Laundry Query
How is it that when you add a baby to your family, the laundry doubles? Jesse and I used to easily do only 2-3 loads per week -- a white load, a color load, and bedding load. Now, I almost always do at least 5-6 loads, plus two loads of diapers. Is it just me or is this typical?
posted by Crystal Paine at 12:58 PM
15 Comments:
It's not just you! :) I think we do 5-6 loads a week, too. Amazing how those little tiny clothes increase the laundry volume, isn't it?!!
BTW, I haven't had time to comment much lately, but I am still enjoying reading your blog daily. Thanks for being a blessing and encouragement to me and so many other ladies.
When we had one child, I could easily do laundry on Mondays and Fridays. Now that we have two children, the only days I DON'T do laundry are Sundays and Wednesdays. Plus I have BOYS and they don't need 'pretty' outfits and I still have much more laundry.
HA!! I'm laughing because I have just spent the last 2 days doing laundry non-stop. It seems that I have 2-3 loads PER DAY. Granted I do have 4 kids, but they do rack up the laundry. We have a 4 month old and he has added quite a bit of laundry....between burp cloths, sheets, bedding, etc. that he always seems to be spitting up on...plus his 3+ outfits per day for the same reason (or sometimes he gets changed for diaper related issues).
Ha Ha Ha...
I live in Germany where the washing machines are 1/3 - 1/2 the size of American machines (think running your machine on "small load" all the time).
I do 3 loads a day to stay caught up. I have 2 boys.
:)
In our family, it's my husband, me and 3 large dogs (no kids) and I do at least 6 loads of laundry a week. Crystal, how in the world were you able to get by with only 2-3?!? Maybe it's because you don't have any pets? When I wash our bedding it takes 3 loads to wash all of it (sheets, blanket,& quilt). Then there's also bath towels and kitchen towels. Clothing-wise I do at least 3 loads so that all adds up to 7....then if I do any window treatments or extra laundry that week it ends up being 6-10 loads a week for us.....Oh, and I forgot, I also have 3 dog beds to wash. Yes our dogs are SPOILED!!
Yes, the laundry sure does increase with children around! I have four children and I need to do laundry almost everyday! Just on the weekend, I don't. Our youngest is 5 months and we are using cloth diapers, so between diapers and baby spit ups etc, it all adds up fast! :)
So I should enjoy my 3-4 loads per week while I can?? ;-) I expect that with CDing and bub's clothes my laundry loads will increase dramatically after June!
Let's just say I think it is quite typical. :D As a mega-family (I'm the oldest of 12 children) we have at least 15 loads EVERY week!! In *one* record-breaking week, my next-youngest sister Carrie (18) did *30* loads of laundry! :O Does that help you feel a little better, Crystal? :) Even though we have had 2 washers and dryers for awhile (1 dryer is out now, and boy, do we notice!) we still have at least 4 loads ready to wash in the laundry room at any time. It can get overwhelming at times, and once in awhile gets more than a little out of control, but things have gotten easier as the family grows up and there are even more helpers. :) We break up the chores so one of the older girls (we have 5 teenage girls) is on laundry for 1 week. It's actually preferred over dishes week. ;)
I've noticed it makes me a lot more motivated to do laundry when we have nice laundry soap, pre-spot, oxy-clean, fabric softener, and dryer sheets. I think we would all agree that it is so much more inspiring to take a cheery-smelling, fluffy load of clothes out and fold them, then a slightly sour, rough and crumpled load. I would also encourage you ladies to try Oxy-Clean and other natural-type laundry products instead of harsh chemicals like bleach - which really doesn't do what it claims, and it adds needless toxins to our homes and clothing. So far our family has had good experiences with Oxy-Clean and Melaleuca's "Pre-Spot". We almost never use bleach, which gives Mama a headache if she even walks into the same room!
I've rambled slightly, but I just thought you might be amused by our 30-loads-in-a-week laundry "horror story". :D
~ Sarah P.
(Sorry to be anonymous - I have signed up for Blogger before, but now it won't work to sign in).
Ugh!!! I do my laundry over two days and I do between 4-6 loads. I have two kids and a hubby that sweats...alot!!!
Not only that, but I have to go to our apt laundry room and pay for my laundry. Very frustrating. I can't wait until I have my own machines and don't have to go out of the apartment to do it.
I recently posted about how I do laundry for our family of 14 at http://trophyofgodsgrace.blogspot.com/
I understand our situations are a bit different as I have older children who can do their own laundry now. I still do Hubby's, baby's and my laundry each week. Usually two loads, one darks, one whites. I have a large capacity front loader. Hubby wears jeans mostly and will wear them 2-3 times before putting them in the dirty clothes hamper (as long as they are free of spots and don't smell!). I can wear a skirt 2-3 times if I can keep it clean before putting in the dirty clothes. Same goes for overall dresses - just wear a new shirt with it the next day. Once in a while baby will have a blow out diaper or spit up in her bed and that will mean an extra load mid week. I take that opportunity to to wash bedding or towels. It happens often enough (once every two weeks or so) that I don't schedule washing bedding.I do schedule washing towels every Sat. night after the little children takes baths.
Hope that is of help,
jerri
You will have more luandry with children and it can get depressing. But a good schedule will help. Some people have each child responsible for their oun clothes but this never worked for our family. Because we have young children and our father is a farmer and the boys work in the field, so the girls do the laundry. Mainly me :) and we have thirteen people to do laundry for. But I find it very rewording to give my family fresh and clean clothes to ware. Yes I do hang and fold the clothes for my family.
The four girl in eleven children, Marissa.
invest in a large capacity washer & dryer!! Yes, this happens. It has in our household anyway. I do several loads EVERY DAY and still feel behind!!!
I like doing laundry, it's one of my favorite chores. I love making my clothes and sheets smell good...LOL. Since it's just me for now, I do 2 loads per week. When my hubby is home it's 3 sometimes 4 per week. And I was the bedding at least once per month, if not twice. Wash is free in my apt. complex (thank God...in Oklahoma I had to pay $1 to wash and $1 to dry), the only bad part is walking up and down 6 flights of stairs to add more laundry, add detergent, etc. It's tiring...LOL. I know I can use a Downy ball but I have tried them and don't like them too much. Maybe it will change when I have children.
Some of the older ones come and go around here... =) but with eight people in this house (which includes three grubby farm guys!), we never do clothes-laundry more than two days a week. For the past couple years, my (now) 12-year-old sister does it on Mondays and my (now) 8-year-old sister does it on Thursdays. They usually have between 4-6 loads both of those days. They sort, wash, dry, fold, and put away all the laundry--and iron their own clothes. Mom and I do the rest of the ironing. They might get a load started before lunch, but usually they get it all done between lunch and dinner.
Just a note on the laundry here! I am mother of four children and wife to a machinist (DIRTY clothes)!! To simplify laundry and save money in all aspects (detergent, water, electricity, etc.) all children need a min. of 10 outfits, including us as parents. Children could color code their towels and be taught to use 2 if not 3 times and hung to dry. This will change the time you spend in your laundry room I promise!! Think about it...who needs more than 10 outfits anyhow? Less clothes, less to wash? amen? Blessings, Kelly
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