Does anyone else feel like they never get caught up with housework?

United States
February 23, 2007 2:06pm CST
I swear no matter how much I do I turn around to more! LOL Take my dishes for instance. I will do my dishes, run the dishwasher and before I even remotely get to unloading and putting away those dishes I have a sink full again! I pick up the house and I swear I have someone who goes behind me throwing more stuff around! I vaccuum and I think someone shaves an animal! Anyone else ever feel like you can just never get caught up?
30 people like this
66 responses
@jmcafam (2890)
• United States
23 Feb 07
Oh boy do I ever. I feel like that all the time. As soon as I wash all the dishes in the sink if fills right back up. The laundry is never ending.I am washing clothes, at least a load or two a day.As soon as I wash the floors, no joke, someone always spills something on them within an hour of cleaning them.Housework is a never ending job.
5 people like this
• United States
23 Feb 07
Isn't it funny how the one job that is "never" complete and finished is the laundry? I hate that.
3 people like this
• United States
23 Feb 07
My friend, I am with ya! I never get caught up, even though I am a stay at home wife, and my kids are grown, the battle just never ends when it comes to the house and the yardwork. I feel so overwhelmed right now it isn't even funny. Hubby and I just had a disagreement last night, because I haven't been "cleaning" enough. So, guess what my mission is for today and this weekend. Yippee. I am thrilled. Our house is so small and so overfilled, that I just don't know where to start. I am procrastinating by doing a few posts on here (I have given myself 1 hour), before I begin the drudgery. Do you have a schedule or do you just wing it? I am trying to come up with a schedule that will allow me to get everything done, but it is far from being perfected. How do you do it?
• United States
23 Feb 07
I'm definitely not a schedule person. I just kind of do what I can when I can as some days my chronic pain doesn't allow me to do much at all. Other days I get "caught up".
2 people like this
• Philippines
24 Feb 07
Yes, I think so. Some housework are really never ending, unlike an ordinary office job, once you are done its ok. With the house same routines over and over and you cannot do anything about it, well that's life.
@shywolf (4514)
• United States
23 Feb 07
I think that most people feel this way at one time or another. I have a very good friend who lives on her own and it always seems like she's telling me that the housework never seems to end. I am not really personally responsible for all of the housework in my family's home, but I do feel like my online work never ends, lol!
4 people like this
@djbtol (5493)
• United States
24 Feb 07
I agree with you. I can think of far more things I want to do online than I will ever have time to do. I guess I better help keep the house clean. Maybe I can do more of my cluttering on line.
23 Feb 07
I am just like you. By the time I have finished cleaning the last room there is more laundry to do, more dishes to wash etc. sometimes it is really difficult to get motivated to do it when you know its a never ending job.
4 people like this
@teison2 (5921)
• Norway
23 Feb 07
I'd like to see the person that does not feel like you - rather I'd like to see their house, and the staff they have doing all the house work for them. In order to keep the house clean i think we need to move out
4 people like this
• United States
23 Feb 07
lol... there's an idea!
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
26 Feb 07
I'm a 53 year old male. I was Mr. Mom rasing my 2 children working part time as my wife worked full time. back then housework was never done/caught up with. With kids of any age in the household there is never enough time to get all household chores done. Now that my children moved out & my father has moved in for me to take care of I find the housework is still never done. LOL. My wife works fulltime & I work at home tending to my ailing father full time. So along with the housework to catch up on I have to bathe him help make sure he does a little exercise daily etc. So here I am at 52 and still dealing with unfinished housework. Thanks for reminding me Ive got to vaacuum the darned house soon. HAHAHA.
2 people like this
• United States
27 Feb 07
Well it's good to know the little dirt fairies aren't sexually biased! LOL And happy birthday!
@webeishere (36313)
• United States
26 Feb 07
Can ya tell my B-Day is close? I mentioned 53 & 52. HAhAHAHA. Even my mind isn't caught up yet.
1 person likes this
@cjsmom (1423)
• United States
27 Feb 07
I applaud you, webe, for being Mr. Mom for so long; you truly know what women usually have to go through with housework and kids. I also think that you're a great son to take care of your father the way you are. Bless you.
@olaff123 (433)
• Namibia
26 Feb 07
Feels the same here. On the one hand I clean up and as soon as I turn my back, a mess miraculously appear from somewhere. Luckily we have a maid three times a week, she sort of manages to get the house in order and the laundry up to date. Without her, I would have killed my boyfriend and moved into a bachelor flat, to contain the mess.
2 people like this
• United States
23 Feb 07
You took the thought right out of my head. I just went into the rest of the house a few minutes back, realized that there were more dishes the living room is trashed and the laundry pile multiplied. So I threw my hands in the air and came back to the office. I suppose in a bit I will just have to go face the rest of the house and clean it up.
3 people like this
• United States
24 Feb 07
With a 19 month old son housework is pretty much neverending around here :) I'm able to keep up with most of it however with the exception of vacuuming. I just vacuumed the living room yesterday and I already have to do it again because my boyfriend walked through with his sandy muddy boots on!! He actually does this a lot so vacuuming really IS a neverending battle!
