But if you have clutter everywhere, how can you clean your carpets etc? The clutter collects dust and dead skin cells and pet hair etc etc etc...and you can't clean it. That's the sort of dirt I think of when I think about cluttered up houses.

That's what the terrorists want you to think.

lol...Oh right. I must have missed that.

1) that sort of dirt won't kill you
2a) the clutter protects the carpet from the dirt....
2b) you move it, duh... (bulldozer-style, quick and efficient)
3) it doesn't get any worse after 7 years.....

"Every kid should eat a certain amount of dirt." -- my paternal grandmother

Unknown mother at a playground: "God made dirt so dirt don't hurt."
My former husband to mother at playground: "God also made cyanide."

NY Times: Babies Know: A Little Dirt Is Good for You

NUFF SAID

Looks like Grandma Dallas, born in 1899 on a farm in the foothills of North Carolina, and never educated past grade school, scores! :D

Hmmm...nowhere did I say kids shouldn't be exposed to dirt. Mine were and they're as healthy as horses...cept the ones with horse flu. They're not doing so well. I digress though.

Kids should get outside and do all that stuff kids do including stepping in dog shit etc. I don't agree with the trend these days to keep kids 'clean' all the time. I disagree with those antibacterial hand soap things you can get these days. I think too many mothers stop their kids from exploring their environment for fear of 'germs'.

That being said, I stand by my reasons for keeping a clean house. :) Outside is where kids should be exposed to dirt. Not inside.

Woo-hoo, just interviewed and hired a new cleaning service. Aaahhh. A clean house, and more dollars into the local economy.

What is the cost of such a service? My wife has been requesting that I hire someone.

Depends on how often you want them in, how big your house is, number of kids and pets, how detailed the work is.

We're paying $85/week for a 2,200 sq.ft. 4-br 2.5bath. They spend 4 (wo)man-hours per week. They supply the vacuum, mops, etc but I supply cleaning chemicals, paper towels, etc. They are insured and bonded.

If you go really under-the-table, I'm sure you could do much cheaper.

Gotta agree with Ali, my house is by no way spotless, its clutter and messy...but not dirty.

Dirty is for outside, Im happy for the boys to get filthy, but they dont need to bring that inside and live in it.

Even cavewomen used to brush the dirt outside :)

That said, when I visit people, I dont care if THEY choose not to believe the same.

My BFF loves me visiting, because I subconsciously start cleaning her kitchen and floors.

Dude, your house is not a big mess, it is all kinds of fucked up. I thought my house was bad, but next to yours, mine looks like a wafer fab.

Hire Clodfobble to go through there like Grant went through Richmond.

If someone cleaned my house I'd be homeless.

Maybe it's just me... but I think long before we point to clean bathrooms as a cause of autoimmune disorders, we might consider the cluster fuck of toxic chemicals, genetically modified antigens, and heavy metals we inject into said immune systems under the guise of 'preventative medicine'. Just a though. ;)

Let science be the judge.

Science doesn't happen without cash, and unfortunately big pharma has more than I do.

You'd be amazed at what these new epson printers can do.

I'd support that. The science doesn't appear to be happening though.

Just an update.

I changed the linens on the bed and made it up nice.
I unpacked all the suitcases
I did 7 loads of laundry
I not only cleaned the bathroom I put in a new toilet!
I filed away about 150 CDs and about 70 DVDs and Videos
I drank as much of the wine as I could but I still have work to do there.
I cleaned the kitchen and did several loads of dishes.

:D :D :D

wtg, chris! :)

Just remember chris - No springsteen till the whole house is clean!

Item #6 inspires one to complete the other items.

Well done Chris!
Update photos please.

I can appreciate this struggle.

Keeping a house clean with two little randomizers like we have is a lesson in futility, yet I do my best even when it isn't good enough for some of our family member who feel compelled to clean everytime they come over. Still I think I do pretty good all things considered and when I fall behind I simply start in the kitchen and work my way around the house. I do feel like I clean the same messes 3 or 4 times a day and despite my daughters attmpts to help ... I still find myself doing most of the work. IF the kids make big messes involving liquids I generally make them clean it up... then I take over when they've given it their best effort... just so they take part in picking up after themselvs. Flint and I can be just as bad as they can I'll admit. Flint seems to have a real problem getting clothes INTO the hamper and bottles INTO the recycling. My problem area is the kitchen.

Somehow the kitchen being neat makes the rest of the house seem managable. It is a bit tricky however because the boy child is obsessed with our dishwasher and comes running from any corner in the house if I so much as open it.

One trick I've found that helps me real in the mess and disorganization is that I generally keep a rubber made tub handy and as I'm cleaning each room I place in the tub items that do not belong in that room (this is a problem for us because the kiddos carry things from one room to the next just to "mix it up" I'm convinced) then when I'm done I just sort the items in the tub back into their respective places.

I have a chore list for Monday -Friday and I do try to stick to it, though I'll admit I've fallen off track lately... no sense in moping a floor we are replacing Friday if all goes well... so that covers Kitchen entry and bathroom. I've been remiss on the tub as well... not my favorite task and difficult if the kiddos are awake... they LOVE baths and want to take one every time. Vaccuuming can also be tricky because he chaes it and climbs on I while I'm trying to vaccuum.

Right now I have half a load of laundry that needed to be put away like Monday... but haven't managed to finish mostly out of laziness... and exhaustion.

When my energy is good I manage to keep it pretty clean... not OCD clean like some folks think I should be, but clean enough.

Good job Chris! And I second the request for pictures, when you get a chance.

I know I have one cousin who is really terrible at keeping her house clean, and she acknowledges that she hates it being dirty and messy, but doesn't like cleaning enough to do it well.

When I go over to her place I invariably do a bit of cleaning, even if it is just around the kitchen area. I do it because I love her, and for me it's no big deal because we still chat and drink coffee or whatever while it's going on.

Maybe your family are just trying to help you out too?

Oh and good for you chris! We really want some pics now though!!!

Totally... and I do appreciate it, but it is still a little frustrating when the house is actually pretty clean already and I'm doing everything humanly possible at this point. .. I'm just not OCD.

Yes... way to go Chris!

You know what I reckon? If someone wants to clean up for you, just let them. ;) Don't feel bad about it or guilty. You've got little kids. You need all the help you can get.

That's what I reckon. :)

Bah, take off that apron, back away from that broom, ya traitor.


ceptin if it's gonna get ya laid;)

I'd clean this place from top to bottom if'n it meant I'd get laid.
'Cept it's clean already.

:lol:
Never heard 'em called that before. How totally appropriate, I love it!

Just an update. I got a lot done before returning to Atlanta to remodel the kitchen in my parents house there. Next week I am going to South Africa to be with my wife whom I hope to soon start living with on a more normal basis, however there is something to be said for meeting your lover in foriegn places or airports!!!! No one is at home to see anything left undone and we have a wedding rehersal dinner at our house on April 24th so we will have it all spick and span by then!!!

We, humans, have lived, thrived even for thousands of generations before the concept of modern sanitation existed. It is possible to be too clean. The current mania over antibacterial *everything* is a symptom of this. Not all germs are harmful. And yet if we kill many many of them with these thougtless habits, but not all of them, which is impossible, we're only helping the strongest survive.

I don't relish that thought that I'm helping influence the natural selection for smarter tougher bacteria. I want some of them on my side too.

Where do you read about outbreaks of MRSA? Hospitals or Skid Row? Everything in moderation, including cleanliness.

I modified "The Moving Rule" to apply to everything, all the time: If you haven't used it in a year (some go for six months), it gets thrown out or sold (to get more stuff!!).