I enjoy order and predictability. Having a kid on the spectrum has made The Schedule even more important to my life—he just plain functions better when he knows exactly what will be happening when. It’s easier to get his cooperation when things are planned.
And so it came to pass that every Saturday I call for the children to bring their hamper downstairs, and every Sunday afternoon I announce that I need the basket of clean clothes put away (if they haven’t been already) and the basket should be returned to me, emptied, before dinner. This seems to work out pretty well; the children never run out of clean clothes, I am able to keep track of things like when all of Chickadee’s socks have mysteriously disappeared or when Monkey’s undies are starting to unravel (“They’re fine!” he assures me, gamely modeling a too-small pair that fits like a thong and has a tail of elastic sweeping out behind him) and such.
I am constantly reading blogs wherein people claim to do two or three loads of laundry EVERY DAY. Who ARE you people? Do you only own two outfits each? Do you wash every towel every time it gets used? Do you wash each pair of jeans individually? You confuse me.
I do one day of laundry for the kids, on Saturday. It’s three loads, max. Otto does his own laundry, though I’d guess it’s a couple of loads each week. I do my laundry when I start running out of clothes or when my hamper overflows, and periodically I wash towels/sheets/linens not otherwise handled by the regular laundry. All of which comes nowhere NEAR to equaling laundry every single day.
Anyway. This is not actually about laundry. (Look! Up there! In the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s… Tangent Woman!) I mean, it’s SORT OF about laundry, but it’s more about me being a slob and also my closet probably being too big.
Laundry: I did laundry last night, which is how this started. The last time I did my own personal laundry was before I went to Mom 2.0, which means I had gone three weeks since last doing laundry. Now, it’s pretty warm in Georgia right now, so the stuff I’m wearing is light/thin, which is why the hamper didn’t overflow before this. And clearly I own three weeks worth of stuff to wear, because I wasn’t wearing dirty clothes. No. I had plenty of clean clothing to wear, enough underwear, etc. But yesterday I noticed that I was out of “favorite” shirts, which is what prompted the laundry run.
Now, does anyone remember last year when I and my fellow slackers vowed to get in shape, clean up our lives, and otherwise become worthwhile members of society over at Five Full Plates? One of the things I did during our Clean Sweep challenge was clean my bedroom and closet. That was a little over a year ago. And I’m looking at the picture there and I could’ve taken it in my bedroom this morning. IT’S UNCANNY. I mean, down to the neglected suitcase. (Yes, I’ve been back for two and a half weeks from my last trip, and the suitcase is still sitting there. DON’T JUDGE ME, I’ve been busy with… something. I’m sure.)
I mean, I’m happy to report that my closet hasn’t quite sunk into QUITE the slovenly state it was in last year at this time, but nevertheless, as the washing machine glugged away, I stood in my closet and marveled. Because: I was doing laundry because it’d been three weeks and I was nearly out of clothes, but I stood there in a closet… full of clothes.
Granted, some of the clothing is for colder weather, or dressier occasions than sitting at my computer and writing about my laundry, but still. I am out of short-sleeve shirts I want to wear, but I still have… an embarrassing number of short-sleeve shirts hanging in there. Most of them are t-shirts, so we’re not talking haute couture or anything.
Last year when I cleaned out my closet, I gave five giant sacks of clothing away. I could probably do the same thing year. And I have no idea if the shirts have been multiplying in there or what. I am ruthless about getting rid of “stuff” in every other area of my life, but for some reason, weeding out unworn clothing from my closet is anathema to me. Because I MIGHT want to wear that! Or I remember how much I paid for that and it’s barely worn and what if I need it? Or LOOK, I got this with the tags still on at Goodwill for $2 and why would I just give it back just because I haven’t found a time to wear it yet?
Maybe this weekend I’ll suck it up and start culling. Because nothing says Mother’s Day like showing your husband and children that really, you’d rather not become a full-fledged hoarder.
