Laundry: The Never Ending Story…

 

A recent Facebook post inspired us to write about a mundane task that every person has to face on a daily basis…laundry!  If you have more than one person living in your home, you are likely to experience the constant flow of clothing from hamper to washer to dryer to hamper to drawers/closet back to hamper, washer, dryer…OK you get the point!

 

So, what’s an IDW to do?  You only have so many hours in the day and let’s be honest, doing laundry is neither living your best life or pursuing your passions…yet it has to get done!  Here’s a list of different suggestions our loyal community came up with that we wanted to share:

 

• Re-frame your perspective on laundry and make it a more relaxing/enjoyable experience.  Put on some music or your favorite podcast or even that show you wanted to binge watch and fold away! Make this your weekly “zen” time and enjoy the process.
• Make it a date with your partner!  Do the laundry together, enjoy the time you have to hold a conversation, tell each other jokes, throw socks at each other in a playful way, etc.

  

• Outsource it to your kids!  Even the youngest kids can help with all stages of laundry. For the 5 and under crowd, have them help sort lights and darks and put away their own clothes.  For older kids, provide them an individual laundry basket, teach them the steps and empower them to do their own.
• Wash each person’s laundry separately to avoid extra sorting after the dryer.
• Wash all laundry together to save time, water, detergent, etc.
• Offer incentives to your children to do extras like sheets and towels…incentives can be monetary or something potentially more valuable (i.e. extra screen time!)
• Do one load every day.  Make it a habit!
• Hire someone to sort, fold and put away. This may be a financial extravagance, but if you have the resources to do it, it might be worth putting it in your budget to save time, frustration, etc.
• If you find yourself with multiple loads of laundry needing to be washed all at once, head to your local laundromat and knock it all out simultaneously.  Use the time at the laundromat to catch up on your favorite book!

 

No matter how you slice it, laundry is just something that has to get done.  When we focus on ways to make it a more positive, enjoyable experience, we feel better overall.  If you have additional suggestions/tips on how to improve the laundry situation, please share with us!