Pages

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Why I Have a Cleaner House with a Dog

The day we brought Scout home, we were unprepared.  
He was definitely a spontaneous decision.
We knew we would get a dog eventually, but I wasn't ready yet.
Applesauce had just passed away and my heart just wasn't ready.
And actually, I still wonder if my heart is ready, because I keep calling Scout, "Apple."
It's rough...but Scout has definitely worked his way into my heart...so I just hope that there's room for two of them.

When I saw Scout's picture online, I knew I had to have him.
We saw him and had possession of him within 36 hours.
We had nothing for him...Tyler actually went to Petco on the way home to get a kennel, food, treats, and toys for him.

When we got home with him, we realized how many little things were on the floor.
I knew then that I had to be a better housekeeper.
A few days later, after he decapitated his duck and started chewing on the fur of it, I knew that I would have to vacuum a couple times a week.
So I knew that I needed to come up with a system.

Besides, I was so tired of doing chores on the weekend.
I wanted to be able to enjoy the weekend without having to work.
So I came up with a list of all the things that needed to be done on a weekly basis.


Then I made a rough outline of when I could do them throughout the week.  I rearranged some stuff to make sure it all went well together.  I only scheduled a few tasks each night so that I could get them all done within an hour (with the exception of laundry).  I printed out my schedule and laminated it.


I hung it below our family calendar so that I could utilize the dry erase marker.  I love to-do lists.   I love lists in general.  I love the feeling of marking things off!  

I have been using this schedule for 2 and a half weeks now, and our house is SO much cleaner than it was when we didn't have a dog.  So I guess we can say that Scout keeps me accountable to cleaning. :)



Who knew?!  
P.S.  We love Scout so much...he is the sweetest little puppy.  Ornery as all get out, but sweet nonetheless.