I have absolutely the opposite problem – I never have enough clothing. I find myself purchasing clothing for the husband, the kids, and basically everyone but me. AND I still can’t find a dang bra that fits!!!! LOL
If my husband so much as LOOK at a shirt he thinks it’s dirty and must be laundered. I’ve taken to going into stealth mode when he’s asleep, plucking his pristine shirts from the laundry basket and rehanging them, the shooting some plastic wrap outa my a** so they’ll look like they just came from the dry cleaners. MWHAHAHAH
Perhaps you and Horatio would like to come clean our closet when you’re done?
I miss having a washer/dryer, but I confess to in the past year or so just taking my stuff to a wash/fold place and having it done there. It’s a luxury but it’s cheaper that me renting a place in this same area that has a washer/dryer. Plus I can avoid the whole “move” thing. I’m way overdue for a culling of clothes myself, but I will probably put it off until next year when I move to Chicago.
I do four loads of laundry a week. FOUR. All on Saturday. One for the girls, one for me, towels, and sheets. Ta da! I am a laundry goddess. It’s a modest superpower, but busy mamas can’t be choosy.
There is no way I could go 3 weeks without doing my laundry…no way. I have a weeks worth of clothes and underwear. I do laundry about twice a week for all 5 of us.
I just filled two garbage bags full from 2 laundry baskets of clothing that got washed sometime in the past and then placed ever so gingerly OUT OF VIEW. I also found 2 pairs of capri jeans I did not remember i had, just in time for SUMMER. WHOO! Of course I did NOT try them on…because…well you know.
I feel very shameful about my closet now.
Ugh. It’s just me, and the laundry is in the basement, which is spidery and damp, and full to the brim (everywhere except my eight by eight laundry space) of the landlord’s crap – er, “found” treasures. So I average about ten days between full-ledged “laundry” days, unless I run out of favorite work clothes. Towels, sheets and kitchen textiles get done whenever.
The landlords, however, must be some of the people with only two sets of clothes apiece. There are three of them – mom, dad and early-twenties daughter. Yet the machine is going all.the.time. And WHEN do they chose to do laundry? The instant my brain says, “I need to go to bed”. And WHERE is their laundry space? Immediately under my bedroom. Mom and Dad are retired; daughter works part time, so why do they need to torture me this way?
Why yes, I’m looking for a condo with an in-unit laundry room.
I don’t do laundry every day, but it feels like it, because I do something laundry-RELATED every day. For example, last night I folded clothes while watching TV, and then fell asleep on the couch, and when I woke up at 11:30 still needing to wash dishes, walk dogs, brush teeth, choose tomorrow’s outfit (for me and kids) etc., I decided to skip putting the folded clothes away. So I’ll have to do that tonight….
My husband looked in my closet the other day and said “What a mess!” Well, ya, but its MY mess, now go away! (He’s neater than I am but, hey, I keep the rest of the house clean! Nobody’s supposed to be lookin’ in MY closet!)
I cleaned out my kitchen cupboard so I could put stuff from the counter into the pantry. Someone was coming to my house to give me a quote on refacing my cabinets so I needed to impress. Looks pretty good and maybe will last for a day or two. Now you are hinting that maybe I should clean out my closet too? I seem to collect clothes and have a hard time getting rid of stuff!
I am one person and I could do laundry nearly everyday. I often wear a few outfits a day…work…the gym…clothes for going out or lounging around…jammies. But like you, I could also go a few weeks without having to wash.
I do a load of laundry everyday. I didn’t realize that was weird but i guess it kind of is! To me, having laundry in the basket is like having dishes in the sink. If there are clothes in there, I have to wash them. Hmmm. Maybe I’ll try to stop doing that. . . I’m sure I could make it for a week without doing a load but definitely not 3 weeks! I need my favorite t-shirts!
