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Articles, How-To's and Interviews -
Personal Finances
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Written by Deborah Taylor-Hough
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 Housework and I haven't always been friends. It's been a struggle
over the past twenty-three years of married life to learn the
habit of keeping a neat and orderly home. Some days I'm more successful
at it than others, but I'm learning and growing in this area constantly.
I've often found that reading assorted books by housework "experts"
are more depressing than they are inspiring for those of us who
are a bit domestically challenged. Yes, these experts know what
they're doing. But so often I don't feel like they have even a
glimpse of how difficult basic housekeeping can be for someone
who just doesn't seem to have it in their genes to do it naturally.
One of the most helpful and simplest things my children and I
do to maintain our home is something we've dubbed the Ten Minute
Tidy. What it invovles is this: Everyone runs around the house
picking up clutter and putting it away as fast as they can for
ten minutes.
Whenever I notice that the main living areas of the house are getting
that well lived-in look, I call for a Ten Minute Tidy. Everyone drops
whatever they're doing and then flies into "pick-up-the-stuff" mode. I
actually set a kitchen timer for ten minutes and when it goes off,
we're done. Usually I tidy the kitchen and main bathroom myself while
the kids tidy the living room, family room, and if there's still time
left, their bedrooms. It's amazing how quickly the house can go from
looking messy to looking neat when everyone works fast, works together,
and works smart.
The purpose of the Ten Minute Tidy isn't to actually deep clean
the house, but to tidy up the rooms so our home looks neat and
livable again. The cleaning and regular maintenance is done during
a scheduled "Upkeep" time each day. I always focus the Ten Minute
Tidy on the areas that make a first impression when people enter
my home. In our case, that's the entry/hallway, living room, kitchen/family
area, and main bath.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
--Deborah Taylor-Hough (free-lance writer, wife and mother of three)
is the editor of the
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and
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email newsletters. She's also the author of the bestselling
book, Frozen
Assets: how to cook for a day and eat for a month, and A
Simple Choice: a practical guide for saving your time, money
and sanity. Be sure to visit Debi online at "A Frugal, Simple Life":
http://hometown.aol.com/dsimple/
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