Everyday Organizing for Busy Moms {Laundry and Dishes}

May is for Moms and Margaritas!!! Yay for May!!! A new month means new calendar pictures and a new post in the Everyday Organizing for Busy Moms series.  

I mentioned this on Instagram stories last week, but May is one of those months that just seems to FLY by without even realizing it. Between end of the year school stuff, end of season sports stuff, and just regular life it often feels like a whirlwind!  Keeping up with everyday chores like laundry and dishes might not seem like a big deal, but I've found that not keeping up with it is when you really get into trouble. This topic is really not exciting at all, but I thought I'd share a little about how I keep up with the laundry and dishes in the hopes that even one of these tips might help one of you. 

Laundry

 

1. I know some people like to wait and do all the laundry in one day, but I'm not one of those people. I have found that doing at least one load everyday is best for my family.  

2. In most cases, I wash everyone's clothes separately meaning I don't wash two of my kids clothes together. This makes it so much easier for folding and putting away because I don't have to figure out who's socks are who's and which pair of shorts belongs to which kid. 

3. When I fold clothes I always listen to an audio book.  I despise folding and putting away clothes, but when I'm listening to a book I hardly realize that I'm doing it and it makes the time go by so much faster. 

4. Speaking folding and putting away, I only put away mine and the Mr.'s. I'm happy to do my kids laundry for them, but they each put it away and have been doing so since a really young age. I have several laundry baskets so I put each person's clothes in their own basket and usually place it outside their bedroom door during the day. The rule in my house is you have to put it away sometime that day (before bed). If I don't enforce that they just keep the basket full of clothes in their room and dig through it when they are looking for something to wear.  Plus, I need the baskets back for the next round of laundry. 

5. Make your washer work for you when you aren't around.  I always set it to run when I'm doing something else or when I'm about to leave the house to run errands so I'm not sitting around waiting on it to finish.  Then when I get home I can throw things in the dryer.  Also, most newer washers have a delayed wash setting. I love this feature! If I don't want wet clothes sitting in the washer for hours I can time when I will be back home and set it on a delayed start so it is done right before I will be getting home. Sometimes I will also set it to begin during the night so it is done first thing in the morning and I can toss things in the dryer when I get up. 

6. There are a lot of items that I don't put in the dryer and instead air dry.  I used to find all sorts of crazy places to lay them to dry and then I got really smart and spent about $20 on THIS drying rack.  Why I hadn't done this before is beyond me, but my girls and I keep this thing in constant use. I lay items like swimsuits, sports bras, Lululemon, and other items I don't want to worry about shrinking on this and then often just toss them in the dryer for a few minutes after they are dry to "fluff" them before putting them away. 

Dishes 

1. Use the dishwasher!  The Mr. and I disagree on this, but I put just about everything in the dishwasher.  Big mixing bowls, Tupperware, pots/pans, all of it. I love the dishwasher and don't mind if a big bowl is taking up the spots that 5 plates could fit.  I'm not having to wash/dry it so I'm happy to load it up with everything that I can. 

2. Run your dishwasher every night. It's one of those tasks I usually do before going to bed or just after we finish dinner. I like to run it each night and unload it each morning, generally while the kids are eating breakfast. This way you aren't stuck in the middle of the day with a full dishwasher because if that happens you would either end up leaving dirty dishes in the sink or hand washing them. Instead, if you run it each night, unload each morning, and fill it up throughout the day it keeps the rhythm going nicely. 

I know this wasn't the most exciting topic, but a necessary one because it's something that all of us deal with.  I hope some of these tips helped some of you and if you have any tips to share, I'd love to hear them because let's be honest, the laundry and dishes aren't going away! 

EVERYDAY ORGANIZING FOR BUSY MOMS 

January {Keep a Family Calendar}

February {To-Do Lists} 

March {Time Pockets}

April {Declutter}

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How To Clean White Baseball Pants

Baseball season is back!  My little guy had his first game last weekend and they totally rocked it. The team won in a big way and he was excited to get the game ball!  

With baseball season back in full swing comes the constant cleaning of white baseball pants because he loves do do things like this...

And this..

And even if he isn't playing in a game he somehow ends up dirty! 

I love him to look nice and clean before he gets started though and love the look of white pants.  However, because he plays hard he always ends up with stains.  

I used to just wash the pants with a regular load because I had no idea there was even a possibility of getting them clean again. Then a friend of mine with older boys who play baseball told me how she cleaned her boys' pants and I have stuck with that method ever since.  

I have seen lots of different suggestions for getting white baseball pants clean, but this is how I do it in three easy steps! 