I do at least a load a day, usually two. My kids are at the “two to three changes per day” age, especially now that it’s nice enough to be playing out in the dirt every day. We live on a farm, and I go to the gym. So I end up changing clothes a couple of times per day too (going out in public clothes, gym clothes, farm chores clothes). I rewear whatever isn’t completely foul, but it still adds up. Add in the rags we use instead of paper towels and it really adds up.
Imagine how bad it was when I had two in cloth diapers.
I literally did this same (haha! I just typo’d sane, that works too!!) thing yesterday. I used the two hours a sitter was lined up got my eight week old to clean my closets and it was a long litany of wondering how I consume so much!
And this started the culling itch. Thursday I will be using the sitter so I can clean the pantry and china hutch out. And Sunday? I really am planning on cleaning my garage!
I do the same thing, except that I also think that someday I will sell it on eBay (and earn $1.50) What works for me is to imagine that someone out there is desperately searching Goodwill for the thing that I am hesitating about donating.
Ironic that you should blog about your laundry and closet. I have recently lost weight and I am down to 2 pairs of jeans that fit. I went on vacation recently and bought new shorts that fit. So yesterday I came up with this idea that maybe instead of shopping for new jeans I could go through my closet of the “some day I will fit back into this” pile of jeans. The only problem with that is the waist fit fine but the jeans were unflattering everywhere else. So much for my bright idea. Looks like I need another pair of jeans or two to get me through until the weather is warm enough for shorts.
Now laundry is not on a schedule with me. In order to keep up with it I probably do a load every other day or so (with a family of 4)
I don’t – but could – do laundry every day. It’s something that I hate with a passion. My oldest just drug in from her first year of college yesterday afternoon and I’ve been in a marathon session of washing and have done about 10 loads since she walked in the door.
I think you’ll notice as your kids grow and their clothes increase in to ADULT size, so will the amount of laundry.
(Remember, how fun it was to wash all those baby clothes? And you just couldn’t get enough to make a whole load?)
Today, instead of going to work, I am home doing laundry because the sun came out and all I had left were turtlenecks.
I’m a compulsive sorter, therefore can only do laundry when I have a complete load of each of the four groups.
My primary indicator of when it is time to do laundry is when there is an abundance of empty hangers in my closet…or when the hamper tips over.
I look at our 13 year old’s room and think about yelling at him to clean it up. Then I look at our room and bite my lip. It’s somewhat embarrassing.
I have a closet full of clothes and nothing to wear. I am still losing baby weight and have no idea what will end up fitting and not fitting. I can’t wait to be able to go through at all and purge. I just with the closet fairy would show up and do it for me. And clean my room, too!
I am one of the freaks that does laundry every day. The 3 kids have school clothes, play clothes and this time of year, baseball or soccer uniforms. We are in Wisconsin, so factor in layers of clothes during winter too and coats, snowpants etc.. My daughter is very allergic to dust mites, so her bedding, including blankets and comforters gets washed very frequently. It would be harder to do it all in one day because my washer cycle is over an hour long, and I hang almost everything to dry. I would be overwhelmed trying to do that all in one day. But I do fold and put away everything just one day a week. (Yes, I put it away even though they are old enough. Small house w/limited storage means it has to be but away super neatly or it doesn’t fit) Good luck with your organizing/culling. I will try to be inspired to do the same. Probably won’t happen, but it would be nice.
I. Can. So. Relate!!! I have “no clothes” but my closet is FULL of stuff I don’t wear but “might” want to wear so I keep it. I just can’t bring myself to get rid of perfectly good clothes just cuz it’s out of style or I know longer like it. I think it’s rollover from being part of the clean plate club.
“There are children in Africa who would gladly eat that!”
And wear my pink three year old blouse I’m sure. *sigh*
I only do laundry about once every 2.5-3 weeks for myself, too … So glad I’m not the only one! My husband, who mind you, wears a uniform to work in a research lab that GETS WASHED FOR HIM, does a load of laundry twice each week. I still have yet to figure out HOW and WHY.
