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Soothing? Laundry? I bet that got your attention. Laundry is one of the most disliked chores for moms everywhere! It is not that it is really that bad or hard to do, it is just so continuous (kind of like dishes!).
Here are a few tips that have helped make this chore easier for me:
1. Have scheduled laundry days
Feel like you are doing laundry all the time? Well maybe you are! Pick certain days of the week to do laundry - my days are Monday and Thursday for clothes and Friday for towels and bedding. By having a break in between I no longer feel like I am always doing laundry and do not feel the stress that I should be doing laundry when I am not.
2. Get a washer and dryer that sing
You heard me right - our washer and dryer sing! We needed to replace our old washer and dryer and decided to get new, high-efficiency front loaders. What we did not know when we made the purchase is that they "sang". Whenever a load is finished it plays a little song, then again when you open the door.
Even the kids are impressed with this new purchase, my eldest son (about to turn 17) calls it our "happy washer" and has gotten joy from watching the spin cycle from the place of honour - the toilet (our washer and dryer are in our main floor bathroom).
So now, instead of an impatient sounding buzzer signaling that the load is complete and needs your attention, we hear a little song that seems to call us and by coming and opening the washer or dryer, you are rewarded by another happy little tune.
3. Hang your laundry on a line to dry
I have never done this before this summer - I started with a little line, to hang heavy clothes like jeans and sweaters, but within two weeks I feel in love and my accommodating husband and son built me a better, longer line. Now I hang the majority of our clothes, towels and bedding out to dry.
I started doing this in hopes of saving money on electricity, but what I never expected was that the act of hanging wet laundry out to dry and removing dry laundry that smelled and felt like sunshine would be so soothing! There is something about this simple act that seems to transport me back to simpler times, when life was slower, not quite so busy and high-tech. Plus, hanging all the "dainties" out on the line riles up all the kids, which makes me laugh. There is nothing quite like seeing all your boys underware swinging in the breeze to put a smile on your face - it is the simple pleasures!
I am almost ashamed to admit it, but I now LOVE doing laundry and am somewhat disappointed when there is none for me to wash!
For more tips check out WFMW!
Christine
On a sunny day, my husband and I almost 'fight' over who will be the one to hang the washing on the line!
ReplyDeleteOooh I want a washer that sings! How cool is that?! Love it.
ReplyDeleteI have been hanging laundry out to dry every year for the last 22 years...yes that is right...every single day from spring until late fall you can find me hanging out our laundry...
ReplyDeleteWhile the benefit of hanging laundry are several...there is nothing more calming (yes your right) about just chillen while hanging the laundry...and that is where I often hear and have a heart to heart with God...
great post
Last year our washer died. I'm fairly certain that no one in our house appreciated our washer until it took three days to get a new one. As a matter of fact, I was so thrilled with clean clothes afterwards, that I took pictures of my piles of lovely clean clothes and posted them on my blog.
ReplyDeleteThere's a great deal of satisfaction in having empty laundry hampers at our house and yet, as my children reach the age where they are about to leave the nest, there's something bittersweet about overflowing piles of dirty clothes. (and my hormones must be running amok if I can wax poetic about dirty laundry. sigh.)
Gosh, I think I'll mail you my laundry when you're feeling sad because you don't have any of your own to wash *L* I can't run my washer and dryer at the same time or I run the risk of blowing the circuit breaker so I hang up most of my stuff as well. I have a little indoor drying rack since I'm in an apartment and it works fabulously!
ReplyDeleteGosh I wish I could get into doing my laundry. This is my most procrastinated and dreaded chore. Of course my washer doesn't sing either.
ReplyDelete:)