A Basic Weekly Plan, Not A Weak Basic Plan

(image via Google)

Howdy! Glad you could join me again! Today we're talking about the Basic Weekly Plan, one of the most useful tools at a homemaker's disposal. It took me several years of marriage to cotton on to this method - what can I say? I was - ahem - 'perfecting my technique', LOL. Let's dive straight in...

The Basic Weekly Plan

In the old days, homemakers kept things simple and orderly by assigning different tasks to each day of the week. The concept was so common it became the acceptable way to clean house for decades, and for good reason - it works. Some of the benefits of this kind of plan include:

1. It effectively puts homemaking on autopilot. Can't remember how long it has been since you last scrubbed the bathtub? Use a Basic Weekly Plan and you'll never have to tax your brain again.
   
   
2. Homekeeping tasks, when scheduled in this way, become second nature. You know you'll (for example) never go more than a week between sheet changes, and as time goes on frequent 'practice' will produce an efficiency that sporadic homekeeping just can't match.
   
   
3. It keeps homekeeping down to manageable portions. If you don't pick up the iron for a month, the end result is scary. But an hour or two each Saturday afternoon is doable.
   
   
4. If you consistently complete what is on your plan, your home never really gets dirty. Messy and a bit dusty, sure (um...that's a given if you have kids!) but never more than 'the basics' away from company-ready.
   
   
5. If you are unable to keep up with homemaking due to illness or absence, your loved ones know exactly what is required. That's not to say it will be done perfectly, LOL, but it sure does help for Hubby to know when you do the wash, or shop for groceries, or tackle the bathroom.

The first thing you'll need is a blank sheet of paper and a pencil. Don't even go near the computer yet. On the left hand side of the paper, write the days of the week. Next, you'll want to start assigning the major tasks to a particular day, depending on what fits best for your family. These are the 'boulders' of your week - the big, non-moveable tasks. Here are some suggestions:


Errands Day

You may like to pick one day of the week specifically for errands. Some people can get away with an afternoon, but I'm so not one of those people! As I often travel by bus to a large shopping centre in my area, by the time I have dropped the kids off at school, jumped on the bus, completed my errands, factored in lunch, returned on the bus and picked the kids up at school, that's a whole day gone. Over time, I've worked out an approach that works best for me, and schedule special errands for this day, Friday. It cuts down on 'just popping out to --' trips for the rest of the week (I keep a running list of what I need to find, return and shop for during my next Friday trip and add to it as the week progresses - then I just grab the list as I head out the door on Friday morning) and lunch out on that day is my reward for getting through another week! I often meet friends and hang out, or call in at supermarkets not in my usual area to pick up their loss leaders. Reducing these little side trips also saves money. If I didn't schedule an Errands Day, I'd be going to and from constantly all week, wasting time, money and energy. Restricting my errands to one day per week (unless it is for something urgent or special, that is) forces me to think about a purchase well in advance, and helps me determine if I really need it or if I couldn't find it cheaper elsewhere. As it is, I savour my Fridays!


Grocery Shopping

I don't usually include my regular weekly shopping trip on Errands Day. This is mostly because our area starts their sales on a Monday and I'd already determined Friday works best for Errands Day for other reasons. Groceries are bought more locally than my Friday trips generally are and only require about an hour of my time, so I build it into the existing homekeeping duties of that day (more about that in future posts).

When working out the best time for your main shopping trip, factor in things like your husband's work schedule (does he like you to complete this while he's at work, or does he prefer to come with you? Don't laugh, it happens!), the day your grocery stores begin their sales, the day your main store has additional sales (some stores in my area bring out unadvertised sales on Thursday and Friday) and where your kids, if you have them, will be. You may prefer to slot in shopping for groceries on Errands Day - if you do, you'll be one up on me!


Day of Rest

In your week, there should be at least one day of rest. If you're a church-goer, naturally this would be Sunday or sometimes Saturday if you observe the Sabbath. Try not to schedule any major homekeeping tasks on this day. Your own definition of 'no work' will come into play, of course. You'll see from my own example below that I avoid most homekeeping but I do allow some 'wriggle-room' for things I consider to be 'interests' or 'fun things' - baking for the week ahead, for example, is tackled on Sundays. For some, this would be work, but for me, its more of a chance to goof off with my kids :)


Wash Day

I've toyed with the best way to do laundry for, oh, about a bazillion years. The system I've finally settled on is 100% flexible and will likely not fit with everyone's idea of perfection, but it works pretty well for us.

