Clean floors
It's amazing how much difference clean floors can make in the feel and atmosphere of a home. Today after mom's group, one of my friends let me borrow her 13-year-old daughter for a few hours. The 13-year-old (pixie-faced teenager, or PFT for short) is a sweet-faced, fairy-like creature who loves horses and has a surprising amount of maturity and common sense--not to mention a quick wit.
PFT cares for the 4-6 young children upstairs during our home group meetings. The kids adore her, and she seems to truly love them. I'm looking forward to teaching her our routines and how we care for the kids so that as she gets older she (and we) will be well-equipped and comfortable with caring for the kids even when we're not in the house.
I decided that I'd start out having PFT vaccuum a room, and if that didn't go well I could always just have her entertain the kids while I did housework. I was, to say the least, uncertain about the whole hiring-someone-to-help-with-housework thing.
################
Last time I hired a (much older) babysitter to help me with some housework, it didn't go so well. I gave her a list of chores to do while I ran some errands. I'd gotten out both vaccuum cleaners for her before we left--the regular upright and the hand-held one. I'd explained that the smaller vaccuum was good for things like hardwood floors, stairs, and under and around the edges of things, but the upright would probably be easier for general vaccuuming of carpets. When I left, she was preparing to vaccuum the family room, which I'd picked up and decluttered in advance.
When I returned an hour or two later, she was just finishing vaccuuming the family room. She had used the hand-held vaccuum to do the entire room. I didn't feel terribly sympathetic when she said it had been hard to do. Especially since I was paying her by the hour.
The worst part, though, was that I found the whole experience rather mortifying. Older Babysitter's mother is an impeccable housekeeper--the type who scrubs the floor on her hands and knees every. single. day. She is a sweet and gracious lady who has never made me feel criticised or compared to--even on the occasion or two when she's helped me with things around the house.
But OB was unprepared to clean a home that wasn't already clean. She was appalled at the condition of my floors and appliances, and she didn't seem to know how to clean a toilet. She informed me unhappily that if I would simply wipe down my bathtub every day, there wouldn't be a faint water ring to wipe off the fiberglass. I did know that, in case you had any doubts. :)
I think she and I were both relieved when her time helping me was finished. I paid her far too much for what she'd accomplished and promised myself not to repeat the experience.
It was almost as humiliating as the time two of our neighbors decided to come over and do our yardwork for us. I'm sure it was because we had let it go for so long that it was dragging down the tone of the neighborhood. Or then again, maybe they were just being nice.
Anyway, I was a little leery about hiring someone to help me with housework at all. That's actually the main reason I haven't yet hired a professional to do a thorough cleaning (besides the financial element). I keep thinking that once the house is completely picked up, organized and uncluttered, then I can hire someone to give the floors, windows, etc. a good scrubbing.
PFT and I agreed on the way to my house that we'd play it by ear and see how it went before I decided whether to pay her by the hour or by the task. If she was fast and thorough, I would pay her by the hour, but if she took a long time to complete tasks I'd pay her what I felt the task was worth no matter how long it took.
PFT didn't bat an eye. She didn't sigh, complain, or even look hesitant at anything I asked her to do. At 13, she was cheerful, efficient, quick and diligent.
I'd give her a task to do and the next thing I knew she'd be standing behind my shoulder saying, "I've finished with that. What would you like me to do next?"
First, I had her give the kids lunch while I tended to the baby. Then she swept and vaccuumed. I cleaned up the kitchen, put things away and moved things so she could clean under and around them. Between helping the girls do school, feeding the baby, and giving my young friend instructions, I was barely keeping up.
When the kids went down for naps/quiet time, I pulled out all the stops. Working hard and fast, I rearranged, decluttered, put things away, moved furniture and gave instructions. She worked even faster.
By the time I took her home a few hours later, she had vaccuumed the living, dining, and family rooms. She had swept and mopped the kitchen, nook, bathroom, and the huge entry/hallway area, towel-drying the wood-laminate floors. She had cleaned every surface in the bathroom, including the inside of the toilet. She had helped me take the vaccuum apart to clean the interior workings and replace the belt (it was smelling hot). She had vaccuumed under the piano and up the stairs with the small vaccuum. And, she had chatted cheerfully to me during our hot cocoa (for her) and water (for me) break, while we sat and caught our breath.
Pretty much my whole downstairs (and the stairs) got cleaned. I really enjoyed having her work with me. And she seemed to enjoy it, too.
I found myself hoping that my daughters will be a lot like her when they are 13.
I paid her by the hour . . . with a bit of a bonus. I hope she can come again soon, and often.
PFT cares for the 4-6 young children upstairs during our home group meetings. The kids adore her, and she seems to truly love them. I'm looking forward to teaching her our routines and how we care for the kids so that as she gets older she (and we) will be well-equipped and comfortable with caring for the kids even when we're not in the house.
I decided that I'd start out having PFT vaccuum a room, and if that didn't go well I could always just have her entertain the kids while I did housework. I was, to say the least, uncertain about the whole hiring-someone-to-help-with-housework thing.
################
Last time I hired a (much older) babysitter to help me with some housework, it didn't go so well. I gave her a list of chores to do while I ran some errands. I'd gotten out both vaccuum cleaners for her before we left--the regular upright and the hand-held one. I'd explained that the smaller vaccuum was good for things like hardwood floors, stairs, and under and around the edges of things, but the upright would probably be easier for general vaccuuming of carpets. When I left, she was preparing to vaccuum the family room, which I'd picked up and decluttered in advance.