I can see how people with multiple children, and especially babies who dirty up all sorts of clothes per day, might prefer to tackle a load a day rather than a whole bunch at once. But, my god, I HATE doing laundry and dread the day I get to that point.
I have the exact opposite problem. I weed my closet WAY too much. Once per year (in December so I can get my handy donation receipt at a time when I’ll actually remember to use it for taxes) I hang everything backwards. When I wear something, it gets hung back up with the hanger the correct way. Then, come the next December, everything that is still hanging backwards has to go. No exceptions. The only problem is that apparently I really only wear five or six things over and over and over, so I wind up with a nearly empty closet annually. It’s an excuse to go shopping, but it’s still ridiculous.
I could probably clothe myself and everyone else who commented for three weeks with the stuff in my closet. I’m feeling the shame, too. A couple of years ago, I cleaned my closet and gave away lots of clothes that were three sizes too small and decades out of date, but I kept the ones that I just couldn’t bear to part with because they were expensive or worn to a meaningful event or I just adored them. Turns out, my 16 year old loves those clothes from the 80s and 90s. She wears them all the time and is the envy of many of her classmates. They’re “vintage” and super chic now. Who knew? Also, who knew I used to be that tiny? It’s a surprise on several levels.
I do laundry twice a week for all four of us. It comes to 1-2 loads in the warm weather months, 2-3 loads in the cold weather months, for a grand total of 2-6 loads a week.
Except right now I’m washing smaller (and more) loads than usual because our washer is on its last legs and the noises it makes are less alarming when it has a small load going.
I have 7 kids. 8 if you count my husband. 4 of them are boys, so the rounds of dirty laundry from rough play outside adds up. Then there’s my two older daughters who seem to think that wearing 2-3 outfits per day is fine. Then, when the kids are told to clean their rooms, dirty or not, the clothes hit the hamper. So we do roughly 3-4 loads of laundry PER DAY. My solution? First week of summer, the kids are going through their closets and are allowed only to keep 7 summer outfits, 7 winter outfits, and that’s it. For now… my husband is doing the laundry. :)
Laundry – my husband put that as one of my hobbies when he set up my FB page and I am not sure if he removed it since I forgot to check FB. I actually prefer to do laundry throughout the week since I prefer to dry as little as possible in the dryer and have a limited amount of hanging space. Even though there are only three of us – between work, school, daycare, workout gear, sports gear, dance clothes,work in the garden and play clothes it seems as if there were 5-6 of us. It is very easy to put a load in either before or while dinner is cooking and then hang it to dry. I do not have as much guilt if TV watching involves folding laundry.
For my husband and I, I do a load of darks about once a week and a load of whites every other week or so (depends on how many times we wear socks in that time frame to be completely honest ;) ). Towels and sheets get thrown in the mix about every other week (we have plenty of spare on both).
My husband however, ends up running a small load at least 2-3 times a week to get his uniforms clean for work. I think it might be time to see if we can purchase more uniforms…….
I have four kids. Two of them play several sports, so there’s almost always some kind of sweaty stuff to wash. Because we are a family of 6, I could do a couple of loads of laundry everyday. I *could* but I don’t. Because I know that no matter what I do, the laundry will always be there. I know that it’s not going anywhere and I’m pretty sure that nobody besides me will do it. Shoot, my kids can’t get their laundry off of the floor and into laundry baskets which are in the laundry room, so I’m pretty sure they don’t even know *where* the laundry room is, let alone what those mysterious machines with all the shiny knobs and buttons do. But I’m not bitter. Much.
I hate laundry. I once thought about wearing the paperclothes you get at the hospital. Disposal clothes. What a concept! I. Hate. Laundry. I hate socks even more.
Lynn in Mass- I am losing weight, but I still have nothing to wear. I gained over a pregnancy, and went from a 12 to a 16. So now the 16s are two big and the 12s are still too small.