STEP 1 

First up I fill a large bowl or buckets with hot water and 1/2 cup of this White Brite by OUT.  I purchase it at my local grocery store, but it is also available online HERE. 

Then I put the pants in and soak them overnight.  You can do it for a shorter amount of time, but I like to let it sit for longer. 

Most of my friends use Iron Out by the same brand. I am convinced it is probably the same stuff just packaged differently.  

When I take the pants out from soaking sometimes they are clean, but if he has stains that are really set in like from where he was sliding or something it will look like this. 

STEP 2

Next I use what I consider to be the best stain removal product ever! Fels-Naptha is an old school bar soap and it is like a miracle worker.  It's around $1 at most stores and lasts a really long time.  

One time last summer the kids were playing a pick-up game after their real game had finished so he was already dirty, but then I look over and he's taken off both his shoes and his hat to use as a base.  I was so mad and didn't even know where to begin with this.

But Fels-Naptha to the rescue.  It gets anything clean! It takes a bit of elbow grease, but I scrub the stubborn stains on the pants with the Fels-Naptha and then they are ready for the last step. 

STEP 3

For the final step I just throw the pants in with some towels and wash on hot water.  I wouldn't wash with anything colored because of using the White Brite.  I'm always amazed because when they come out they look BRAND NEW. 

Edited to add: My fellow baseball mom told me last week that she was out of Iron Out and needed her boy's pants clean so she grated a bar of Fels-Naptha with an old cheese grater and soaked her pants with a cup of that and hot water.  She said they came out looking brand new!  It's a much cheaper option if you don't want to use the other product!

Do you have a trick for cleaning baseball pants?  If so, please share! 

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Making my least favorite chore a little easier {Dropps + A Giveaway}

We all have those household chores that you just despise, right?  If there is one chore that I could take off my to-do list it would be laundry.  I don't like any of it...the sorting, washing, drying, folding, and my very least favorite, the putting away.  Unfortunately, this is the one chore that is non-stop in most households and just when you think you get all caught up, there is another load waiting for you.

I know some people save up and do all of their laundry on one day, but I prefer to constantly have my washer/dryer working for me.  I do laundry every single day to stay on top of it.  I never leave the dryer running if we aren't at home, but I will start a load in the washer when I'm about to run errands so that when I'm back all I have to do is toss it into the dryer.  I also do laundry a lot at night.  Because our laundry room is upstairs near the kids' bedrooms, I'll start a load when I take the kids up to get ready for bed and by the time I finally have everyone tucked in it's ready to dry so I'll do at least another load then, too.  

Generally I do laundry by family member because I find it easier and faster to tackle putting it away.  I have started having the kids help put their laundry away so it is nice to have each of theirs separated for this.  I drop off the basket in Little Mama's room and she can put everything away independently, Boo-Boo knows where everything goes, but needs a little help to not just bunch it all up as he is putting it in drawers and Blondie falls somewhere in the middle of the two.

Because this everyday chore is something that won't be going away I have learned to just embrace it and try to find ways to make it just a little easier on me.  So, you can imagine how excited I was when we were contacted a few weeks ago by Dropps, a new company that is offering unit dose laundry cleaning products.  We got to try their new trail kit and let me just say, I'm hooked!

These pre-measured pacs of laundry detergent are so simple and easy to use.  You literally just toss it in and go.  I love that I don't need to worry about the giant laundry detergent jug anymore and less mess is definitely a plus.  Dropps dissolve completely and really clean the clothes well.  My kids have stains left and right and if Dropps can tackle those stains, I know it is working well.

Another big bonus for Dropps is that they were given the EPA's Safer Choice label.  Basically, that means they use safer chemical ingredients. I love knowing that I'm using products that are safe for my family and the environment, without giving up any of the cleaning power my laundry needs.

Since my babies were born I've always used a Free & Clear detergent for the whole family.  Dropps offers this, which is great for my kids with sensitive skin, but if you prefer scented detergent they have several options to choose from.  Also, they offer FREE SHIPPING from their site on ALL products.  How amazing!?!  Now you don't have to pick up heavy laundry detergent jugs on your shopping trip and instead this more convenient way of doing laundry can be delivered right to your doorstep...for free!  That's a win-win.

The fabulous team at Dropps wants to giveaway away a trial kit to one of our lucky readers!  You will get to choose from the Bestseller Trail Kit, Scent + Dye Free/Sensitive Skin Trial Kit or Baby Trial Kit.  To enter the giveaway, see the rafflecopter below.  The winner will be announced the week of August 24th.

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