Going Green…kind-of

I’ve been thinking about this post for a while, but I have also been hesitant. Mostly, I think, because I feel like it’s a bit of me tooting my own horn, so to speak. I am proud that we’ve been making more of an effort to “go green” where we can.

A huge first step for us was in cutting out the paper plates – for a while there we were using them all the time. And even with that, we still didn’t feel like we could keep up with the dishes and cleaning, etc. But since DH got his job, we decided that we had better come up with a workable (and flexible) schedule for cleaning. (Keep in mind that while we are fairly clean people, we are terrible with dealing with the clutter. We’ve been working on it, but still…) Here it is:

• Sundays: Do laundry, as much as possible (we’ve just switched to an eco-friendly and non-toxic detergent and dryer sheet)
• Mondays: Fold laundry. For those of you who live by yourselves or are only responsible for one or two people, this doesn’t seem like much. But for 5, more than half of that kids (who clean their rooms by dumping ANY clothes in the laudry!), this is a huge, huge task. Just sorting and folding socks takes hours upon hours. Okay, perhaps not, but at least 20 minutes.
• Tuesdays: Clean the bathrooms – this is not a scrub down of every surface, but just a light cleaning. Also, we do a “floor” rescue here, putting away toys, dustbusting as necessary, and having the elder two clean in their rooms for 10 minutes.
• Wednesdays: Menu plan for the entire week and shop. Sunday planners will be confused why we do this on Wed night, but when we planned on Sundays, we’d end up back at the store for the following Shabbat. By Wed night, we have a sense of what meals we’re having at home, what company, and therefore what we want to make. I also tend to do my Shabbat baking on Wed, along with any soup-making. Also, we clean out the fridge, throwing away anything that isn’t good anymore.
• Thursdays: Serious floor cleanup, including vaccuuming, all rooms. DH usually handles this while I’m cooking for Shabbat, although if I’m waiting on something in the oven I’ll go help.
• Fridays: Any last Shabbat preparations, setting things up, also mopping the kitchen floor (if possible, I do this Thurs night).
• Sat nights/Motzei Shabbat: General toy pickup in living and dining rooms (often this gets pushed off until Sunday)
• Everyday: Clean off dining room table, check & take out garbages, do dishes, pack lunches.
  

We’ve now been doing this for about 2.5 weeks, and while I feel like I’m cleaning a lot, it does seem to be working. I’ve been trying to find time for other little projects (like cleaning off the back porch, reorganizing our cleaning closet – and getting rid of all those toxic cleaner!, cleaning out our coat closet – perhaps it can be used for coats?, cleaning the inside of the microwave, etc). These certainly take the back burner when it comes to priority, but I’m trying.

The next biggest question for me is, do I do away with paper for Passover? I always feel a little guilty using as much paper as we do, but dealing with dishes was always annoying for the 8 days. I lean towards continuing it for now, at least until we’re settled in a more permanent location, but it still bothers me.
BTW, if anyone is interested in the cleaning supplies that I’m using, I’m so willing to tell you all about them – off the blog.