Mir, we’re a family of six, and I do two loads a day, but not necessarily every day. If I had my mother-in-law’s washing machine, it would be four loads a day. Her washer is T-I-N-Y. Anyway. Between my husband and I, we have two loads of darks, two loads of whites, towels, and sheets. The kids, really, I could do a small load every day, especially in winter. So they’re dirtying 4-5 large loads of clothes a week, plus sheets, towels, etc. And then there’s the kitchen laundry, because I still have a little one.
Between towels, sheets, sports uniforms, kids clothes, adult clothes, gym clothes, and potty training I average 10-12 loads of wash over 2-3 days. Both kids go through a couple of outfit changes a day. I go to the gym or its equivalent everyday. The husband is training for an ironman which means he’s exercising both before work and during lunch and sometimes after work (with fresh clothes each time and all the additional showers). And while the family could go weeks before we’d run out of clothes, it doesn’t take nearly that long for the hampers (one each for towels, darks, whites, and mixed) to overflow.
Sometimes I feel like laundry is my life. Mostly I feel like I try to ignore that part of my life.
I do laundry every Tuesday. Mine and my folks’. This comes to four to six loads depending on whether we had company or not. Luckily we have laundry facilities in the building. I have at least three loads of my own (whites get mixed with their whites and reds/oranges get mixed with theirs too) every week, and yet, I too have this insane amount of clothes still in the closet. Mostly off season stuff, but still! I JUST cleaned it out a few months ago! I need to go back over it with a more critical eye apparently.
No comment on the closet because mine is ridiculous right now, but I did want to thank you for mentioning the laundry bit – the only time I ever did laundry more than once a week was when I had a newborn! Other than that, it’s once a week (there are only 3 of us) but I am amazed at people with MAYBE one more child than I, who have to do laundry several times a week! But even if I waited 3 weeks, I would still not be seeing the bottom of the t-shirt drawer so I guess I’d better start thinking about starting a bag for Goodwill.
I do laundry once on weekends, either Saturday or Sunday, and I’m fanatical that it should be started and finished the same day. Sometimes folding & putting away laps over a day, but all clean clothes should be out of the basement by the end of the day.
You joke about cleaning out your closet for Mother’s Day, but I have something similar on tap. Husband asked what I want for Mother’s Day. My response? A day to clean the basement. So that’s what we’ll be doing this weekend, and it will make me happy!
If you do 2 loads/week for the kids, the husband does 2 loads/week, and you do 1 load/week of other stuff (towels, sheets, etc) you only need to do 2 more loads to get to 1 load/day.. Just sayin’ ;)
re: “Who ARE you people?”
You’ve been so helpful to me over the years, I’m so happy that I can clear up one mystery for you! :)
This is who “we” are:
There are five in my family. I have three kids (one is only four months old, hence, lots of spit-up) and all have severe allergies. This breaks down to at least three changes of clothes per day for baby (often more! but the clothes are rather tiny), at least two changes per day for each of the older boys. (My oldest, on orders from his allergist, must shower afterschool and after going outdoors in evening, so often three changes for him.) My husband wears dress clothes to work, casual clothes when he gets home (and usually works outside & gets filthy), then sweatpants & tee to sleep in.
For everyone except my oldest, the pjs are the only things that get reworn, everything else must be laundered; they are boys, afterall, and their clothes are usually covered in various bits of food and dirt. (For oldest, his nighttime tee is a one-time-use, too.) All in all, and not counting my own clothing, it’s at least one large load of laundry accumulated PER DAY. Imagine that building up for a week! So… when you also consider that the various types of clothes need to be washed differently… mostly in cold water, but bedding in hot to kill dustmites, spit-up & poop-stained clothes treated first & washed in warm, etc.
