Weekend household management tips?

amother

Bisque

Mon, Jun 22 2015, 2:03 pm

I have been having trouble on the weekend. I have a bunch of active/messy kids who are all young and the house gets very messy. Also I need to coordinate play dates (all over the neighborhood), snacks and seudah shlishis, and then bedtimes. Sunday is pandemonium all over again. Every Sunday morning I need to take care of dishes, tons of laundry, and grocery shopping. I need some kind of help but I don't know what to do. I feel like hiring a cleaning lady on Shabbos is a waste because the house is a war zone again on Sunday. Also it might take away from the taam of Shabbos. And I never see anyone hire a babysitter on Shabbos? Should I try to hire a standing Sunday babysitter and make her clean up as well? Has anyone had success with figuring all this out?

sky

Mon, Jun 22 2015, 8:21 pm

We eat seudah shlishis, early, before mincha. This way I can get the youngest into bed during mincha. and the older ones (7 and 9) are already in pjs in and winding down in time for havdala and can go straight to bed.
Because we eat seudah shlishis early a lot has to be put away before shabbos ends so that it won't spoil. This way I don't end shabbos with a huge mess in the dining room..
I don't go to sleep motzei shabbos until the dishes are washed, floor is swept and things are decent. (not spotless, my house is never spotless). Because the kids are already in bed, and hopefully sleeping, and I had time to unwind with a coffee before shabbos was over it isn't so overwhelming.
I try to keep other kids coming to my house - giving out lots of freeze pops, supervised backyard play, and big shabbos party. I don't take anyone all over for play dates.

zaq

Mon, Jun 22 2015, 9:00 pm

A messy house is the norm after Shabbos in a house with young children; get used to it. I don't see why you need to coordinate play dates "all over the neighborhood." Don't know how many kids you have, but there's no reason you can't have a policy of playdate rotation, one kid goes to a friend's house each week and everyone else stays home. Or have the kids' friends come to you if you can stand that. Or dh gets the job of escorting the kids to their friends' houses and you pick them up or vice versa. Or dh does both.

Why do you need to do all the laundry on Sunday? Why can't you do a little bit each day of the week?

Just because you "never see anyone hire a sitter on Shabbos" doesn't mean it's assur. Don't be a sheep, please--be your own woman. If you need a sitter on Shabbos and money is no object, go ahead and do so. Who cares what everyone else does? Their needs and priorities are not yours. If taking your kids all over town or playing with them all day is too much for you, I am sure you can find a responsible and energetic teen who would gladly do so for an agreeable sum.