My House is so Clean and Tidy!!!

susiestar

Roll With It
WOW! I am totally stunned. I hired a woman who just got laid off to come in and try to dig us out of the disaster the house was in.

She came Thursday and worked for 3 hours. I was amazed at how neat everything looked. THEN she came back on Friday after calling to see if she could bring a friend to work with her. Fine by me.

I was in such bad shape yesterday that I didn't even make it out to see the progress until several hours after they were done (I made sure husband paid them!).

I walked into the kitchen and burst into tears. EVERYTHING is clean. The appliances and utensils on the counter are clean and nice looking. They even washed the top of the washer and dryer and the side of the big freezer.

So far it has cost $100 and I offered them another $100 to come back on Monday and clean out Brandon's room (the Land of Spare Oom). It is packed with boxes but most are half full or less.

Gracie hadn't seen the house this clean and was a bit shaken up.

Captain Morgan was really SCARED. Esp when Gracie started rolling all over the floor.

It is just such a huge relief off of my shoulders.

We are celebrating Jessie and my mom's bdays on Sunday and I have invited them over here!!! Cause for once I will not be ashamed of the house!
 

Lothlorien

Active Member
$100 bucks sounds like a bargain. That's awesome. If you are able to afford it, maybe they can come once a month or so for maintenance. This way you won't get so far behind. I know when my house is a mess, it's very overwhelming and you don't even know where to begin. Enjoy the celebrations!
 

Fran

Former desparate mom
Trust me, 100.00 is a bargain. Sometimes when overwhelmed a little help can get you started on your own housework routine.
 

susiestar

Roll With It
We already took pictures so that we can post them with a chore list to show the kids what we mean when we say "clean the kitchen counters" or "wash ALL the dishes".

I never ever say "clean the kitchen" because it is just too much for husband to handle, so why would Jessie be able to handle it?

I agree, this was a bargain! I expected it to take longer and cost a lot more.

Capn Morgan is THRILLED. The bar separating the kitchen from the living room is almost totally clear - just some decorative things. He ADORES heights and thinks this is the perfect place to "snoopervise" from, LOL!!!
 

TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
OMG, what a deal!
I would burst into tears, too!
No one is more deserving of this than you. Way To Go.
I suppose VA is too long of a drive for those two miracle workers, eh?
I hope you can keep them forever!
 

gcvmom

Here we go again!
Awesome! Now, can you give them directions to MY house? :bigsmile:

And yes, $100 is a very good deal --that feeling you get from a house that clean and organized (especially when YOU didn't have to do it) is absolutely worth every penny!
 

mstang67chic

Going Green
I suppose VA is too long of a drive for those two miracle workers, eh?

VA might be a bit of a drive but if they broke it up, it wouldn't be too bad. They could always stop in....ohhhhh say....Northern Indiana. I'll put them up for a day or two! :bigsmile:

Congrats! I need to do that also but don't have the money so I'm jealous!!!
 

susiestar

Roll With It
WOW! What a career - you could set up a circuit of cities, drive to a place, clean steadily for several days for several families, do some sightseeing, learn about the new place, then go on to the next new place.

Sort of like that old spinoff from Touched by an Angel. Promised Land. Where Della Reese plays the angel and tells him that God wants him to drive all over the country with his family.

If you didn't have small kids this could be a really great way to spend summers in college or whatever.
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
I was just gonna say could you send them to my place...lol. Looks like we could really keep them busy with families on the board! You know, VA is right next to NC!
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
Susie...I just got to wondering. How did you find these ladies? Did you advertise or did you find them on Craigslist or some place like that? I really could use someone like that to come in and dig me out.

I am threatening to call the people who are filming that Hoarders show now. I was attempting to clean out my pantry the last weekend or so and everytime I tried to get rid of some old pot or useless piece of item that once went to some sort of kitchen gadget, Tony would object and say we might use it again!....I mean for gods sake...why keep the inside to a crockpot that I dont have the outside or lid to anymore? (Answer:we might get animals he could use it as a bowl someday!) Then there is the old colander. I just bought a new one. The old one is big and has stains and is missing a leg. I have had it for probably 10 years now. It has been well used but it is huge and is hard to find a place to put it. I just got a smaller one and I paid $1.50 for it. I dont care if it only lasts me a year! Its time to toss the big one away. Oh no...we can keep them both says tony...ugh. I think he needs an intervention. And some prozac!
 

susiestar

Roll With It
Janet, I started with a couple of approaches. I am on freecycle for my town. husband and I talked about getting some help, then he lost his job. I began to see that until the house was livable he was going to have a hard time settling down to really WORK on the job hunt (he is doing very well I am proud to say!).

One of hte people on freecycle had "thecleaningfairy@" as her email. I sent her an email asking if she cleaned houses. She replied yes so I outlined the problem.

She was not sure of her available times though. So after 3 days of no response I put an ad out on Craigslist. By two days later I had over 30 responses.

I chose elizabeth because of her attitude. She really "gets it" that I simply cannot do much. It was a gamble on each of our parts. She felt REALLY bad leaving at noon the first day. She said she could work all day and even offered to let me not pay her for the time she worked because she didn't work all day. She only left because school called about something with her son.

As. If. !!!!

Then she called the next morning and asked if her friend could help. She even offered to split the $8 per hour she asked for. i paid them each $10 per hour because they are WORTH IT!

