I have 3 nice mexican ladies that come in and clean from top to bottom, hitting every nook and crannie, including changing the water in the fishtanks. I pay them $110 for that service. That frees up 5 to 7 hours each month my wife and I can do something else with eachother or the boys.

True - I believe part of the tax and national insurance contribution I pay covers that for me.

Of course you do! It would have shattered all my illusions if you didn't :P


I am not a happy housekeeper. I have absolutely no routine. I make my bed shortly before I climb into it. I wash the pots and tidy up as the mood takes me. I hoover (vacuum) once in a blue moon.

[eta] I'd hate to have a cleaner. If I had a cleaner, I'd just end up doing more housework myself. I'd be one of those sad people who cleaned before their cleaner arrived, out of sheer shame. Also the idea of paying someone to do my house just feels wrong/weird to me.

That's the absolute truth Dana. I hate cleaning before the cleaners come but if I don't do it I can't find anything for 2-3 weeks. They will gladly put away anything left out, BUT they put it away where they think it should go.

Clean...ing? What is this cleaning of which you speak? :D
Seriously, everything is neat, dishes done, etc. Major overhaul/throwout about once a year. It's amazing what you find sometimes.

We only pay $80 a week. I take back some of what I said about Mexicans.

They still can't drive worth a tin ear though.

erm, $110/month. Actually about every three weeks. either way, it is well worth it. Those friggin Canadians I had before didn't clean worth a damn.

Yeah, but you should have seen 'em skate!

$85/week. But they're legal and pay all their own taxes.

Dana, half of what they do is enforce a little discipline on us, by way of us tidying up before they come to clean. But now, I can have a friend or relative over any day of the week without going into a major cleaning frenzy. It's helped my overall mood more than I can say. Back when we were doing a little cheeseparing to manage tuition costs for my husband, we gave up on many things we had come to expect -- but not the cleaners.

I got over the 'icky' factor when I realized that these are just as hard working, honest and honorable people as anyone else I know. House-cleaning is one of the few remaining lines of work available to unskilled women. They work with dedication and precision. If I hold them in esteem, how can I denigrate the type of work they do?

I do know what you mean, Dana, but I'm not forcing someone to do it ... and, no we don't clean, and scarcely tidy up before she comes. She cleans around the stuff we haven't moved! I told you, I :heartpump her!

Our house is usually very clean and uncluttered. But I like to pile paperwork, magazines, and books. It bugs the wife. 2 kids are out of the house now and are clean freaks. Girls use to show off my sons dorm room when they wanted to see a guys room that was clean. My youngest daughter is a slob. I fear she will never be married off because no one will be able to live with her slobbiness. Her room is a total wreck and looks like hell. I am not obsessive about my own stuff but I like it neat in orderly. My wife takes care of most of that and credit for any order in the house goes to her.

It is possible that your younger daughter uses room mess as a combination of territorial marking and physical obstruction, to try to increase the degree of privacy she has.
YMMV

When we moved here nine years ago i swore the first thing i'd do would be to hire a cleaner. Unfortunately, i still haven't got the place tidy enough to do so....

She has a room as big as our master BR on the second floor of a two story house with her own BR. There are two other bedrooms's up there. I think she has all the privacy she needs.

So are mine smartass.;)