• Grand Junction, Colorado
23 Feb 07
Daughters room - This is the 3 year olds room it was completely organized this morning when she woke up and mow it's a mess again.
"A womens work is never done." I have no idea who said it but it is so true. The room that I have the hardest time with is my 3 year olds room. I'm forever picking up and organizing and 15 minutes later I come back and it's a mess. It's partly my fault she has to much stuff to begin with. What I need to do is go through and get rid of stuff again. Instead I just go in there several times a day to organize. She can't get the concept down to put it back where it came from. When asked to clean it up she just throws it where ever.:) I attached a pic from just now this morning when she woke up it was completely organized.:)
• United States
23 Feb 07
lol when they have all those toys it is tuff!
1 person likes this
• Canada
23 Feb 07
I used to feel like that. Nowadays I find it's not so bad. The only thing I never seem to get caught up on is laundry. No matter how many loads I do, there's always another one waiting for me. I blame a lot of that on my partner. He'll wear clothes for half a day and then get changed. If he had a problem with sweating a lot I could understand this, but he doesn't. My kids are generally good at keeping their clothes clean enough to wear for two days and so their laundry pile doesn't build up so bad. Dishes I take care of right afre dinner, I don't have a dishwasher so getting them washed and dried and put away after dinner is more a matter of choice because I can't stand to see dirty dishes waiting for me on the kitchen counters.
2 people like this
• United Kingdom
23 Feb 07
I have the same problem as you as regards washing clothes. Me and the kids will wear stuff for two days (well, except if it's got dirty of course) and then I'll wash our clothes at the weekend but my partner will get changed two or three times a day for no apparent reason. He doesn't get that dirty either and half the time, he's changing from jeans and t-shirt to, er, jeans and t-shirt so no one could tell he'd got changed anyway!
1 person likes this
• United States
24 Feb 07
I am never caught up! Never! I am like you, I think I have little dirt fairies running around undoing what I have just done. It gets very discouraging doesn't it?
2 people like this
@jen2864 (29)
• Philippines
24 Feb 07
If you feel like it's a never ending chores...stop for a while and think. You don't have to do all of it. I make my kids fold their own clothes, so they will be aware how hard it is. I also make them wash their own dishes after eating so they tend to use less because they hate washing. I know it is a diffucult decision but you are also doing them a favor....for their future.
2 people like this
@cjsmom (1423)
• United States
27 Feb 07
I know what you mean, jen. I've been teaching my son, CJ, who has Autism, how to clean his own room, dress himself and even make his own dinner at times...right now we use paper plates when we can get away with it, which is usually 99% of the time. He loves how independent he's become and it sure does help me out in the long and short run...lol
@wsue1023 (1395)
• United States
24 Feb 07
No, and it won't ever happen! I've just come to accept that as the sad reality of things. There was once when I felt like I was caught up, but that feeling only lasted about 5 minutes! lol
@gabs8513 (48686)
• United Kingdom
24 Feb 07
Well now that I live alone lol yes I do get caught up with it. But before no I didn't and it used to annoy me lol. Specially when I was working full time to. Now it is just me that needs to be cleaned up after and that is easy lol.
2 people like this
@onesiobhan (1327)
• Canada
24 Feb 07
Pretty much. It doesn't help that our house is constantly under renovations, so there are piles of stuff around that don't really ahve a place to live. I clean every day and yet my house is still full of mess and clutter.
2 people like this
@Debs_place (10520)
• United States
23 Feb 07
I WANT A HOUSE ELF!!!!! Yes, I did that yell that and unless you are into Harry Potter, you think I am nuts. Well a house elf cleans and cooks and is yours forever unless you free it by giving it a piece of clothing. Doby could easily be my best friend. You are right, a house is self-dirtying. If you leave your house perfectly clean, and no one is there for 12 hours, when you come home the house is dirty and a mess. It is one of the mysteries of the world. Being that you have kids and are a hockey Mom...and that in itself has it own set of disgusting problems, not to mention the time involved in travel hockey, practices what twice a week, at least 8 hours on one day a weekend, plus another 3-4 for that home game. You have no chance on getting caught up..trust me. A normal Mom has no chance, being a hockey mom makes you a super Mom, and that is just because of hockey. Just sit back and be happy that you can be a super Mom, forget the house - the kids don't care.
2 people like this
• United States
24 Feb 07
I do believe housework is a never ending battle. One that never seems to get caught up. It might if we had people in the house that would help out. My sink seems to be have dishes in it constantly. The dirty cloths are always there no matter how many times dirty cloths get washed. Wipe your feet when you walk through the door. Oh Heaven Forbade! You are asking the impossible. So yes I feel like housework is a never ending battle.
• Canada
24 Feb 07
I will add something on behalf of my wife and I. We have 2 kids and my gosh woman! We know what you're saying! lol "We're always working" that's something you'll hear more often then not! Going from room to room, and repeating the cycle, almost all day long. It's crazy! The best part is like you said, vaccuming and turning around to see what looks like a shaved animal! LOL