WMW: Five Things on My To-Do List

I know, I know. Technically, it's Thursday. Wednesday was just way too busy to get this in [and i'm taking time away from packing up for a long weekend - my college roomie's getting married this weekend! - to write this], so I'm writing it now while I'm waiting for the washer to finish.

For yesterday's prompt, I chose what five things are always on my to-do list. No matter how much I clean up, I always feel like my apartment's dirty. It's never filthy, and the current condition it's in [i last cleaned over the weekend] would suffice if it was just me. But, it's not just me [obviously]...and I want this place to be as spotless as possible for JJ. I know it's impossible to keep this place completely clean, but I can at least keep it mostly clean, right?

In order to do that, these things are ALWAYS on my To-Do list:

1. Do the dishes. I cook at least three nights out of the week [most weeks], so there are always dishes that need to be washed. I hate letting them pile up and then having to do one big load at one time, so I usually wash dishes every 1-2 nights. Sometimes, if I know I'll be doing a lot of cooking and using a lot of dishes, I'll just load the dishwasher and run it...but for the most part, I hand wash. I know, I know - I probably waste more water washing than running the dishwasher. Most weeks though, I'd have to let dishes pile up ALL week in order to have a full load, and I just don't want to do that. I will admit, washing dishes isn't as tedious since I quit having to wash bottles last year.

2. Fold laundry. I do laundry 2-3 times a week...but I hate folding laundry. I'll do it, but I usually wait until it piles up and then fold all at once. I also iron JJ's clothes [personal preference], so I always have a pile waiting on me to iron and put up.

3. Clean up toys. JJ's toys are everywhere. For the most part, he'll put his toys away - but usually, only his favorite toys get put up by him. That leaves the rest for me to get. This doesn't usually take long, but I still have to do it every night until he figures out he needs to put ALL his toys away.

4. Prepare for the next day. I don't do this as often as I should, but I try to get things ready for the next day the night before. I usually bring breakfast with me [usually a piece of fruit or a breakfast bar], along with a coffee mug since my boss makes coffee just about every day. I also have to make sure JJ doesn't need anything for daycare, get our clothes ready and, if needed, pull our jackets out. This takes a good 5-7 minutes in the morning, which is when my time is most precious...so getting this done the night before is a huge help.

5. Wipe down the counters. JJ gets his hands on everything - and can now reach the counters on his tip toes. I do a lot on the counters [cook, organize etc.], so it's important that I keep them clean so that he doesn't catch anything. I usually do this after I wash dishes...but even on nights I don't wash dishes but do cook, I wipe the counters down.

I'm sure there are other things on my list, but these are the five that I always, always have to do just about every night. The job of a working mom - and a mom in general - never ends!