The Home Mgt Journal - Housekeeping Forms/lists

Ok I think we are back on track here if a bit soggy. ; )  I have to share what a true blessing it was that we were all caught up on laundry, dishes and so on when the power went out. It is entirely possible with 9 people that two days without utilities could have meant many MANY days of catch up. As it was we were right back to where we needed to be within 24 hrs. This routine works!

Like I mentioned previously we divided the house into zones and assigned a zone per day Monday-Saturday. Sunday is a day of rest. This is the cleaning method used for over 100 years in this country as evidenced by the charming Day of the Week dishtowels that used to be standby's in homemaker's kitchens. My illustrated lists are here for download. You may need to combine or divide these lists depending upon the configuration and uses of your rooms.

Another resource I have been fascinated with of late is the book Home Comforts: the Art and Science of Keeping House by Cheryl Mendelson. This is not a light read but it literally explains in great detail the proper way to clean and maintain just about ANYthing you own - from your stove to your terrier. She lays out exactly how long your leftovers are safe, the attributes of various fabrics and when fabric care labels may be safely ignored, how to care for your wood floors (hint: old wives tails are not always accurate here, I learned!),when you want an acidic  or alkaline based cleaner, and more.  Much more. Almost nine HUNDRED pages more. For about $13 used you can't beat this for an essential reference book. it will take you from cleaning hunches to cleaning assurances. You may not elect to do all the jobs she recommends on the schedule she recommends but when you do them you can be certain they are being done correctly.

Here are the lists in my Housekeeping Binder at the moment:

Download make_your_own_cleaning_solutions.doc  basic cleaner recipes from the net and varied sources

Download bedroom_day.doc  Bedrooms

Download bathroom_cleaning_checklist.doc  Bathrooms

Download living_room.doc   Living/family rooms

Download dining_room_cleaning_list.doc  Dining rooms

Download kitchen_cleaning_checklist.doc Kitchen

Download vehicle_cleaning_checklist.doc  Cars

Download emergency_quick_clean.doc     emergency quick clean plan. This is actually what we do for basic daily housecleaning.

Download cleaning_grand_plan.doc   This is adapted from the Cleaning Grand Plan from Organized Home. It is a LARGE document - about 12 pages. It can be used for a one-time, concentrated, whole house cleaning.

Comments

[Shereen]

I have been greatly enjoying your blog. Thank you so much for all the wonderful sharing. Even though I already have my management binder done, there are some things I would like to add. I would also like to make some for each of my daughters as they enter their teenage years, to start preparing them for their own homes. ;0) Thanks a bunch. If you don't mind, I will be adding you to my links section on my blog.

[Alice Gunther]

Another fabulous and practical post. Thank you!

[Rebecca B.]

Wow Kim! Thanks for all of the examples and great ideas. It helps me so much to have the visuals.

[Cheryl]

Kim,
Thank you for taking the time to post about your binder. I've been loving the downloads too. This Saturday is my girl's night out for my birthday. (With my baby too.) We are going to go to the craft store and office supply store and then to my dh's office where I'm going to start my binder. Thanks for the inspiration!

[Account Deleted]

Thanks so much for taking the time share with all of us. They are beautiful and have proven to be such a joy in my own homemanagement binder.

[BlessedCP]

Thanks so much for sharing your binder and documents with us. I love your ideas and you pages are LOVELY!

[Kristie]

Thank you Kim for these great forms. They are going to be a big help in our day to day cleaning!

Kristie

[Handan Piriştine]

Thanks for your help. Im working abroad. You helped me to translating traınıng from Turkish to English.

[Niama Perrotte]

Hello:
I enjoyed this website. I will use the documents to make a homekeeping binder. I like the ideas from the bedroom cleaning plan.

[Sara-Lyn]

I'm trying to figure out how to manage my household of 5, especially how to keep it clean. Seems like I can hardly even keep up with the never ending dishes and cooking! Anyhow, I'm inspired by your blog and your comments about teaching your daughters to maintain their homes. I figure it's high time I set a better example and plan to work on some type of planned cleaning schedule, which the kids can help with of course! Thanks for a gentle nudge.

[Brenda]

You mentioned Cleaning Grand Plan from Organized Home. I love it. I've used it for years and their Holiday Grand Plan is wonderful for keeping you on track for the holidays.