Laundry, Laundry

I've been asked many times about the laundry around here...how much is there...do I fold it...do the kids help...etc.? So I thought I'd show you how the laundry around here is done.

First...I have lovely new front load LARGE capacity washer and dryer set!!! They wash about twice as much as my old set did...makes the job way easier!

I try to put a load in to wash every morning. Sometimes I load it at night and then turn it on in the morning. I need to do about 3 loads a day to keep caught up. Some days I do more. I pull off all the sheets on the same day and do them. I put them back on the beds as they come out of the dryer...except for our bed which I do rotate two sets of sheets. Usually Sat. or Mon. is my day for sheets.

This is the laundry basket in our hallway. It takes about 2 days to get this full. It's a huge basket...can't really tell from the photo but at least Busy Guy and Mr. P could fit inside it! The 3 big boys clothes go in here along with towels and my items. The babies have a basket in the nursery for their clothes. I wash separate loads...the baby things together, the main basket things together and loads of towels alone. Cam has his own basket next to his dresser. Yes, Cam does his own laundry. I had to ask him to do this...I couldn't keep up...and this way he will know if his scrubs/socks/undies are clean when he needs them. I can't be to blame;)

When things come out of the dryer I put them onto my bed for folding. My bed is always covered in laundry. Usually at night after the kids go to bed I fold things. On a really tired night I have to push it off the end into baskets for the next day.

I have these baskets at the end of my bed waiting for folded clothes. Towels are folded onto my bed and then put into the linen closet. The first basket is for Tuba and Mr. P...in separate stacks. The next basket is Sis, Baby George and Busy Guy...the last basket is for my clothes. When the basket is full I take it to the room where it belongs and put it away. Then the basket is empty and I fill it up with dirty laundry and carry it back downstairs to start the process over again.

None of the kids are really old enough to help me yet. They could probably help with folding and putting away but I'm in survival mode and don't want to be slowed down;) If they can't find what they need in their closet they know to check their basket...and not to mess it up! Sis has had a few fun times of pulling everything out of the baskets and tossing it all around the room!!! I guess that's motivation for me to get it put away quicker. She also loves the sock basket! I have a little basket where I put the socks with no mate. I go through it once a week and match things up. Sis loves to throw the socks around like confetti on New Year's Eve.