichever load is fullest and throw it in.
The folding and putting away is the hardest part for me too. I find it goes SO much better if I force myself to fold each load as soon as the dryer finishes. I don't always do it, but I've actually set a timer before, just to prove to myself that folding one load of laundry really doesn't take very long. I also aim to do one load per day.
Then I agree -- definitely teach at least your oldest to put away his own clothes.
ETA: and I wouldn't worry about the clean stuff. I have a laundry couch where clean laundry lives. The only time it gets cleared off is when we're having guests over.
I'm so glad to hear that someone else does this, too! I hate folding laundry. I hate putting it away. Plus, I think it adds a "homey" feel.
We're working on organizing our laundry room and making it more usable to help.
Other than that, I buy so many clothes for my kids just so I can go a month without doing laundry. I hate laundry.
I do it all though b/c MH is untrustworthy with it. I think he's actually competent but I don't like him to mess with my stuff (all my stainfighting, different settings on my washer/dryer) - I'm very territorial about it all.