Our Wash Day is Saturday. This does NOT mean all laundry is left until Saturday. Not only would that be completely impossible to finish, but its also horrendously impractical. During winter when sunlight is at a premium (we're heading into the cooler months now down here), I need to be on the ball if I want to dry the clothes on the outside line. We don't have an inside clothes rack at the moment, and we try not to use the dryer, but life happens and sometimes the weather can't be helped. A full week's worth of laundry in one day? Good grief! No, Wash Day is reserved for things like towels, sheets, and work and school uniforms. Towels are done first and hung early to take advantage of a full day of sunlight (they take longer to dry), sheets next (because they're big and need lots of line space), and other bedding (things like throw rugs or the odd quilt) and school and work gear bring up the rear. Sometimes, if the last load doesn't go out on the line until the afternoon, I have to finish things off in the dryer (still far, far cheaper) and yes, this is several loads worth, but the only other homekeeping tasks I schedule on this day are the ironing (I rarely iron regular clothes until we need them, so this is set aside for Hubby's work shirts, which are ironed straight from the washing machine - and this can easily be slotted in while waiting for the next load to run through) and some minor yard work (also thrown in between loads).

So what about the rest of the laundry? Its incorporated into my Basic Daily Plan (more soon) and takes care of our everyday clothing and, depending on how industrious I am on any given day, some of what I might have otherwise left until Saturday. One load is started when I wake (generally the clothing) and then I reboot the wash during my morning housework block, hanging, folding and putting away as needed. If I start a second load, it means we've all been incredibly messy the day before, certain things (like jeans or brand new items) need a load of their own, or I'm getting a kick start on the weekend wash. Sometimes I miss days - and that's fine too. I just catch up over the next day or two. Laundry is just one of those things that never quits, unfortunately, LOL.

By my calculations, that leaves me four complete days in which to finish up the rest of the housework, with one day each taken out for Errands Day, Wash Day and Rest Day. This is where it gets interesting!

Take a walk around your home, noting each of the rooms/areas. Here's my list, to get you started:

• Main Bedroom & Robe
• Bedroom 2
• Bedroom 3
• Bedroom 4
• Bathroom
• Laundry Room
• Ensuite
• Kitchen
• Family Room
• Loungeroom & Office Area
• Entrance & Hall

You can see from this list that I have combined some rooms/areas. This comes into play later, when deciding which days to schedule each room or area on - and some areas are small or don't require much work. We have 11 main rooms/areas in our home, not including outside. Here's how I've spread them out in my Basic Weekly Plan:

(click to enlarge)

When deciding when to schedule all these tasks, you'll probably need to consider things like:

• Do you homeschool? (If you do, your Basic Weekly Plan will look entirely different to mine as I don't have my kids at home during the day)
• Does anyone in your family play sport? On which day? (Perhaps a Saturday morning game?)
• Do you volunteer or otherwise work outside of the home?
• Do you undertake middle-of-the-week church activities such as a lunchtime bible study or a ladies' group?
• Are there any other commitments during your week which could create a daytime scheduling conflict?
• Does your husband prefer certain things to be done on certain days? (For example, does he host a men's group on Thursday nights and would a spruce-up of the living room be better scheduled for that morning? Does he enjoy a full cooked breakfast on Saturdays and could you make batter etc the night before?)
• Do you entertain friends regularly? On which day?
  

...and so on. For my own example above, I thought about what our week normally looks like. Grocery shopping on Monday means a clean out of the fridge is appropriate on Sunday (though the bulk of my menu planning takes place reading the Saturday morning circulars, I usually take all weekend to finalise meals for the week ahead, and a Sunday clean-out gives me a 'heads-up' on leftovers that can be incorporated into the menu). The 'wet areas' are all scheduled for the same day (Tuesday) when I will already have the mop and similar cleaning gear out. Bedrooms 2, 3 and 4 (the kids' rooms) are all lumped in on the same day because (in theory!) the kids are responsible enough to clean their own rooms now - all I really have to do is dust, vacuum and change sheets, and three rooms' worth of that can easily be done in my housework block. Our kitchen and family room is an open-plan layout so tackling them on the same day makes sense. You get the idea!

When you've completed the first draft of your Basic Weekly Plan, post it somewhere obvious, like the fridge. Don't bother prettying it up on the computer - it's a waste of time. You'll be changing things around anyway, as you work your way through the first couple of weeks - some tasks will fit better on different days and you won't know which until you jump in and get your feet wet. You do NOT need this to be perfect straight up (I've fallen into that trap more often than I can count!) When you've settled into a nice rhythm, then you can print out a cute copy with graphics for your Home Management Binder or, as I like to do, laminate a copy to stick to the pantry or fridge door - where its harder to ignore, LOL.

In my Basic Daily Plan (coming soon!) I'll cover just how I make this all work day to day. Please don't misunderstand though - things get changed ALL THE TIME. Several weeks ago, for example, we dropped to an even more basic version of 'the bare basics' as I recovered (slowly!) from pneumonia. That's the nature of homemaking. There are other days when I'll have the time to slip in a short walk to a nearly small shopping centre (strip mall?) to return books to the library, pick up some loss leaders at the supermarket there, or visit the chicken butcher. Any of these plans are examples only.

Happy homemaking!