Cath, the trouble is one usually does not need a reminder to not forget to do the great stuff. Nor others to see that the house is not taking care of itself and home makers often have a tight schedule to fit things in, too, if house chores were so inspiring and easy to do.. I like them, btw, coz it manual stuff makes me sort my thoughts, but mopping, windows...uf.
And now for one of the positive aspects of living in SZ, the household service of the Schwyzer Bauerinnen Verband, the association of farming women. A helping hand around the house, extra income for farming families, all the administrative legalities organized for you. Win all around.
If you don't want a regular commitment, the service can also be used for a one-off job. You could hire them once to let the gnädige Frauen of Schwyz show you the 'Swiss way' to clean.
Lovely folks, offering a variety of services.
(Canton SZ only)
I'd clean it because three boys insist on using chopsticks to eat egg-fried rice but haven't managed to master them at all.
We really don't need an App to remind us to do something. It's a lot more obvious than that
maybe make a list of basics, work out how long each task takes, hire someone for that period of time.
roomba in between.
I don't need an app to tell me to have fun! That's my problem, I indulge myself too much
Nice one, thanks!
That is very interesting!
I think MusicChick understands me! Or she is just too kind, haha
People are saying it's obvious, and yes, visible stuff is, But what I am talking about is preventative cleaning. Going over everything so that you don't one day after 4 months look closely for some reason and notice a thin grime that you don't notice unless you are up close. And is hard to get looking sparkly again. That's what I never bothered with. You know, wiping skirting rails and dusting walls and stuff. It doesn;t look dirty. But then after a year of living in a home we'd notice the dust that had snook up in all those little corners you don't live in much. I need to keep on top of tha
Usually the window handles have two positions; spun 180 degrees the window tips towards you but turned 90 degrees the window should open fully towards you.
The opposite window doesn't have a handle but is normally on a catch which you just have to tug towards you, or they are screwed closed and you can just release it with a flathead screwdriver.
In my experience frequent cleaning is a lot easier than trying to get rid of built up dirt.
My best cleaning tips I picked up in Japan. I even brought back home with me some of the cleaning tools.
Then, we moved abroad and lived in countries like Mexico, where a large segment of the population is happy to live in your homes and work. I did not work, doted on our children, attended Class Mums' meetings and planned dinner parties/ fund raising events for our international schools. Meanwhile, the housekeepers worked 8 hours a day to keep up with our household, including the weekends.
Then, we lost our expat status and came back to Switzerland and I went back to work.
OH BOY....I think I could write a book about this subject....
Suffice it to say, there is currently NO MAID (although Meloncollie's occasional suggestion is tempting!) and I completely understand the OP's need to find a way to create an organized approach to housekeeping. If an APP helps, do it!
BTW, I am starting to understand the Swiss lady, though I wonder if she would say the same today. Even Swiss women are often working outside the home today....
Make a long term (year), medium term (month, week) and short term (day) plan . I make up personalised tables on Word because I'm not very good with computers, but something like Excel might be better if you know how to use it.
On the long term plan , write a rough overview of what needs done. Walk around the house with a clipboard and jot down, for example, May: shutters and windows; June: cellar. You don't need much detail here, just an outline.
On the medium term plan , go into more detail and divvy up the jobs week by week. Give yourself days off: if you plan to work every day of the week, you won't bother some days and you'll feel bad about it afterwards. For example: WB June 9: windows on 1st floor; descale shower; remove that towel stain from the weekend in Las Vegas
On the short term plan , timetable your work in more detail. Only do one or two day plans at a time at first, so you can learn from your mistakes as you go along. Decide to work an actual working day - get up at six or seven, start working by eight, take a break at ten, have lunch at one or whatever - and try to stick to it. Procrastination is the killer here (says a bloke who's on EF when he has a pile of maths papers to grade...). Don't forget to include stuff you'd do anyway, as it needs doing and it's always nice to tick things off as you go along:
07:45 wash up breakfast dishes
08:00 organise bucket,sponge, newspaper, vinegar; move furniture from around window in kids' room
08:15 clean windows in kids' room
09:00 telephone bank re: Qatar money transfer
09:20 clean windows in bathroom
10:00 break: tea and Chomp bar
10:30 descale kettle
... or whatever
The important thing is to have a list that's actually doable, and that you can merrily cross things off of as you go along. There's nothing beats the feeling of looking at a thoroughly crossed out and ticked list!
If it's any consolation, I've got 13 rooms to manage in a very old, really rather grubby house, all on my own (for the time being) while working full time and making frequent trips out of the canton. The only way to cope with it all without constantly beating myself up for not achieving anything is to do lists like the ones above and revise them frequently. And although it sounds sad, I really do include "forums" and "Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter" on my short term lists!
Good luck and have fun!
Tom