When I returned an hour or two later, she was just finishing vaccuuming the family room. She had used the hand-held vaccuum to do the entire room. I didn't feel terribly sympathetic when she said it had been hard to do. Especially since I was paying her by the hour.
The worst part, though, was that I found the whole experience rather mortifying. Older Babysitter's mother is an impeccable housekeeper--the type who scrubs the floor on her hands and knees every. single. day. She is a sweet and gracious lady who has never made me feel criticised or compared to--even on the occasion or two when she's helped me with things around the house.
But OB was unprepared to clean a home that wasn't already clean. She was appalled at the condition of my floors and appliances, and she didn't seem to know how to clean a toilet. She informed me unhappily that if I would simply wipe down my bathtub every day, there wouldn't be a faint water ring to wipe off the fiberglass. I did know that, in case you had any doubts. :)
I think she and I were both relieved when her time helping me was finished. I paid her far too much for what she'd accomplished and promised myself not to repeat the experience.
It was almost as humiliating as the time two of our neighbors decided to come over and do our yardwork for us. I'm sure it was because we had let it go for so long that it was dragging down the tone of the neighborhood. Or then again, maybe they were just being nice.
Anyway, I was a little leery about hiring someone to help me with housework at all. That's actually the main reason I haven't yet hired a professional to do a thorough cleaning (besides the financial element). I keep thinking that once the house is completely picked up, organized and uncluttered, then I can hire someone to give the floors, windows, etc. a good scrubbing.
PFT and I agreed on the way to my house that we'd play it by ear and see how it went before I decided whether to pay her by the hour or by the task. If she was fast and thorough, I would pay her by the hour, but if she took a long time to complete tasks I'd pay her what I felt the task was worth no matter how long it took.
PFT didn't bat an eye. She didn't sigh, complain, or even look hesitant at anything I asked her to do. At 13, she was cheerful, efficient, quick and diligent.
I'd give her a task to do and the next thing I knew she'd be standing behind my shoulder saying, "I've finished with that. What would you like me to do next?"
First, I had her give the kids lunch while I tended to the baby. Then she swept and vaccuumed. I cleaned up the kitchen, put things away and moved things so she could clean under and around them. Between helping the girls do school, feeding the baby, and giving my young friend instructions, I was barely keeping up.
When the kids went down for naps/quiet time, I pulled out all the stops. Working hard and fast, I rearranged, decluttered, put things away, moved furniture and gave instructions. She worked even faster.
By the time I took her home a few hours later, she had vaccuumed the living, dining, and family rooms. She had swept and mopped the kitchen, nook, bathroom, and the huge entry/hallway area, towel-drying the wood-laminate floors. She had cleaned every surface in the bathroom, including the inside of the toilet. She had helped me take the vaccuum apart to clean the interior workings and replace the belt (it was smelling hot). She had vaccuumed under the piano and up the stairs with the small vaccuum. And, she had chatted cheerfully to me during our hot cocoa (for her) and water (for me) break, while we sat and caught our breath.
Pretty much my whole downstairs (and the stairs) got cleaned. I really enjoyed having her work with me. And she seemed to enjoy it, too.
I found myself hoping that my daughters will be a lot like her when they are 13.
I paid her by the hour . . . with a bit of a bonus. I hope she can come again soon, and often.
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Posted by purple_kangaroo at 8:59 PM[Permanent link]
8 Comments:
Wow, she sounds like a keeper. I've toyed with the idea of hiring a cleaning service, or even a teenager to come help me clean, but have serious shame issues -- I'm the sort of person who goes into a panicky cleaning frenzy before my own mother or MIL (both nice ladies who are glad to help and wouldn't judge) fly in to help out (usually after a new baby). Why are we so obsessive about wanting to look like we can do everything? It's crazy.
Yay!!!
Why don't you see if you can schedule her to come every 2 weeks or so. Then, even if you don't need to clean, you can still have her watch the girls while you take a little break for yourself.
And just so's you and Allison know, I have similar shame issues but I've gotten over them enough to have a cleaning crew come in every two weeks (or in future on an as-needed-desperately basis since money's going to be tightish). All I do to prep is to make sure the clutter is picked up (or shoved into closets) and the surfaces are cleared so they can scrub.
My husband doesn't like having them come, because they move things around, but he agrees that it's better than scrubbing away soap-scum ourselves.
Oh man, good for her. What a helpfull girl. I dont' think I would have done a job like that at 13. My mother always did ALL the housework because she wanted it done her way and her way only. Didn't help me much once I got my own place, I guess I thought things would get done on there own. Boy was I wrong, it took me a long time to learn. Now I put my girls to work, and if they don't do it right, i might fix it later, not a big deal! They are learning.
Yay! I agree with Allison--she sounds like a keeper. :-)
I have a cleaning lady come to our house once/week. It's been wonderful and it gives me more time to focus on our children.
Thanks for the input, all.
I think I will try to have her come every couple of weeks or so . . . I like that idea.
For those who have someone come clean . . . which cleaning jobs do they generally do?
Purple, it is awesome you found help. Sometimes, when my kids were babies, I thought about hiring someone to watch them while *I* cleaned. But I never thought of hiring someone else to clean. Hmmm, I probably should have. Strange, that.
Post a Comment
<< Purple Puzzle Place Home