If you SAH...

Sep5Bride · May 2014

Hi all,

I don't SAH, but am considering it when my husband graduates next year. Just curious, if you are home with your LO every day, are you able to get a lot of the housework and cooking done during the day as well, or do you find yourself doing most of this in the evenings and on weekends?

I'm sure this is a repeat, so I apologize, but I'd still be interested in what you have to say!

Jessie333 · May 2014

I try to get as much done during the day as I can. I consider it my job. But some things I find impossible to do with dd running around (like cleaning bathrooms) and either wait until she is napping, or do it when dh can watch her for me.

martha919 · May 2014

Some things (like vacuuming) happen on the weekends. Otherwise I can get most cleaning done during naps or while she's awake, and things like dishes and laundry are easy with her around. Cooking is not, but we make it work. ;-)

brachysira · May 2014

I get almost nothing done. DD is down to about a 45 minute nap and she wakes up if I do anything. I can eat lunch while she sleeps, but that's about it. I can wash laundry while she plays herself, but not put it away. I'm sure our house is messier with DD home all day, and if I even try to put away a puzzle or something, she runs over and makes a larger mess. We are working on the idea of getting out one thing at a time and also on more storage that can be inaccessible when we want it to be, but right now things are always messy and I feel like if she was not around all day because she was at daycare and I was at a job, they would stay cleaner. I do manage to put things in the crock pot during her nap and can set the table while she plays, so sometimes I can have dinner ready when DH gets home. We often have a baby-sitter for a few hours/week, and during that time, I can clean the bathrooms, vacuum, and mop. Otherwise, we do all that on the weekends. DH does the dishes before he goes to bed.

M also gets a little nuts if we don't play outside or go to something out of the house like storytime. So it is usually easier for me to take her places than to stay home all day and deal with a super hyper baby. She is okay/fun for short shopping trips, but not long ones.

When she was immobile, I got a lot done. And I'm sure things will improve as she gets a longer attention span and doesn't need to get out every item she encounters. Even if she didn't occasionally eat things like crayons she would have a wider range of independent activities. If you can manage to get your LO to take a nice long nap and you don't need to rest during it (I am pregnant, so if I can get in a nap when she does, I do), I think you could be pretty productive.

Jessie333 · May 2014

brachysira said:
I get almost nothing done. DD is down to about a 45 minute nap and she wakes up if I do anything. I can eat lunch while she sleeps, but that's about it. I can wash laundry while she plays herself, but not put it away. I'm sure our house is messier with DD home all day, and if I even try to put away a puzzle or something, she runs over and makes a larger mess. We are working on the idea of getting out one thing at a time and also on more storage that can be inaccessible when we want it to be, but right now things are always messy and I feel like if she was not around all day because she was at daycare and I was at a job, they would stay cleaner. I do manage to put things in the crock pot during her nap and can set the table while she plays, so sometimes I can have dinner ready when DH gets home. We often have a baby-sitter for a few hours/week, and during that time, I can clean the bathrooms, vacuum, and mop. Otherwise, we do all that on the weekends. DH does the dishes before he goes to bed.

M also gets a little nuts if we don't play outside or go to something out of the house like storytime. So it is usually easier for me to take her places than to stay home all day and deal with a super hyper baby. She is okay/fun for short shopping trips, but not long ones.

When she was immobile, I got a lot done. And I'm sure things will improve as she gets a longer attention span and doesn't need to get out every item she encounters. Even if she didn't occasionally eat things like crayons she would have a wider range of independent activities. If you can manage to get your LO to take a nice long nap and you don't need to rest during it (I am pregnant, so if I can get in a nap when she does, I do), I think you could be pretty productive.

I could have written this almost word for word. I try the best I can to keep the house clean, but it is so hard right now battling morning sickness and chasing a toddler. Huge guilt right now. The house has fallen by the way side. I am trying, but it is so hard right now. Sigh.

mellie86041 · May 2014

Definitely view it as your job. Makes it a lot easier to keep up the motivationto actually get things done. Especially with a LO underfoot all day!

I divide the housework up across the week to help make it more manageable: bathrooms one day, dusting another, the floors another, so on. Doing that, I can get things done in under an hour, so I can normally get that day's cleaning done during naptime (or, quiet time since DD rarely naps). DH and I clean the kitchen nightly after she's gone to bed.

Some things, like sweeping and wiping down surfaces, I'll let DD "help". She also LOVES to help with laundry, so we do a load just about everyday. She thinks it's a fun game, so I might as well get her used to it! She also sometimes "helps" make dinner if it's something simple.

ConstanceGoodspeed · May 2014

I do zero work on the weekends except what is necessary (cleaning up the kitchen after eating, straightening up toys). The only thing I do at night is clean up after dinner and occasionally switch a load of laundry. I do bath and bedtime for DS.

I break it up to a task or two a day (floors on Monday, bathrooms Tuesday, etc.). Including meal prep and cleanup, I do housework for two or three hours a day, and it is only that long because DS likes to help, and/or cause a ruckus.

DCKate · May 2014

I am really only able to get things don't whole she's asleep. She likes to shop with me and insists on helping to unpack groceries. I do major cleaning on weekends and just try to keep our apartment from falling apart in the meantime! I also work from home, so I do that first when she goes down, and then unload the dish washer, switch over laundry, etc.

this decaf life · May 2014

DD naps from about 1030-130 so there are 3 hours where I could get stuff done. I don't SAH full time but I'd have a hard time motivating myself to clean during those hours.

Kara13360 · May 2014

I have made my whole house pretty much child proof so DS can roam around while I do housework. I also can do laundry/cook while he is eating in his high chair. It has gotten a lot easier doing housework since he has become more independent. Vacuuming is the only think that is difficult since he HATES the vacuum...

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