Perhaps you can understand. why…..I. must. do. laundry. every. single. frickin’. day. ;)
(Which reminds me… I need to go now and switch a load over to the dryer and hang up some tees…)
WTH am I doing wrong? I do a load of laundry at least every other day. Ack. Part of it are dirty gym clothes. I can’t take stinky stuff hanging out in my laundry room….anyhow…I think I might need to clean out my bra drawer, but la la la, I can’t HEAR you!!!
Everybody has a different system not to mention different family sizes. We have four kids; I do two loads of laundry a day usually, 6 days a week. That includes towels, sheets, and also pool towels. I have a schedule and as long as I stick to it, every body has school uniforms, undies, baseball clothes and volleyball uniforms when they need them. If I get off schedule—watch out!
My son plays soccer 5 times/week and my daughter plays 3 times/week. And, then the grown-ups work out a few times a week. So, that is how we fill the laundry basket. If you let this stuff sit for 3 weeks it would probably mold.
It took me three days to fold one pitiful little basket of laundry. I kept moving it from room to room so I would SEE it, therefore DO something with it. Nope. Not until I was out of favorite shirts and had to dig past the kids’ clothes on top to find my nicely wrinkled shirt on bottom. But hey, there is Scrabble to be played. Right?
My laundry pile is sometimes the size of my sectional sofa, and I do laundry daily. With 4 kids ages 6 and under, 3 of whom are boys, the dirty clothes build up fast. I find that if I try to do a load a day, it at least stays somewhat under control. Somewhat. Add in a newly potty-trained 2 y.o. and a very messy eater who just turned 1, and you have the makings of a disaster.
I do one load every day. I have a cleaning crew who comes every other week & changes the bedding (I can’t bc of my back,) so on those weekend I usually do a few extra loads to free up space in the laundry room. There’s four of us, but our load are huge! I’m not sure why, but they are. I used to do a weekly marathon laundry day each weekend, but realized it’s much easier to just do 1 load a day. We too could all probably go a full month w/out washing. (Probably not underwear, but it’s close.) I’m working on getting this extra weight off & back into a bunch of my old clothes, so I have a ton of stuff I won’t/don’t wear right now. But I’ve been culling a bit each week. I’m a Flylady gal (or trying to be.)
I don’t do laundry every day, but I easily do 6-8 loads/week. My kids and husband are all on various athletic teams (soccer/baseball) with uniforms. Uniforms that get very dirty. And I’m a runner. In Wisconsin. The amount of clothing I need to wear for one run in 10 degree weather will fill a washing machine all by itself!
My husband and I both work outside the home at employers who frown on wearing PJs to work. So, between exercise, team games/practices, work clothes, sweats at home – we can easily wear 3 outfits a day!
And I wash everyone’s sheets/blankets (almost) every week, so that’s 3 more loads, there. Is that unusual? I can’t imagine going 3 weeks without at least washing towels and sheets.
I work outside the home, and spend way too little time in my house, so laundry doesn’t get done every day…but I also don’t want to spend my entire weekend doing the 7-8 loads that a family of five can generate. So we try to do a load at least every other day. It really does add up over time when you add in gym clothes for the middle and high schooler, and baseball, soccer and martial arts uniforms for them all.
I clean my closet out twice a year when I change out clothes. There are usually several bags donated. But in my defense, they are usually filled with really old things or things people so nicely bought for me that I hate. ;)
I have wide shoulders and (usually) a small chest, so I have an awful time finding shirts that fit well. I have a closet full of shirts that I convinced myself fit at the store but then never wanted to wear – I wear the same, like, 7 shirts constantly. Plus now I’m nursing, so those shirts don’t fit with my honkin’ chest… *sigh*
Plus I’m currently cloth diapering a 2 year old and a 4 month old… I am a laundry slave.