And I bought lunch!

I can find the craigslist ad if you want. It really truly is just amazing.

As for tony's hoarding, can he put the stuff that he "needs" to keep in the attic or garage or shed? in a plastic tote stacked up on a pallet in the yard and covered with a tarp? That way he can go "get it" if he wants it. It will help him feel "safe" and will not make you nearly as cranky and irritated. (also lessen the temptation to whack him on the head, won't it?)

Since you are on disability don't you qualify for some home health services? ExSIL works for a home health group and seh regularly has to clean or get someone in to clean so that the home is safe for the client to live in, to eat in and to move around in. These are NOT clients with insurance. They are the working poor who got too old or sick and now have no $$ and no insurance except medicaid and medicare.

You might be able to get some real help esp with the bipolar and the physical problems.

Many hugs.
 

ThreeShadows

Quid me anxia?
Wow! $100.00? That IS a bargain. Good for you, Susie. It almost sounds like these women walked out of the Bible to come and help someone who really needs and deserves help.

Janet, I think Tony could wear the colander as a helmet while you beat him about the head...
 

KTMom91

Well-Known Member
When they're done at gcvmom's, they can come here...Janet, I feel your pain at the hoarding of useless stuff. Hubby has filled the garage, the side yard, and most of the back yard, and it's encroaching on the house.
 

Mattsmom277

Active Member
How delightful!!! I'm thrilled for you :)

I keep fantasizing of a weekend away and coming home to everything in tip top shape, organized as I like it, laundry caught up, pantry organized, spots off the walls in the kitchen, sparkling appliances and oh that lovely fresh Pine Sol smell!

When we moved in here, it was just S/O and a very young easy child. The spare room was for difficult child if/when he moved home (this move came during his brief stint trying to live with bio dad). The spare room was storage and I had scaled down when I moved in here. Then I bought a new bedroom set. And easy child a new bedroom set. Then of course new decorative things to go with the paint colors I picked. Then difficult child moved back home and in came new bedroom stuff for him. THen came 5 years of kids toys, clothes. My book collection grew. Given that money is tight, its hard to bring myself to part with things that down the line I may need and not be able to afford to replace.

So my house feels like a hovel. I'm good at hiding it. Closets. Under bed bins. Oversized walk in pantry (that hasn't been "walked" in for a couple years, more like "waded through").

I'm drowning in "stuff" and disorganized through lack of ability to get it done, mixed with nowhere to put stuff in order to organize. YUCK!!!

I think I am going to skip my treat of a daily coffee from my favorite shop and do just like you did!!!!! I won't afford the weekend away to escape watching it done and coming home to the work done, but if I cut the coffee treat, I can eventually swing the cost of hiring someone who could use the money to get this place sorted.

Thank you for the inspiration! I'm glad your fuzzbutts are enjoying it as well :) Congrats for doing something lovely for yourself. You deserve it :)
 

rejectedmom

New Member
Wow! Around here you have to have all the clutter cleared and away. They will not empty or load dishwashers. All they want to do is vacuum and dust and swish around some cleaner in the tubs and sinks and toilets. And be out in about two hours max. And they charge by the size of the house the smallest homes cost $150 a visit and it goes up from there. My old house was a 4 bed two story. Not overly large but when I entertained I sometimes got a service in so I could focus on the food. It costme $300 and that was 5 years ago. It is even worse as you get closer to the city. -RM
 

klmno

Active Member
We already took pictures so that we can post them with a chore list to show the kids what we mean when we say "clean the kitchen counters" or "wash ALL the dishes".

I love this!!
 

nvts

Active Member
Gotta tell you Susie, I don't like you anymore! ;)

My place is a pig sty and husband and I had the first real out-and-out fight about it about a week ago. He got into this "I bring home the bacon, you fry it up in the pan" mentality.

Let's just say I whacked him upside the head with the pan!

He was a dork while I was pregnant and hasn't been a lick of help. Yes, he's building the deck for the pool, but that's the first thing he's done around here in well over a year.

Well, I went into the boys room to clear clutter (while I was preggers, I wasn't allowed to do much because of the fluid and afterward the house was just overwhelmingly gross).

16 garbage bags of toys and junk and 3 paper recycle bags later I found the floor!

Now we're working on difficult child 3's room - she's brutal though - if she hasn't used or played with something in 3-6 mos. she throws it away! Gotta love that! She's the only one out of the 3 that gets a 24 hour repreive on stuff she's thrown out. She (rarely) sometimes regrets one or two things she may have thrown out.

Bravo on the clean house! I'm totally and completely jealous! I figure we'll be clean by Christmas (2011!).

Beth
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
OMG...Susie...I just checked out my local Craigslist and I think I have found my cleaning angel! There is a woman who is located in my town who ironically enough is named Billie (LOL) who says she is available to do the cleaning I need, she doesnt gossip, she was raised here in the country by her grandparents to know how to clean everything and she only wants $7 an hour! She says she can do everything from light cleaning to complete organizing and spring cleaning.

Heavens...she says she wants to meet friendly people and make a little extra money. This might be heaven sent for both of us. Even if it takes her a few days a week for a few weeks to get the place dug out and clean between other jobs it will be so worth it. Im going to call her tonight.
 
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