I do about 4 loads of laundry a week, preferably in Saturday or Sunday (I have no particular schedule about it). My girlfriends who don’t have kids, are always telling me they need to move before they have kids and have laundry in their apartments (in NYC unless it’s a condo, it’s pretty hard to come by) because of the 2 loads of laundry they will have to do EACH day. First off, new laundry machines have HUGE capacity, their clothes are tiny, and if you buy enough clothes to last the week, you only have to do laundry once a week for them. Plus if they haven’t spit up on them, had exploding diapers, and had other misadventures with their bodily functions, I say you can use it again. Folding all those little clothes can make a grown man go insane.
As for the closet, it has been giving me the stink eye for awhile. My friend just had her closet redone from the Elfa at the Container Store, and I am so jealous. It looks BEAUTIFUL!! Maybe I too will clean it this weekend….I doubt it, but I can hope.
I also have always wondered who the people were who do laundry every day. I do four loads of clothes a week (for me, my husband and my son) (bleach/other whites/lights/darks) and a load of towels and a load of sheets. This can usually be done in one day on the weekend, depending on what we have going on. The thing that I love about laundry is it does itself, mostly. You have to put it in and take it out, but while it is going, you can do other things…like take a nap. :-) I do have to admit that the last couple of weekends have been packed with activities or I have been out of town, so then I do one load each evening.
I also do the backwards hanger trick, but unfortunately I can’t convince my husband that he needs to get rid of the clothes that he doesn’t wear! This weekend we are going through stuff for a garage sale, so hopefully I will win the battle!
My ‘secret’ to clearing out clothes is getting rid of things that I wouldn’t choose. For example, I have two shirts, one blue and one green. I like both of them well enough, but if I have a choice between the two and I always go for the blue, then really I ought to get rid of the green. It just won’t get worn.
I do laundry once a weekish. I do the laundry for two adults once a week. We like cotton and don’t wear white so I don’t sort by colour. Sheets get wash monthly-ish.
I started doing my own laundry when I was eight years old. I’ve been a one batch a week girl since then.
really? once a week? I do laundry just about every day, at least one load. We have a well so I can’t do multiple loads all in one day, so I do one or sometimes 2 loads spaced out, but its a constant…yet someone is always asking where their “favorite” shirt is or “we have no socks” or “baseball game tomorrow I need my baseball socks clean”. We have plenty of clothes (well mine are pretty shabby but whatever) and I did make sure each child had at least 2 pairs of sports socks so I could handle back to back games during the week, but still, I couldn’t go an entire week without doing laundry! wow.
and geez, isn’t my life a load of fun that I’m actually commenting on LAUNDRY? what’s next, the grocery store?
So, I think my Mom had the best idea: the minute I started to have a request about laundry (perhaps that was at 8 yrs old?), she showed me how the washer and drier worked. Guess what, she never did my laundry again. It works! But you do have to be willing to let go….mistakes will happen, favorite shirts get ruined, etc., but the kids learn! Try it!
You’ve just inspired me to completely sweep out my closet. Three garbage bags of Goodwill stuff later, this outfit is definitely going in the wash. I’m soaked in sweat… the anxious kind.
I have no idea how he manages to do it, but my husband goes through more laundry than I could *EVER* even dream of using. If I let the hamper in our bedroom get full, it’s a guaranteed four loads, and I SERIOUSLY HATE LAUNDRY. Plus, I’ve got two boys (5yo and 3mo), so they go through piles of laundry too. Sometimes I feel like it would be easier to build a commercial laundry in our basement than to deal with the omg-this-washer-and-dryer-is-big-but-is-still-too-small-for-us two loads a day.
Also, my husband for some reason can’t understand that he would absolutely be my HERO if he would just bring some of the laundry upstairs that isn’t his, so I feel like my den (the previous owner’s husband had a terminal illness, so everything is on the first floor, hence the washer and dryer are in a closet in the den) is constantly flooded with clean, folded, but-not-put-away laundry – especially since my 3mo has decided I can’t be out of his sight for more than a minute.